What Lovers Do(61)

Chloe eyes me a second before stepping inside, a bag in each hand. “You okay?”

“Yeah. Absolutely.”

I’m not okay. When Chloe calls me complaining that her newborn baby is unsettled and colicky all the time, I’ll know it’s Jimmy’s fault.





CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN





“Orange frames. I think they’re my favorite,” Shep says when I get about ten feet from him and release Cersei to play.

I instinctively adjust said orange glasses and smile. “Thanks. How are you?” I’m so good at small talk and really proud of myself for not starting the conversation with, “Why do you think I’m bad in bed?”

“Better now.” He grins.

I want to walk right into his arms and rest my cheek on his chest. I want to tell him that my friend with the squatter boyfriend is me and that I’m thinking, saying, and doing the most awful things. Who was that woman who tried to skewer a man’s testicle? In high school, I was voted Most Likely to Join the Peace Corps. We didn’t have a Most Likely to go to Prison, but that would have been Robbie Hartgrave or, come to find out, more accurately, Sophie Ryan.

“Want to golf this weekend?”

I nod.

Why do you think I’m bad in bed?

I smile.

You seemed to enjoy it. You said “fuck” and you sweated and … why? Why? Why? WHY?

I clear my throat.

“Are you okay?”

I nod … and smile.

“Can you speak?” He laughs.

I bite my lips together and take a deep inhale. “Sorry,” I say on the exhale. “It’s weird. I’ve never taken a step back like this, so I’m trying to figure out how to act or what to say. There’s an order. Friends. Flirting. Lovers. Break up. Going in reverse is weird. Lovers to friends. What’s the protocol? Do I ask you about your dating life? Do I tell you about mine?”

“Oh …” His eyebrows lift. “You’re dating?”

“No. Of course not. It’s been two seconds since we stopped…” my nose crinkles “…doing whatever we were doing. I was just using it as an example. I don’t know what to talk about.”

“How’s your mom been since her cat died? Are you nervous about your arranged marriage?”

I grin. How does he make it look so easy? Oh that’s right … he wasn’t the bad lover. “I’m a little nervous about my arranged marriage. And my mom is fine, I guess. I haven’t talked with her lately. My dad called and wants me to go to California and golf with him in two weeks.”

“Sounds fun.”

I nod. “Yeah, it should be fun. What about you? Any plans to travel?”

“Nah. Just working. Unless my new friend invites me to California to golf with her and her famous dad.”

Averting my gaze to the dogs chasing each other, I give him a nervous laugh. “I’m sure my dad would love to play golf with you, but he wouldn’t understand our friendship.”

“Now see … that’s the problem. When did it become so unnatural for men and women to be just friends?”

“Since you didn’t want to tell your parents you took a woman to Sedona instead of your male friend. And since we had bad sex in Sedona.” There. I slip that in there. He pitched the perfect ball; how could I not hit it out of the park?

Shep smirks, rubbing the pads of his fingers over his mouth. He can’t erase his amusement no matter how hard he tries. “Well…” he glances at the dogs instead of holding my gaze “…now that we got that experience over with, we can be friends who go to California to golf instead of having bad sex.”

WHY WAS IT SO BAD?

“I’m not inviting you into my world.”

“I invited you into my world.”

“Yes, but I didn’t ask to be invited. In fact, I fought you on it.”

“I didn’t ask to be invited into your world. I suggested you invite me into your dad’s world. At this point, I don’t even care if you go. I’m good with playing golf with just your dad.”

“Are you seriously trying to hijack my golfing trip with my dad?”

“Why are you making this so difficult?”

I roll my eyes. “Because I can. Because I should.”

“You worry too much.”

“I worry an adequate amount.”

Shep smirks. “So that’s a yes to me going with you?”

“What would I tell my dad?”

“We were best friends, but that didn’t work out, so now we’re just friends—the really mature kind who can go reverse in relationship status.”

I shake my head slowly. This is a bad idea. Everything about Marcus Shepard has been a bad idea. Why can’t I say no to bad ideas?

“Are you flying or driving?” he asks.

“Driving.”

“Great. If I go, you won’t have to drive the whole way. You can kick back, read a book, take a nap …”

I shake my head, but I can’t help but grin. “I don’t know.”

“Think about it and let me know. If you don’t want me to go, I get it. I’m sure it’s nice to spend time alone with your dad.”