Page 43 of Why Not Both?

Then I look down as a black, fluffy thing winds around my legs with a nudge and a purr.

“Well,” he says, handing me my glass. “You are officially Abby approved.”

“Abby or Abyss?”

“Either. Both. Her name is Abyss, but I tend to call her Abby more often.” He bends to pick up the cat. “Or your majesty.”

She’s pure black with long, soft fur and bright yellow eyes.

“She’s so pretty,” I say, petting her head. She purrs louder, leaning into my caress, accepting it as her due.

“She’s the queen of this house. I’ll take you up to the roof later to see her outdoor space. Spencer helped me build it two summers ago, just after I moved in.”

Derek is always sort of charming in that ready-to-have-a-good-time kind of way. But in his own house, holding his fluffy black cat, talking about her outdoor space that he built, I feel like I’m seeing the real Derek for the first time. His charismatic exterior is just a front for a marshmallow-soft interior.

We move into the living room where everyone is seated around a table, drinks and snacks laid out, the black box of cards in the middle. My eyes are drawn immediately to Spencer who has his back to me, an arm along the back of one of the empty chairs, legs stretched out in front of him under the table.

“Lis! You’re here!” Adalie says, jumping up to wrap me in a hug. “Derek really dropped the ball on this one.”

I hug her back, Spencer’s eyes finding mine over her shoulder. My breath catches in my chest at the look he gives me—one full of promise and heat that I crave but can’t have. Then he turns back to the table, letting me free. Adalie returns to her seat, pulling me with her and forcing me into the spot next to Spencer. His arm drops from the back of the chair, and he offers me a smile. His expression has cooled, so I no longer feel like sliding into his lap and making out with him. But the idea is there, just under the surface.

Derek hands me a pile of cards and we begin. Or at least, I begin. Everyone else has been playing the whole hour I was getting ready. Adalie is a little drunk already and Vic explains that she’s a lightweight and has been put on time out. I’m glad to see Vic out and loosened up. She always seems to be on, never letting herself have a moment to decompress.

“So, what did we pull you away from, Lis?” Derek asks after he reads out his black card and everyone decides what to give him.

“I wasn’t doing anything. Just trying to figure out if I wanted to read a book or watch a show.”

My glance drifts to Spencer, waiting for him to announce that I’d been in a bath when he called. But he says nothing, focusing much harder on his hand of cards than he needs to.

“You’ve been doing an awesome job at work,” Vic says, handing over her card. “You’ve really hit the ground running.”

“Drink!” Adalie says with a grin.

Vic rolls her eyes and drinks from a bottle of craft beer.

Adalie turns to me. “Since we work together, it’s so easy to fall into work discussions. So if anyone brings it up, they have to take a drink.”

“Fair rules. What do you guys talk about instead?”

“Anything goes,” she says. “Nothing off limits.”

“Nothing? I can ask super rude and personal questions?”

“Anything,” she confirms.

“But,” Spencer says, pulling my attention back to him. “Anything you ask, be prepared to have it asked back to you.”

Our gazes linger on each other for just a moment longer than I probably should have let happen. Then I snap back to the rest of the group.

“Well, let’s start with an easy one then,” I say, selecting a card and handing it to Derek. “How long have you all known each other?”

“You know Spencer and I met when we were practically babies,” Vic says. “These two joined us in university.”

“We did our MBAs together,” Derek says as he picks up the cards, shuffling them. “Became friends during one of the classes,”

“One class?” I ask.

“It was intense,” Adalie says.

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