“It’s either that or the couch.”
Before I could make a choice, however, my body was taken over by a massive yawn. I reached my arms high above my head and stretched away some of the previous night’s stiffness.
“For now,” I said once I was done. “I’m going to nap on the couch. We’ll see how I’m feeling when I wake up, whether or not I want to go mattress hunting.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Becca said. “I’ll grab you a blanket and a pillow, and then I have to go. I was supposed to be at the salon like ten minutes ago.”
“I’llfind a pillow and blanket, you go. I don’t want you to be even more late.”
She smiled at me and turned to leave, then turned back. “Hey Kat, I just want to say, I’mreallyhappy you’re home.” She walked over and pulled me into a tight hug. “We are going to have so much fun. It’ll be just like when we were kids.”
I hugged her back but didn’t say anything in response to that.
When we broke apart, I hit her gently on the arm. “Would you get out of here already? Your client is going to be so mad.”
“I’m going, I’m going.” She ran out of the room, down the hall, and out the door.
Once I heard the sound of her locking the deadbolt, I let out an exhausted exhale and rubbed my sleepy eyes. So far, my first day back in Boston hadn’t exactly gone according to plan, but there was nothing that could be done about that at the moment. I checked the hall closet, found a blanket but no pillow, so I snuck into Becca’s room and stole one off her bed. I knew she wouldn’t mind.
Curling up on the couch, I heard the sound of the unit’s heat coming on, and I knew soon it would be nice and toasty in the apartment. I closed my eyes and tried to think about something positive.
I thought about how excited I was to start work the following day. There was some apprehension as well, especially since my brother Calvin worked for SDC too, and our relationship had been rocky to say the least. But this was a chance to fix that, as well as a chance to help my dad, and to show off all that I’d learned while I was away.
Plus—Jonah is going to be there.
The last thought I had, before drifting off to sleep, was whether or not Jonah Hollis was still as handsome as the last time I saw him.
I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.
* * *
I woke up around dinner time, just as Becca was walking through the door after a long day at work. She smiled when she saw me and held up a bag of take out and a bottle of champagne. “Oh good, you’re up! I got us food and booze, to celebrate your first night back in town.”
“Fantastic,” I said. “Food and booze are exactly what I need right now.”
“Before we start drinking, I should probably ask, do we need to go find you a mattress?” She put the food down on the counter as I walked into the kitchen with her.
“I’ll sleep on the couch tonight,” I said. “It’s surprisingly comfortable.”
“Isn’t it? I paid a lot for it, but it was worth it. This way, I don’t have to feel bad when Paul and I get into a fight, and he goes to sleep on it.”
I frowned. “Do you guys fight that often?”
She shrugged. “It’s hard for me to say. I don’t know how often other couples fight.” She retrieved two cups from the cupboard. “Wendy took the champagne flutes as well, so we’re drinking out of these.”
I took the cup and held it out as she poured. “Does he stay the night here a lot?”
“Not so much these days,” she said. “We’re both really busy, and you know his office is much closer to his house and the salon is right down the street from here, so it doesn’t make a lot of sense for us to stay over at one another’s place when we have to work in the morning. Which between the two of us, is pretty much every morning.”
“But you two are still engaged, right?”
She held her hand up to show me the ring on her finger. “Yes. Of course, we are.”
I swallowed my snarky comment along with the first sip of champagne, and let Becca change the subject. She wanted to talk aboutmydating life, and so I told her about the escapades I had while abroad. They were few and far between, seeing as I was so busy. I had a lot of casual hook-ups, and friends who I could call on a cold, lonely night, but the longest relationship I’d had over the last ten years lasted only four and a half weeks. Unlike Becca, who had been with Paul since her freshman year of college.
“You’re so lucky,” Becca said as we sat down on the couch with plates full of Chinese food. “I should’ve dated more before I committed to Paul. You know I’ve only had sex withtwomen, can you believe that? And now I’m going to marry one of those men, and never have sex with a new person for the rest of my life!”
I threw back the remainder of my champagne and laughed. “Yeah, but Paul loves you, and he’s always there for you. He’ll take care of you when you get old, and who knows, maybe he’ll even be the father of your children. Isn’t that what you want? Meaningless sex is just that: meaningless.”