Page 6 of Love Potion

So we stay best friends and I push him to find a love of his own so I can stop worrying so much. It’s worked for twenty years, and that’s good enough for me.

“Want to watch a movie instead?” Bane asks. “That new Jason Statham one just went to streaming.”

I perk up. Movie watching means a cuddle sesh. “Absolutely.”

Bane chuckles, grabbing the remote off the coffee table and extending one arm in invitation. I tuck my long body onto the couch and snuggle in close, rubbing my cheek on his soft shirt. Bane drags his fingers down my back in circles, soothing me as he navigates to the movie.

These are my favorite times. For years, Bane has been the source of the physical comfort I crave without the stress of things turning sexual eventually.

“Thanks, Bane,” I whisper, tilting my head to kiss his cheek.

He nods, gazing at me and smiling. “You bet.”

FOUR

BANE

I glanceat the wall clock again while I wait for my table’s food to come up. Jerryn left over an hour ago to meet up with Alec, so it’s too soon to check that everything’s okay. Hell, he might not even be in the city yet. I need to slow down.

At least the bar is busy tonight. That should keep me distracted for a few hours until Jerryn’s back.

While I’m waiting, Ridley comes into the kitchen, his eyes already trained on his favorite person: Wren. He notices me and gives me a nod and a smile.

“Hey, Bane.”

“Hey.”

“Crazy out there tonight. On a Monday. Weird.”

“I was thinking that too, but university is starting up again soon. Maybe we have a lot of visitors in town.”

“Could be.”

Wren is calling out orders and orchestrating the chaos of a busy kitchen, and I study Ridley’s face as he stares at his man with heart eyes. The ever-present jealousy stabs my chest. I’m happy for my friends, of course, but damn, do I want that for myself.

My problem is I am in love—insanely, head over heels in love—and I have been for the better part of twenty years. I just fell for a person who has zero interest in love and romance with me.

“What’s going on with you?” Ridley asks, bumping my arm with his. “Missing your other half?”

“Basically, yeah. I’m worried. The guy he’s meeting up with isn’t my favorite person.”

“We picked up on that. What’s his deal?”

I shrug. “He seemed like he was really into Jerr at first, and that he might be different from a lot of guys Jerr went out with. He was romantic and sweet. He was understanding of some personal things.” The more I tell the story, the more annoyed I get. “But then he started showing a lot of controlling signs. He didn’t want Jerr spending so much time with me. He told Jerr that he thought I was into him.”

“Into who? Him or Jerr?”

“Jerr. There was a lot of tension between us for a while because of it. I backed off because I only want what’s best for Jerr, you know?”

Ridley nods. “Yeah.”

“It sucked. I wasn’t spending time with my best friend, and he was navigating this new relationship alone.”

“How did it end?”

“Jerryn decided…” I pause. This is the hard part. It’s Jerryn’s private issue, one I promised I would never share with anyone else. “Jerryn shared something with Alec, thinking he would be supportive and understanding, and at first, he was, but as time went on, he became less understanding and he got hurtful about it.”

Ridley nods, and I can tell from his expression he wants to ask, but he already knows I won’t answer him. “That blows.”

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