Page 79 of Just Between Us

I’m speechless for a second. I thought I was being discreet. “If it makes you feel any better, I was watching Kai too.”

He looks up at me and I can see the sadness in his smile. “We should probably talk about that,” he says. “Have you spoken to him?”

I shake my head. Kai ended this because he wasn’t happy. I think I focused on him saying that instead of trying to understand it. We all pushed the boundaries too far and we fell head-first into complicated feelings. Feelings that I’ve barely begun to deal with.

“Me too. I wanted to respect his space, I guess,” Levi says.

We’re quiet for a moment then I take a quiet breath. “In the spirit of being honest,” I say.“I like him, Levi. As in I think I like him as more than just someone we fuck.”

It’s the only way to describe it. As disconcerting as it is for me—I like Kai. He’s taken root somewhere inside me and those roots seem to have only dug deeper since he’s been gone.

Levi’s eyes widen. “Oh, huh,” he says. “I like him too. I know I do, and I think I have from the beginning. I think I was afraid of what that would mean for us.”

I can’t pinpoint when my feelings began but it’s like one morning I woke up and I saw him snuggled into Levi’s body and all I felt was warmth. No hint of jealousy or annoyance. It felt right. Normal.

My feelings for him developed so slowly, and so naturally. Maybe it’s why I didn’t recognise it because falling for Levi was like rushing forward at an unimaginable pace but falling for Kai has been like lying down on a soft pillow after a long day and drifting off without even realising it.

“Are you saying you would want to give it a shot?” Levi asks.

I think about what that would do to Levi and I’s dynamic, but we were with Kai for three months and nothing changed. If anything, watching Levi care about someone else only made me fall for him more. Levi and I might be a little messed up, but I think Kai balanced us out a little. He made us happy in different ways. I want him to be mine—ours just as much as I want Levi.

“I think so,” I say. “But it’s not up to us only.”

Levi’s smile falls slightly. “I think I know why he said that and why he ended things.”

We have dinner together, laughing and talking. It’s so easy to slip back into our dynamic. Tomorrow, I’ll go back to thinking about Nick, and now Adam but tonight, I feel way too happy and excited to be pissed off.

I walk into the bathroom and Levi is shirtless, his sweats low on his hips. My eyes follow the trail of his tattoo on his back down to his arms hungrily and unadulterated desire curls in the pit of my stomach as I look at his taut body. He’s slightly leaner than I am and despite seeing him like this all the time, I can never get used to it. There is always that strong urge to touch.

“Hi,” Levi says, leaning against the edge of the sink and crossing one ankle over the other. “I was going to take a bath. Want to join?”

“Just came to brush my teeth,” I say, walking over to my side of the sink.

I spot Kai’s spare toothbrush. I’ve stared at it every day.

My eyes meet Levi’s through the mirror. He smiles and steps behind me, an arm curling around my waist. “You sure?” he whispers against the shell of my ear. Goosebumps trail up my skin. It’s been two weeks since we’ve had sex, and my cock is immediately awake at the hint of it.

I spin to face him and pull his body against me, slotting my thigh between his legs. My hands slip down his waist and onto his ass, pulling him flush against me. Levi visibly shivers.

“I’m sure,” I tell him. “I think I have something else in mind actually.”

He lifts an eyebrow. “What’s that?”

I move my thigh right against the crotch of his sweatpants and he lets out a breathy sigh. He hums dreamily, pushing further onto my thigh. I feel his cock harden against me. “You’re so hot, Cole. I can’t believe you’re mine.”

I laugh. “Wow, you’re so lucky.”

Levi moans into my shoulder. “I know.” He looks up. “Show me just how lucky I am?” His eyes glint playfully.

I know what he wants but I have other thoughts in mind. I move quickly, switching our positions so that he’s leaning against the sink counter. I sink to my knees onto the white marble and Levi’s eyes widen, a quiet gasp leaving his mouth.

“I can do that,” I tell him, pulling down his sweatpants and his cock springing free.

He’s half hard already, flushed cock against his muscled tan thigh.

“You should fuck me,” Levi says.

I look up at him, a teasing smile on my lips. “You don’t want my mouth?”