I don’t worry about coming out of my hiding place because I’ve already paid by credit card over the phone. Andy only has to give the guy a tip. When the door closes, his guffaws have me narrow-eyed. He sets the bag down on the counter and comes to the hallway.

“It’s not funny,” I try to say straight faced but blow it.

“There is nothing to be embarrassed about. So you like sex. Who doesn’t?”

“I screamed,” I say, feeling a little silly.

“So what? You’re vocal about it. I like hearing you scream knowing I can do that to you.”

He silences further protest with a long kiss. I can taste myself on his tongue as he presses me into the wall. His rigid cock rubs against me and I moan, wanting him inside me more than the delightful smells of the food.

I reach behind me and unzip my skirt. I let it fall to the ground unceremoniously. Andy is in the process of undoing the button on his jeans when a knock sounds at the door.

Andy frowns. “Maybe he gave me the wrong credit card copy. Stay right here.”

I nod. I’m no longer embarrassed by the scream. I’m turned on to the point of not caring who sees me. Andy has a way of doing that to me. I curl a finger into my unders to take them off, ready for what’s to come. A man barrels past Andy.

“Drew, my boy. I haven’t heard from you for over a week. That woman has you tied into knots. And you need to get out that funk. I brought food.” He holds up a bag. “And beer.” He holds a six pack of Yuengling with the other hand. “We can watch the Capitals play the Blackhawks. Or I have a hook up with a set of twins who live not too far from here if you’re ready to finally get laid. If we hurry, I can make that call and get them over here.”

The guy finally looks up and even though the hallway is shrouded in darkness, it’s clear I’m not wearing pants. For a moment, I’m the deer and this stranger is hunter. I’m not sure who is more surprised.

“Oh, you have company.”

Everything happens so fast; Andy is already moving to block the guy’s sight of me as he was speaking. I have a vague memory of him the two times I briefly caught sight of him. I’m pretty sure he’s one of the friends Andy was with the night I was too plastered to get home by myself and at the masquerade ball.

I crouch down and step in my skirt while six foot plus of Andy hides me somewhat. I’m so mortified I know I resemble a ripe tomato. When my skirt is zipped, I step up behind Andy. He glances over his shoulder before reaching for my hand and tugging me to step forward next to him.

“Is this the one?” the guy asks. “She looks like the one we ran into twice. It’s her isn’t it?”

“Yes. Mitch, meet Cate. Cate, this is Mitch, one of my friends from undergrad.”

Mitch is slightly shorter but broader than Andy. He’s a decent looking guy with deep set dimples. However, he stands as if he has a chip on his shoulder. I’m not quite sure if he has a problem or if that’s his personality.

“Nice to meet you,” I say reaching out a hand to him.

Mitch just looks at it. Awkwardly, I drop my hand back to my side.

“Cate, the one that left you in Charleston. Cate, the girl you came to Baltimore to forget. Cate, the girl you just happened to run into in DC. That Cate?”

Even if he hadn’t said those words, the way he looks at me says he’s not my biggest fan.

“Mitch, don’t start.”

The guy looks dumbstruck. “Seriously? We don’t hang out much since undergrad. You show up in DC needing a place to stay for a while. Dave and I get you good and drunk and we hear this whole story about a girl who up and left you high and dry in Charleston. It takes a while to get your head out of your ass and move on, only for you to run into that girl again.”

I should be insulted he’s calling me a girl, but everything he’s saying about me is true.

“Now, she’s leading you around by the balls. If your mood is shit, I know she’s playing games with you. If you are in a good mood, then I knew she’s leading you around by your dick.”

“That’s enough, Mitch. What I choose to do with Cate is my business.”

“No, he’s right Andy,” I say.

Mitch’s brows shoot up into his hairline. “Andy? What the fuck is up with that?”

“Drew,” I say instead. “Maybe I should go.”

“You should,” Mitch says.

Andy cuts in. “No Mitch, you should go.”

I don’t want to be the cause of problems with his friends. Mitch has a right to be angry. “No, I have work in the morning. I should leave.”

“Unfortunately, nobody is going anywhere. Some freak storm that was supposed to miss us is pounding DC and headed to Baltimore to ram us up the ass. Maryland has declared a state of emergency. I’d already taken the exit off the highway when the snow started. I turned off Sirius to listen to local radio station and knew I was fucked. You’re stuck with us both.”

I walk over to the window and I’m surprised by the amount of snow on the ground. It has only been less than a half an hour I’ve been here and the roads are already coated. Under the lamps that line the street, you can see that its coming down so thick it will be nearly a white out situation.

“There’s a hotel in walking distance,” I hear Andy say, as I watch the snow with fascination.

“So that’s how it is now. I put you up when you first get into town and you’re sending me to a hotel.”

“I’ll pay for it.”

I turn from the window. “No, Mitch should stay. I’ll go to the hotel.”

“No fucking way,” Andy growls.

Mitch and I both stare at Andy. It’s not often I’ve seen him angry. His stubborn jaw has nothing on the narrow eyes he gives Mitch.

“Look,” I begin. “Mitch, you’re right. I made some poor choices with Drew.”

“You’re damn right.”

I breathe and let Mitch’s comment go for the sake of Andy. “I don’t want to be the cause of a disagreement between you two. Friends before lovers,” I offer like a peace pipe.

“Bros before ho’s you mean.”

“Fuck Mitch, stop being an asshole. Cate’s not going anywhere. If you want to stay, you’re going to be nice to her. You should start by apologizing. I’m a big boy. If I want Cate to keep my balls for me, that’s on me.”

His words might have been comical if not for the tension that’s created a wall between Mitch and him.

“I’m not wrong, so what am I apologizing for?” Mitch declares.

“You’re right. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry to both of you.”

I head toward the bathroom because I have nowhere else to go and I’m not crying in front of Mitch. I won’t give him that satisfaction. And If I leave the apartment, I will be running again and I promised Andy I wouldn’t run. I close the door and stare at myself in the mirror. I want to cry, but I won’t. If I plan to be with Andy, this won’t be the last time I have to deal with hard feelings. This will be only the beginning.

I straighten my clothes by glaring at my reflection. I splash water on my face before I feel strong enough to go face the music. When I open the door, Mitch is there with his fist poised to knock.

He sighs. “Cate, I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

I hadn’t cried. He’s mistaken my flush from rinsing my face, but I don’t correct him.

“Drew was in a bad place after you… Anyway, you aren’t the bitch I thought you were. You could have called me all kinds of assholes out there. Instead, you took it. And that takes balls. They might be Drew’s that you’re holding.” He chuckles at his own joke. I say nothing. “All I ask is that you really consider what you’re doing. Guys have feelings too. He’s a good one. He deserves a good woman. If that’s you, well, all I ask is that you prove it.” He holds out his hand. “Deal?”

I could have been a jerk and left him hanging like he’d done me earlier. However, I want to be with Andy. Mitch is his friend and it would be better if we could at least get along. I take his hand. “Deal.”

Guys are strange. After our talk by the bathroom, Mitch sits down on the couch as if the last fifteen minutes hasn’t happened. Obviously knowing his way around, he’s made a plate of the Chinese food he brought and some of the Thai I ordered. I say nothing and watch the guys eat and drink with the game on after they ask if I would mind. How could I say no after being put in my place earlier?