“It’s been doing that a lot,” Grayson says. “It’s how I noticed it on the counter under the spit up cloth and the extra diaper.”
Caroline grabs the phone and swipes over the screen. Her eyes go wide.
“Everything okay?” I ask, peering at the screen.
“Uh, yeah. Just…”
“Are all of those notifications from adating app?” James asks, coming up behind her.
She presses the phone to her breasts. “No! It’s not…well…fine.” She pulls the phone away. “Kind of. It’s a networking app. The company operates in every state and most other countries. People like me, singles who are traveling alone a lot for work, use it to meet friends and people with shared interests and ways to be social in new places. It’s actually kind of hard to make new friends at our age.”
“So you’re meetingfriends,” James asks. “It’s not to find dates or hook-ups?”
“Well…”
James frowns. I look up and see Grayson is also scowling.
I wonder if these two men realize that they’ve already got it bad for Caroline Bell.
“I have dated people I’ve met through the app,” she says.
“And hookups?” Grayson asks.
She rolls her eyes. “A few. Nothing for a long time. But yes…sometimes the friendship turns into that. I travel a lot, and I never stay anyplace long-term, but I don’t want to just never go out or have…fun.”
“That doesn’t sound safe,” James says, frowning.
Grayson’s scowl deepens. “It sounds like a really bad idea, actually.”
Caroline looks from one to the other. “Well, thank you for the unsolicited advice, guys. I’ll be sure to tell my motherthat she doesn’t have to worry or lecture me now that I have the two of you around.” She looks at me. “Anything you’d like to add?”
I’m a little smarter than my husband and neighbor. You don’t tell women what you think of their choices and decisions unless asked. And then, really, only if you’re a very close friend, physician, or therapist. And even then, very carefully.
“Just that if you need any non-self-induced orgasms while you’re inthislocation, just let us know. No need for an app.”
Her eyes widen again. Then she looks at James. He just shrugs and nods. Then she looks at Grayson. His scowl is even deeper now.
“Oh my God,” she mutters.
Then she steps past Grayson, pulls the front door open, and leaves.
Without a goodbye or even a look back.
At least she didn’t slam the door and wake up the baby.
CHAPTER9
Caroline
What the hell just happened?
I hit the sidewalk outside of the apartment building and take a deep breath of warm air. I don’t have a car in town and I’m a little drunk, anyway, so I order a car service. Cas was really plying me with red wine.
And I was downing it because my thoughts are all jumbled.
Pacing back and forth, I try to relax my shoulders as I wave a bug out of my face. I can smell the ocean, which normally is soothing, but tonight just reminds me of that summer all those years ago when I was drunk in the boathouse with James and we were frantically pawing at each other’s clothes.
Cas said James was still attracted to me. James agreed. Cas also said he was attracted to me and that they on occasion open their marriage to a woman.
