“I’m super bad at this flirting stuff, too. Also, why would he be jealous? He’s trying to help me, remember?”
“I’m not buying it. I think he’s going to try and keep clam jamming you. Yeah, I like that expression better,” Tori mused before shaking her head. “Anyway, he wants you. I’ve seen the way he looks at you.”
“I don’t know.” Though there’d been a few little comments he’d said that made her wonder. “Even if he does, there’s that Bro Code thing.”
“What are your thoughts about Paul in all this?”
Paul.
Kristen’s stomach sank. He’d barely crossed her mind today, which was weird because her whole motivation in doing all this had been him.
“I…haven’t been thinking about him much, I guess.”
“Good.” Tori nodded. “I think that’s actually healthier. This is about you, not him. Now, if you’re serious about still trying to seduce Blake, I can give you some tips; take them or leave them. Just keep him as an option. You never know how things could play out.”
After just a moment’s hesitation, Kristen nodded. “Sure. Give me your tips. Fill me in on the way back to the guys.”
By the time they left the restroom and sat back down, the men were watching them closely.
“Started to wonder if you two were okay,” James grumbled.
“We’re fine.” Kristen kept her voice bright and met Blake’s amused glance. “Just girl stuff, you know.”
“Hey, everyone, look this way.”
Kristen glanced up, surprised to see Tori holding her phone up in selfie mode. All four of them in the shot.
Kristen flashed her usual smile, Blake too, but James had a slight scowl on his face.
Tori took the pic and then fiddled with her phone a bit. No doubt posting it to some kind of social media account.
Needing to bring the topic to something neutral, Kristen cleared her throat. “So, James, tell me how prepared you are to take the bar.”
James’s laugh diffused any tension. “Unprepared might be the better word.”
The conversation shifted from topic to topic for a bit. When the coffee shop showed signs of closing, Blake stood.
“Should we head out?”
James rose to his feet. “Yeah, guess I didn’t realize how late it was. Can I drive you girls back to your car?”
“My stuff is in Blake’s car already.” Sound normal, just be casual. “I’ll have him drop me off at Tori’s house.”
Tori nodded. “Sounds good. So, James can drop me back at my car.”
James looked slightly panicked as he scratched the back of his neck and nodded.
“Sure, no problem.” He tossed a faint smile at Kristen and Blake. “We’ll see you guys later, then.”
*
Blake helped Kristeninto his truck while watching the other two climb back into James’s car.
“That was just a weird dynamic. Don’t you think?”
He glanced at Kristen’s quiet remark. Surely, she’d caught the sexual tension between those two. It had been as blatant as night and day.
If she were aware, her expression showed no sign of it. More like just confusion.