I laugh because she’s right. He was doing me a favor, even if I didn’t realize it at the time. Eric walks back into his bedroom, fresh out of the shower. The towel wrapped low around his waist, showing off the chiseled V that leads to something else I’ve grown to love.
“I’ll think about it, okay?” I rush my mother off the phone, unable to look away from the drops of water spread along Eric’s shoulders.
“Think about what?”
“Nothing,” I lie. “It was just my mom being well… mom.”
“What does she want?” He presses.
“I’m gonna drive up to see my Dad this weekend for his birthday.”
“Oh,” He smiles, “What’s he like?”
“Embarrassing,” I laugh, “But I think it’s because he loves me.”
He laughs, “Oh, it definitely is. You’ve met my parents. They’re so embarrassing.”
“They are not!” I argue.
“Yes, they are. They will bring up all the old stories from when I was little. Wait until mom tries to drag out the old picture albums of my glasses and missing teeth.”
I run my hand down his abs, “Okay, yeah. I’d pay good money to see those.”
“Trust me. If there’s an opportunity, she’ll use it.”
I sit quietly as he slips his boxer briefs on, thinking about if he wants that to happen. Is he already thinking about the future? More importantly, with me?
“What are you thinking about? It looks like the gears in your head are turning. I can see it in your eyes.”
“Nothing.”
“So now we lie to each other? Noted.”
I huff, “No, just some things are better left unsaid.”
“Not with me,” he growls, “I want you to tell me everything. If I could live inside your head, I would.”
“That’s a scary thought,” I admit.
“No,” He huffs, “What’s scary is the thought of letting someone in.”
I roll my eyes, “I think we both know that it would only end in one of us getting hurt.”
He slams his fist into the nightstand, causing everything to rattle and me to jump. “Don’t do that. Don’t sabotage us before we even have a chance. Trust me. If anyone in this world doesn’t want to trust someone, it’s me. This is different, Jolene, and you know it.”
“I do trust you, and I know. It does feel different.”
“Then why discredit it?”
I stare at the hardwood floor, remembering why this is supposed to feel so wrong. “Because, Eric, Hanna is my best friend.”
“Well, you’re mine,” He argues. “You’re my best friend.”
Every single emotion comes flooding to me when he says those words.
Happiness.
Sadness.