Fine.
The next text I get is an address to an apartment above Louie’s. Twenty minutes later, I’m knocking on the door of my biggest rival. My sworn enemy. With a fucking pregnancy test in my hand. And several other things because I wasn’t sure what you get someone whomightbe pregnant, but still.
When the door swings open, I’m struck by just howlargehe is. I’ve tried really hard not to look too closely at Ben whenever we’ve run into each other over the years, but right now I can’t help but notice the way he’s filled out since we were teenagers. His light wash jeans hug all of the right spots, including thighs that look like they know their way around a squat. A trim waist leads up to an old Hawthorne T-shirt—one that fits snugglyaround toned biceps. His clean-shaven face is sporting a smirk and?—
“Since when do you wear glasses?” I ask at the same time Ben says, “Finished checking me out, Red?”
I fake a gag. “Blegh, I would never check you out.”
I was definitely checking him out.
“You were definitely checking me out.”
Narrowing my eyes, I stare him down. It’s been less than two minutes back in each other’s presence and he’s already inside my head. Which is exactly what I was trying to avoid.
Shoving the bags into his chest, I tell him, “I’ll be going now. No reason for me to continue cleaning up after Bardot messes today.”
“Wait!” Ben’s hand—another large part of him—clamps over mine, holding me hostage against his chest. “Will you… can you take it across the hall?”
He looks behind him and I follow his gaze to a sulking Jules, who keeps sitting down on the couch, jumping to his feet, and pacing back and forth, before repeating the whole thing over again. Lowering his voice, Ben actually looks sincere when he speaks next. “Look, Jules is freaking out. Thea, her daughter, Chloe, and her dad, Hank, all live across the hall. Thea is… also freaking out. She’s new in town and needs a friend. Can you—will you take this to her?”
I might be a loner freak who would rather work on jigsaw puzzles while listening to a true crime podcast than go to a cocktail bar to gossip about who wore it better, but I’m not a heartless bitch.
“Lose my number,” I seethe as I turn and knock on the door across the hall. In response, I get a chuckle from Ben and the soft click of his apartment door closing. I roll my eyes hard enough that I hope he can feel it, even though he can’t see it.
Fifteen seconds later, a gorgeous blonde woman opens the door.Get it, Jules!is my first thought because this woman looks like she was created from every man’s fantasy. But my arms are falling asleep so my second thought wins out.
“Scoot over, these are heavy.”
She moves enough to let me in, so I make my way over to the counter, unceremoniously dumping the paper sacks. After rifling for a minute, I find the smaller paper sack nestled against the Pop-Tarts and the mac and cheese. When I turn around to give it to who I’m assuming is Thea, she’s still standing at the front door.
She looks a bit like a deer in headlights. I approach slowly before handing her the bag. “Here.”
Thea looks down and then back up at me. “Sorry, who are you?”
“Are you fucking kidding me? Did Benjamin not tell you I was coming over?” I do my very best attempt at the cartoons who are able to shoot lasers out of their eyes as I stare straight into the peephole of Ben’s apartment. There’s no way he’s not watching this go down.
“H-he did! He did not tell me who you were, though. Just that you were ‘good people.’” She uses air quotes on that last part.
Skeptically, I ask, “He said that?” Thea just stares at me, and I remember why I’m not very good at making friends. “Whatever. I’m Cole. Colette, but people call me Cole. Do you want to…” I glance down at the package she currently has a death grip on.
She takes one look inside before shoving it back toward me. “Nope.”
Alright. I did my part, I can’t force her to pee on the thing. “Okay.” I shrug.
At that exact moment, a miniature version of Thea runs in. I like kids—they are usually much more straightforward than adults—and this one seems like fun.
“I’m Chloe!” she shrieks. “I already have a best friend, but I like your hair so maybe you can replace him.”
“Is it Jules? He’s a pretty cool best friend.”
“I like Jules…” Chloe concedes. “But Ben is my best friend.”
Ew. We’ll need to fix that. I get down on her level before saying, “Oh, love bug, not for long if I have anything to say about it.”
“Any mac and cheese in that bag? Chloe is pretty easily bought,” Thea chimes in, stopping me from going on a tirade about Benjamin.
The great news is that I definitely brought all of the good food. I’ve always wanted to be the cool aunt, but I don’t have any siblings so I was out of luck on that front. I rub my hands together, beginning to unpack the grocery sacks. “Not only do I have mac and cheese… I have the best kind of mac and cheese—shapes!”
