Page 18 of Strawberry Cake

Decan kept his eyes on Hope, but didn’t miss the opportunity to give Marco another—harder—punch to the gut. “You just couldn’t keep your mouth shut, could you?”

“What? I thought that was funny.”

“I’m trying to keep her around and you’re being a dick.”

“Oh, c’mon! She was grinning the whole time. She seems like a woman who knows a good joke when she hears it. Besides, she couldn’t take her eyes off you the whole time she was on that treadmill.”

“Just keep your mouth shut next time.”

“How long do I have to behave around her? Because I’m not going to wait until your slow ass has a ring on her finger.”

Decan groaned and rolled his eyes again.

“Oh, you’re honestly mad at me? How will you know if she’s a keeper if she can’t handle your best friend?”

“She came to the damn gym after saying she doesn’t like it. She only came becauseIasked her nicely.”

“Fine she’s a keeper and hot.”

“And she’s mine,” Decan growled. “You better keep your hands and eyes off her.”

“Oh, Decan is getting feisty,” Marco laughed.

“I’m not fucking with you.”

Marco sobered. “Okay. She’s yours and you will kill me if I ever look at her the wrong way.”

Neither of them mentioned Hope again, and they finished their workout.

Once in the parking lot, Decan sighed. “I’m sorry. I know you were just messing with me. I shouldn’t have gotten so upset.”

“And I shouldn’t have fucked with you. I have no interest in taking this girl away from you.”

“Thank you.”

“I want this to work out for you, but I also like messing with you.”

“I know you do; you just got the better of me.”

Marco gave him a wink and nudged his shoulder before he walked to his own car.

Although Decan tried keeping himself busy with work and grocery shopping, Friday couldn’t come fast enough. Once he couldn’t focus on editing, he tried to create some social media content, then moved on to cleaning his apartment—especially the kitchen.

He decided to dress casually, jeans and a black V-neck t-shirt, the lion on his chest peeking over the collar. And of course, the most important part: he left his hair down. Just before six, he got the telltale chime that meant someone was at his gate.

“Hi.”

“Decan?”

“Yes, it’s me.”

“Oh. Good. I wasn’t sure if I did this right. These gate things always mess with me.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll let you in. The guest spots are at the very top. I’ll come get you, so don’t run away.”

“Thanks, I’ll probably get lost finding you.”

He buzzed her in and grabbed his keys to meet her in the garage. Hope was waiting by her car, grocery bags in her hands. Jeans hugged her thighs beautifully, and the light blue blouse she wore matched her eyes.

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