She takes her time removing both shoes, lining them up neatly beside the coffee table. She crosses her arms and settles back into the couch. “Do you fuck her too?”
And there it is.
I move slowly to sit beside her. She doesn’t push me away, so I take that as a win. “No.” My voice is steady, firm. “I have not touched another woman since we started this.” My hand finds the top of her thigh, out of habit. “Do you believe me?”
She eyes me for a moment, considering, then she nods.
Her fingers reach for the hem of her shirt as if she’s following the clinical steps of a procedure, but I stop her. “Whoa, whoa. Not so fast.”
Her eyes narrow again, but this time they’re accompanied by a curious smirk. “What? This is what I’m here for, right?”
What changed in her all of a sudden? Joanna hasn’t acted like this since before we first hooked up. She feels distant, but there’s got to be another reason for it other than Brenda.
“I have something I want to show you,” I say gently, squeezing her thigh.
She eyes me warily but takes my hand, and I lead her to the back of the house, past the closet where we hide from our friends and further down the narrow hall to my back door.
“Do you have a secret basement?” Jo teases, her first sign of levity.
I keep a tight grip on her hand as I pull her behind me, assuring her she’s safe with me. “This is better.”
Chapter Eighteen
JOANNA
Ifollow Aidan out to a small porch and up a narrow set of stairs. I don’t know where he’s taking me, but I trust him, keeping a tight hold of his hand. One that’s clinging to mine. His touch is cold, but it grounds me. When we reach a metal door, I realize where we are.
“Are you sneaking us into the movie theater?” I ask, dumbfounded. This feels less like a hookup and more like a date.
Aidan grins as he slips a key from his pocket and dangles it in front of my face.
“Umm, how do you have those?”
The corner of his mouth lifts knowingly. “They’re mine.”
What the fuck?
“Since when?” I demand.
“Since I bought the apartment.”
“You bought an apartment, and it justcame witha movie theater?” I jab my thumb toward the door he’s now unlocking.
“No.” He laughs jovially, shaking his head at how astonished I am. “There was a petition in the nineties to reopen it after a fire,” he explains, “but the town couldn’t fund it. I pitched in and was given the apartment as a thank you.”
As we step inside the darkened space, I scoff.
“I heard that,” Aidan teases.
I mumble. “I wasn’t exactly hiding it.”
I can’t make out where Aidan is in the darkness, so I stay put. I’ve never thought about whether he had a job, or where his money came from in the first place. I remember reading about his donation to the park, but that sounded like a one-time thing. This, however…
“How are you able to do this?” I ask, directing my irritation out into the void. “You must have a shit ton of money if you’re able to throw money at movie theaters and parks like it’s an extra tip at a restaurant.”
I don’t mean for it to come out so accusatory, but somehow the sarcasm lost its spark once the words were out of my mouth.
“Does it matter?” he asks, his voice now coming from behind me.
