Evie paused again. “June.”
“Don’tJuneme,” I hissed.
Evie picked up two trays. The metal clinked together as she slid them onto the baking rack. “It’s a bad idea.”
“I know that,” I snapped. “You don’t think I know that?”
“It’s a bad idea because you know you’re going to have feelings.”
“No,” I said. “I can keep it separate in my head.”
“I think you cantryto. But if you’ve been resisting Dallas this long, there’s a reason for that. Don’t get me wrong, I think you should go for it. But if you don’t want to end up with feelings, then you shouldn’t propose this idea. Just have sex with Madi, and when she leaves, keep going about your life like you always do.”
Somehow, that just didn’t sit well with me. It should have. She was right about this, of course.
“The problem is, I want them,” I whispered. “Really bad.”
“Bad enough to risk fucking up a friendship?”
“We’re adults,” I said. “We don’t even know if Madi or Dallas will say yes.”
“And you won’t be jealous if those two are fucking?”
Damn, she was not going easy on me. It was frustrating, but also what I needed sometimes. Evie was supportive at the end of the day, but she’d also tell me what she really thought.
“I don’t have any issue with the two of them being together,” I said. “I actually really like it. Clearly.”
“Okay. And what about if you want to be there too and Dallas isn’t interested?”
My throat felt thick. “I stand by what I just said.”
“All right. And again, what happens when you catch feelings?”
“I won’t,” I said. “I don’t have time for feelings. I don’t have time for romance. That’s part of why I want this. It’s been too long since I’ve had some good sex in my life, and I don’t need anything else. Madi is hot and gorgeous and I want her in my bed. Dallas is hot and . . . I wouldn’t mind if he was there either.”I want him, dammit.
Evie was quiet for a few seconds as she placed three trays of pie crusts on the table. “I don’t know, June. It’s more complicated with Dallas.”
“And so what if I fuck up? If he and I have sex and then it’s awkward and weird, it sure wouldn’t be because of me.”
“What if it’s bad?”
The silence made both of us giggle.
“Evie. Come on.”
“All right,” she groaned. “Okay. We know Dallas would be good in bed. Sure. Right. I just think you deserve something more than an arrangement like this, June. You deserve to be loved and cherished and?—”
“Not everyone is meant to be a fairytale princess with a happy ending.”
Evie, without skipping a beat, rebutted. “Everyone deserves the chance, though. And you’re selling yourself short by going for friends with benefits with two people who could make you happy.”
“I shouldn’t need other people to make me happy.”
She sighed. “You know what I mean.”
Silence settled between us, only interrupted by the sounds of the ovens and the cooler fan blowing up front.
“So you think it’s a bad idea?” I finally asked.
