I’ll even stay in my damn pajamas. That way he won’t think that I’m trying to impress him by changing into something else.
“How was your week?” I call from the kitchen as I take the tacos from the fridge and shove them in the oven.
“It was okay. Nothing out of the ordinary. How was yours?”
“It was okay.”
Standing with my back to him, I pull a face. Damn, this is awkward.
“Sorry about last Sunday,” he says, which only makes my eyes grow wide.
No! Shit.
Talking about it will only make it worse.
“It was the first time I had a girl spend the night, and I didn’t know how to handle it. Obviously, I handled it like an asshole.”
I swing around and force a smile on my face.
“You don’t have to apologize. It was nothing. Let’s forget about it.” I turn back to the fridge and yank it open. “What do you want to drink? There’s still some beer left over from the last dinner.”
That’s better. I sound like my usual self.
“A beer would be great.”
I take one from the fridge and then pour myself some coke.
When the tacos are warm enough, I ask, “I made beef and chicken tacos. How many do you want?”
“Two of each,” he calls back.
It almost feels normal again.
Marcus comes into the kitchen as I’m placing tacos on my own plate.
Taking our plates and drinks, we walk back to the living room. I sit down on the single seater, hoping it will give Marcus the message loud and clear that I don’t expect more of him than the friendship we have.
Sure, I want more, but not at the risk of losing him altogether.
I can feel his eyes on me as I take a bite of food.
“Are you okay with what happened last weekend?”
I almost choke as I swallow the food down and quickly take a sip of coke.
“Yeah, sure.” I clear my throat and smile at him. “Was it awkward waking up next to you? Yeah, but it’s not like anything happened. Forget about it. What movie are we watching?”
After rambling all the words off, I shove another bite of food into my mouth.
Marcus starts the movie, and I pretend to watch while I finish my tacos.
When the credits roll across the screen, I get up and take the dishes to the kitchen.
“Are you still coming to the launch?” Marcus asks as he walks into the kitchen.
I quickly wash the dishes and place them on the drying rack.
“Sure, when is it?”