Page 48 of Joey

So… back to the point. Do I sleep with them?

He’s gonna try. He already admitted it.

So do I play hard to get? Or just be honest and take what he’s offering?

I suck in a deep breath of air and walk over to the closet. He takes a step back to give me room to search. It’s not a small closet, but it’s not a walk-in, either. Just one of those double sliding doors.

“How about this?” he says, pulling out a dress. “I like this.”

“OK.” I shrug. And he drapes it over the back of a chair.

“You have a lot of new clothes in here.”

“I kinda went on a shopping spree last week. Trying to lie my way into all these ridiculous jobs. So I was trying to look the part and—”

He turns me around, places his hands on my cheeks, and… kisses me.

And there it is. My choice.

I make it. I kiss him back and he holds my face there. Pinning our lips together with force.

And I don’t even try to back off. I open my mouth and begin twisting my tongue with his.

Then he ends it. Removes his hands from my face and takes a step back.

“What was that?”

“A kiss,” he whispers. “I’ll let Joey have all the other firsts. But I want this memory for myself.” Then he shrugs. “I have a greedy side to me.”

“Wald, what are you doing? Are you trying to fuck this whole thing up?” I touch my lips with my fingertips, wanting to hold on to the feeling of his kiss.

“What?” He laughs. “I’m not trying to fuck anything up. You’re not cheating, Brooke. You can’t cheat on a guy you’re not dating. It’s fine. He’s not gonna care.”

“How do you know? Maybe… maybe he feels like we are sorta together? Maybe he’s gonna be pissed?”

“Trust me. I know Joey better than Joey knows himself. I’ll even tell him when we get back.”

“Don’t tell him, for fuck’s sake!”

“Why not? I’m not gonna hide the way I feel. And neither should you. Nothing good will come of that.”

“Nothing good is gonna come of this either.”

He taps his head. “I’ve got it all up here.”

“All what? I don’t even know what you’re talking about.”

“Yeah, you do.”

“Whatever,” I say, turning back to the closet. Because I’m not prepared for this. I like the idea of friends. And dating Joey, pretend or otherwise. But I don’t know what to do with these other two. And that makes me a little panicky. Because Mila says you have to be prepared when the opportunity presents itself. And what if my indecision fucks it all up?

That drawbridge won’t lower and I won’t walk across the moat separating me from the new life I want so badly.

I grab several outfits, not even caring what they are, then throw them on the bed and start shoving shoes and boots into a tote bag.

He takes my suitcase down from the top shelf and begins packing my things.

I grab some underwear, and my toothbrush, and some other stuff from my little bathroom, stuff it all into a giant Ziploc baggie, and toss it inside the suitcase.