Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 98789 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 494(@200wpm)___ 395(@250wpm)___ 329(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98789 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 494(@200wpm)___ 395(@250wpm)___ 329(@300wpm)
I squeezed my eyes shut. I was not a good person.
In the effort to cool off a little, I shot a quick text to Austin, thinking maybe I’d go hang out at his place for a while. Get my mind off Ari. Play video games with the twins. Have a beer with my oldest brother and talk shit about Xander. But Austin replied that they’d taken the kids to a movie and wouldn’t be back until later.
Flopping onto the couch, I sent a message to my dad asking if he arrived at his friend’s house okay. A few minutes later, I got a message in return.
Hi Dash, it’s Dad.
I had to laugh. We’d told him many times he didn’t need to identify himself when texting one of us, but he did it every time.
I arrived safe and sound. I hope you had a good day. Say hi to Fritz for me. I’ll be home on Tuesday. Love, Dad
Shaking my head, I told him to have a good time and Fritz said hello back. I debated giving Mabel a call, but given her close relationship with Ari, I didn’t really want to talk to my sister right now. But the longer I sat here in this quiet, empty house, the more anxious I got.
My phone buzzed again, and I expected another message from my dad, but it was from an unknown number.
Hi Dash, it’s Kelly. Are you with Xander?
Hey, Kelly. Nope, he’s at work. I’m home.
Great. Can I call you?
Of course.
I had just enough time to save her contact info before the call came in.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Dash. How are you?”
“I’m good. How’s the tour?”
“It’s going well. A lot of work, and I’m exhausted, but shows are packed and the energy is great.”
“That’s awesome. And I’m glad it will work out with the house.”
“That’s why I’m calling. I don’t really have a private appearance in L.A. the night of the wedding. I’m flying to Michigan so I can come, but it’s a surprise for Xander.”
“No shit!” I smiled. “He’s gonna love that.”
She laughed. “He better. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know, and to say thank you for the generous offer.”
“No problem. So what day do you get in?”
“Thursday. Then I’ll drive up to the wedding with you all on Friday.”
“Do you need a ride from the airport?”
“Transportation is all arranged, but thanks. God, I’m so looking forward to a couple days off. And I love Cherry Tree Harbor. I miss it when I’m gone—it’s so quiet and peaceful and charming. It already feels like home to me.” She laughed. “Plus, Xander is there.”
“He’s definitely here,” I said, remembering his stern words for me across the table. “But I won’t say a word about the surprise. I’ll tell him we connected about you staying at the house.”
“Thanks, Dash. I appreciate it. And I’ll see you in a couple weeks!”
“See you, Kelly. Take care.”
Bored again, I scrolled through some mindless bullshit on my phone. I turned on the TV and flipped through the channels. I wandered into the kitchen and opened the fridge, but I wasn’t hungry. When I shut the door, I saw a Moe’s Diner magnet. I pictured Ari behind the bar in one of those tight black Buckley’s Pub shirts that showed off her tits. Smiling as she poured drinks and made every guy there want her.
But she wanted me, didn’t she?
Xander’s advice was knocking around in my head like a pinball. If you’re so into someone that you want to sleep with them, there’s good chemistry there. And in my experience, it’s impossible to keep that chemistry from changing things.
Was he right? Was a successful friends-with-benefits situation merely a myth? Xander had been known to talk out of his ass.
Then I remembered something else.
He’d said not to sleep with the friend again and again, right? Because that’s where the trouble was. If you kept doing it.
Doing it just once on the other hand . . . that would be different.
Once was casual. Once was fun. Once would not create strings or attachments or unrealistic expectations. As long as both parties were in agreement that the show had a limited run, there wouldn’t be any issues. Strings were not formed in one night.
Maybe once was the answer.
Once will never be enough.
“Fuck it,” I said.
I grabbed my keys.
She arrived home at ten-thirty.
Parked across from her house, I saw her turn onto her street and watched her car disappear up the driveway. After giving her a couple minutes to get inside, I knocked on her front door.
When she opened it, she wore her work clothes and a smile. “Hi.”
“You shouldn’t open your door so late at night without asking who it is first.”
“I knew it was you.”
“How?”
“I saw your car parked across the street, stalker.” She nodded in that direction. “Have you been sitting there all night?”