“Oh. Right.” Her chest stutters with an inhale.
My voice drops lower. “Burns should be taken seriously. Especially on . . . delicate parts of the body.” Why the hell am I still talking?
“You didn’t say anything to my brother, did you?”
“Of course not.”
She sighs, blowing out a slow breath. “He’d never let me hear the end of it.”
You and me both.
There’s no telling exactly what Wolfie would do or how he’d react if he found out his best friend and his kid sister were talking about the state of her pussy, but something tells me he wouldn’t be too stoked.
“What he doesn’t know won’t—”
I stop mid-sentence. Maren isn’t listening to me. She’s pretending to watch the movie. But really, she’s curled up in a ball with her head in her hands, tears welling up in her eyes and her shoulders shaking.
“Dove, what’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry. I’m just so embarrassed,” she whispers. “First the waxing accident, and now Riverside. You must think I’m a mess.” She swipes at the corners of her eyes, giving me a sad look that devastates me.
“Come here.”
I pull her into me, looping my arm around her shoulders, and she lays her head on my chest. It breaks me to hear her talk about herself that way. Maren’s the last person who should be feeling guilty about anything. And I want to make sure she knows it.
“I’m here because I want to be, okay? Not because I feel bad, and certainly not because I pity you. You’re strong, smart, and beautiful. Shit happens, and we all need a little help sometimes.”
“You really think I’m beautiful?” she asks, sniffling.
Fuck. This girl will be the death of me.
I smirk, trying to downplay how spectacularly I just stuck my foot in my mouth. “Don’t let it go to your head.”
We stay like that for the rest of the movie, Maren with her head on my chest, and me doing my best to train the crouching tiger in my pants. It didn’t take long for her to stop crying and relax into me. Let’s just say tonight proved she’s really not big on personal space.
If Maren knew all the ways I’ve fantasized about taking her—pushing her hard up against a wall, bending her curvy ass over a table—she’d be horrified. She certainly wouldn’t come willingly into my arms, or hang all over me like I’m her personal jungle gym.
I know a lot about women, both from my time in the dating scene and because of my job. But I don’t know much about matters of the heart. The human heart confounds me. Like, how can I feel so many things for Maren, but be too chickenshit to do anything about them?
Shortly after the movie ends, I rise to my feet and Maren walks me to the door.
“Thanks for coming over tonight.”
I nod, trying not to look at her chest. Yeah, lingering would only leave more time for temptation. “Of course. It’s actually helping me too, you know.”
“How’s being here helping you?” She shoots me a questioning look.
I shift, suddenly wishing I hadn’t said anything. But now that I have, I know Maren won’t drop it, so I might as well be honest. “With my self-imposed break from dating, I have more free time on my hands.”
Maren’s expression turns thoughtful, and she nods. “We can help each other then.”
“I’d like that.” As the words leave my mouth, I realize they’re absolutely true.
Her lips part, breaking into a happy grin. “You sure you’re not going to mind when I point out all the ways you absolutely suck as a boyfriend?”
This pulls a laugh out of me, despite my uneasy mood. “I do not suck as a boyfriend.”
Maren narrows her eyes. “Hayes.”
I chuckle. “Fine. Lay it on me.”
She leans against the doorframe, appraising me with a cool expression. “First of all, contrary to popular belief, women do not like dick pics. And they show them to their friends, you know?”
Clutching my chest in mock horror, I smirk. “I’m not a total caveman. I would never.”
“Ever?” she asks.
“My dick has never been photographed. Promise.”
Maren laughs. “That’s good. And you know all that stuff about women being the fairer sex is garbage, right?”
I shift my weight. “Mostly?” I say, my voice rising. “But I’m still going to open doors and pay for first dates.”
She bites her lip, still watching me. “There may just be hope for you yet.”
I nod, suddenly feeling unsure.
Back at my apartment, I enter to find the kitchen bright and welcoming. Leave it to Rosie to always leave a light on. I grab a glass from the shelf and fill it with water before walking to her door and giving it a soft rap.
“Oh, good. You’re alive,” Rosie says sarcastically.
With a chuckle, I push the door open to find her tucked into bed, curlers in her hair and a book in her lap.
“Brought you some water.”
She grunts, narrowing her eyes. “Where were you out so late?”
“With Maren. She needed some help. Riverside stuff.”
“It sounds like you’ve been spending a lot of time with Maren lately.” Her eyes widen suggestively.
“I was just helping a friend. You know that.”
“Mmm.” She looks skeptical.
“Good night, Grandma.”
“Good night, sweetheart.”
I close the door to her room and walk across the apartment to mine. Once alone with my thoughts, I finally let myself breathe easy for the first time all night.
I did it. I survived. I made it one night alone with Maren without putting my hands all over her.
And it was absolute fucking torture.
Okay, this is harder than I thought it would be—the whole look but don’t touch thing we have going on. She doesn’t play fair. Maybe because this isn’t really a game. It’s real life. And my relationship with my best friend and business partner is on the line.
But there’s more to it than that, because now Maren needs my help. We only have a month to save Riverside. I have no idea when this became important to me, but it
