Page 21 of Double Trouble
“What if I bribe you with chocolate?” With my free hand, I lifted the bar I’d saved for later.
Cin took it in hand. “I never say no to chocolate.”
I had to swallow back my, ‘I’d never say no to you’ for fear of sounding incredibly cheesy and ruining the date before it truly started. Both hands gripped into the leather of my steering wheel. I needed to cool it about 50 degrees. I hadn’t even kissed Cin yet, let alone all the other stuff I ached to do.
No way was I going to make it through this date if I kept this up.
So, I kept conversation to a light and carefree minimum as I weaved past all the cars that were in the way of me getting us to Battle Sports as soon as possible. As much as this was a fun off-the-wall date for me and Cin to do together, part of me knew better. That this was as much for me as it was for her. After all the past few weeks’ craziness, work and Cin, I needed a good release. Boxing used to do it for me, but with my hand, Jake probably wouldn’t even agree to spar with me. So, breaking things it would have to do.
Inside the ruddy-bricked building, the ponytailed girl at the desk was overly enthused at our coming. Probably since there looked to be next to no one else in the place.
“So, you’d like the fifteen-minute option?”
I glanced at Cin and, simultaneously, we said, “Thirty minutes.”
“Alrighty then!” the girl declared, stabbing a neon nail onto a computer key. “That’ll be together or separately?”
“Together,” I said, at the same time that Cin said, “Separately.”
Catching each other’s eye again, we cracked up.
“It’s fine,” I said. “I got this.”
“You sure?” she said.
I frowned, tapping my Visa on the machine. Was she trying to make this not a date?
Making our way to our room after paying, I took Cin’s hand.
“I have something to tell you,” she blurted out.
14
Cin
“You probably already know this,” I said, avoiding his gaze, dropping his hand. “But Jake and I….”
“Slept together,” Owen said. “I know.”
We eyed each other.
“So you two tell each other everything?” I asked.
“Pretty much,” he said, looking away.
Maybe he was over this conversation, but I couldn’t just pretend that what had happened didn’t. If I was going to go through with this date, with any of this, then it was only going to be with clear honest communication.
I scanned him, waiting for him to elaborate. Eventually, I asked, “And you’re ok with that?”
A frown tugged at his lip corners. “Ok isn’t the right word.”
He glanced at me before continuing. I raised my brows and he sighed.
“If I’m being honest, it’s weird, ok?” He straightened his collar. “I can’t say anything for sure yet. All I know is, I like you, and Jake likes you. And while I’d rather have you all to myself of course, if I can’t, I’m not sure it would be a deal breaker.”
The grin I’d been holding back took over my face. They both really did like me. Maybe their radio silence the past few days had had the same reasoning behind it as mine – just the whole weirdness of the situation.
“And you?” Owen asked abruptly.
“What?”
“How do you feel about this whole thing? About Jake and me?” he asked. A crash from behind a closed door drew my attention. I glanced to find its window unfortunately covered, grateful for the excuse to not have to witness the molten brown of his eyes’ demand.
“I don’t know either,” I said. “Except that I like you and I like Jake, and all of this is really weird to me too.”
“Alright.” He took my hand once more. “For now, that’s good enough for me, if it’s good enough for you.”
I adjusted my grip, threading my fingers seamlessly through his. “It’s good for me.”
“Great. Let’s get breaking things then.”
Inside, we found the room disarmingly white, home to scratches and gouges of various shapes, sizes, and colors.
“What do you think this one is?” Owen ran the pad of his finger along a zigzagging purple line.
“Crayon war?” I guessed.
It seemed implausible, but then again, this whole thing did. Not just being at some business that specialized in letting people break things but being here with a sexy man who was looking at me like he’d forgotten we weren’t as alone as he’d like.
“Stop it,” I said softly. Although my body keened once I tugged myself free of his grasp, a deep inhale set me to rights. “What should we break first?”
“The chair,” Owen said immediately. “Definitely.”
And next thing I knew he’d picked it up and crashed it down in one mighty movement.
I gaped at the mangled shape that was once the piece of furniture. Owen grinned, holding it out to me. “Wanna try?”
