Looking at the two of them now, it made so much sense. They were both great talkers, personable guys, and very good-looking. In fact, Chase and Emmett hanging out made a lot more sense than Chase hanging out with me.
Something inside me deflated like a popped balloon.
“My favorite one is the apple turnover,” Chase said, opening one of the boxes.
“That one’s always been my favorite, too,” Emmett said with a smile. “Have you ever tried making them at home?”
“Yes, and it failed miserably,” Chase said. “It wasn’t flaky enough.”
“The secret is to just get pre-made puff pastry,” Emmett said. “It freezes well, and no one would ever know.”
“Very sly,” Chase offered.
I bit the inside of my cheek. I kept waiting for a moment to join in the conversation, but it didn’t come. I had never baked much or anything at home before, and as Emmett and Chase started talking about trendy restaurants down in Denver, I was fully lost.
The two of them seemed to get along like old friends.
“Adam!” Charlie called out as he appeared, coming in from the back deck. “Carla is looking for you in the backyard.”
“Be right there.”
As I walked through the house I heard the sound of Emmett laughing at something Chase must have said, and a pang of jealousy hit me in the chest.
And I realized all at once what had happened. The one thing that I really, really had been trying to avoid. I’d been nervous about Chase since he’d watched me come the other night, nervous about what clothes I wanted to wear around him today, and nervous when he’d arrived.
And now I wasjealousof him getting along so well with a fancy businessman?
It could only mean one thing.
I had a full-blown crush on Chase.
A crush that had crept up on me like a lion striking prey, quickly and viciously. And if there was anything I’d learned about crushes, it was that I fell too hard and too fast. IfI’d learned anything about Chase, it was that he didn’t do relationships, and didn’t let himself fall foranyone person. He liked to play the field. To keep his options open. And he could flirt with anybody like a goddamned pro.
In other words, exactly the kind of person that should be off-limits for a crush.
I stepped into the backyard and pulled out my phone to check it before going to find Carla.
I froze when I saw a notification from twenty minutes ago—right before Chase had arrived.
It was from him. And it was enough to drag me right back into wanting more, right when I knew I shouldn’t.
Chase Blau: So when can I film you again?
Chase Blau: Because it’s been all I can think about.
13
CHASE
“Something’s up. Spill,” I said to Adam the moment the front door closed. The rest of the crew had just packed up and left for the day. Adam was in his dining room, breaking down a couple of the pink pastry boxes that I’d brought in this morning.
He looked back at me as I leaned on the archway that led into the dining area, giving me a doe-eyed, innocent look.
“What do you mean?”
I lifted my brows. “You know exactly what I mean.”
I watched as he swallowed, slowly looking like he’d been caught in the act of something awful. “I’m sorry for what happened the other night. If you’re worried about me wanting more from you, you don’t have to. I can control myself, and I’m not going to expect anything from you just because I jerked off in front of you.”