The thought was…unsettling. Like, Tyler had nothing against gay people. He just…he just couldn’t be one. Anyway, he didn’t feel gay. His gaze still naturally gravitated toward beautiful women—and Nick. It seemed he’d just developed a bit of a thing for Nick. It was probably natural, considering that Tyler loved his best mate, so it was totally natural that his platonic affections coupled with all the hot sex they’d been having would create some kind of pseudo-infatuation thing. It should pass soon enough, right?
It didn’t mean that he was gay.
Relieved to finally find an explanation for all the weird feelings inside him, Tyler headed toward Nick and Brad, determined to be a better friend and to suppress his intense dislike for the guy. It wasn’t Brad’s fault that Tyler had developed a pseudo-infatuation for Nick. Tyler was going to prove to Nick that he could totally stop acting like a possessive weirdo.
So when Tyler reached the pair, he said in his nicest voice, “Did you find the loo?”
Brad finally stopped ogling Nick and looked at Tyler. “Yes,” he said coldly.
Tyler gave him his brightest smile and slipped between him and Nick. He could feel Nick’s intense gaze on his nape, but he ignored it, focusing his attention on Brad. Tyler wanted to be nice to the guy, but he kept drawing a blank when he tried to think of something friendly to say. “I…do you watch football?” he said at last.
“Not really,” Brad said coolly, looking at Tyler as though he thought Tyler was stupid.
Ignoring the twinge of insecurity, Tyler said brightly, “Nick told me all about you, but I think we need to get to know each other better and become mates if you and Nick are going to be a thing.” The words made him want to puke, but Tyler forced out a friendly smile.
“Mates,” Brad repeated, his voice laced with skepticism and his pretty doe eyes conveying his doubt that he and Tyler had anything in common.
There was something vaguely offensive about that look, but Tyler was determined to ignore it. He had a pretty thick skin and he was trying to prove a point here.
But before he could say anything, Nick’s hand squeezed his shoulder, the touch vaguely reassuring. “Tyler’s been my best mate for ages,” Nick said, his voice steely, moving Tyler closer to his side. Tyler found himself relaxing into Nick’s body, the last remnants of his discomfort disappearing. “He can be a bit of a prat, but he means well, and under all that peacocking, he’s a genuinely good bloke.”
“Hey,” Tyler said with a mock-pout, glaring at Nick. “I don’t peacock!”
Nick smiled at him crookedly, his eyes glinting with amusement and affection. “At least peacocks are pretty.”
To Tyler’s mortification, he felt himself preen a little. Bloody hell, this pseudo-infatuation thing was fucking horrible.
Someone cleared their throat and Tyler tore his gaze from Nick’s.
Brad had his lips pursed. “I think I’ll go home, Nick,” he said, his voice rather cool.
Nick gave him an equally cool look. “You want a lift?”
Brad shook his head and headed for the door, his head held high.
Well, that was awkward, Tyler thought, but he couldn’t bring himself to be bothered all that much. There was something about being tucked against Nick’s side that made him all giddy on the inside. It was absolutely sickening, but Tyler couldn’t make himself pull away.
Just for a little while, Tyler told himself, leaning into Nick.
Nick raised his eyebrows a little. “You’re very touchy-feely today.”
Tyler felt his face burn. “Shut up,” he mumbled, forcing himself to pull away.
But Nick’s arm around him didn’t budge and Tyler gave up after a token effort.
“I appreciate that you made the effort to befriend Brad,” Nick said, his face carefully neutral. Their argument was clearly not forgotten.
Tyler snorted. “Well, he didn’t seem to appreciate it. He looked at me like I was an annoying bug at his feet. Though I gotta give kudos to the guy for his ability to look down at someone two heads taller than him.”
Nick’s lips pursed.
“I don’t blame him. You did call me pretty in front of him,” Tyler said with a crooked smile. “He probably guessed that we’re shagging.”
Nick’s eyes remained cold. “That’s irrelevant. He and I have been on a few casual dates. We don’t owe each other anything.”
“I hate to break it to you, but he seems to disagree,” Tyler said. He could totally get the guy’s perspective.
Nick shrugged. “That’s on him. I never made any promises.”
Tyler snorted. “You can be a right asshole sometimes. You fool people into thinking you’re nice, but you’re actually a total prick.”
“I’m nice to people who deserve it,” Nick said, his voice unexpectedly hard. “He was an asshole to you when you tried to be nice to him. I thought he was a better person than that.”