Page 76 of The Love We Make

I stood up quickly, ready to go get him off of her. She hated handsy guys and despite this guy being possibly 6’3, 280 pounds of muscle, I knew I would be able to handle him. I might not survive, but death was a small price to pay to keep her safe.

As I walked away from the table and down the two steps to the dance floor level, I kept my eyes on her. I was moving fast and trying not to lose them in the crowd. When I finally made it 10 feet away, I could see her face again through the crowd.

She wasn’t upset or mad. She was smiling and had her hands on his shoulders. And when they turned a slight turn to the left, I saw whohewas.

Tyson Black. Atlanta Jets’ tight end and notorious football bad boy.

They were acting like they knew each other and like this wasn’t the first time they met. But she never mentioned she knew Tyson. I don’t know him personally but I have friends that know him. Athletes in the city usually attended the same social scenes so it's not unusual for us to know one another.

So that is how it hit me. She must have met him at the golf tournament. Tyson didn’t strike me as a charity do-good golfer but I knew Chase and he knew one another. Maybe he was actually there.

And they met.

And she forgot about me.

And they fell in love.

And I really would be her best friend forever.

Only we wouldn’t be best friends because Tyson wouldn’t want her near me knowing I wanted to fuck his girl. And trust me, he would know. Probably because I would tell him.

Shit, the two shots had me dreaming up wild scenarios like a damn drama queen. Dumb ass overthinking gene.Wonder if I got that from my mom?

I decided to turn and abort the mission.

Tyson wasn’t known for being cuddly and sweet, but I doubt he would hurt Madison in front of all those people. He had a reputation to uphold and I was counting on his sanity to keep that reputation intact tonight.

I made my way back to the table. I considered going home but I was a glutton for punishment and decided to watch just a little bit longer.

“Where the hell did you run to?” Eddie asked when I walked back up.

“The head,” I mumbled.

He took that as the truth and slid me another shot. I turned it down. I was done for the night. I already felt too out of control. I needed to calm the fuck down.

By the time the waitress brought me water, I had added two words to the guys’ conversation before I let my mind wander again.

The smart part of me knew I was obsessing over Madison because I thought I held some claim over her. I took her body and made it mine. It was mine.

I knew her heart wasn’t mine.

Mine wasn’t hers.

But our bodies belong to each other now.

Until Madison, I had never had a problem walking away from a fuck. I never let sex attach me emotionally. I knew my friendship was getting blurred with the truth—that I loved Madison, loved fucking Madison, but it wasn’t the right kinda love.

Still, I felt the sudden urge to test the boundaries. If I was still feeling drawn to her this way, was she still feeling it as well? Even though she was smiling on the dance floor with Tyson Black, would she be happy to see me?

I wanted to test her. To test me.

Her deal was that she didn’t want to see me for a month, and I would honor that. But that didn’t mean I could see her. Touch her.

So I stood up and made my way to the dance floor.

Told you I didn’t need more shots.

I was crazy enough without it.