That’s a Boy’s Name

Eddison relaxed back on the couch, and Marc wrapped his arms around her. Luca fought the jealous rage inside him as he watched her snuggle into his older brother’s chest. Marc noticed Luca’s discomfort.

“What’s wrong with you?” he asked, eyebrows raised.

Luca busied himself with the TV remote, flicking through the channels. “Nothing,” he muttered. Marc knew very well what the problem was, but he enjoyed pushing Luca’s buttons.

“So, are you staying?” Eddie asked Marc.

“Is your bed available?” Marc asked, his fingers drawing circles on Eddison’s stomach.

“Ew! No!” Eddie pulled out of his arms and whacked him in the face with a cushion. “You can have your old room.”

“Ah, I guess that will do,” Marc said, pulling Eddie back to his side. There was a knock at the door, and Eddie checked the time on Marc’s watch.

“Who the hell visits at one in the morning?”

“I’ll get it.” Luca made his way to the front door, swinging it open to reveal a girl Eddison had never seen before. She was blonde, with massive boobs and a ditzy smile on her face.

Luca greeted her, and the girl immediately jumped into his arms, causing Eddie to roll her eyes. Luca headed up the hall with the girl attached to him.

Breaking away from the kiss, he turned to his roommate and brother with a wink. “So, we are just going to—”

“Have fun,” Marc chuckled before whispering in Eddie’s ear. “I’m sure she is a genius…”

“With a heart of gold,” Eddie finished. She leaned forward to the coffee table and grabbed her phone to say goodnight to Parker. She sent him a quick message, not expecting a reply because of the late hour.

“Who are you texting?” Marc asked, peeking over her shoulder.

“No one,” she replied hiding her phone screen from his prying eyes.

“Do you have a boyfriend, Miss Jenkins?”

“No, we are just dating.”

“For how long?”

“About a month.”

“What about Luciano?”

“What about him? He has a parade of women and Kate… I’m just his roommate.” The words hurt as Eddie said them.

Marc often wondered why his brother continued with the casual sex when he felt the way he did about Eddie. He would never understand what went through his little brother’s head.

***

With Marc staying over, Eddison whipped out the Pop-Tarts, knowing they were his favorite.

Two popped up from the toaster, and she flipped them onto a plate, taking them and a steaming cup of coffee into the spare room that used to be Marc’s bedroom.

“Rise and shine!” she said happily, placing the plate and cup on the nightstand. Marc’s eyes fluttered open as he smelled the coffee. He saw Eddie and smiled.

“Is this heaven?”

“Morning. I have class today, but I will see you tonight.”

“Thank you for breakfast, beautiful.”

“You are welcome. How long are you staying for?”

“I thought I’d go back to New York on Tuesday, so four days.”

“Perfect.” Eddie kissed his cheek before heading back to the kitchen. She placed her own Pop-Tarts in the toaster and poured herself a cup of coffee.

“Oh my god! You’re the girlfriend, aren’t you?”

Eddison sighed. Without even bothering to turn around, she replied, “No, I’m the roommate.”

“Oh, thank god!”

As her tarts popped, she placed them on a plate, taking a seat at the counter. She couldn’t help but feel a little jealous as she studied Luca’s latest conquest.

~You have Parker. You don’t need to be jealous,~ she reminded herself.

“Sorry if we were loud,” the blonde giggled.

“Not as loud as some,” Eddie muttered under her breath. “So, what’s your name anyway?”

“Oh, I’m Janey,” the girl replied with an outstretched hand.

~Well, that is better than “Bunny”.~

“Eddie,” she replied, shaking Janey’s hand.

“That’s a boy’s name.”

“Already smarter than the last one.”

Eddie rolled her eyes as a shirtless Luca entered the kitchen. Janey squealed at the sight of him, and he smirked.

He walked over to the coffee machine, slapping his conquest on the ass. She giggled hysterically, and Eddie tried desperately to distract herself with her Pop-Tarts.

“Morning, Ed,” Luca said, pressing a kiss to her cheek. Eddison felt the area under his lips tingle as if a fire pulsed through her.

“I’ll get ready, and we can go,” Luca said, ignoring the blonde ogling him.

“Uh…” Eddie pulled out her phone to check for any texts from Parker. ~Nothing.~ She had thought maybe he would pick her up. “Okay. I’ll grab my bag.”

Luca smiled to himself, looking forward to the fifteen-minute car trip. The blonde, whose name he had forgotten, was still staring at him. “So, I’m going to get dressed. You just, ah…let yourself out.”

***

When Eddie returned to the lounge, Luca was sitting on the couch, waiting for her.

“Where’s Janey?” she asked.

“That’s her name!” he exclaimed, and she rolled her eyes.

“Seriously, where do you find all these women with absolutely no self-respect?”

“She was a waitress at the coffee shop I was at yesterday with Kate.”

“Speaking of Kate, where was she this morning? I missed my breakfast entertainment.”

“I dumped her,” he said, shrugging his shoulders.

Eddie’s mouth gaped. Luca and Kate had been a thing since freshman year. Granted, they weren’t in the most committed relationship, but it worked for them.

“Why?”

“She just said some stuff that pissed me off.”

“Like what?”

“Stuff?”

“Like?”

“Leave it.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

“No.”

“Eddison.”

“Luciano.”

“You’re annoying.”

“I know, I learned from the best.” Eddie poked her tongue out, and Luca rolled his eyes.

“What did she say?”

“Nothing.”

“But you said that—”

“Drop it, Eddie. Let’s just go.”