Shifting my weight, I roll over to grab my boxer briefs and swing my feet off the side of the bed to slip into them. I’d rather not argue with Will naked.
“I never intended for anything to happen with us,” I admit. “It just did.”
Will covers his face with his hands and sighs. “I don’t even know what to say. To either of you.”
“At least he’s not some random guy I picked up at a bar,” Mia says. “I’ve known Ethan for years. I don’t see why it’s such a big deal.”
“Because you were fucking him behind my back! My best fucking friend. My little sister. What the actual fuck?” He gets up from the bed in a fit of rage and spins around to face us. “I can’t even look at either of you.”
Will storms out of Mia’s bedroom, and I follow behind. “Will, c'mon, man. Let me explain. You know I would never hurt your sister.”
In the kitchen, I lean against the countertop. Will grips the top of the refrigerator, staring at me with hatred in his eyes. We never fight. The few times we’ve gotten into it, we worked out our aggression with either a hockey stick or our fists.
“How long has this been going on?” He crosses his arms over his chest, pinning me down with a heated look. “I want the truth.”
“About three weeks. I kissed Mia the night we went to The Sixth Floor. You almost caught us together when you came home early. Mia was the reason I rented the room at the Ritz. I couldn’t stand living here with both of you, all while I wanted to be with your sister when I damn well knew I couldn’t have her.”
“You’re not good enough for her.” His words burn like salt on an open wound.
“I know. I tell Mia that all the time, but she doesn’t care. She wants to be with me anyway.”
“Some of the things I’ve seen you do.” He shakes his head. “Things I did with you. Mia is not like us. She’s pure and innocent and…” He runs his hand through his hair. “Fuck! Why did you have to touch her? You have your pick of girls. You didn’t need to fuck my sister.” He closes his eyes for a second and wrinkles his nose in disgust.
“I’ll take care of Mia. You know I will.”
He blows out a puff of air. “Do you love her?”
“What kind of question is that?”
He closes the distances and shoves his hands into his jeans pockets. “Because you better not have ruined our friendship over pussy. You better fucking love her.?
?
“Will, you’re overreacting.”
He moves into the small living room. “Don’t even bother coming back to the condo.”
“I live there, dick.”
“Lived,” he spits back. “You lived there. Past tense. Move the fuck out. Either you leave or I will. I don’t give a fuck.”
Mia comes out from the bedroom barefoot and in a silky black robe tied at her waist. She makes a beeline for Will with her hands balled into fists at her sides. “Will, stop it. Please. Don’t be mad at Ethan. You’re not throwing out your best friend and teammate because of me. I’m a big girl. I decided to sleep with Ethan.”
When it comes to Mia, Will softens but not much. She tugs at the more sensitive side of Will, something I’m unable to do. Both of us are arrogant hotheads who would rather beat the shit out of each to solve a problem. Mia is always the voice of reason. The one person who calms both of us.
“Are you two serious?” Will grits his teeth as he awaits Mia’s response.
Mia looks to me for confirmation. “Are we?”
“You fucking prick,” Will shouts when I don’t answer right away. “You can’t even give her an answer.” He turns to Mia, scratching the stubble along his jaw. “Fuck him. You deserve so much better.”
There’s no reasoning with Will when he’s like this, so I ignore him. Let him be mad. He’s still in shock.
Mia takes Will’s hand in hers, forcing him to look at her. “Don’t talk to your best friend like that.” She strokes his skin with her fingers in an attempt to soothe him. “Nothing we say or do will change the fact that we’ve been sneaking around behind your back. I’m sorry.”
“So am I,” I mutter. “I wanted to tell you, but I had no idea how you would react. Well, I knew you would be pissed, which is why I wanted to wait until we knew what we were doing.”
He laughs. “Oh, so you thought you would fuck my sister until you grew tired of her, so you never have to come clean with me. Was that your plan, E?”