Not Dating Material (Accidental Love Book 2), page 4
“What—”
My blanket lifts on one side, and then a warm body snuggles in beside me. Xander’s floral scent washes over my bed.
“Are you okay?” he asks.
“You’re … in my bed?”
“I wanted to check on you.”
“You, uh … know we’re not going to have sex. Right?” Because even though I don’t actually think Xander was serious earlier, I want to make sure.
He wriggles closer. “I know. I know all about the rules. But also …” His voice quiets. “I know what it’s like. To feel like you’ll never be good enough. Seven didn’t mean what he said, and I wanted to make sure he didn’t hurt you.”
“He didn’t,” I say because I get the feeling Xander would go back out there and rip Seven’s balls off. “But I think he might be onto something.”
“You do?”
“Maybe.” I suck in a long breath and roll onto my side to face him. “It can’t be a coincidence that I keep striking out so much.”
“Well, whatever you need, we’re all here. You’re only new, but you’re our family now too. We look out for each other.”
“Thanks. That means a lot.”
His fingers find my hair in the dark. “You didn’t even let us burrito blanket you. I miss Christian.”
I smile at his pouty voice. “What’s a blanket burrito?”
“Where we wrap you in a blanket really tight and smother you in hugs and nice words and then break out the rum.”
“Christian used to need that a lot, did he?”
“Yeah …” Xander’s fingers keep stroking. “So much that I wondered if I’d develop a drinking problem.”
My laugh bursts from me, quick and short. “Well, burrito blankets and rum might not be my thing, but I’m always okay with hugs.”
“Right now?”
“Uh …”
Before I can answer, Xander rolls me over, crowds in behind me, and wraps his arms around my waist. “Go to sleep.”
It takes me a second to work out what’s happening, but then I relax into his hold. “Thanks.”
“I’ve got you.” He squeezes tighter for a second. “And, Molly? I’m so happy you’re here.”
I’m so happy you’re here.
The worrying knot over not fitting in, over being the outsider, loosens just a bit.
I’m smiling as I close my eyes. “Good night, Xander.”
“Night. Also, if I get a boner, I apologize in advance.” He yawns. “I wake up with one. Just ignore it.”
“Got it.”
Fucking hell, these guys are so not what I was expecting.
Chapter 5
SEVEN
I cross my arms and lean against the doorframe, watching them sleep. It’s no surprise to me that Xander is in here, but I’ll be pissed with him if he propositions our new roomie. Molly wasn’t in a good place last night, and maybe I should have been softer with my words or whatever, but … the guy is clueless as anything when it comes to dating.
If they weren’t going to tell him, someone needed to.
I thought the creak as I pushed open the door would wake them up, but apparently not, so I give them another minute before knocking loudly on the wall. “Rise and shine.”
There’s some movement, one of them yawns, and then—
Molly sits bolt upright. “Nothing happened!”
I chuckle, and Xander joins me.
“Lies,” Xander says. “We snuggled all night.”
Molly’s mouth drops, and he lets out a sweet, helpless noise.
“Don’t worry,” I assure him before he can start getting worked up again. “Xander’s snuggled with everyone in the house by this point.”
Molly smirks. “Bit of a snuggle slut, huh?”
“It’s about the only type of slut I am.”
He’s so dramatic. “One day, Z. Now, get your ass out.”
Xander crosses his arms. “Why?”
“Because I wanna talk to Molly for a minute.”
“And you can’t do that with me here?”
“Nope.”
“Rude.” And even though I’m sure he thinks he’s joking, he’s not. Xander and I rarely keep things from each other, so even the smallest secrets hit him hard.
“There are some things that aren’t your business.”
He pretends to gasp. “If it’s to do with you, it’s always my business.”
I cross the room to grab his arm and haul him out of bed. Then I throw him over my shoulder, carry him into the hall, and set him on his feet again.
Xander glares up at me.
I press a kiss to his forehead and lower my voice. “This isn’t to do with me,” I assure him. “And if Molly’s okay with you knowing, you’ll be the first one I tell.”
“Okay.” He turns to go but stops himself. “Be nice to him. He’s … not like us.”
“Like us?” I hitch up an eyebrow.
Xander twists his hands in front of him. “Damaged.”
“Everyone’s damaged in some way.”
“Maybe, but if he is, his is like a bruise you have to poke at to bring out the pain.”
“Whereas ours is like a gaping flesh wound?”
“You got it.” He slaps my chest. “Be nice. And also, quick. I’ve been relatively healthy the last few days, so I expect I’ll be dying anytime now.”
Even though he’s joking and even though we both laugh, my chest clenches a little as I watch him walk away. Gaping flesh wound, indeed.
Molly is up out of bed, T-shirt on and struggling to flatten his mop of brown hair when I step back into his room.
“You got a minute?”
“Yeah, of course.” He’s like an overeager puppy. All bright eyes and bouncy. I … I don’t know what to do with all that enthusiasm.
“So … about last night …”
“Don’t worry about it. I actually think you were right. Or maybe onto something. It was valid anyway, so don’t apologize for being honest.”
Apologize? Huh. “Ah, I wasn’t going to.”
“Oh.” His cute nose wrinkles with confusion, and he drops to sit on the side of his bed. “It’s just … when you said about last night, and then Xander was telling me not to worry about it like he thought you’d upset me, which you totally didn’t, I guess I—”
“Maybe I should do the talking?”
Molly’s mouth snaps closed against a giggle, and he hurries to nod.
I’m already regretting my idea. “I had a thought that might help you.”
“Really?”
“You said you could be the problem but didn’t know how to figure out if that was the case.”
“Exactly. It’s not like I can call all my failed dates and be like do you have time to complete a short survey and then start asking them questions.”
“Well, no. But you can ask me.”
That nose wrinkle again. “Ah, Seven? I might have seen you naked, but we’ve never actually dated.”
And wonderful, we’re bringing that up. How nice. I’ve already lost patience with this idea, but Molly helped me out, and I don’t like being in his debt.
“The idea was that you use me as a surrogate boyfriend. We’ll go on dates, you’ll do everything you usually do, and I’ll point out where you’re—” Being clingy? Annoying? Stalkerish? “Overenthusiastic.” How’s that for thinking my words through, Z?
“You’d be my fake boyfriend?”
“Nuh-uh. No fake, no boyfriend. We’re not going around pretending to keep up an act. If anyone asks, we give them the truth. But between the two of us, you’ll act exactly like you would with any other guy you’re dating.”
He watches as he wriggles his toes into the carpet. “Sex?”
“Definitely not. Point out to me at which point you’d do it, and when you’d normally ask for it and whatever. But this is purely education. Like … training. I’m your dating coach.”
“Dating coach.” His smile is so big and pure I’m kinda understanding what Xander meant. Molly is not like us. “That sounds fun. But it’s a big commitment for you. Why are you offering this?”
“You helped me, now I’m returning the favor.”
“All I did was untie you.”
“No, you helped me out of a gross situation and kept my secret. That’s loyal as fudge.”
“It’s cute that you don’t swear.”
I scowl. “I’m not cute.”
“Cute little Seven with his squeaky-clean mouth and tattoos and piercings.”
I glance over at his tone. “Piercings?”
His face falls, and it’s almost comical how animated he is. “Face piercings. Nose. And ears. And …”
“Dick?” I grin. “You looked, didn’t you?”
“They caught the light.”
I crack up laughing at how mortified he looks. He’s tan enough that he’s not blushing, but I could swear his cheeks look darker. “Hey, if you want to catch the light as well, I’m happy to pierce you wherever you want.”
“No way. It seems so painful. And you have to abstain from sex for—”
“You looked them up.”
He shakes his head. “I’m going to stop talking now.”
“You could just ask me, you know.”
“He asked Madden.”
We both turn to the voice in the doorway and find Xander there. He’s dressed and smiling innocently. That damn innocent smile he gives me when he thinks it’ll help him get away with anything. It usually does.
“What part of private don’t you get?”
He shrugs. “I felt left out.”
My hand scruffs through my hair as I debate whether to get mad at him or not. But … it’s Xander. I understand him. I’m as attached to him as he is to me, and neither of us has been able to find a healthy balance with our relationship. Some days, I wonder if either of us even wants to.
“You can’t just listen in on people’s conversations,” I point out, trying to be reasonable.
“But you’re not people.”
“It’s okay,” Molly says. “I don’t mind.”
“If you give Xander an inch, he’ll take a mile,” I caution.
But it’s too late. Xander has already shuffled into the room and thrown himself over the bed.
“Are we still talking about the piercing?”
“How much did you hear?” I ask.
“No more piercing talk,” Molly says. “Jesus. It’s like you want to embarrass me.”
“But it’s cute when you’re embarrassed.” I use my best baby voice, echoing what he said before.
Unlike me, he doesn’t deny it. Just bats his lashes, one hand propped under his chin. “I am cute, aren’t I?”
“Oh no.” I throw a look at Xander. “There’s two of you.”
And while they look nothing alike, the mischievous look they share is almost identical. Almost. Xander’s has more of an edge to it, whereas Molly is pure sunshine.
I can’t understand people like that. People whose lives aren’t darkened by memories. People who let themselves be soft because they’ve never needed to develop armor. Xander gets me. It’s why we’re so close. He doesn’t like being soft either, but some days, he doesn’t have a choice. On those days, I’m his armor.
I turn and flop back on the bed as well, hit with a huff of Xander’s familiar scent, along with a new, stronger one that must be Molly. It’s kinda woodsy, maybe? Reminds me of the outdoors.
“Well, while you two take a nap in my bed, I’m getting ready for work,” Molly says.
“No morning yoga with Madden today?” Xander asks, and I glance between them.
“You do morning yoga?”
“Some days.”
“How do you know that?” I ask Xander.
His eyes drift closed, and it looks like he is, in fact, about to take a nap. “I perve on them from the porch.”
“You’re such a horndog. Get laid already.”
“I tried. You remember how it went last time.”
Yeah, that isn’t a situation I want to be involved in ever, ever again.
“What happened?” Molly asks.
“He had a dirty mouth,” Xander answers.
“You don’t like dirty talk?”
“No, as in, his mouth looked gross. And his breath smelled. So I didn’t want to kiss him, and when he told me I didn’t need to kiss him to suck his dick, apparently asking when he’d cleaned it last wasn’t the right response.”
“Aww … Xander.”
“Don’t pity him,” I throw back, pushing up onto my elbows. “Pity me. He had a panic attack and locked himself in the guy’s bathroom, so I had to go over there and save him from a perfectly innocent dude who did not have bad breath.”
“Ah …” Molly grabs a pair of shorts out of his dresser. “I’m confused whose side I’m supposed to be on here, so I’m going to back out of my room and wish you both a fantastic day.”
He flees, and I smile after him.
“So …” Xander says, crawling up the bed and climbing under Molly’s sheets. “You guys were talking about your dick.”
“Don’t go there.”
“Where? I don’t know what you mean.”
“How much did you hear?”
“Apparently not enough. Do you want to fuck him?”
I reach out blindly and pinch Xander’s thigh. “No, you little snot.”
“You should.”
“We have a rule, which we all agreed to.”
“It’s a stupid rule.”
“No, it’s to make sure things don’t get messy. We’ve got it good here. It’s the first place that’s ever felt like home. Even if I wanted to sleep with him, I wouldn’t risk all that.”
“True.” He yawns widely.
“Don’t you have work to do?”
“Maybe later.”
I laugh and sit up, ripping the sheets off him again. “You know later is never a guarantee. Get to it. Your paintings aren’t going to make themselves.”
“You didn’t tell me what you were talking about.” His voice is sulky as he climbs out of the bed and stretches.
“I offered to help him out with this dating stuff. That’s it.”
“Wow.”
“What?”
He whacks the side of my head. “That’s stupidly thoughtful. Who would have ever known you had it in you? Well, with anyone but me.”
Chapter 6
MOLLY
There’s a light groan behind me, and I glance over to see Seven walk into our shared office. He’s nursing a mug in one hand, flicking through his phone in the other, and isn’t wearing anything other than the headphones around his neck and the sweats sitting low on his hips. Ink covers his abs, his chest, his neck, and creeps halfway up his head.
I’ve always had a thing for tattoos.
I tear my gaze away from shamelessly ogling him just as he glances up. He sets his mug down on his desk that’s against the opposite wall of the room to mine and then approaches, gaze on my screen.
“That your work?”
It takes me a moment to follow what he’s talking about.
I’d been taking a break between the web design I’m working on for one client and the logo for another to fuck around on my web comic, and an image I’m halfway through working on is sitting on my screen. “Yeah, I’m just playing around.”
“Tentacle porn.” He nods. “Hot.”
“What? No!” I hurry to look back at my image to see how he got that impression, but Seven just laughs and ruffles my hair.
“I’m not going to kink shame.”
“It’s not tentacle porn, dammit.”
“So what are those?” He points at the squiggly lines at the bottom of the screen.
“I’m not finished it.”
“Riiight …”
I huff, clicking back over to the coffee house logo. “You’re annoying.”
“I’ve heard that before.” He tilts his head, still looking at the screen. “It’s good, but it’s no sex fantasy.”
I eat my laugh and nudge him. “Go away, I’m working.”
Seven crosses to his desk and falls back into his chair. He’s got a three-screen setup, gaming chair, and his desk forms a large L. Ever since I set up my workstation in here, I’ve been curious about what he needs all that for.
He pulls his headphones on before I can ask.
Even with him working and me apparently working, I can’t stop throwing quick glances his way. His hands drum out the tune to whatever he’s listening to between typing, and every now and then, he’ll release a muffled laugh or scoff.
I could go and get my noise-canceling headphones as well, but I’m way too interested in whatever he’s doing. Watching him, without him knowing I’m watching him, is like an anthropological study. A Seven in the wild. Relaxed and open and … sexy. So sexy.
I shouldn’t interrupt. Obviously. He’s wearing headphones for a reason. But whatever he’s doing isn’t work. So would it really be rude to say something? To creep up on him and read over his shoulder?
I chew on my bottom lip for a moment before finding his social media profile and opening the chat box. If he’s busy, he can ignore me.
Me:
What are you doing over there?
Seven:
Are you messaging me from across the room?
Me:
Are you ignoring my question from across the room?
Seven:
Never you mind, Tiny.
Me:
Ah, so it’s something embarrassing?
Seven:
Well, it’s not tentacle porn so I didn’t think you’d be interested.
Me:
I’m beginning to suspect you’re the one with a thing for the strange appendages.
Seven:
I’m an open-minded guy.
Me:
I’ve noticed.
His loud laugh crosses the space between us.
Me:
