Kinsey was halfway through her giant jug of coffee when Tyler finally knocked on her door.
“Hey,” he smiled, “How’s it going?”
“Oh, I’ve been better,” she replied honestly, not seeing any reason to lie to him.
“Anything I can do to help?” he asked sweetly. Kinsey wanted to tell him nothing short of good night’s coma would help her in this situation, but instead she just smiled at him and shook her head.
“Just didn’t get much sleep last night.”
“Well, you’d better get rested up before Friday night,” he said, coming in and sitting down in one of the chairs that sat before her desk.
“What’s Friday night?” she asked curiously.
“Well, I’m going to take you out to dinner again then,” he replied confidently. Fighting the urge to roll her eyes, Kinsey wondered to herself how such cocky men seemed to gravitate towards her. Didn’t she deserve to be around a humble guy every once and awhile?
“I’m sorry, Tyler, but my sister’s coming in town to visit this weekend.” He laughed nervously and shifted in his seat.
“Well, at least you didn’t say you had to wash your hair,” he said, obviously thinking that she was making up the excuse to get out of the date.
“No! She really is!”
“So, another time then? How about tomorrow?”
“Okay, tomorrow works for me,” Kinsey told him, not even bothering to check her calendar. She knew that the only thing on her schedule for that night was watching Top Chef with Zac over a few beers and then falling asleep.
“Tomorrow it is,” he grinned, drumming his fingers on her desktop, “Do you want to pick the place this time?”
“I trust you,” she said, trying her best to be flirtatious even though she wanted to pass out on top of her desk.
“I’ll pick you up at seven,” he told her before turning to leave. Kinsey wanted to smile, but all she could think about for the rest of the day was that he hadn’t told her where he was the day before.
She barely made it home without falling asleep on the subway. Without a word to the guys, she immediately went upstairs and collapsed onto her bed, not even bothering to take off her shoes or pull the covers over herself before falling fast asleep.
“Wake up, sleepyhead!” Zac announced from her doorway a few hours later.
“Fuck off, I’m tired,” she grumbled before turning over, putting her back to him and wishing that he would just leave her alone.
“No such luck, missy. Iron Chef is on and I need someone to eat bad food with me while I watch it and hate myself for my inadequate culinary skills,” he informed her, grabbing her around the waist and heaving her up onto his shoulder.
“Put me down, you caveman!” she yelled out sleepily, a big yawn overtaking her last words prompting Zac to laugh heartily at her.
“That was almost convincing. Almost,” he said, dropping her heavily onto the couch once they’d reached it. She found a plate of nachos and some pigs in a blanket in front of her and immediately dug in, unaware until that moment of how hungry she was. Isaac came in the room a few minutes later.
“So, did you see Tyler today?” he asked.
“I did,” Kinsey said and Zac shoved her hard, almost knocking her thin frame over. “What?!”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he demanded.
“I don’t know. I forgot?” she started, “Look, I’m going out with him tomorrow night since Brenna’s going to be in town this weekend. I’m not sure how I feel about it because he didn’t say anything about where he was yesterday.”
“Well did you ask him?” Isaac asked.
“No, Isaac, I didn’t. I’m lucky I made it through the day. I’ll ask him tomorrow, but I just think it’s a little shady that he didn’t offer up the information or even mention it. So, we’ll see how it goes,” she told them. She felt her eyes still drooping despite her several hour long nap and she cuddled into Zac’s side. As the episode was drawing to a close, Kinsey drifted off to sleep.
When she awoke, the clock on the wall beside the TV told her that it was well after eleven, and a look around the room showed her that all of the guys were sprawled out watching a rerun of “House.”
“Why didn’t you guys wake me up?” she asked sleepily, stretching against Zac’s side and realizing that his arm was still around her.
“You were exhausted,” Isaac shrugged, “Why not let you sleep?”
“Yeah, why are you so tired, anyway?” Taylor asked before shoving a handful of popcorn in his mouth. She wanted to tell him to fuck off and that she hadn’t gotten to sleep in all day to recover from their epic sexcapades.
“Insomnia,” she lied dryly, not really caring how she sounded since he already knew the answer and Zac and Isaac had been sucked back into the show.
“A likely story,” he said under his breath, teasing her terribly. If she had been even slightly less tired, she would have responded somehow but instead she just forced herself into a standing position.
“I’m going to bed for real. I’ll see you boys in the morning,” she told them.
“Night!” they all replied, none of them taking their eyes off the TV to look at her. She sighed and trudged up the stairs. After brushing her teeth and washing her face, she went to bed and climbed in only to find herself wide awake. Instead of turning on the TV or reading, she just let her thoughts take over.
Part of her was very excited for her date with Tyler, but another part was still feeling nervous. Nothing had happened on her date with him to indicate that he was anything other than a genuinely decent guy. But part of her, the more cautious and pessimistic part, was wary of his absence from work the previous day and his complete failure to mention it during multiple occasions to do so. And then there was Taylor. With a groan, she rolled over and put a pillow over her exposed ear as if it would block out her noisy thoughts. There was no way she could go into how her friends with benefits status with Taylor was ten shades of messed up, so she forced herself to clear her mind and go to sleep instead.
The next night at five til seven, Kinsey smiled at her reflection in the mirror. That day at work, Tyler had sent her flowers and had come in to chat, explaining during their conversation that he had been called out of the office on Monday to handle a particularly sticky case that needed to be dealt with immediately. He told her that he was taking her to Dos Caminos, and she had smiled and omitted that she’d been there before a couple of times since moving to the city, most recently the night of her birthday. She was sure she would have to fess up eventually, but loved the restaurant and didn’t want him to cancel his reservation just because she’d been there before.
She ran her flat iron over the ends of her hair one more time, making sure that they were board straight before looking at herself in the mirror. She had purchased a new dress that afternoon, a black number that was rouched from the neck and flowed down to mid-thigh. The second she had seen it on the rack, she had known that it was the perfect outfit to wear on her date with Tyler and had snatched it up. After checking herself in the mirror one more time, she shut off the lights, grabbed her purse from the counter and headed downstairs. Instead of letting the guys embarrass her and answer the door again, she simply waited next to it for him to arrive.
“You’re going to look all needy and desperate, you know that right?” Taylor asked as he passed her on his way to the kitchen.
“Why? Because I’m waiting for him to get here?”
“No, because your dress looks like lingerie,” he countered before disappearing. Kinsey sighed and followed him into the kitchen where Isaac and Zac were eating Mac ‘n Cheese.
“Does this dress look like lingerie?” she asked them, shooting a glare at Taylor after doing so.
“No, you look hot,” Zac managed with his mouth completely full of food. Kinsey crinkled up her nose in disgust and smacked his arm. Before she could say anything in response, the buzzer sounded from next to the door, letting her know that Tyler was asking for entrance to the building. She waved at them before running out of the room carefully in her heels.
“I’ll be right down,” she said into the intercom before leaving. Her feet moved her quickly to Tyler and when she opened the door, she smiled at the sight of him out there on sidewalk in his dress shirt and pants, looking incredibly sexy with the wind tousling his hair. She walked up to him and without a word, he stepped forward and cradled her face in his hands. Quickly, he bent down to kiss her firmly, his lips lingering against hers for several seconds before stepping back.
“I’m sorry, I couldn’t wait any longer to do that,” he smiled.
“No complaints here,” she replied, fighting the blush that was trying to work its way to her cheeks.
“So,” he laughed, “Dinner?” She nodded eagerly and followed him to the waiting cab. They chatted during the drive and while they munched on chips and guacamole. When their margaritas and meals finally arrived, Kinsey couldn’t believe for a second that she’d let herself think all of those negative thoughts about Tyler. He was a great guy and she was glad that she had given him a second chance.
“So, are you liking it at Macy’s so far?” he asked her.
“It’s fine. I’m not really in my comfort zone there yet, but I know that it’ll come with time. I just like it when I’m at the stage in a job where I can make myself busy and know exactly what I can do to be productive.”
“I completely understand that,” he laughed, “I reorganized my office five times during my first month there. But now I love it. You will too someday.”
“I’m sure I will,” she smiled, watching as he filled her glass from the pitcher of margaritas on the table, “Are you trying to get me drunk?”
“I might be,” he said, “Would that be a deal breaker?”
“Absolutely not,” she laughed, “Unless you’re just doing it to seduce me, and in that case, we might have an issue.”
“How big of an issue?” he teased.
“Mr. Campbell, I had no idea you were so forward,” she said, trying hard to look serious, despite the smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
“Neither did I,” he laughed genuinely, “Apparently you and tequila bring out a whole new side of me.”
“Should I be offended or should I feel special?”
“You should definitely not be offended. I’m having a lot of fun,” he told her.
“Me too.”
“So, what are we doing after this?” he asked, “I know it’s a work night and all, but I’m not ready for the evening to end yet.”
“Well, we could go back to my place. You know, watch a movie or something,” she smiled, realizing at that moment that she was feeling quite buzzed from the tequila she’d consumed. As she watched his tongue dart off to lick some of the salt off the rim of his glass, she found herself almost desperate for him to agree to her proposition.
“I’m not sure I’m in the mood for a movie,” he replied.
“I’m sure we can find something to do to keep us occupied,” she grinned.
“Oh, I don’t doubt that for a second,” he said, finishing off the last of his margarita. Kinsey bit her bottom lip and did the same. It was the third margarita she’d had in the last hour and it hit her almost immediately. After he’d paid their bill and hailed a cab, they were on their way back to her place. Kinsey knew that she definitely was not a shy or timid girl, but she surprised even herself when she leaned over and pressed her lips to Tyler’s in the cab. Something about him just turned her on and she wanted him however she could get him—even if it was in the back of a cab. She had no idea what would transpire once they went inside, but she figured the least she could do was get some hot kiss action out of the date. They made out almost frantically the entire way back, her hands bravely exploring the smooth plane of his chest and stomach, making her insanely curious about what delicious muscles she would find under his shirt. At that thought, she moaned louder than she meant to and he chuckled against her lips before pulling back. The cab driver cleared his throat and they both realized that they were sitting in front of her building. Kinsey slid out first and as Tyler fumbled for his wallet in his back pocket, she sent a quick text to Isaac. She only had time to send one word, but she hoped that they would get the hint in time.
“Disappear?” Isaac read, “What the hell?”
“She’s probably drunk,” Taylor suggested.
“Do you think she meant to send more, but didn’t? What if she’s in trouble?” Isaac asked them, clearly worried about her. They had been working in the studio for hours and had just gone to the kitchen to retrieve food and drinks to relax with in the living room.
“I’m sure she’s fine,” Zac said, not sounding so sure.
“You don’t know that,” Isaac retorted.
“Of course I don’t! But if I sit here and worry about her for the rest of the night I’ll have a heart attack.”
“Why don’t you dipshits just call her?” Taylor sighed, shifting the bags of food in his arms in the hopes that they wouldn’t go spilling onto the floor. Isaac and Zac shared a brief “Why didn’t we think of that?” look and Isaac was just getting ready to press send when they heard a key jingling in the lock.
“That’s what she meant!” Isaac said as they all started running for the stairs to the studio. Even though they hadn’t verbally decided it was the best place to go, they all seemed to realize that if they tried to make it upstairs, they’d be seen by Tyler and Kinsey when they came inside, and Kinsey clearly did not want Tyler to think that they were at home.
“I can’t believe she brought him back here,” Taylor grumbled, practically ripping open the bag of Oreos before him and pulling out a handful.
“Must have been a good second date,” Isaac grinned.
“Oh smile all you want, I’m the one who’s going to have to listen to them going at it all night,” Taylor cried with a mouthful of cookie.
“You’re just pissed because you’re the only one who hasn’t gotten laid in the new place yet,” Zac smirked and Taylor had to try very hard not to disagree with his little brother out of spite. He knew that he had probably been laid more times than the two of them put together, but there was no way he could tell them that. His friends-with-benefits relationship with Kinsey needed to stay a secret for the time being, he knew that much.
“Whatever,” he said instead before eating another cookie.
“You’re going to get fat if you keep eating like that,” Zac told him merely to get under his skin.
“Fuck you,” Taylor managed with his mouth full. They sat down there for a good twenty minutes before Zac got up.
“I’m going to see if they’re still downstairs or if we can sneak upstairs,” Zac told them before creeping up the stairs and opening the door just a crack. He made a disgusted face before pulling the door shut as silently as he could, tiptoeing back down to them, “I could have gone my whole life without seeing that.”
“What was going on?” Isaac asked.
“Well, Tyler had already lost his shirt and Kinsey had him pressed up against the wall,” Zac told them, shuddering dramatically when he was finished. Taylor just huffed and shoved two more Oreos in his mouth. He knew that he had absolutely no reason to feel anything other than annoyance at being confined to the studio when all he wanted to do was watch “The Matrix” like they’d planned. But something was making him really angry with Kinsey for bringing Tyler back obviously with the sole intention of having sex with him. They were just friends-with-benefits, and that title had hardly been assigned before it was complicated severely by her bringing someone else home. He justified that to himself as an adequate reason for being annoyed and continued his assault on the row of Oreos that was quickly diminishing before him.
They decided that they might as well get a little work done since the studio was soundproof anyway, and listened to the recordings they’d made that evening, all of them making their opinions known and deciding what to work on the next day. Once that was done, Zac crept up the stairs once again and declared the main level clear. Taylor snagged his iPod from the living room, putting the ear buds securely in his ears and cranking up the volume before heading upstairs. The last thing he wanted was to hear the escapades going on in Kinsey’s room. He even fell asleep with them in.
Kinsey awoke the next morning and immediately shot up in a dead panic. Once she realized her huge error, she laughed quietly to herself and laid back down. For a brief, hazy moment, she’d thought that the blonde shaggy hair that donned the back of the head on her other pillow was Taylor’s. The fleeting thought that they’d severely messed up and he’d fallen asleep in her bed had been enough to fully wake her, which caused her to remember the actual events that had lead up to Tyler spending the night with her.
The entire time, she had been desperately hoping that the foreplay, the kissing, the sex, that any of it would be better than it had been with Taylor, but it wasn’t. It had been fantastic by anyone’s standards, but not better than Taylor, something that made her furious. But instead of focusing on that, she turned her attention to the situation at hand, or rather, the fact that she had just slept with her coworker on their second date. Would she be deemed the office slut? Would everyone know before lunch? Before she could get too hysterical, Tyler woke up and turned to face her.
“Good morning,” he smiled. Kinsey sat there and smiled back at him, incredibly thankful that she’d at least thought to put on some pajamas before falling asleep and apparently he’d at least put his boxers and undershirt back on.
“It’s 7:00,” she told him, trying to ignore his hand as it reached over to rest on her thigh.
“Shit, I should get going,” he said, giving her leg a squeeze before sitting up and scooting himself to the edge of the bed.
“Do you want some breakfast first?” she asked.
“I think I have time,” he grinned, pulling on his dress pants and shirt before following her out the door.
“Good,” she smiled, leading the way. There was no way that the guys would be up yet. Even Isaac was never up before eight, she thought happily to herself. But when they entered the kitchen, her eyes narrowed. All three guys were awake, drinking coffee, and eating bacon and eggs at the kitchen table.
“Oh, good morning,” Isaac said.
“Why are you guys awake?” she groaned, hoping that Tyler wasn’t too mortified at the moment. He just followed her over to the fridge and smiled at her as she looked up at him pathetically.
“I like my eggs over easy,” he told her as she took a carton of eggs out of the fridge.
“I’m on it!” she laughed before preparing their breakfast.
“Can I do anything to help?” he asked as she put their eggs and some toast on two plates.
“Could you pour us some coffee?” she asked, “The cups are in that cabinet next to the sink. The sweetener is in the basket next to the coffee maker and the creamer is in the fridge.”
“How do you take yours?” he asked.
“Black.”
“That’s my kind of girl,” he chuckled, pouring an identical cup for himself. He took both cups in his hands and looked from her to the table.
“Oh, we’re not eating in here,” Kinsey said, shooting a glare in the guys’ direction before heading for the living room.
“Nice to see you guys again,” Tyler said to them before following her with their coffee.
“He’s awfully chipper,” Isaac said, biting back a laugh.
“Well he got laid last night. I’d be fucking chipper if I’d had sex last night, too,” Taylor spat before cramming an entire piece of bacon in his mouth.
“You can be as pissy as you want,” Isaac started, “I’m happy for Kinsey. It’s been a long time since I saw her this excited about a guy.”
“So, I’m going to head downstairs,” Taylor told them a few minutes later, putting his plate in the dishwasher before heading for the studio.
“Did you see how nice Tyler was to Kinsey?” Zac asked Isaac.
“I still can’t get over how much he reminds me of Taylor,” Isaac laughed, “Well, in every way except personality.”
“Seriously. He’s like… Bizarro Taylor,” Zac said.
“Bizarro Taylor, that’s perfect,” Isaac cracked up.