Page 28 of New Neighbor

Jesse smiled. “I saw the way you were looking at him.”

“Bullshit.”

“At the gym… I saw you look up at him with this smile and I thought to myself… he digs the guy. Seems I was right.”

Benji’s lips twerked into an almost smile. “Yeah. Maybe.” But then his smile faded some…why haven’t I heard from him?

“No wonder you were up his ass the other night.” Jesse laughed. “You really wanted to be up his ass. Or, maybe you wanted him to be up yours, I don’t know which way you butter your bread.”

Benji felt heat creeping into his face. “Stop.”

Jesse smiled. “Sorry, I couldn’t help it. Also, I don’t want to know how you butter your bread. Just putting that out there. It was a joke, one in poor taste.”

“Yeah.” Benji looked back down at his beer. He didn’t want to be the butt of their jokes now.

“Mac seemed like a nice enough guy. You two were thick as thieves the other night.”

Benji smiled. “Mac’s amazing.” Benji took a sip from his drink, considering all that had happened. “I get the feeling he might be interested, and then in the next second, I’m not sure.”

“If you’re interested… just give it a chance. Either he wants you or he doesn’t. No reason to drag it out and wonder.”

Benji chuckled. “That advice sounds familiar.”

“What do you mean?”

“I gave Hay the same advice last week.”

Jesse froze, his eyes wide. “What?”

“That girl he’s pining over.”

“Who’s that?” Jesse leaned a little closer, frowning.

Benji frowned, as well, confused by Jesse’s reaction. “You’re his best friend and you don’t know? I figured you’d be the one person who had all the details.”

Jesse shook his head, looking sick. “Who is she?”

“I’ve never been able to get him to talk about who it is… most he’s said is that he knows his interest would never, ever be shared. He’s tore up from it—and personally, I think that’s the reason he fucks around and drinks too much. He’s pining for some girl he sees as untouchable and it’s slowly killing him.” Benji paused to take a drink. “I told Hay that he just needs to man up. Put it out there that he’s interested. If she’s not… she’s not. Move on. If she is, then great. Pretty much the same advice you gave me.”

“Yeah,” Jesse murmured.

The look on Jesse’s face was confusing. Benji started to wonder if his earlier thoughts about Jesse and Hayden weren’t so far off base. “Either way, he needs to get his act together. The drinking and the women… he’s got to slow down.”

Jesse nodded. “He does. I’m worried about him.”

Benji nodded before taking the last sip from his beer. “If you don’t mind, I think I might go take your advice. Maybe I’ll see if Mac wants to go have some dinner tonight.”

Instead of sitting around, waiting foritto happen… maybe he needed to take his own advice and show Mac he was interested.

“Sounds like a plan,” Jesse said. “Text me and let me know how things go, eh?”

“You sure you really want to know?”

“I do,” Jesse said, holding Benji’s stare. “Ireallydo.”

Benji smiled before sliding out of the booth. “Thanks, man.”

Jesse stood up and placed a few bills on the table before they both headed out. Benji slipped behind the wheel of his truck and sighed, relieved.One down. Three to go.

And one man to seduce.

Seduce?He laughed. Benji didn’t know the first thing about seduction.

This is about to get ugly.

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