"You’re not his keeper. He’s a grown man—"
"Who I cheated on."
"Did you, though?"
"Eh?" I tip up my chin. "I was with Isaac when I slept with his father. In fact, I was sleeping with Isaac, and then I slept with his father."
"And you haven’t slept with Isaac since."
I shake my head.
"And you told him—"
"Right away. I couldn’t keep it from him. I had to tell him, you know?"
"So, you broke it off with him right after."
"I did kiss JJ before that, and whenever we were in a room together it was as if there was a livewire connecting us."
She fans herself. "That sounds hot."
"You have no idea."
"So, you made out with his father. You were confused. You tried to be a good girlfriend to him—"
"But he was never around. He was too focused on his art, and I get it. It’s his art. It’s like a third person in our relationship sometimes. And I understand, I really do—"
"Do you?"
I pause. "I wanted to." I stare into the depths of my glass. "I was proud of the fact that he was so talented. I wanted him to be successful. I wanted to support him, but also, I wanted him to understand we had bills to pay. I couldn’t completely shoulder it all on my own, you know?"
"It’s understandable, Lena," Summer says softly. "You did the best you could."
"I really did. I thought if we stayed in his father’s home, it would be a temporary reprieve. Isaac could pull himself together and make a go of his painting, while I tried to find another job and save up to move out of there. I didn’t expect to find myself working for JJ."
"Or to fall for him."
"Or to fall for him, andstillfeel responsible for Isaac. He’s my friend, Summer. He says he’s going to find a way to woo me back. He’s moved into his studio on the top floor of the house."
"So, all three of you are still under the same roof?"
I grimace. "It’s a mess, right?" I roll my shoulders. "What am I going to do?"
She takes a sip of her margarita. "Maybe you don’t need to do anything, for the time being."
"I’m not sure that’s an option," I mutter.
"Why is that?"
"I wanted JJ to patch things up with Isaac. They’ve always had problems. It’s nothing new, but this situation has cranked it up to another level. Anyway, we decided to go out bowling."
"Bowling?"
"It was my idea." I blow out a breath. "And JJ, being the master manipulator that he is, insisted if he won then I should move into his room with him."
"With Isaac under the same roof?"
"Exactly. He wants to rub Isaac’s nose in it, no doubt. Of course, neither of them told me they were theStarsky and Hutchof bowling."