Page 32 of A Shared Mind

The glare Justin gave Eve had me covering my mouth with my glass to keep from laughing. The two of them were quite entertaining with their banter.

Justin sighed. “Okay, he was an exotic dancer. I slid a five into his G-string, and he invited me back to the dressing room. He said that if I gave him fifty dollars, he’d let me blow him.”

My head snapped around to stare at him. “Wait, the stripper wanted you to pay him to suck him off?”

Eve giggled. “You didn’t pay him, right?”

Justin shrugged out from under my arm and sat forward. “Believe it or not, you hussy, I’ve had some encounters without opening my wallet. I told you that because you didn’t understand why I didn’t want to go back to the club where he dances.”

That did make me laugh, along with Eve and eventually Justin.

“Okay, so tell me more about New Orleans.” Something that happened during that visit had to explain the bullshit from earlier that day.

Eve rolled her eyes. “For Justin’s birthday, I thought it would be fun if we went to a medium and had a séance to bring forward this guy who people said was the greatest lover. He had eight kids by five different women, and my aunt said she was one of the many women who fell under his charms, though she didn’t get pregnant.

“In order to let Kirk Dunston know that my bestie was still a virgin, we had a séance to call forth uh...” she stalled.

I stared at her. “Ramon Blanco?”

Her eyes widened. “Yes! Did you hear that story too?”

“Yeah, but it was presented a little differently than you’re telling it. Did you think anything weird happened that night?”

Justin had mentioned there was something odd about the encounter, and if I wasn’t nuts, I’d just witnessed first-hand the hell that Ramon Blanco could rain down. Justin hadn’t, however, mentioned the fact he was a virgin.

Eve continued to explain. “Uh, I remember this weird sensation in the room, but I don’t think it lasted that long. In my defense, it was toward the end of my relationship with Herbst, and I wasn’t paying close attention to anything because he was being a dick and I was embarrassed.”

Justin sat up. “Why did the two of you break up? Tell me, please. You’ve been very vague about what happened.”

“Oh, honey, it’s not your fault. The relationship had just reached its end.” I noticed that she wouldn’t make eye contact with Justin.

“Bullshit, Eve. It was because of me, wasn’t it? What was it about?”

I reached for his hand because I could see he was getting upset. When he glanced at me, I tried to offer a tender smile. I pointed to his glass. “Would you like another drink?” I then turned to Eve. “How about you? A refill?”

I picked up my glass and collected both of theirs, not waiting for responses. Whatever had happened was theirs to sort out. Unfortunately, my high moral ground didn’t keep me from eavesdropping.

“Justin, it wasn’t because of you. You’re my best friend. It was because Herbst and his friends are such closed-minded assholes. I couldn’t take it anymore.” She sounded very sorry.

“Tell me what he said about me, Eve. I didn’t want you to break up over me. I thought you two were in love.” I could hear the pain in Justin’s voice. He believed his best friend had sacrificed her relationship because of him, and he didn’t want that to be the truth. I hoped it wasn’t—but I feared it was.

There was movement in the living room, so I glanced around the corner to see Eve had moved to sit next to Justin, taking his hand in both of hers. “Honey, I broke up with Herbst because he was a horrible person. He joked that if he fucked you to get you over your fear of sex with a man, maybe you’d leave me alone so I could stay in New Orleans with him. That’s bullshit.”

There was stark silence, so I took that opportunity to take in drinks. “Here we go. Everything okay?”

Justin didn’t respond, but Eve’s stare never left him. “Come on, Justy. You’re like a brother to me. Herbst was of less than mediocre intelligence and he was insulting as fuck. No way would I put up with his bullshit long term. He was good in bed. It was fun, but he’s not the man of my dreams.”

I sat in the chair Eve had evacuated, placing their drinks on the coffee table. “I can go pick up some food for us if you guys want to talk privately.”

Justin trained his gaze toward me. “No, uh, please stay. I had a feeling it was something like that.” He then turned to Eve and took her hand. “I don’t want you to figure me into your romantic relationships. You’re like my sister. I don’t want to lose you, but I don’t want your love for me to influence your choices in guys.”

Eve hugged him, downed her wine in two gulps, and stood. “Okay, the séance thing was a mistake, and I’m sorry, Justin. I love you, and I only want the best for you.” She then glanced at me. “You are my hope, Clay.”

Without waiting for my response, Eve left with her five coffee pods and a wink. I followed her to the door, closed it once she was out, and turned the deadbolt. When I spun around to take in Justin, his lost expression touched my heart.

I walked to the couch and sat next to him, pulling him onto my lap with his head against my shoulder. “What’s running through that beautiful mind of yours?”

“How the hell did everything become so fucking bizarre?” Justin sniffled quietly as I wrapped him in my arms.