Fine Dork Read online

  Fine, Dork

  Nikki Paris

  Copyright © 2021 Nikki Paris

  All rights reserved.

  For my very own sexy dork.

  1

  Jaxon

  Sometimes, I successfully convinced myself that I loved my best friend in a platonic way, the same way she loved me. Those were the easiest, safest times. But, over the years, I’d also harbored varying degrees of crushes on her, ranging from mild and fleeting to consuming and soul-crushing.

  There were exactly three moments when I would have called it love love, but the last time was years ago. It was so far in the past that I hardly remembered it.

  Lies.

  We were adults now. I lived my life, and she lived hers, and these respective lives of ours often took us in opposite directions. I hadn’t even seen the woman in close to a year. I could keep my feelings in check, even though I was about to spend two whole weeks with her in paradise.

  Funny.

  As she sprinted toward me in the crowded Kona, Hawaii airport, I realized that I was royally fucked. The smile that lit up her entire face when she spotted me made my heart race. The way she screamed, “J!” and tackled me, throwing both her arms and legs around me, had me smiling like an idiot.

  “Hey, K.” I grinned and wrapped my arms around my best friend while she covered my face in kisses. Her body felt incredible, and she still smelled like sweet apple candy. That made my stupid smile even bigger.

  Back when we were college freshmen, Bath and Body Works discontinued Kinley’s favorite apple-scented lotion. She was heartbroken, so I drove around to five different stores and bought every last bottle I could find. K was my best friend, and she deserved sixteen bottles of her favorite lotion. Incidentally, that was also one of the three times that I was crazy in love with her.

  “I’m so happy you came!” Kinley laughed out loud and slid down my body to a standing position. She reached down, picked up my backpack, and flung it over her shoulder.

  “Give me that. You’re not carrying my shit.” I rolled my eyes and reached for my backpack.

  Kinley backed away, rolling her big brown eyes right back at me. “I am carrying your shit, J. I am. I’ve been working out.” She flexed her arms and winked at me.

  Kinley’s sun-kissed arms did have a decent amount of muscle definition. “Whoa, K. Put those guns away before you hurt someone.” I laughed and draped my arm around her shoulders while we walked to the tram.

  Shit, it was good to see her. Kinley traveled a lot for her job, so it was hard to align our schedules. Also, my girlfriend had a major problem with Kinley. Sorry, ex-girlfriend. Sometimes I still forgot that Savannah dumped me on Wednesday.

  Kinley had invited me to come and stay at her parents’ new beach house in Hawaii over six months ago. “J!” she’d said, “It’s going to be incredible! Preston, Beckett, and Lyla are already in! You have to come!”

  “Uh… I don’t know, K.”

  “Bring your girlfriend!”

  Savannah said, “Hell, no!” then spent the next week pissed at me for even saying Kinley’s name. But we were broken up, now, and Hawaiian paradise sounded like exactly what I needed, so I hopped on a plane.

  The breakup was calm and logical, like Savannah and me, but it left my head spinning with confusion. I thought Savannah was my type. I thought I was doing everything by the book, you know, being a good boyfriend, but she dumped me anyway. Maybe I’d never have a damn clue what women wanted.

  While we waited for the next tram to show up, Kinley stared at me with a big cheesy grin. I then noticed that the light spray of freckles on her nose was darkened by the sun, and her light brown hair was streaked with caramel. She looked beautiful.

  “I’m so fucking happy that you came, J.” She punched my arm and then resumed staring. “I swear you’re taller. Did you get taller?”

  I laughed and gave her a light shove. “Last time I checked, humans don’t keep growing into their mid-twenties.”

  Kinley laughed, too. “Shut up. I know you didn’t really grow. You look different, though. Maybe it’s the scruff.” She ran her hands over my chin and jaw. “It looks damn good, J!”

  “Thank you. Pretty manly?” I loved and hated it when she complimented me. It gave me this stupid fluttering feeling in my chest.

  “Crazy manly.” Kinley’s smile melted away, and she leaned her head on my shoulder. “I haven’t seen you for so long, and I hate it.” She sighed. “It wasn’t supposed to be like this, you know? We were supposed to build our dream houses on the same street and stay best friends forever.”

  That was the promise we made to each other when we were ten. It was before I realized I would want to sleep with her, and she would never reciprocate those feelings. “Don’t blame me. You’re the one that decided to become a famous photographer and world traveler.”

  Kinley smirked. “I’m not famous. But you’re right. I’m not around very often.” Then she turned to look at me, shielding her eyes from the hot afternoon sun with one hand. “How are you, Jaxon? Like, really? We haven’t talked much since Savannah forbade our friendship. How are you honestly doing with the breakup?”

  I sighed as the tram approached. “I feel like that’s a conversation best had over like twenty beers.”

  “Aw, J, I’m sorry.” Kinley looped her arm through mine. “She’s crazy, do you know that?” Kinley grinned at me as we boarded the tram. “Want me to kick her ass?”

  “Oh my god, you would do that for me?” I grinned back at Kinley. “That would actually be kinda hot, watching you two go at each other.”

  Kinley burst out laughing. “Whatever, J, that fight would be over so fast. I could take her in a second! She’s all weak and pale because she never leaves her computer cave.”

  I grinned and shook my head. Savannah was a data analyst at the same company where I worked as a senior software engineer. “Don’t hate on us computer nerds. We are a needed and valuable part of society.”

  Kinley laughed. “Fine, dork.”

  And there it was—the reason Kinley friend-zoned me back in high school. I was the dork that wanted to stay in and do advanced calculus homework. Kinley was the hot party girl that every dumb jock wanted to fuck.

  We would never work, so I was going to fight like hell to avoid falling in love with her for a fourth time on this trip.

  After we took our seats, Kinley turned to open the tram window and leaned her head back on my shoulder with a smile. I glanced down at Kinley and remembered the day we met. The first day of kindergarten was also the first time I fell in love with her.

  ◆◆◆

  Six Years Old

  A little girl with brown pigtails and freckles poked her head into the tube slide where I sat and pretended I wasn’t crying. “Hi!” she said. “Your name starts with J, right? My name starts with K, so we’re going to be best friends, like in the book that Mrs. Carlson read. Remember? J and K climbed the tree together, and then they fell down together, too?”

  When I didn’t answer, the girl rolled her big brown eyes and put her hands on her hips. “It’s okay that you’re crying. I cried when my mom left, too. I’ve never been to school before. I didn’t know if anyone would be nice. But you’re nice, and I’m nice.” She climbed into the tube slide with me and put her arm around me. “You wanna be best friends?”

  Girls had weird germs. That’s what my big fourth grader brother, Tyson told me. He also told me I was a stupid baby when I asked our mom to walk to school with us. Mom said no, so I walked with Tyson, and he yelled at me for being too slow.

  The girl blinked her big brown eyes and waited for me to answer. “Oh,” she said, “You don’t want to be best friends. That’s okay.” She shrugged and looked down at her hands. She was sad now. I didn’t mean
to make her sad. She was pretty and nice.

  I looked over at her and wiped my tears away. I shrugged. “Sure. We can be best friends.”

  The girl smiled and flung her arms around my neck. Then she tugged me from the tube slide. “TAG!” she yelled, “You’re it!”

  2

  Kinley

  Jaxon Wood was my best damn friend in the world, and while I was sad that stupid Savannah broke his heart, I was secretly thrilled. I could have him back, now, couldn’t I? He could be my J again. I could call him at 3 am to discuss all the HBO shows he’d recommended that I finally got around to watching.

  He was always right. The shows always blew my damn mind. Right now, I was halfway through Lovecraft Country, and I’d been dying to call him, but Savannah didn’t like it when I called.

  Savannah didn’t like it when I stopped by to visit, either. Well, Savannah and her Ph.D. and skinny little size two butt could kiss my AS degree and size eight butt.

  “Wow! This place is nice!” Jaxon smiled as he walked through the front door of my parents’ Hawaiian beach house.

  “It is, right?” I smiled and looked around at the little three-bedroom beach house that I’d called home for the last few weeks. I didn’t have roots since I traveled so often, and my parents were kind enough to let me crash here until I left for my next job in Peru. A travel agency had hired me to photograph the birthplace of the Amazon river. I was flying out in two weeks for a three-week-long job, and I was ecstatic. I’d never been to the Amazon before, but it was at the top of my bucket list.

  Jaxon ran his hand across the tan laminate countertop in the kitchen. He looked stressed. Was it because of Savannah? I’d seriously cut that bitch if she ever hurt him again. “You okay?” I asked, my voice soft.

  Jaxon glanced up at me and smiled. “Yeah. I’m good.” His smile was too tight. “Where should I put my stuff?” he asked, holding up his backpack and carry on.

  “So, bad news, J. Preston brought his girlfriend, and he doesn’t want you to room with him anymore. Beckett and Lyla are dating now, too. You knew that, right? Did Savannah still let you talk to them?”

  Jaxon rolled his eyes at me. “Yes, I knew that Beckett and Lyla were dating.”

  “So it was only me that she couldn’t stand?” I folded my arms and rolled my eyes right back at Jaxon.

  Jaxon grinned. “Yep. Just you.”

  I let out an annoyed sigh. “Why? It’s not like I was trying to steal you!”

  Jaxon opened his mouth to say something when Beckett burst through the front door. “DUDE! You came!”

  Lyla followed close behind and deadpanned. “Yay. Jaxon.” She was being a sarcastic asshole. She loved Jaxon as much as we all did. It was impossible to dislike the cute, nerdy sweetheart.

  “Jaxon sandwich!” Beckett and Lyla both flung their arms around him.

  Jaxon laughed and shoved them off. “What’s up, guys? How’s the sex?”

  “Oh, fucking fantastic.” Lyla sank into the teal armchair by the window. Beckett sat on her lap, even though he was twice her size. They were such a weird couple, but also kind of adorable. Lyla was tiny, sarcastic, and fierce, and Beckett was like a big goofy teddy bear. They didn’t match at all on paper, but if you watched them for a minute, they were like relationship goals.

  Jaxon laughed and leaned against the kitchen counter. “Beckett is good at sex? You’re kidding.”

  “I’m so good at sex.” Beckett leaned back, practically crushing Lyla. “Tell that asshole how many orgasms I gave you last night, baby.”

  Lyla groaned under Beckett’s weight and gasped, “Six, bitches!”

  “Wow.” Jaxon rubbed his jaw and laughed.

  “Yeah, they’re super fun to listen to at night. I’ve started passing out earplugs before bed.” I laughed. “Actually, Preston and Selena are gross and loud, too. I’m the only one that needs the earplugs. But speaking of that, because of all the happy couples, you can either choose the couch or my room.”

  “Uh…” Jaxon scratched the back of his neck, and Beckett and Lyla stared back and forth between us. “Like your room with you?”

  I raised a single eyebrow. “Yeah, dork.”

  Jaxon cleared his throat and mumbled, “I’ll take the couch.”

  That shouldn’t have hurt my feelings at all, but it did.

  “Ah, you’re worried Kinky Kinley’s going to try something?” Beckett grinned and tossed a bright orange throw pillow at me.

  I swatted the pillow away and glared at Beckett. I loathed that nickname with the fire of a thousand suns. I’d earned it in high school when I discovered my affinity for sucking dicks and making football players lose their minds. Yes, I liked sex, but I was so fucking much more than Kinky Kinley.

  Jaxon cleared his throat. “The couch looks super comfortable.”

  It wasn’t. The couch was as uncomfortable as me at that moment.

  Selena burst through the front door next with fury in her eyes. She didn’t stop to say hello, just marched into the back bedroom and slammed the door. Preston hurried in next. “Jax, what’s up, dude?” But he didn’t stop to hear Jaxon’s answer. He walked straight to the closed bedroom door and pounded on it. “Baby! Baby, open the door, please! I was not flirting with her!”

  “Oh, shit.” Lyla grinned. “Trouble in paradise with his little princessa!”

  I rolled my eyes and looked over at Jaxon. “You see what I’ve been dealing with here?”

  Jaxon smiled back at me. “Well, I’m here to save you now, K.” He carried his bags over to the couch and stowed them behind it. I smiled at his careful logic. I would’ve tossed my bags in the middle of the room and collapsed on the couch without a care in the world. But Jaxon took in the cramped space and quickly deduced that his bags would fit perfectly in the area behind the couch and not be in anyone’s way.

  “You guys wanna go get dinner downtown tonight?” I asked.

  Lyla, Beckett, and Jaxon agreed. Preston was still begging Selena to open the door, so the four of us left Preston to his groveling and headed to my favorite little Hawaiian restaurant. The live music, bright décor, and lit tiki torches created a fantastic ambiance. Not to mention, their Kalua pork was mouth-watering, and I’d be willing to commit homicide for their coconut cake. We got a table out on the patio overlooking the beach and settled into an easy chat between old friends.

  Before long, Jaxon was deep in conversation with Beckett, trying to explain something called a quaternion to him. Jaxon was oblivious to the blank expression on Beckett’s face. I burst out laughing and nudged Jaxon with my elbow. I cleared my throat and pushed up my imaginary glasses. I made my voice all deep and said, “According to my calculations…” I couldn’t help teasing him a little when he got this excited about math problems.

  Jaxon shot me a dirty look and shook his head. Then he glanced over at Beckett. “I’m boring the hell out of you, aren’t I?”

  “No, no way, dude!”

  “Yeah, you are,” Lyla said, taking a sip of her mai tai.

  “Aw, you’re such a dork, Professor J.” I leaned over and pressed a quick kiss to Jaxon’s cheek. I’d been kissing these cheeks since he had a smooth baby face. Now, Jaxon had a healthy amount of stubble, and it turned me right on. He was looking like a sexy man tonight.

  “Professor J?” Jaxon raised an eyebrow at me, then said, “I know you’re trying to insult me, but who’s the one at this table that dated a forty-year-old physics professor?”

  Beckett chuckled and then shouted, “Kink-y Kin-ley!”

  “Hey!” I held up my hands, getting ready to defend myself. I did date a professor for two months. He wasn’t my professor, so it was fine. “Two things, dumbasses: Don’t call me Kinky Kinley. I fucking hate that. And second, there is nothing wrong with being attracted to intelligent males. I need my mind stimulated, too, not just my body.”

  Beckett laughed out loud, and Lyla snorted.

  Jaxon’s next words shocked me. “You know what they say about dude
s with big brains…”

  I gaped at my best friend, and he gave me an exaggerated wink.

  My heart started racing. J and I jokingly flirted all the time. We’d explicitly described different sexual experiences to each other before, too. Why was this little innuendo causing me to have this physical reaction?

  Because I was finding myself wildly attracted to my best friend. It wasn’t the first time I’d wondered about me and J, but the attraction I felt for him was definitely at an all-time high. It was because I’d missed him this last year. That was all. I was simply happy to see him.

  ◆◆◆

  A few hours later, I stood at the top of the stairs in my parents’ beach house and watched Jaxon trying to awkwardly curl up on the sofa to sleep. There was no way that all six feet and two inches of him were going to fit comfortably. I burst out laughing. “Come on, J. I have a queen in my room. I swear I’ll wear clothes, and I won’t touch you.”

  Jaxon narrowed his eyes at me. I rolled mine at him. “We can put a fucking pillow wall between us! I swear it won’t be like that time in high school when I was drunk!”

  Jaxon’s face changed, and I couldn’t place the look he wore. Shock? Confusion? Maybe hurt? His voice was quiet when he spoke. “You remember that? I thought you were too drunk.”

  I bit my lip and looked down at my feet. I remembered the first and only time I kissed Jaxon. I remembered it vividly.

  “K?” Jaxon pulled me from my thoughts. “You remember that?”

  I flashed him a grin and winked. “I was drunk, so it’s hazy, but I remember those big pouty lips, J.” I put my hands on my hips. “But don’t worry. I’ll resist those soft lips tonight. Come sleep with me, dork.”

  Jaxon rolled his eyes but grabbed his bags and headed up the stairs to join me. He followed me into my bedroom and closed the door behind him.

  My heart raced, and I tried to ignore it. I unbuttoned my jeans and started to slide them down but paused when I saw Jaxon staring at me with wide eyes. “Sorry.” I laughed and pulled my jeans back up. “I’ll go change in the bathroom.” I’d changed in front of Jaxon hundreds of times and hadn’t even thought twice about it. He was my sweet J. He’d never been a creep about my body, and I was one hundred percent comfortable in front of him. Things between us got weird when he started dating Savannah, though.