“Whatever way you did last night.”
“Actually, she—”
“Don’t want to hear it. Just go.”
“Going.”
Chris started to leave, then he stopped in the doorway of Dillon’s office. He turned around, raised a hand and pointed at Dillon.
“I didn’t actually break your heart in high school, did I?”
“No.”
“Okay. Good. I’d feel bad if you were in love or whatever with me back then and I was that clueless.”
“You were my best friend, that was it. I wasn’t even that attracted to you. No offense.”
“None taken. I wouldn’t have crushed on a slacker like me in high school, either.”
“It wasn’t that.”
“What was it?”
“Dude,” Dillon said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “You wore a chain wallet.”
* * *
CHRIS DROVE FROM Portland up to Timber Ridge and in traffic it took an hour and a half. He didn’t mind the drive, although it gave him a little too much free time to think about last night, about Joey, about what happened after and whatever happened this morning that made her text him. He hadn’t expected the text. Not for one second. Not after she’d cried after the sex and said the rebound plan hadn’t worked.
But really...had he expected it to work? He’d been through breakups before. One good night of sex with a friend or stranger wasn’t some kind of silver bullet that could kill the pain. Joey’d been with this guy for two years. The only thing that might make her feel better was if Chris took that silver bullet and shot this Ben guy with it.
He allowed himself to enjoy that murderous fantasy before remembering he’d never touched a gun in his life. He was a lover, not a fighter. Although it was tempting to make this Ben guy eat shit over what he’d done to Joey. Who did that? Who lied for two straight years to his own girlfriend? And this wasn’t a little white lie like saying he was a high school football star when actually he was second string. No, this fucker had a wife. A real live wife living with him in LA and at no point had he bothered to tell Joey that. That was sociopath behavior, lying like that. And lying for that long. Who did that? And more, who did that to Joey? Joey was the kindest girl he’d ever met in his life. She’d looked out for Dillon like some kind of tiny adorable bodyguard during his senior year when things got so bad. And although she was a freshman when Chris was a senior, Joey always helped him with his English homework because he’d been so fucking terrible at anything that involved writing papers. She hadn’t mocked him for it, either, hadn’t teased him about his bad grammar and spelling. All she’d said was, “Well, you’re so good at math it makes me sick, okay?”
Of course he’d fallen in love with her right then and there. He made her sick, she said, and it was the nicest thing any girl had ever said to him. What straight guy with half a brain wouldn’t fall in love with her? And now that he knew what she was like in bed? How giving she was? How passionate? How much fun she was during sex? Oh, my God, he was five minutes away from falling in love with her again.
He yanked that thought back, took the keys out of its hands and called in a designated driver. Go home, Brain, you’re drunk on lust.
When he pulled in for coffee in Government Camp, he checked his phone, and found he had a new message from Joey.
I can’t get over how beautiful the cabin is now. You’re so talented it makes me sick. Sorry. Just had to tell you that.
His heart stole the keys and hopped into his truck, grabbed Joey and started off toward the sunset. Then his heart swerved hard, ran off the road, hit a telephone pole and exploded into a fireball.
Oh, fuck.
7
JOEY DROVE UP to Timber Ridge early. She told herself she wanted to see the famous lodge, see if it had changed any since the last time she’d come here several years ago. That’s all. It had nothing to do with being particularly eager to see Chris again or anything. In fact, she didn’t want to see him again. Her heart raced and her hands felt a little shaky. These were classic symptoms of terror, yes? Yes, of course. She was scared and fear was bad and since she was scared and fear was bad that meant she wasn’t looking forward to seeing Chris again already.
And this was why Joey was a marketing genius—she could sell lies to herself.
Except today she wasn’t buying.
Joey wanted to see Chris. She absolutely wanted to see him again. Old friend. Dear friend. New friend. All that. But...
But.
Did she want to see him again...naked?