I pause, remembering Jabari’s face lighting up when I said I might stop by.
“Not sure,” I say slowly. “Depends on how my Mum’s feeling, I guess. I’ll chat to you later. Love you.”
“Love you too,” Za says. “And bring more sorrel!”
I hang up and finally answer Benny, already bracing myself.
“Yes, Benjamin.”
“You know what I liked about you, Francine?”
His tone is smooth, but not in the good way—smooth like the top of a shovel right before it cracks you in the face or a stone before it smacks you upside the head.
“My stunning looks? My good body? The fact that I make you a toasty before I leave your place at seven a.m.?”
“Close.” He chuckles, but it’s tight. “I was thinking about your honesty.”
…Oh.
That wipes the smile clean off my face. I cover quickly. “Oh?”
“And when I find out you’re not being honest with me,” he says, low and steady, “frankly, it upsets me.”
Here we go. Play dumb, Frankie. Dumb always buys time.
I flick at my nail polish, keeping my voice light. “What haven’t I been honest about?”
“Seriously?” Benny exhales like he’s been through years of my bullshit (fair enough). “That’s the way you wanna play it?”
“What are you talking about?”
He sighs so dramatically, I picture him pinching the bridge of his nose. “You remember James, right? Tall bloke from Birmingham? We play golf on Tuesdays?”
I snort. “Nah. Can’t say I do.”
“Oh, really?” His voice sharpens. “Well, he remembers you. That ‘good body’ of yours leaves quite the impression.”
I smirk to myself. Yeah, I’ve heard that before. More than once.
“Such a lasting impression,” Benny continues, “that he recognized the name when his roommate Jordan was crashing out about a Francine Campbell creating a group chat with all her lovers.”
…
Fuck.
“Fuck.”
“Yeah,” Benny echoes, slow, like he’s savoring it. “Fuck.”
I rub my temple. “I really don’t know what to say.”
“An apology would be nice.”
“Apology?” My face screws up instantly. “For what?”
“For not telling me you are seeing other men when I specifically asked not even twenty-four hours ago.”
“I never said I wasn’t,” I clarify, holding the railing as the bus takes a sharp turn towards my stop.
