My neighbor smiles mysteriously and tilts her head into a little shrug. “Anyway, what happened?” she asks.
“Well, I wish it had been three more guys, but instead, my ex showed up.”
“Your ex-husband? John? James? What was his name?”
“Jay,” I say. “And it turns out that Brendan, Corbin, and Jonathan are his closest buddies.”
Her eyes widen in disbelief. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“I wish I was.”
“So what happened? Does he know you’re sleeping with his friends?”
I nod as I correct her. “Slept. He knows I slept with them, but he didn’t really say anything about it or react in any particular way. I told his friends that I’m not going to sleep with them again, though.” A heavy feeling settles into my stomach as I say that last part.
“Why the heck not?” Sheila says. “If his friends don’t care, you shouldn’t care.”
“I don’t know … the situation is just too weird.”
Sheila slides over to the dogs’ side of the couch and gently lays a hand on Roscoe’s head. “It’s only weird if you make it weird. If you’re having fun with those men, why should you stop on your ex’s account?”
When I’m silent in response, she asks, “Are they coming to your party?”
“Yes. They wanted to take me to dinner, so I invited them to the party instead.”
“Good. I’ll look forward to checking them out. I mean, meeting them.”
“I’ll bet you will,” I say with a laugh.
Roscoe’s awake now, and wagging his tail even as he’s still curled into a sleeping position.
“C’mon boy, let’s go home now.” As he jumps off the couch, I thank Sheila and tell her I’ll see her later.
Back at my house, I lay down on the bed for a quick rest, and the next thing I know, it’s dark outside. The day must have been more tiring than I realized. I still don’t feel fully rested.
My fatigue reminds me of Sheila’s remark about a flare-up. I check the mirror and, sure enough, there’s a red rash on my cheeks. It’s not too bad — I’ll be able to cover it with makeup — but I’ll have to be careful so it doesn’t get worse.
Even though I work nights, I don’t normally drink coffee after mid-afternoon, but today I decide I need a cup.
I take a few sips before I shower, and finish the rest while I do my hair and makeup.
Maybe it’s only because I’m still tired, but a vague sense of unease hangs over me as I get ready. My mind keeps going back to Jay, his earnest-sounding declaration about how he’d do things differently now that he’s older, and that intense encounter we had in the hallway.
For a minute there, it felt like he was going to kiss me … and I’m afraid I would have kissed him back.
There’s still a pull between us, but is it just nostalgia? Curiosity? Habits from long ago?
And then there are the Hayes brothers. Sheila thinks I should continue to have fun with them, but is it really so simple? There’s the complication with Jay, plus I’ve never been a big fan of meaningless hookups, and though I definitely don’t regret my night with them, what if my heart gets involved if I spend more time with them?
A one-night stand with my ex’s best friends is one thing; a relationship would be something else entirely. Though, that’s just silly, because as much as I like them, our lifestyles are completely incompatible.
With that thought, I have to laugh at myself. The men are going to be in town for one week, and here I am spinning fantastic scenarios and worrying about things that are never going to happen.
As a longtime independent woman, I can have sex without reading anything into it. In fact, I prefer it that way. And the more I think about it, the more I know I’ll be kicking myself for weeks to come if I don’t enjoy Brendan, Corbin, and Jonathan while I have the opportunity.
23
Can’t say I’m surprised