Page 79 of The Nerd & the Ex-Con

I couldn’t stop grinning, so it might as well be a special skill. I rolled out of bed and stretched. “Jay, will you chill out? I’ve never been late before. They won’t fire me.”

Jay made a choking sound. “Did you just tell me to chill out? Me? The man who invented chill. Scott, now you have me worried.”

“Worried about what? I’m up.”

“You’re up all right.”

I followed his gaze to my hard-on, which tented the front of my pajamas. “Uff, that’s not for you.” I twisted my body. “Shoo! I’m late, and you’re going to make me even later.”

“I’ll get the coffee going.”

“Thanks!”

I dashed off to the bathroom and went through my routine, but I was slow getting ready in the mornings. I usually got up early for this reason. If I moved any faster, I always felt like I was forgetting something. It didn’t help that my mind kept going to Griff and how much fun we’d had last night. The dinner, the sex, the movies, the sex. Oh god, the sex.

I tried talking myself out of it, but in the end, I grabbed my phone, snapped a pic of me naked in the shower, and sent it to Griff with a good-morning GIF. Turning the water on cold, I prayed the frigid temperature would work to keep my morning stiffy under control. At least it helped me to hop out of the shower quickly.

Thank god I’d done my laundry and ironed over the weekend, so I had a clean, crisp shirt to wear. I slipped into my clothes, brushed my hair, and dashed down the stairs. Yup, I was late, but I’d sent an email to my supervisor. After years of working for the bank, I was counting on them to cut me some slack this once.

“Finally, he emerges,” Jay said as I entered the kitchen. “Do you want breakfast or just coffee?”

He had banana nut muffins on the table. I inhaled deeply, and my stomach rumbled. No way could I make it through the day without eating after last night. I might pass out.

“I’ll have one of the muffins.” I put my messenger bag on the table. “Might as well eat it here. I sent an email saying I would be late today.”

“I gotta say, Scottie, I’m intrigued.” He placed my favorite Dungeons and Dragons stainless steel coffee mug in front of me.

“By what?” I took a sip of the piping-hot coffee. Just the way I liked it. I grabbed a muffin and bit into it.

“Let’s see.” Jay sat across from me. “Not only did you come home after two this morning, but you also spent over an hour talking on the phone. This coming from the same guy who gave himself a ten-o’clock curfew during the weekdays. I don’t know what to say, Scottie. Should I be concerned?”

“Aren’t you the one always telling me to live a little?”

“Yeah, but believe it or not, I look up to you as my moral compass. What am I supposed to do now when you’re going rogue? We can’t depend on me to be the responsible one.”

“Who knows? It might do you some good. Why aren’t you dressed for work?”

He fell silent.

I groaned. “Jay, don’t tell me you got fired.”

“I still got the pizza job, so technically, I’m still working.”

“That was supposed to be extra money in your pocket. Seriously, Jay, it isn’t healthy for you to work a new job every other month.”

“Be careful of the way you’re judging me. You’re just a few late-night booty calls away from having to find a new job too.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.” I gulped down the coffee, scalding my tongue, but it was worth hurrying up to get out of there. Jay scrutinizing my life and giving me advice wasn’t something I was used to. That was my job.

He gestured at the half-eaten muffin on my plate. “Eat up.”

I munched on the sweet treat, but the flavor was lacking. Not a fault of the muffin but the way Jay was looking at me.

“I’ll be fine,” I said.

“I want you to be. I’m even happy you’re seeing someone again, but maybe take it slower. Remember what happened the last time you fell in love? Don’t give your heart like that again unless you can depend on this guy.”

Could I depend on Griff? I glanced at my phone screen. Fudge, why hadn’t he responded to my naked picture? Maybe I should delete it? Was I in over my head?

---