Page 38 of Just Between Us

Like this, wrapped in my arms, even if I’m only a few months older than him, he looks so much younger.

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” Levi asks, voice heavy with sleep.

“Okay, with what?”

“Kai.”

Oh. That’s what he feels guilty about. He’s enjoying what we’re doing with Kai, but I am too. Clearly, I find Kai attractive enough to fuck as well. He’s sweet—so different from Levi and I.

“Levi, we’re having fun. You know I’d say it if I wasn’t happy.”

He gazes up at me for a second, but he can barely keep his eyes open. I kiss him again and slowly watch him drift. I lay there for a while, watching his lips twitch here and there and feeling his chest rise and fall in my arms. He’s so beautiful, I think I would burn the entire world down if I ever got the slightest sense that he wanted me to.

It’s midnight when my grandmother calls and I slip out of bed, making my way to my office.

“Hey Nanny,” I answer.

“Cole, my sweetheart, how are you?”

My mother’s parents live in upstate New York. I was fourteen when the fire happened and I ran to them, staying until after I graduated university. I only came back to London because they asked me to, and I owed them too much not to say yes.

“I’m great,” I tell her, realising how much I mean it. “I’m sure you heard the good news. We signed the contract on the new developments today.”

“Was your brother there?” she asks.

I sigh, running a hand through my hair. “He was.”

She hums quietly but says nothing else, launching into questions about work and Levi instead. When we end the call, I stand in my office, looking at the shelves of books that stand against the walls. I walk over to the left bookshelf where all my favourite books sit and pick up one before pulling out my phone and clicking on Kai’s name.

Me: Found the perfect book for you. Can’t wait for you to read it. Hope you picked out something good for me?

His response is instant, like he knew I was about to message him.

Kai: I have. You’ll love it. Good night, Cole :)

There’s a smiley face at the end that makes me frown for a second. Are we friends with Kai? There was no boundary against it, but I don’t know how I feel about texting him personally. Usually, Levi asks him to come over. I look at the smile on his face again, and then the book in my hand.

I realise I want him to like it.

Me: Sleep well, Kai.

Chapter Eleven: Kai

“Hey,” Jenna says, surfacing from her room in pyjamas to join me in our small living room and kitchen. “Another late night?”

It’s Saturday and we both slept in. It’s already one in the afternoon and my eyes are still blurry with sleep, the soft patter of rain outside making me want to burrow back into my blankets.

“Nope,” I say. “I was safely tucked in bed by ten last night.”

It’s true. I last saw Levi and Cole two nights ago, but I have been spending a lot of time with them or under them at least. It’s been exactly four weeks since the arrangement began and even though I’m a lot more bruised and a lot more exhausted than I’ve ever been, it feels good—easy.

“Things going well then?” Jenna asks, pouring some coffee into the fancy French press she insisted we buy. I’ll never admit it, but she was right.

“They are,” I say coyly.

She’s quiet for a moment, letting the hot water steep. I can tell she wants to say something and it’s nothing good.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” she asks. “What if something goes wrong?”

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