“She’s focused.”
“Huh,” Ryder said, glancing at the room Sloane had disappeared. “I can’t wait to see it. I could definitely use some new jeans.” He picked at a hole in the pair he was wearing.
“I offered to buy you some more,” Lucah said, pointing to the pants.
“I don’t need you to buy me jeans. And if she’s going to make them, then why not? Then a bunch of starving children in Bangladesh don’t have to.”
“He does have a point,” I said. He’d know exactly where those jeans came from and who had made them.
“Are the two of you ganging up on me now?” Lucah said, looking from me to Ryder and back.
“No. I’m just saying he has a point. You never really know where your clothes come from unless you see them made,” I said. It was the clothing equivalent of buying from a local organic farm.
“Okay, okay. I get it.” Lucah settled into the couch and pulled me so I was resting against him.
We went back to watching the movie, but I could feel Ryder’s attention being drawn back to the room with Sloane. It was only a matter of time before he got up and walked as quietly as he could to her room and closed the door behind them.
“That was subtle,” Lucah said in my ear.
“He likes her.” He nodded, bumping his chin on my shoulder as he started twirling his fingers through my hair.
“You can’t keep two people apart who want to be together. No matter how hard you try. Or how much they could lose by getting caught having sex in the office,” I joked.
“I see your point, Sunshine. I’m doing better about it, aren’t I?”
“Yeah, you didn’t glare at Ryder for talking to Sloane and you haven’t tried to keep them apart. I’d say you’re doing good.”
“Thanks. That means a lot from you.”
“Why does that not sound like a compliment?” I said, turning to look at his face.
“It is a compliment. I value your opinion more than anyone else’s. Even more than my own. You’re one of the smartest people I know.” I bit my lip because his opinion happened to be the one I most trusted.
“Same to you, Mr. Blythe,” I finally said. “Same to you.”
“Thank you, Miss Clarke.”
21
The movie ended and Ryder was still in Sloane’s room. Lucah and I debated about what to do.
“Maybe we should just make a ton of noise. They’ve probably forgotten that we’re out here,” I said. Lucah motioned for me to move, so I climbed off him and he stood up.
“They’ve been awfully quiet in there.”
We both inched toward the door, as if it had one of those signs warning that it had hazardous nuclear material on the other side.
I didn’t hear a thing until there was a peal of laughter from Sloane, joined shortly by Ryder’s chuckle. Laughter was good. That probably meant they weren’t having sex. Not that I thought that Sloane would have sex with Ryder while we were sitting in the living room. And definitely not until she had modeled at least five different lingerie combinations for me and had me vote on which one she looked best in.
Sometimes Sloane took sex seriously, and sometimes she didn’t. This was going to be one of those serious times.
Lucah looked at me for an idea of what to do, and I shrugged so he knocked on the door. The laughter abruptly cut off.
“Yeah?” Sloane said, and then the door opened. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw that they were both fully clothed.
“What are you doing in here?” I asked peering in.
Sloane looked at me as if I’d asked her something outrageous.
“Just talking. And I was drawing some stuff.” Her light board was covered in drawings, and at first glance I could see that they weren’t all fashion designs.
“Just talking,” Ryder reiterated, holding his hands up as if to show us that there was nothing in them, including any of Sloane’s body parts. They did have quite a bit of space between them.
“I’m not accusing anyone of anything,” Lucah said.
“Neither am I. You were just gone for a long time and the movie ended and we came to see what you were doing. That’s all. No judgment.” I mirrored Ryder’s gesture.
“There is a lot of tension in this room and there doesn’t need to be,” Sloane said. “Okay, I think it’s time to call it a night, yes?” Everyone else agreed so the Blythe brothers and I trooped back to our place.
“So you’re not going to give me the third degree?” Ryder said the second the door closed.
“No, I wasn’t planning on it. Do I need to?” Lucah said, leaning against the kitchen counter as Ryder went and hopped over the back of the couch.
“Nope. I kept my hands to myself and everything. Do I get a gold star?”
“How old are you?” Lucah said.
Ryder didn’t answer, he just turned on the television. I thought about calling it a night and heading for the shower, but instead I went and stood next to the couch and motioned for Ryder to move his feet so I could sit down.
He raised an eyebrow, and I was reminded so much of Lucah I almost started to laugh, but he did move his feet and I sat down.
“Whatcha watching?” He shrugged and kept flipping the channels. He never seemed to want to pick something and stay on it. “Well the first step of watching something is picking something to watch.”
“I know how to use a remote, thank you,” he said.
“Well, clearly, you don’t,” I said, diving forward and snatching the remote from his hand.
“Hey!”
“Uh, my remote, my television. I win.” I waved the remote in front of him and he just glared.
“Let her have this. Women are unbearable when they lose control of the remote,” Lucah said, and I was reminded of a conversation we had that very first night we spent together. Back when I thought I could get him out of my system in one night. What an idiot I’d been back then. I would never get him out of my system, and I didn’t want to. He was the one disease I’d want to suffer from.
“Hey now. No ganging up on Rory,” I said glaring at the pair of them. It was fun when Ryder and I ganged up on Lucah, but it was the opposite when the boys ganged up on me.
“Wow, I didn’t think you were ever going to take your head out of her ass,” Ryder said to Lucah.
“What?” Lucah and I said at the same time. I forgot about the remote.
“Whoa, calm down. I’m only stating fact. I can’t point out the fact that you are so f**king whipped that you have a f**king ottoman in your house. And throw pillows and all this girly shit around.” Ryder gestured to the apartment. Honestly, things were a lot more girly when I lived with Sloane. We had JUST been in her place. Had he not looked around?