“Speaking of which, I should head out. I just came to grab my charger. Left it here during lunch. Good night!” Ellie plucked her phone charger from the outlet near the microwave and rushed off.
“We should head out too, but at different times so people don’t get suspicious.” Josh’s eyes sparkled with playfulness. “Meet you on our corner in twenty.”
“We don’t have a corner,” I pointed out.
“We do now.” Josh’s dimple made a glorious appearance. “Twenty-third and Mayberry. Twenty minutes, Red. Be there.”
He left before I could argue.
I shook my head, but I closed out my desk with deliberate slowness until the office emptied and Barbs and I were the only people left.
“C’mon, hun, I’m not getting any younger.” She motioned me out the door with an impatient hand. “And you’re too young to spend a minute longer in the office than you have to.”
“You always tell me what I want to hear.”
“That’s what I’m here for.” She waved. “Good night.”
“Night.”
It took me only five minutes to walk to Twenty-Third and Mayberry. As promised, Josh waited for me on the corner. He leaned against the light pole with his hands tucked in his pockets, but he tapped his watch when he saw me.
“Nineteen minutes. Almost late, Red.”
“Good thing I wasn’t,” I said, too distracted to come up with a witty response. All I could focus on was how to bring up his painting without arousing suspicion.
Maybe I could convince him to get rid of it? It was still deception, because I knew the painting was valuable and he didn’t, but it was better than stealing from him.
“So, I was shopping online the other day and came across some nice art,” I said casually. “Better than that monstrosity you have in your bedroom.”
“Monstrosity?” Josh placed a hand over his heart. “Red, I’m offended. That painting is the epitome of taste. I bet it would fetch a pretty penny if I put it up for auction.”
If only he knew how right he was.
“And yet, you bought it for cheap at an estate sale.” I forced myself to inject lighthearted snark into my tone. “So excuse me if I don’t believe you.”
“Not everyone knows the value of what they throw away.” Josh wrapped an arm around my waist. “One day, you’ll grow to love it as much as I do.”
My heartbeat drowned out the echo of our footsteps. “You don’t really love it, do you?”
He gave me a strange look. “Not in the sense that I’ll run into a burning building to save it, but I have a soft spot for it. Reminds me of art camp.”
Surprise coasted through me. “You went to art camp?”
“Yeah, for one summer when I was eight.” Josh winced. “Figured out that art is, uh, not my strongest suit, so I switched to basketball.”
“Wow.” Suddenly, it all made sense. “No wonder you love terrible art. It reminds you of you!”
I laughed when Josh slapped my ass in retaliation.
“I can’t believe you admitted you’re not the best at something,” I said as we arrived at his house. “Remind me to mark it down in my calendar. It’s truly a historic moment.”
“Funny.” He unlocked the front door and waited for me to enter first before following me inside. “Don’t spread it around because I don’t let just anyone see my weaknesses. My lack of artistic talent is a very sensitive topic.”
“Is that so?” I smiled despite myself. “I feel special.”
“You should. Even though you can be fucking exasperating and a pain in my ass—”
My smile disappeared. “Hey!”
“You’re one of the few people I trust.” His face softened as he looped his arms around my waist and pulled me closer. “Never thought I’d say that, considering our history. But even when we couldn’t stand each other, I could always count on you to be honest with me. After what happened with Michael and Alex…” His throat bobbed with a hard swallow. “That means more than you know.”
Our earlier lightheartedness grew heavy with poignance.
Oh God.
“I…” Guilt rocked my stomach like storm-tossed waves. Tell him. “Josh, I…”
I’m being blackmailed by my ex. I have a sex tape where I let some random guy do obscene things to me so that said ex could steal from him. I’m a thief and a liar and you were right about me all along.
The words sat on the tip of my tongue but refused to leave. I wasn’t hiding some small secret. I used to be a criminal, and I had a sex tape with a virtual stranger.
I wouldn’t blame Josh if he walked away after finding out.
My chest cramped at the thought.
“You know me,” I finally managed. “Honest to a fault.” I summoned what I hoped was a passable imitation of a smile.
“Emphasis on fault,” Josh teased. “It’s okay. We can’t all be as perfect as I am.”
He brushed his mouth over mine before he cupped the back of my neck and deepened the kiss.
I kissed him back, trying to engrave every detail in my mind.
The warm whiskey taste of his lips. The firmness of his touch. His clean, intoxicating scent and the way his muscles molded against my body.
I cherished the kiss like it was our last, because depending on how the next few days played out, it might just be.