“Nah, I don’t think it is. Sometimes people are just more compatible as friends than as lovers.” His voice drifted off toward the end, as if he realized what he was saying could apply to us.

That made my heart skip a beat. Was he trying to insinuate something? Could this be his way of saying that we were better off as friends than as anything else?

Before I could ask him to elaborate, his phone pinged in his pocket. He took it out and read the message, sending back a quick reply before looking to me with a question in his gaze.

“What happened?” I asked, slowing down in front of a series of glass roses.

“I told Tristan we were around. He’s at Blakes with his brother and wants us to join. You down?”

Blakes was the local gay watering hole, where people went for strong drinks and good music. I hadn’t been in a while but definitely didn’t mind showing up with Noah at my side. Hell, he could have asked me if I wanted to walk into the center of an active volcano with him and I likely would have said yes.

“Let’s do it,” I said, excited to spend the day with the intriguing and smiley man who was quickly capturing more than just my time and attention.

17. Noah Barnes

17

NOAH BARNES

Blake’s was a two-story bar filled with rainbow lights and TV screens playing pop divas on a loop. The first floor had a large bar at the center that served as a great place to post up and chat while sipping on a vodka tonic, with small bar-height tables pushed up against the surrounding walls where more groups of friends gathered. There were two competing kickball teams wearing their blue and green shirts, mingling around the tables next to the wide-open window that faced out to the street.

It was a cool spot and one of Tristan’s favorite Sunday hangouts. He greeted us with a wide smile and a warm hug, introducing Jake to his little brother, Malik. He was visiting from Tampa after a brutal breakup, which explained the three empty cups that surrounded his half-full cup of rum and Coke.

“Thanks for the invite,” I said to Tristan as I settled in, holding my drink with two hands. “It’s been a day.”

“Has it?” he asked. “What happened?”

That opened up the floodgates. Jake and I took turns telling the story, starting after we were woken up by the alarm (and hooked up multiple times). Tristan’s and Malik’s faces both dropped in shock once we got to the physical fighting part of the story.

“Damn, man.” Tristan shook his head and lifted his drink. “Cheers to fucking that guy up and hopefully stopping this crazy stalker shit.”

“Cheers to that,” I said enthusiastically, raising my cup and tapping it against the others.