Page 88 of Muted

My brows drop, confused. “What are you talking about?”

“Vance,” he chokes out. “And Susu.” He’s pleading with me to understand, but I don’t want to consider anything beyond them just practicing together.

“Spell it out for me, because my head doesn’t want to go anywhere dark right now.” I fortify myself to learn that Vance has made another move on my girl…notmy girl, yet. The last thing I need to do is have an over-the-top reaction, but I hate the idea that she’s interested in him over me. Selfish? Maybe, but here we are.

Chaz takes a deep breath and then tells me what he saw. “Without going into details, I watched them together. They didn’t fuck, but close enough.”

Inhaling loudly through my nose, my head rears back. “What the fuck does ‘close enough’ mean? Did you stop them?”

He reaches up behind his head, scratching at his scalp absently. Shit, he’s really bothered by what he saw, and my stomach sinks.Have I lost my chance with her? Why Vance?

“Nooo,” he drags out. “I didn’t stop it. Iwatchedit happen.” Meeting my eyes, he looks slightly embarrassed when he admits, “They knew I was watching.”

That makes me pause. Cocking my head to the side, I study him. Realization dawns on me, and I point at him with accusation. “You’re okay with them hooking up! What the hell, Chaz? I thought we talked—”

“Wedidtalk about it!” he snaps back, interrupting me as he throws his hands out to his side. “But, and I say this while hating every fucking word I’m saying, they seem to have a pretty strong connection. She left me a note just before she took off for a few days and mentioned that there’s a whole different side to him we don’t know. She’s not tied down to anyone, so who am I to say who she chooses to be with? I truly don’t think she’s made a decision, though.”

I suck in a quick breath, then blow out a strained gasp of air, a sense of panic and disappointment racing through me. “Why?” I bite out my question, wanting to demand every fucking detail of how he touched her,wherehe touched her, and how the fuck I can make sure it doesn’t happen again.

When my friend hesitates to share, I let out a low growl in warning.

“Fine. Look, I’m not trying to keep shit from you. I’m debating what I should share because there’s alsoherprivacy to consider, which she has a right to. But for transparency’s sake, I’m going to be crass. After Vance ate her out across his piano, I touched her. Tasted her. And she let me. That’s not a woman who’s decided on someone. That’s a woman who is interested in multiple people and is trying to figure her shit out.”

I blink.

Then I blink a few more times.

I want to scream and rage. Punch him for touching her, but the words that come out of my mouth surprise me. “What did she taste like?”

He snorts, shaking his head. “Sweetest dessert I’ve ever had. Fucking amazing.” It comes out like he’s grumbling in frustration about it. All I can do is wonder what it was like. If she tastes anything like her mouth, I’d fucking die from drowning in her.

As my brain comes back into working order, everything he’s said comes together, creating the full picture for me. “Wait, so she let you watch her with Vance, then touch her… in front of Vance?”

He doesn’t need to answer for me to know the truth. It’s written all over his face. I expect to see a bit of shame, but there’s none. Chaz looks like he’s lost in the memories, smiling at whatever moment he’s remembering.

“I assume you’re going to make a move on her as well?” I don’t think I’m upset by this idea, more just resigned at this point. It’s a matter of knowing what I’m getting myself into. The military always taught me I needed to adapt to quickly changing scenarios; isn’t this the same thing?

He starts to shrug, but when I narrow my eyes at him, he drops his shoulders in defeat. “I am. There’s something about her that just… I don’t know. I feel a connection. We’ve spent a lot of alone time together and after today, I can’t walk away.”

I consider the idea of him and Susu together and find that I’m not against it. Throwing Vance into the mix, though, has me seeing red.

“I’ll be honest. I can deal with you and me. In fact, I find that kind of awesome in a weird sort of kinky way. I don’t love the idea of Vance, though.”

Chaz sighs, leaning against my counter. “I don’t know how I feel about it. But for now, we don’t get to voice an opinion. Can we both just agree tonotget on her about that shit? I think she’s got a lot more going on than we know, so adding extra drama should be avoided.”

“For now,” I tell him. Maybe this won’t be a bad thing. Let her see her options and go from there. Do I love it? Absolutely not, but he’s right. She’s a grown ass woman who is allowed to date as long as commitments haven’t been made. She also seems to have a ton on her shoulders, which I’m bound and fucking determined to figure out.

Eyeing my friend, who looks deep in thought, I ask, “Anything else you wanted to discuss? Not that I mind you hanging out, but I was getting ready to head to bed.”I don’t intend to sleep, but to text the object of our discussion.I’m aching to talk to her now.

“Yes, but tomorrow is fine.” He’s resigned as he stands up and gives me a forced smile. “I want to plan out how we’re going to sit Cliff down and give him the offer. I also want to make sure we’ve got everything needed to hand over to get his ass investigated for theft. My lawyer is calling at ten in the morning in case you want to be there for the call.”

Following him to the door, I smack him on the shoulder. “Oh, I’ll absolutely be there for that.” Laughing at me, Chaz waves a hand over his shoulder in a goodbye, and I lock the door behind him. With my phone in hand, I flip the lights off as I make my way to my bedroom. Once I’m settled in my bed, I cross my ankles and consider how I’m going to start tonight.

Deciding to go with Chaz’s ‘for transparency’s sake’ mentality, I type out what I want her to know.

Me: Hey. Hope you’re having a good evening so far. I think it’s important for you to know that Chaz – well, Chester, as you like to call him – stopped by and filled me in on what happened tonight. Not detailed, but the gist of it. I want you to know that I’m not going to get pissed, in case you are worried about telling me. He, and YOU, were correct that you have every right to date and get to know whomever you want. I don’t love it, but I understand it. I also want you to know that I haven’t changed my mind. I want to see where you and I go. I know you know this, but I feel it needed to be said again. I want you.

My message goes almost immediately to read after I hit send. I chew on the inside of my cheek, debating if I shouldn’t have started off with this. Text bubbles pop up and I hold my breath as she types out a response. Then blow it out slowly in relief.

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