“Did you just suggest that I whore my girlfriend out?” Cooper could feel his knuckles locking into place. He’d never resorted to physical violence before, not even that night in Flesh, when they’d interrupted the heinous assault on Andi.
Today could be a first.
“What’s the big deal?” Marty shrugged. “You obviously don’t have a problem with her banging other guys. Hell, I’ll even let you watch if that’s your thing.”
“First off, boss or not—fuck you. Second, I don’t decide who Andi sleeps with. She does. And no way in a million years would I let you touch her when you want her for all the wrong reasons. She’s not a toy.” How could he make someone see the difference between what he shared with his roommates—a term that was irking him more and more with its woeful inadequacy—and what Marty was proposing?
Because to him, the two were nothing alike.
Another seed of worry planted itself in his gut. What if there came a day when Andi wanted to bring someone else into their circle? How would he feel about that? What if that person didn’t love her like he, Simon, and Reed did?
Did she and the guys assume like he did, that they were complete?
Cooper realized there was a lot they had glossed over, too much they’d been hiding from. Not only public displays, but also within the confines of their own relationship. Technicalities they needed to sort out before someone got hurt.
“Hey, hey. No need to get upset.” Marty held his hands up, palms facing Cooper. “I didn’t mean any disrespect.”
Cooper doubted that, but he was also smart enough to know it’d be bad to punch his boss in his stupid fucking face. He barely made it out of the office before he said something he couldn’t take back. Something that would absolutely lead to his termination.
He sat in his cube, fuming but working diligently until it was time to go home.
Then he took the long way, wondering what the hell he was going to say to the people who’d become his family. How the hell were they going to make this right? What would he do if they couldn’t?