“Sorry about that. And to answer your question, no. That’s what’s weird. I’m not interested in dating him. You and I both know he’s allergic to commitment, and I want to find the person I can settle down and build a life with. But when I got home after that shift, I was out of my head with worry, and the second I saw him and realized he was all right, something in me shifted. I just did it without thinking.”
“That doesn’t have to mean anything, though,” Mia said. “I mean, I’d probably kiss you if I thought you were in serious danger and then saw you in person, safe and whole.”
Claire appreciated Mia’s attempt to downplay the situation, because that’s what she wanted. But it wasn’t the same. “But would you lift me on the furniture and put your tongue in my mouth?”
“Shit, no.” Mia winced. “No offense.”
“None taken.”
Mia leaned in with wide eyes. “He lifted you onto the furniture? Where?”
“His dresser.” Claire dropped her forehead into her palm. “It was so hot, Mia. The best kiss I’ve ever had. He’s, um, very thorough.”
Her friend’s eyebrows shot up and she offered an appreciative nod. “Well, all right then.”
“But that’s weird, right? He’s my friend and I don’t want to be in a relationship with him. We’re roommates, we fight all the time, and we want completely different things out of life.”
“You don’t have to want to be in a relationship with him to want to hook up,” Mia pointed out. “And the fighting might be like...kindling.”
Claire couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s what he said.”
“It could be fun.”
Claire’s eyebrows went up. “You’re encouraging me to kiss Graham? To keep kissing Graham?”
“Why not?”
“I thought I just explained that pretty well.”
“I don’t know.” Mia picked up her fork. “Noah and I think—”
“Noah and you? You two have talked about us?”
Mia snorted. “Of course.”
“The hell?”
“What? You two together are, like, the embodiment of foreplay.”
Claire scrunched her nose. “Ew.”
Mia rolled her eyes. “Not for us. I mean you two always put off this vibe like...you don’t like each other but at the same time you want to rip each other’s clothes off.”
Claire stilled. Blinked.
Was that true?
Things had gone from zero to sixty pretty damn fast in his room that day. She could see herself getting carried away with him.
“There have been a few times I’ve wondered if you two had hooked up and you just hadn’t told me. Like that time we rented that cabin last year and you shared a room.”
Claire scoffed. “You seriously think I wouldn’t tell you?”
Mia shrugged. “It’s a little different now that we don’t live together. I mean, I hope you’d tell me, but I’d understand if you felt weird about it, since it’s Graham.” She looked up, her dark eyes flashing. “But if you told Reagan before me, I’d be pissed.”
“You’re my best friend no matter where you live. You’re the first and only person I’ve told about the kiss. Promise.”
“Good.” Mia twirled pasta around her fork and, before taking a bite, wagged her eyebrows. “So what happens next?”
Claire took a long, slow sip of wine and pressed her back against the booth. “Nothing? He wanted to keep it going, but I already told him I didn’t want that kind of an arrangement right now.”
“But you liked kissing him.”
“So? There’s a lot of things I’d probably like but won’t do. Like spend my savings on a loaded luxury car or eat ice cream three meals a day—” Claire held up a hand when Mia opened her mouth. “That day sophomore year doesn’t count. I was hungover and you know it. Sometimes we don’t do things out of self-preservation.”
Mia allowed that, but tilted her head a little. “Why is not kissing Graham a form of self-preservation? Are you worried you’ll develop feelings for him?”
“No. I just figure if I’ve got someone to take care of the physical stuff, I won’t be as motivated to go out and meet new people. What if I miss an opportunity with a great guy—maybe even my future husband—because I stayed in to get with my commitment-phobe roommate?”
“I guess that’s true. But it could also take some of the pressure off. Maybe you’d be a little more relaxed when it came to the dating scene, and wouldn’t waste your time on guys you didn’t really like. Plus, it’s not every day a hot man offers to be a woman’s plaything. Seems like a waste to not at least give it a try.”
Claire’s eyes went wide. “Who are you and what did you do with my modest best friend?”
“She got married and discovered what it’s like to have a hot-man plaything.” Her cheeks flushed. “I highly recommend it.”
“I bet you do.”
Mia laughed, fanning herself. “You could join an online dating site and have a good time with Graham until the program matches you with your future husband. Just think about it, okay?”
“Why?”
“Because you could use a little fun and something tells me Graham is the perfect person to give it to you.”
When Claire got home that night, she found Graham and Reagan in the living room watching The Office reruns.
“Hey, Ms. Sparkles,” Graham greeted.
“Shut up.”
Reagan grinned. “Ooh, new nickname?”
“Don’t ask,” Claire said, then glared at Graham. “Shouldn’t you be thanking me? I did you a favor.”
Graham sobered. “You’re right. Thank you for doing that.”
“It worked, then? I’m not sure I even remember the password to that account anymore. I don’t know if it’s even active.”
“Yep, got my discount code.”
“Good.” Beers would be on him next time they went out.
She joined them for an episode, then decided she’d better get ready for bed. It was Friday night, but she worked tomorrow and had to be at the hospital before seven. She stood, but her “good night” was interrupted by the shrill ringtone from Reagan’s phone.
Reagan scooped it off the coffee table. “Sorry.” She answered the call and stepped onto the porch.
Claire glanced back at Graham and found him looking at her. She paused for a beat, thinking about everything she and Mia had discussed tonight. Offering an awkward smile, she escaped to her room. After changing into a tank top and leggings, she stepped back out and into the shared bathroom to brush her teeth. She rinsed her mouth and straightened, pulling her curly blond hair over her shoulder, staring at herself in the mirror.
What do you want?
With a heavy sigh, she turned to head back to her room and ran smack into Graham’s chest.
“Whoa, sorry.” He grabbed her arms lightly at the same time her hands went to his waist.
Damn, he was firm.
And he smelled good. Again. How was it she was just noticing this?
He released her and cocked an eyebrow. “You done in here?”
She nodded and moved to the side so he could pass. She went to her room but left the door open, and when he came out of the bathroom she called out before she could talk herself out of it.
“Graham?”
He appeared in the doorway, eyeing her perched on the edge of her bed. “Yeah?”
“Could, um, could I talk to you for a second?”
“Sure.” He walked in and sat beside her, leaving a perfectly respectable distance between them.
Claire tucked her hands between her knees. “I told Mia that we kissed.”
His brows shot up. His cut was healing nicely. “You did?”
“I’m sorry, I should have asked you first. I hope that’s okay—”
Graham laughed lightly. “I don’t care. I’m just surprised. I didn’t think you wanted anyone to know.”
“I tell her everything. She’ll probably tell Noah.”
He shrugged. “That’s fine. Thanks for telling me, though, so I can be prepared.” He adopted a terrible impression of Noah’s voice. “Hey, man, I heard you and Claire kissed. What’s the deal?” He angled himself as if talking to someone else. “Yeah, I told her I wanted to do other stuff but she turned me down. I cried. A lot.”
Claire punched his shoulder. “You did not.”
He laughed, a rich, deep sound, drawing her attention to his mouth. She thought, not for the first time, how handsome he was when he smiled.
She swallowed and told herself to be assertive. She was a strong, independent woman, and could tell a man what she wanted. “That’s actually what I wanted to talk about. The, um, turning-down part.”
“What about it?”