Page 15 of Cuffed to my Roomies
Derek looked at me as if I’d sprouted a second head. “Yes, you need to make the report. You never know what little thing you might remember that will help find the guy. And even if we never do, you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing you stood up for yourself in whatever way you could. And, for the record, you could never waste my time.”
“You really do take your job seriously, don’t you?” I asked him.
“I do. It’s really my calling to help people,” Derek told me.
“That’s very noble,” I said. “But once my dad finds out I’ve been mugged, he’ll insist that I move back home. I just don’t want to have that fight.”
“You don’t have to tell him. ”
“I hate keeping secrets from him, but he’s already worried enough about me being in the city alone.”
“Doesn’t he know that you’re living with two cops?” Derek asked.
“Yes and no. Yes, he knows I’m living with two cops named Derek and Brett.”
“Okay, and?”
“I may not have corrected him when he assumed you were a couple.”
Derek nearly choked. “Wait. You let your dad think we’re gay? Do you really think he doesn’t trust you to live with who you think is appropriate?”
“I know he doesn’t. He’s overprotective, but he’s led a hard life, a narrow life. He doesn’t get that men and women can be friends, or that it’s possible to make my own decisions without inviting a lifetime of misery and regret.”
“That’s a lot of pressure. But you should tell him the truth. And you are free to do whatever you want, without his approval.”
“But I’m not really. I love him, and I don’t want to worry him. If he finds out I’m living with two hot guys who aren’t gay, then I’ll automatically be in danger as far as he’s concerned. Like the two of you will take advantage of me or you’ll convince me join some kind of kinky sex club.”
“We don’t belong to one of those…”
“Well I know that and you know that, but my dad will freak out all the same.”
“I wish you didn’t feel like you have to lie to him about who you are and how you live your life,” Derek said.
“Me, too. Maybe in time I’ll trust myself enough and trust him enough to tell the truth. But for now, I just don’t think he’d understand.”
“Then I’ll have to trust your judgment even though I disagree.”
“Thanks. Probably the first time anyone has ever really done that,” I admitted.
8
I didn’t take the day off after all. I slept better than I’d expected to, probably because I had two burly, overprotective cops in the house with me. I woke up to find my hand bruised but not useless. A shower made me feel like it was possible to face the world. I put on makeup, flat ironed my hair, and went to Envy. I did my work, skipped lunch to get ahead on some copying, and didn’t tell anyone that I’d been mugged. When I got to my bartending job, I tried to carry on like nothing happened.
“How’d you do in tips last night? I didn’t count mine till I got home, but it was a big take for a weeknight,” Cammie said conversationally.
I shrugged.
“What’s wrong?” she said.
“I didn’t get a chance to count mine.”
“Did you have a hot date after hours?”
I sighed. “No, I lost it all. I missed the bus, I was messing with my phone and I got mugged,” I said, sounding really grouchy.
She engulfed me in a hug, scented with some floral Victoria’s Secret body spray, “Oh, honey, are you okay?” she said.
“I’m fine,” I said, “I just feel stupid.”
“I should’ve asked if you needed a ride when we left!” she said.
“No, this is not your fault!” I said.
“God, I just wish I’d taken you with us,” she said.
“No, you live in the opposite direction. I just should’ve asked for a ride to the bus stop or else called one of my roommates.”
“The hot cops? Honey, you live in a Magic Mike fantasy, not an apartment. I bet those two can dance.”
“I don’t think so. They’re actual cops, not strippers in uniform.”
“But they could be. The point is they’re good looking enough to be. Most of the cops I know, they look like they eat two-dozen doughnuts for breakfast. Not these two though.”
“Nope, I’ve made them breakfast,” I said.
“I wouldn’t mind making them breakfast and letting them eat it off me naked,” Cammie said. I laughed.
“Hey, I can hear you,” Jason said sarcastically. She tossed a grin over her shoulder at him, and he smiled back.
They were happy together and had obvious chemistry. He was always touching her hair, or she was brushing against him as they worked. It made me feel lonely. And horny. Because I lived with the two hottest guys anyone ever met, and I wasn’t even getting laid.
