Her heart fluttered against her ribs. Tipping her chin back, she peered through the window into the wheelhouse. The BKI boys were down on their knees, taking off their shoes and socks and stuffing them into the two waterproof float bags Rusty had graciously given them.
Chivalry at its finest, she thought as she watched Dagan slip her backpack into the float bag he would carry.
Turning back, she saw Emily eyeing her. “What?”
“So what happenedafteryou did adult things?”
Sounded as lame coming out of Emily’s mouth as it had coming out of Chelsea’s.
Before Chelsea could answer, Emily drew her own conclusions. “Oh no!” She lifted her hand to her mouth. “Did it take a weird turn? Does he have dragon breath?” A look of horror came over Emily’s face. “Is he one of those guys who tries to touch your tonsils with his tongue? He is, isn’t he? Oh,gross!”
“First of all,” Chelsea said exasperatedly, “he doesn’t have dragon breath. Second of all, it didn’t take a weird turn, and he sure as shit didn’t do that torpedo-tongue thing you’re talking about. Just the opposite, it was… He was…” What? What was he? There weren’t enough words in the English language to describe the glory of his kiss, the splendor of his unapologetic bump and grind. “Wonderful,” she finally finished.
Too wonderful. She was ruined for all other men.
“So then what’s the problem?” Emily’s brow furrowed. “Why are you both acting funky around each other now?”
“We aren’t.”
“Ahem.” Emily held up a hand. “In case it escaped your notice, while Rusty was laying out this plan, you and Zoelner didn’t get up to your usual shenanigans. Zoelner didn’t say one word about you not being cut out for this kind of stuff. And you didn’t once tell him to shove a sock in it. In fact, it was nothing but crickets and tumbleweeds from the both of you.”
Chelsea shot Emily a dirty look for being right. Then she admitted, “Theproblemis we want different things in life.”
“Psshh.” Emily rolled her eyes. “Don’t we all? Compromise, baby. Isn’t that what couples do?”
“Z and I arefarfrom a couple.” Chelsea did her best to ignore the ache that sad truth started somewhere in the vicinity of her breastbone. Figuring the only way out of the conversation was to turn the tables—and needing a distraction from thoughts of what she was about to do—she said, “But enough about me and Z. I want to know what’s up with you and Christian.”
Emily’s expression shuttered like someone had drawn a set of blackout shades over her face. “Why does everyone assume something is up with us? Can’t we just be coworkers who like to give each other crap? Does it have to be more than that?”
Chelsea sniffed the breeze. “Is that the scent of bullshit I smell?”
Emily’s eyes narrowed.
“Oh, come on now.” Chelsea shook her head. “Are you really sitting there trying to convince me you don’t think Christian is hot?”
“OfcourseI think he’s hot. How could I not? I got eyeballs, don’t I?” When Emily got worked up, she whipped out her South Side ’hood girl grammar.
“So what’s the problem?” Chelsea shot Emily’s earlier words back at her.
“Theproblemis it’d turn into more than just a little wham-bam, thank you, man. I know from experience. I tried once before to have a thing with a coworker, and…” She curled her upper lip. “It blew up in my face. All that forced togetherness, all those shared experiences and mutual friends? Yeah, I suppose it was inevitable that he started to want more than the occasional desktop diddle.”
“And you…didn’twant more?” Chelsea prompted.
“Hell no.” Emily made a scoffing sound, but Chelsea thought she detected something wistful in Emily’s eyes. “For me, men are only good for recreational purposes. And since that’s the case, I’ve learned not to shit where I eat. When it comes to coworkers, I’m on a strict man cleanse.” Chelsea opened her mouth to demand more details, but Emily lifted a hand. “That’s enough show-and-tell for now, don’t you think?”
Chelsea harrumphed. The sound caught in the wind and melded with the growl and grumble of the churning twin engines. “Have you ever noticed you have no issue sticking your nose in other people’s business, but the instant someone tries to get the four-one-one onyou, you close up tighter than a clamshell? It’s enough to make a preacher cuss.”
Emily’s grin was unapologetic as she gathered her dark, rioting hair into a ponytail. “And it’s one of my better qualities, don’t you think? Speaking of sticking my nose in other people’s business, let’s get back to you and Zoelner.”
Chelsea groaned. “Nope.” She adamantly shook her head. “Just hold that thought forever.”
Emily feigned a pout. “Despite my current lack of a sex life and my utter lack of interest in a love life”—there was that odd, wistful look again—“you should know that neither of those things affects my judgment when it comes to matters of the heart forotherpeople. I’ve been told I give excellent relationship advice.”
Rusty was slowing the boat, which meant they were getting close to their destination. Chelsea’s stomach clenched into a fist. “Would it offend you terribly if I said that right now I want your two cents about as much as I want a third nipple?”
“Whowouldn’twant a third nipple?” Emily blinked in mock confusion. “I mean, you’d up your pleasure ante by fifty percent. Plus, a man has two handsanda mouth, so…” She let the sentence dangle.
Chelsea laughed. The two of them had become friends in the time Emily had worked for BKI, and Chelsea was going to miss Emily’s boundless enthusiasm and no-holds-barred way of expressing herself once they finished this mission.
