I looked at the time on my phone.
Shit.
Kyle was going to be at my house in fifteen minutes.
I pulled into my driveway just as Kyle’s truck parked at the curb. He got out, decked in his fishing gear. “You don’t look ready to spend a day on the lake,” he observed dryly, popping gum into his mouth. Kyle had given up smoking a year ago and had since been chewing gum day and night as a way of relieving his cravings. I knew Josie had been the reason he quit, and I also knew he still snuck a cigarette every now and then, particularly since he and Josie had split.
I looked down at my workout clothes. “Uh, yeah. Just give me a minute to change.”
He followed me into the house, dropping his tackle box on the floor just inside the foyer.
“So, you wanna tell me why you were out of the house so early in the morning? Unless you’re workin’ or I’m dragging your sorry ass out to the lake, you don’t open your front door until after lunch on a weekend. What gives?” He wandered after me into the kitchen and went straight for the refrigerator, taking a bottle of water from the top shelf.
“I went for a run,” I answered vaguely, knowing it was the wrong answer as soon as I said it.
Kyle barked out an incredulous laugh. “And I was abducted by aliens last night,” he snorted. “Try again.”
I knew I’d never been able to lie to Kyle. He’d known me since middle school. He smelled my crap from a mile away and never failed to call me on it. I could trust Kyle more than just about anyone.
But I couldn’t tell him everything. I’d promised Meg. Even if it was a stupid promise.Though I could play a bit with the truth.
“Fine. I was over at Meg’s,” I told him, watching him choke on a swallow of water.
“Did I just walk into the fucking Twilight Zone? Or did she lure you over there to off you?” Kyle asked with a chuckle.
“Ha, ha,” I replied blandly. I tore open a box of cereal bars, devouring one whole. My morning sexcapades had left me ravenous.
Kyle had a strange look on his face. “So why were you at Meg Galloway’s house at,” he checked his watch, “seven in the morning? Seems an odd time to be making house calls.”
I should have known I couldn’t be vague with Kyle. His bullshit meter was in perfect working order.
“Yeah, well I was out on a run—”
Kyle held up his hand. “I’m stopping you right there. Stop trying to feed me a line. I’m not an idiot. If you don’t want to tell me why you and Meg were together at the butt crack of dawn, fine. But do me a favor and don’t lie to me. It’s insulting.”
His face was stony, and I knew I had pissed him off.
“Kyle, it’s nothing really,” I said, tossing him a cereal bar. “We’ve just buried the hatchet, I guess. Isn’t that what you’ve been telling me to do for years?”Burying the hatchet was one way to describe what we had been doing. I had to hide my self-satisfied smirk.
Kyle tore open the packet and took a bite of granola. “That’s good. It took the two of you long enough.” He balled up the wrapper and tossed it in the trash. “So, I guess that means you’re cool that I invited her to the BBQ later.”
I instantly tensed up. Not at the idea of seeing her—because damn I wanted to see her—but at having to act normal with her around our friends when all I wanted to do was drag her into a dark room and fuck the hell out of her.
How was I supposed to pretend she didn’t give me an instant hard-on? How was I supposed to keep my hands off her?
This was going to suck.
I gave my friend a tight-lipped smile. “Sure. Sounds great.” My voice sounded strained to my ears, and I knew Kyle picked up on it as well.
He lifted an eyebrow. “You sure, buddy? You look like you need to take a shit or something.”
“Shut up, fuckwad. I’m going to take a shower. Don’t wreck the place.”
I escaped to my room, where I quickly showered and dressed for a day on the lake.
Not able to help myself, I texted Meg before going back downstairs.
Is saying I miss your fantastic tits appropriate for fuck buddies?
I added a lame-ass smiley face. God, I was such a dork.
Her response came thirty seconds later.
Totally inappropriate.
Shit, I’d insulted her.
Then my phone dinged again.
But it’s just as inappropriate for me to say I miss your throbbing cock.
Her winky face had me grinning.
Maybe throbbing cock can see fantastic tits later.
I checked the time. Kyle wanted to be on the lake a half-hour ago. He was going to be irritated. But I needed to wait for Meg’s reply first.