Page 16 of Just Between Us

Levi smiles. “You have to repeat that to Kez, Anant’s girlfriend. She’ll be ecstatic.” He turns to look at a table a few feet away from us. There are at least five people around it, chatting enthusiastically but my eyes gravitate towards Cole. In front of us, Levi says we should come meet everyone, so we follow.

When we reach the table, my eyes are instinctively pulled to Cole again. He’s in a green shirt that makes his eyes appear brighter and tonight, he doesn’t look quite as dark and stormy as he usually does. Instead, he’s laughing with a beautiful woman with golden blond braids that stretch down her arms.

The conversation stops, eyes landing on us, but I can only see Cole. Jade green eyes assess me and heat spreads down my neck.

What is it about him—about both of them—that makes me feel like I don’t know my own name? Sure, they are hot, but I’ve seen hot guys. Connor is hot. James was too but with Levi and Cole, it’s like my brain stops working.

“Anant, Kez, meet Kai and Jenna,” Levi says.

The girl with braids next to Cole is the first to smile. “Hi,” she says with a wide grin. “Glad you could make it. The more the merrier.”

Anant shoots us a mock salute and smiles. “Kai, Jenna. Great to meet you. You’ll have to take a celebratory drink with me. Twenty-nine doesn’t come around every day.”

Kez rolls her eyes next to him but it’s cute. “That’s how birthdays usually work, babe.”

Anant gives her a loving smile, leaning in for a kiss. Kez indulges him and pecks him lightly before turning back to us. “So, anyone up for a drink?”

A round of tequila shots appears from nowhere and Anant gives a celebratory toast. I feel a little looser once it’s down my throat and when my eyes fall on Cole again, I’m a lot less apprehensive.

“You owe me a book,” I tell him.

Cole’s lips twitch. “You were planning on reading here?”

It’s meant to trip me up, but I don’t let him. The shot has me feeling a little too confident and instead, I feel myself smile. “I’m sure I could have found a quiet corner here somewhere.”

Cole’s lips twist into a smirk but before he can say anything, Anant shouts for more shots. The room around us erupts in cheers but I know my limits. Jenna beams next to me and whispers in my ear, “This is insane. I can’t believe you are friends with these people.”

I gaze at Levi and Cole. Are they my friends now? Me being here must mean I am and yet I’ve had some less than platonic thoughts about them. It’s not right. I shouldn’t think of them that way, so I tear my gaze away from them to Jenna, grinning and bumping her shoulder.

The music picks up around us, a sultry deep house, the kind that plays in the club scene of a movie. Kez stands from her seat between Cole and Anant and looks at Jenna and I, “Do you want to dance? We can leave these three to be boring.” She lands her eyes on Anant, Levi, and Cole when she says that.

“Oh, I’ll be dancing,” Anant declares, standing and taking Kez’s hand.

I’d like to think I have a bit of rhythm thanks to my mother’s genes, but the way Kez moves against Anant is something to marvel at. Her blonde braids splay around her, creating an almost hypnotic pattern.

“Jesus,” Jenna mutters. “Are people allowed to be that hot?”

I grin at her. Before Marie, Jenna was somewhat of a player. Her being a personal trainer with an insane body and perfectly blue eyes made her the object of many women’s desires. I can’t count the number of women I had messaging me asking if Jenna hated them or why she wouldn’t call them. Meeting Marie was as big a blessing for me as it was for her.

“You think Marie would be into having a third?” I joke.

She punches me and I laugh but something has me turning my head to look at Levi and Cole. Their heads are close together, stuck in deep conversation, Levi smiling, eyes clearly full of love. I tear my gaze away, swallowing down the weird dryness in my mouth.

After a few songs, Kez pulls us towards the bar area. The dancers still float up in the sky and more people have filtered into the party. Excited murmurs buzz over the music, old friends reuniting and new friendships forming. Jenna and I order margaritas, sticking to the tequila, and Kez picks a lavender spritz.

“So, what do you two do?” she asks, sipping her purple-coloured drink.

“I’m a personal trainer,” Jenna says.

Kez’s eyes brighten. “No way. Really? I have been searching for a personal trainer for months!”

“She’ll kill you,” I say, taking a sip of my drink.

Jenna and I went to the gym this morning and she made me hold a plank with a plate on my back for a minute.

“Kai’s dramatic,” Jenna says. “He can’t handle a tiny ten-kilogram plate on his back for five seconds.”

Kez laughs. “I need someone who can kick my ass. I have a few friends who would love to meet you. Kai, do you mind?”

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