I waited outside the men’s bathroom for a few minutes, hoping Eliza or Gordo would hurry up and come out so I could borrow their soap and shampoo. Less than ten minutes later, the smacking of flip-flops on the floor got louder and louder.

But it wasn’t Eli or Gordo coming out.

It was Mason 2.0 in basketball shorts, a T-shirt and flip-flops, making his way out with a backpack over his shoulder and black dress shoes hanging off his fingers. He smiled genuinely the instant he saw me standing there looking like a hobo asking for a handout.

“Everything okay?” he asked, making me feel like a total mess.

I nodded, my face immediately flushing at the memory that I’d kicked this poor guy in the ass just minutes ago. I cleared my throat when my ears got hot too. “Yeah, I’m just waiting for Eli.”

Sacha raised a dark eyebrow, giving me a chance to take in the smoky, nearly transparent gray of his eyes. He glanced at the clothes in my hands before pursing his lips. “Did you forget your soap?”

I was a little hesitant to admit it, but I did, fighting the urge to rub at my ears. “Yeah.”

He smiled.

“I want to borrow his,” I explained.

Sacha didn’t hesitate a second. “Here,” he said as soon as I’d finished talking. Thrusting a bottle of some 3-in-1 shampoo, conditioner and body wash at me, he shrugged. “It isn’t for girls—”

This man had another thing coming to him if he thought I cared what I used for toiletries. I’d even be willing to share with Mason—the disgusting ass of the year—if I knew he didn’t borrow someone else’s on the rare occasion he decided to shower. I took the bottle from him and smiled, the embarrassment that had been swimming along my spine earlier from what I’d done disappearing at his kindness. “I have invisible balls, it’s cool,” I told him like I would have told Eli… and immediately regretted it. It wasn’t like I thought we were flirting or anything, and the fact I definitely wasn’t looking my best didn’t escape me, but that didn’t mean I wanted him to think of me as… well, I didn’t know what. Unattractive, I guess? Manly? It didn’t help that I was still mortified over the kicking incident.

Sacha laughed that cute, bright laugh that made me smile despite everything. “All right, invisi-balls. Have at it.”

“Thanks. I owe you,” I said a little more shyly than I normally would have. Walking backward toward the entrance to the bathroom at his command, I gave him another awkward wave I immediately regretted. Good God, I was on a roll and needed to quit while I was ahead.

He simply nodded at me before I ran into the area where the showers were. I rushed through mine as quickly as I could, not caring in the least that I smelled like a clean guy. As soon as I finished drying off and dressing, I hustled out feeling way better than before. Luckily, my brother was waiting for me right outside the restrooms.

“I was gonna give you five more minutes before I went in there,” he warned. “I thought somebody kidnapped you.” Those green eyes so much like mine, peered at my feet, earning me a frown. “Where are your flip-flops, and why are you holding men’s shampoo?” A smirk covered his mouth a second later. “You finally decided to go through with that surgery, huh?”

I snorted and socked him right in the stomach as I walked by him. “That Sacha guy let me borrow his shampoo because I didn’t bring any and you were taking forever douching in there.” I hiked my thumb toward the restroom as Eli rubbed where I’d nailed him. “And I didn’t bring flip-flops with me. Why?”

He grimaced, eyeing my feet again. “You stepped on that floor without shoes on?” When I nodded in response, he shuddered. I glanced at his feet to see he was wearing a pair of rubber thong flip-flops. “You better pray tonight.”