Cross Mate English

Some days, the universe just likes to mess with me.

I tossed my keys in the bowl by the door and kicked off my shoes with a sigh. Great. Another botched schedule. My manager had screwed up again, and now I had the whole day off unpaid, of course. Normally, I'd be thrilled to get some surprise free time, but rent wasn't going to pay itself.

Everyone I usually hung out with was working, like I should have been. Still, maybe I could convince Jess and her best friend, Lila, to head back to the lake with me. Going alone would just look sketchy, but with them alone, I could chill, swim, and yeah... sneak a few harmless glances at all the beautiful girls in bikinis without looking like a creep.

Especially one girl in particular, Lila, in that tiny black two-piece she'd worn last time. My stomach flipped just thinking about it.

And no, I wasn't proud of it. She was Jess's best friend and my adopted cousin, practically part of the family. But it wasn't like I'd do anything. I wasn't a total scumbag. I just looked. Discreetly. Harmlessly.

Lila had moved in a couple of weeks ago, since she and Jess were starting university in the fall and my stepmom had offered up our guest room to save her from dorm costs. She and Jess had been inseparable for years, ever since Jess's dad married my mom and we all ended up under one roof. We'd gotten used to sharing space, even liked it. Jess was cool, more of a laid-back gamer girl than a high-maintenance type. Lila was the wilder one, funny, fearless, and totally at ease in her own skin.

I headed down the hall toward Jess's room, music thumping loud enough to vibrate the floor. No big deal they were supposed to be the only ones home. I knocked once, twice, and when there was no answer, I figured they couldn't hear me and pushed the door open.

"Hey, do you guys wanna?"

I froze mid-sentence. My mouth went dry.

There they were, tangled together on the bed, completely naked. Lila on top, Jess beneath her, their hands buried between each other's thighs, kissing like their lives depended on it.

"Eli! Oh my God get out!" Jess screamed, scrambling to yank a blanket up as they both gasped and pulled away from each other.

But it was too late. The sight was already burned into my brain. Jess's soft curves and shoulder-length dark hair clashed with Lila's toned, statuesque frame and wild chestnut curls. I slammed the door shut and backed into the hallway, heart pounding.

"God..." I muttered, my voice low as the tension surged through me, my body reacting before my brain could fully catch up. I shifted uncomfortably, my jeans suddenly way too tight. With a shaky breath, I reached over to Jess's desk and turned down the music to something less deafening, figuring we'd all want to actually hear each other now.

"You two... how long has this been going on?" I asked, blinking like I was trying to reset reality.

"You have to swear you won't tell anyone, Eli!" Jess shot back immediately, her eyes wide, panic rising in her voice. Her bright blue gaze locked onto mine, a mirror of my own. We didn't look much alike her short blonde hair and petite frame contrasted sharply with my taller, darker features, but those eyes had always been the dead giveaway that we were family.

"I won't. Of course I won't," I said quickly, raising a hand in surrender. Then, because my brain couldn't handle the awkwardness any other way, I cracked a crooked grin. "So... does this mean it's my turn next?"

It was a joke. Just a bad one. My go-to defense: humour, sarcasm, anything to distract from the insane situation I'd just walked into.

But Lila looked up at me with those big, dark eyes and softly said, "Okay."

The word hit like a lightning strike.

She blushed, her cheeks blooming pink against her pale skin, and offered me a shy smile from where she was half-curled on the bed.