Somehow, I’d made it to the end of the longest week of my life, a feat that felt like a minor miracle. It has been one week since the gala. One week since my parents humiliated me in front of Jesse. One week of acting like none of it happened.
By the time Friday afternoon finally arrived, I practically sprinted out of the office and collapsed on my bed. I was exhausted from five full days of pretending I didn’t feel Jesse’s gaze on me, pretending that my stomach didn’t flip every time he walked into a room. But on the inside, our night together in the hotel room replayed on a loop in my mind. Now that I know what Jesse Winters looks like under his clothes, I can’t make myself forget it. The memory of his chiseled abs and gigantic cock sends a heat rushing though me at the most inconvenient moments.
I felt I had earned the right to hide out for the weekend, which is why I drove the two hours to my sister’s house after work on Friday night. Cara knows me better than anyone, and she made it clear she didn’t buy it when I told hereverything is fine. She has been trying to get the truth out of me for the past forty-eight hours. Ryan, meanwhile, would be satisfied to just get me out of the house. He’s tried to lure me with all my favorite things: brunch at the marina, window shopping down Main Street, a stroll through the farmer’s market with Marigold. But I’ve gone into full gremlin mode and have refused to budge from my permanent place on their couch.
Cara exhales loudly at the kitchen table, which makes me look up from my book. She’s breastfeeding Goldie and looking at me through narrowed eyes. I brace myself. I know every single one of my sister’s expressions, and this one says she’s not going to give up without a fight.
“Okay. Spill it. What happened last weekend?”
Ryan is half inside the dishwasher, swearing at a loose piece of metal, clearly listening to every word he pretends not to hear.
“Nothing,” I say half-heartedly, not sure that I have the energy to talk about it.
Cara shifts the baby to her other breast with practiced ease. “Madeline. Talk. You’ve been here for two days and the only words you’ve said are, ‘Nothing,’ ‘I’m fine,’ and ‘Are there any more chips?’ I’m starting to worry.”
“I’m not worried,” Ryan calls from inside the dishwasher. “But I’m definitely curious.”
“Oh my God,” I mutter, pressing my palms to my face. “Fine. It’s Mom and Dad.”
Cara’s whole body goes rigid. “What did they do now?”
“They showed up at my hotel room door first thing in the morning and completely humiliated me in front of Jesse.”
Cara cocks her head. “Wait…Jesse, your boss?” she asks, eyes widening. “Madeline, what was Jesse,your boss,doing in your hotel room in the morning?”
I groan. “Okay, here’s the short version: there was only oneroom left in the entire hotel, so Jesse and I had to share it. And one thing led to another, and we had sex.” I wince.
Immediately Cara’s mouth drops open. “Youwhat?”
“Jesus Christ,” Ryan mutters from inside the dishwasher.
“And then Mom and Dad showed up, unannounced, the next morning and Jesse answered the door shirtless, and it was a disaster.”
I rush through the rest of it, how my parents barged into the room, didn’t even acknowledge Jesse, and launched immediately into their pitch about Elliot. By the time I finish, Cara looks murderous. Ryan, having abandoned his dishwasher mission, is sitting on the floor, leaning against the cupboard door.
“That’s messy,” he says, shaking his head. “Even for your parents.”
Cara’s jaw hardens. “That’s—Madeline, that’s insane. That’s actually insane.”
I nod miserably.
Cara strokes Marigold’s head. “We will definitely return to how insane that is, but for now can we go back to the part where you slept with Jesse Winters?”
“No?” I say hopefully.
“I’m sorry,” my sister says, clearly not willing to move on. “But you don’t just drop that bombshell and then move on like it’s nothing.”
I bury my face in my hands. “Cara…”
“Nope, absolutely not,” she says, leaning forward like she’s about to take notes. “Madeline, the man is stupid hot. Like offensively attractive. If that man took his clothes off in front of me, I would need to be resuscitated.”
Ryan sputters. “Babe. I’m literally right here.”
Cara lifts a brow. “I married you. You’re fine.”
“I don’t feel fine.”
Cara ignores him completely.
