Page 60 of Play Dirty

“Fuuuuck.” I sigh. “Send him in.”

A few seconds later the door opens and Alexander appears. Smiling. Happy. Holding a bag. “Brought you lunch.”

I lean back in my chair and appreciate this unexpected change of events. “You brought me lunch?”

“Yeah, it’s lunchtime,” he says, pointing to the clock on my wall. “Just some burgers from the Mile High Cafe. And I figured…” He sighs, then drops into one of the chairs in front of my desk. “I figured we’d better talk this shit out before we get together again.”

“Talk what shit out?” I ask, reaching for the bag. Because I skipped breakfast this morning after my mother called to ask if I’d handle my father’s two o’clock.

“You know. How you fit in.”

I laugh. “I don’t fit in, Alexander. And I completely understand that, so don’t sweat it. I’m fine.”

He narrows his eyes at me. Taking a moment to digest what I just said. While I open up my burger and take a bit. Then he says, “I don’t get you.”

“What don’t you get?” I ask, mouth still full.

“How you’re so fucking clueless.”

“About what?” I feel that itch of annoyance creeping back up my spine.

“About what we’re doing.”

“We’re playing a game,” I say, dragging a napkin across my mouth. “And it’s gonna be over in a couple weeks, so…” I shrug. “I’m not gonna think too hard about it.”

“Is that what you think? That this is a game?”

“This is a game. You two came here to use me to fix yourselves—”

“Fuck you,” Alexander snaps. “Just fuck you, Jordan. Do you really think we’d upend our lives… that I’d quit my fucking job and move halfway across the country just to play a stupid game with you for a few weeks?”

“You guys want me to save your marriage. And that’s pretty fuckin’ stupid to start with. Because if you need a third to fall back in love—”

“We don’t need you,” he snaps.

“The hell—” I laugh.

“We want you.”

Which makes me pause and take a breath.

“But I feel like we’ve been talking that to death, ya know? I’m not here to talk you into the idea of us.”

“Then why are you here?”

He does this little half-shrug. Which is kinda fucking cute. I guess. Even though Alexander is the oldest, he’s always had a boyish kind of charm. And it’s still there. “Just… you know. To try to get to know you again.”

“You never knew me back then, either.”

“Fair,” he says. “Fair point. I…” He sighs and takes a moment. Like he needs to collect his thoughts. “I just figured you were…” Another shrug.

“Forgettable?” I ask.

“Ah… no,” he says, pointing his finger at me. “Not that. Just temporary, I guess. I mean it started out as summers and holidays, so when you moved to LA for law school it kinda… it kinda threw us off balance, ya know?”

“Not really,” I say. “Because Ixion was already out by then.”

“Right,” Alexander says. “So yeah. I was wrong. You didn’t throw us off balance. You…” He pauses again to stare at me. “You balanced shit out pretty perfectly.”