Naughty Nights: A Bad Boy Romance by Sophie Brooks

classes.” I said this casually, but Mrs. T. knew me pretty well.  
    She gave me a sharp look. “What’s going on?”  
    Nothing. That was the honest answer. Pretty much nothing was going on between us. We’d spent the night together in that hotel a week ago. In the morning, we’d shared a quick breakfast before he drove me back to my car. We hadn’t really talked about much of anything. And this week, we’d exchanged a few texts. But things weren’t like they used to be.  
    And I was mad at him and mad at myself. This was why it was a bad idea to get involved with friends. Before, I had a wonderful friend in Luke. Someone to talk to. To laugh with. To share how my day went. Now I didn’t have any of that.  
    He’d texted last night. Late. At the end of his shift, asking if he could see me. At ten o’clock at night, he wanted to stop by? There was a name for that. A booty call. Just like last week And that wasn’t what I wanted. Sex with Luke was great, but it wasn’t enough. I wanted him . The guy I’d been friends with. The guy I’d looked forward to seeing all day. I wasn’t sure where that guy had gone, but I was pretty sure he wasn’t going to materialize at the end of a long day of classes and work. So I’d messaged him back that it wasn’t a good time.
    “We’ve texted,” I finally answered. “He’s been spending a lot of time working. And studying. He has another big test.” But actually, that was supposed to have been a few days ago. “I mean … he had a big test.”  
    Mrs. T. didn’t say anything for a few minutes while we finished our meal. Finally, she said, “My money’s on the two of you making it work.”  
    “Thanks,” I said, and the unexpected understanding in her voice had me holding back tears. I wished I could feel as confident, but it was my old nightmare. I’d had a good friend, and I’d tried to upgrade him to a boyfriend. And now I didn’t have either one. Luke had been a pretty incredible friend, too.
    “After all, you get things done. You got me here.”  
    That made me cheer up a little. After she’d agreed to help us out the day of Luke’s great escape, I’d called up my coworker and asked her to pull out all the stops for Mrs. T.’s visit.  
    It wouldn’t have worked without John. He’d driven Mrs. T. over, but then she’d refused to come in, saying she’d wait in the shuttle until it was safe to go back. John had thought quickly and told her that if she didn’t come in, I might get in trouble for sending out the shuttle, or possibly be fired. If Mrs. T. had been our secret agent that day, John had been the double agent. I owed them both.  
    “I knew you’d fit in here,” I said. “Just think, you could’ve moved in six weeks ago if you’d taken me up on my offer to tour the place earlier.”  
    “Yeah? And if I’d visited before that, would there also have been a tray of pastries, my favorite kind of tea, and a bridge game short a player about to start?”  
    Damn—I thought she’d chalked that up to coincidence. “Well, it got you to move in here, didn’t it?”  
    “No,” she said.  
    “Really? Then what made you change your mind about this place?”
    Mrs. T. stood up and picked up her tray. “John,” she said. “He’s a cutie.” And then she winked and walked away.  
    * * *
    That evening when I entered my new apartment, it finally felt like home. The furniture was all where I wanted it. I’d gotten my living room and kitchen unpacked, though the bedroom still needed a lot of work.  
    It was a little before nine. After changing into a t-shirt and jeans, I padded out to the kitchen, opened the fridge, and sighed. I’d unpacked all my pots and pans, but I hadn’t gotten into a cooking mood yet. Perhaps I’d been spoiled by all those nights of takeout. But I was trying not to think about that.  
    A container of raspberry yogurt looked to be my best bet. I grabbed it and closed the fridge. It snapped shut with an