Page 76 of The Friend Zone

I’m vaguely aware of Cole pulling the covers over us and keeping me in his arms. We’ve slept like this many times before, except we weren’t naked.

“Sweet dreams, baby.” He murmurs.

Slumber takes me under and I go willingly, my heart fuller than ever before.

RYKER

The party is winding down when I return to the living room.

I can’t help but be jealous of Cole right now. I would have loved to stay in that room and I don’t think Bay would have minded. But I think they needed some time alone to sort through years of repressed feelings. My jealousy is all about the fact that I can never have enough of Bay’s soft, perfect body.

When my girl said that she loves me and Cole equally, I believed her and that puts my mind at ease. I know I have Bay’s whole heart and her feelings for Cole don’t detract anything from my relationship with her.

Stepping aside for tonight is a small sacrifice but I like to think that if roles were reversed, Cole would have done the same for me.

Lakyn had invited me to stay here with Bay tonight. Now that Cole has taken my place, I need to find another place to sleep. I can always go back to the hotel room the team booked for me. I’ll have it all to myself since I usually room with Cole. But that’s worst case scenario, I’m sure this house has a ridiculous amountof bedrooms and Lakyn won’t mind the change in sleeping arrangements.

However finding a bed for the night isn’t my main concern right now. I came downstairs to check that Topher was kicked out without any further problems, but there’s also something else on my mind.

I spot the man I was looking for in a corner, deep in conversation with a couple of Lakyn’s men’s new teammates.

“Hey Jagger,” I say, once the other men say their goodbyes. “Got a minute?”

His shoulders are rigid and his eyes slide away from mine when he answers. “I just called an Uber to take me to the team’s hotel. My ride is five minutes away.”

“Cancel it.” I bite out. “You and I need to talk.”

Jagger exhales, his eyes still focused on anything but me. “Can whatever this is wait until tomorrow? Honestly man, I’m beat.”

I’m tired too but I shake my head. “I’d rather talk now. You can call another Uber or I’m sure we can crash here.”

“I’d rather not,” he says, looking at the living room door as if it held the key to his salvation. “Whatever you have to say, can we make it quick?”

His attitude is pissing me off, but I really need to get through to him and to cut all the bullshit, so I change tactic.

“I’ll tell you what, book another Uber and I’ll walk outside with you, we can talk while we wait.”

Jagger rolls his eyes. “Fine. Give me a sec to say goodbye to Lakyn and the guys. I don’t want to be rude.”

When we finally walk outside, it takes me a few moments to decide how to begin. I came looking for Jagger without a real plan, I just know that I need to get him and Bay to talk again.

“Do you love her?” I ask him.

“Not that bullshit again.” Jagger stops walking in front of me.

This time when he turns around, he looks me right in the eyes. It’s progress if you ask me. “Answer me.” I insist.

His tone is sharp, every word a poisoned arrow directed at me for lack of a better target. “Why the fuck does it matter? If we had any doubts that Topher would follow through with his threats, we’ve seen tonight that he really meant every word.”

I taunt him a little bit in the hopes of shaking him a little. “Sure. But the truth sets you free and Cole and Bay are together as we speak.”

The flash of jealousy in his eyes tells me all I need to know. “How can you be so fucking calm?” he asks, getting more agitated with every passing second. “What if Bay dumps you for Cole?”

I don’t hide the smile his words put on my face. “She didn’t dump me. She loves Cole, but she loves me too. She doesn’t want to choose between us.”

His tone is laced with bitterness. “So Cole got his girl, but it cost him everything. Where is he going to stay? I guarantee you Topher isn’t gonna go back on his word. When Luca kicked him out, he kept snarling that Bay belongs to him.”

Fury mounts in my chest, but I need to stay the course and focus on Jagger. “Bay will never take him back. And Cole will be just fine. I have a spare room in my apartment and I offered it to him. So Topher can’t touch him anymore.”

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