Page 17 of Let Me Love You
“Fuck you,” Tyler said with a laugh. “You’re gonna kick my ass in pool and not tell me about this girl you’re banging. What sort of friend are you? I thought we were best buds.”
Ren laughed. He’d gone back and forth on whether to mention his interest in Stacey to Tyler. Tyler wouldn’t tell a soul if Ren asked him not to, but Tyler knew Stacey from his days swimming with Ren at her house. They’d both crushed on her quite hard throughout high school.
“What kind of boyfriend would I be if I kissed and told?” Ren raised his gaze to look at his friend, whose jaw dropped. Ren knew the deer-in-headlights look was from his use of the word boyfriend. A little premature? Yes. But he held high hopes that Stacey would open up to the idea.
Ren focused on the game. He pulled back on the pool stick and hit the cue ball straight on. The white ball rolled hard, grazing the black eight-ball on the right side and sending it into the side pocket.
“Guess you’re picking up the tab tonight, as usual.” He dropped the pool stick on the table and clapped his hands together.
“Damn you, Haynes!” The glint in Tyler’s eyes said he wasn’t too concerned about covering their tab tonight…or any other night, for that matter. “Did you say boyfriend?” Tyler walked around the table to where Ren stood with his satisfied grin. “Since when? And why am I just hearing about this now?”
“Because it’s new.” That was true. Ren had never been boyfriend material. He’d spent his teenage and college years playing the field and avoiding boyfriend status. The idea of being with just one woman for any length of time used to give him the chills and stifle his breath…until now. He’d just been waiting until the right woman became available.
“Spill the beans, Haynes.” Tyler picked his beer up from the high-top table near them and swigged a sip. Ren stepped aside and allowed the new players to get started on their game. Then he huddled near the table with Tyler.
“If I tell you about this, you have to swear on your life you won’t breathe a word of it.” Ren grasped his pint glass and sipped the amber ale.
“Seriously? When have I ever blabbed one of your secrets? Remember that time—”
“Okay. Okay. I don’t want to tread down memory lane of all the stupid shit I’ve done,” Ren interrupted. He didn’t know which story Tyler might pull from a long list of things they’d done over the years. Fifteen years of mischief provided them both with a memory bank full of leverage. “I’m seeing Stacey Williams.”
Tyler’s brow furrowed, and he squinted as if the name did not ring any bells for him, but when it hit him, his mouth practically dropped to the floor. “Get out of here. Isn’t she married? Are you having an affair with a married woman? Holy shit, dude.”
“Hold on.” Ren put his hand up. “She’s divorced. Has been since early April. Her dick of a husband cheated on her and got the girl pregnant.” He thought about how it must have felt for Stacey to not only find out her husband was having an affair, but that he impregnated the woman, too. The situation must have broken her heart in to a million pieces. He planned to work hard putting those pieces back together.
“No fucking way. That bastard.” Tyler set his beer on the table and stared at Ren. “So, you guys are together-together?”
“Well, that’s where it gets kind of tricky. I’ve made my feelings perfectly clear to her and we, well, we…” Ren trailed off. He didn’t quite know what to call their connection. Saying they hooked up cheapened the experience.
“You nailed her?” Tyler’s voice pitched up with the question. He didn’t seem capable of keeping his jaw off the ground.
“I don’t like it when you say it like that.” Ren puckered his face in displeasure. His experience with Stacey had been different. In the past, he’d never bat an eye talking with Tyler about his hook ups. They never degraded women, but he’d admit to using some crude terms when referring to some of their escapades.
“How would you like me to say it? Hooked up? Fucked her?”
“Shhh!” Ren shook his head. All of those sounded too harsh.
“Made love?” Tyler practically sang, teasing.
“Shut up, asshole.” Ren punched his arm, and Tyler laughed.
“When’d this happen? Where’d it happen? And, well, how was it? As good as we used to dream?”
Tyler’s words were filled with excitement. For several summers in a row, the two of them would peek out his bedroom window and watch her doing things around her yard in short shorts and tank tops or shorts and a bikini top. They’d go over her house to swim just to see her in a bathing suit. And they’d talk about the things they wanted to do with her.
He cringed at the way he used to talk about Stacey. Not demeaning, but blatantly sexual. He’d pummel anyone who said such things about her like that now. But at the time, neither he nor Tyler believed the things they discussed would be anything other than a fantasy. Well, until a couple months ago when he found out about the divorce and decided to go for his chance. No one or nothing would stand in his way.
“I’m not giving you details.”
“What?” Tyler shook his head in disbelief. “You always give me details. Now youmake loveto your fantasy woman and I get zilch?” He air-quoted the words make love.
“Sorry, man. We haven’t worked out the details of our situation and I haven’t spoken to my parents yet. I can’t let any of this out until it’s all worked out. I’m only telling you this because you’re my best friend and I needed to tell someone. Besides, you swore on your life and I’m trusting you.”
Tyler put an arm over Ren’s shoulder. “Okay, dude. No details, but at least give me a word to describe it. Please.” Tyler gave his best puppy-dog eyes.
“In-fucking-credible.” Ren’s heart raced at the mere mention of their lovemaking. “And I don’t even think that word does it an ounce of justice.”
“You lucky little prick. I’m jealous as shit. And you just got back in town.” Tyler huffed out a breath of incredulity. He released Ren and grabbed his beer again, taking another sip.
