Page 54 of It's Complicated

Something about feeling his big, strong body against mine was comforting. Listening to his heartbeat, feeling his breathing, all of it soothed me and helped chase away the issues that were always right there hanging over my head.

But it wasn’t like I could tell the guys that. Platonic cuddles were a thing, but were they really platonic when they were with the friend I’d been hooking up with for the past couple of weeks?

We hadn’t done more than share some kisses for the past two days, but that was mostly because Isaac was trying to give me space and hadn’t tried to initiate more.

I’d been so in my head over my work problems I’d spent the time second-guessing my every move and stopping myself every time I had the urge to try and start something.

I wasn’t the most confident guy when it came to dating, but I was good at faking it because I didn’t really care if I got rejected.

I’d never gone through that phase where asking a girl out or flirting with a cute stranger at a party was some huge, stressful thing. It wasn’t fun when someone turned me down or rebuffed my advances, but it didn’t devastate me or hurt my feelings.

But any kind of rejection from Isaac, especially when I was in a weird headspace and feeling vulnerable, would absolutely destroy me.

So rather than risk it, I’d kept my hands to myself and enjoyed getting to experience a side of Isaac I’d never seen before.

“I hear ya.” Johnny shifted his gaze to Isaac. “What about you? Anything new and exciting?”

“You know the drill. Work hard, play harder.” Isaac bumped me with his shoulder and grinned. “Right, J-Dog?”

I’d always hated that nickname but got used to it over the years. Isaac knew that and made a habit of annoying me with it when other people called me that.

“You know it.” I shot him a look and sipped my drink, focusing on the conversation and not on my wayward thoughts.

I’d spent the last two days doing nothing but thinking. I needed to shut my brain off and relax for a while before I gave myself a headache.

“Hear! Hear!” Andy held up his cup.

Johnny knocked his cup against Andy’s, causing beer to slosh over the sides of their drinks.

“Do you go out of your way to be annoying, or does it just come naturally to you?” Andy asked, shaking the spilled beer off his hand.

“Naturally,” Isaac and I said together.

Johnny made puppy eyes at him. “It’s like you don’t know me at all.”

I’d known both Andy and Johnny since we were in kindergarten, and they’d always been like this.

Something caught Johnny’s eye over my shoulder, and he waved, his smile melting into a cocky smirk that meant he was about to get his flirt on.

“If you’ll excuse me, gentlemen.” He untangled himself from Andy and tipped an imaginary hat at us. “I need to see a lady about a…thing.”

Andy snickered, his eyes following Johnny as he darted around us. “That was as smooth as gravel.”

“Who’s he going to talk to?” Isaac asked, twisting around to look behind him.

“Not sure,” Andy said, peering into the distance in the most unsubtle way possible. “Janelle brought a friend with her.” He made an appreciative sound. “Damn, she’s gorgeous. Too bad Johnny saw her first.”

Isaac stopped trying to look over his shoulder. “So, what’s new?” he asked Andy.

Andy shrugged, tearing his attention from Janelle and her friend. “Not a whole lot. Just living the dream.”

“Or dreaming the life?” Isaac quipped.

“Definitely that one.”

I listened as Andy and Isaac talked about random stuff, interjecting answers when asked but mostly staying silent.

“Do you want to go?” Isaac asked after Andy excused himself to get another drink.

---