Page 21 of Rumor Has It
I hate everything about that. I don’t want him physically around Lindy ever again. Maybe some would say that’s jealousy, but I don’t think so. I can see how it might look like that, but I can assure you it’s just about protecting my friend. Sure, I never thought she was good enough for him. Like, I didn’t think she was pretty enough. Which sounds bad. Okay, maybe I was like three percent jealous. Or five. Definitely not more than ten percent.
Jesus, what does that even mean? I roll my eyes at myself. What is this, middle school all over again?
And then it hits me. Not like a ton of bricks, but more like the stinging sensation associated with rubbing alcohol in an open wound. It burns. I am jealous of Lindy for dating Theo. I’m. Jealous. Of Lindy. Fucking Lindy.
I still can’t quite wrap my head around what I’m thinking. Or better yet, its consequences.
Stop it, Ellie. Pull yourself together.
Fine, my best friend is attractive. No, I don’t want him dating other women, at least not in front of my face. Does the idea of him being close enough to his ex that she could reach out and touch him make me want to break her fingers? Maybe.
The more I think about this, the less sense it makes. Exhausted with myself, I shake away the thoughts and return to now.
“I guess getting it over with makes sense,” I say. “But as your best friend, I’m inclined to warn you that if you take her back, you’re dead to me.”
“Um, I don’t want her back,” he says.
On the outside, I held fast to stoicism, but on the inside, I was screaming. Yes! Yes! Take that bitch! Which was super inappropriate and uncalled for because it breaks all friendship codes, woman codes, and maybe a dozen life-lesson bylaws. But I don’t care.
All I do is offer him a simple nod as if to say, “Great, now I can breathe.”
Theo stretches his arms high up over his head as he stands, exposing his lower torso. Now, I’ve never been one to ogle Theo. I usually try to shield my face to keep from doing so, actually. But after all this new information I’ve been absorbing, I just can’t help myself.
His work as a mechanic definitely keeps him in shape. He’s never been one to spend a lot of time in the gym, but I guess when you’re hauling car parts and tires, you don’t need to.
The trail of hair from his navel traveling down and disappearing into his pants is like a newly discovered secret pleasure. I’ve seen it now and then when he’s adjusted his clothes or used the bottom of his T-shirt to wipe sweat from his face on hot days. But now it might as well be the bat signal, and I’m wearing a fucking cape.
The subtle way his hip bones curve and the crease where the deepVmuscles come together just have me absolutely mesmerized. His stretch feels exceptionally long, but maybe it’s because I feel like time is standing still.
This feels like the first time I’m looking at Theo for who he is and not the little boy I met in the halls of our school all those years ago.
I don’t know. Maybe I’m going insane. Maybe this is a mid-life crisis. Maybe it’s a side effect of having had zero sex for the last eleven months or longer—I stopped counting.
But Jesus Christ, Mary, and Joseph, forgive me. I want Theo. I don’t totally know what that means right now, but I do. I want him.
FIFTEEN
THEO
I must say, these past few days at Ellie’s house have been nice. But I guess that all ends today since the rehabber is back in town and Ellie is taking the opossum over there when she gets off work. And since she has her car back, I don’t even have to take her. I do have to stop by her house when I leave work to get my stuff I’ve had there all week, so she’s supposed to text me when she’s done.
I will say Ellie’s been a little quiet the past couple days. I asked her if something was bothering her, but she said no, so I figure she’s a little sad about giving up Wanda today. I figure when I go over there to get my stuff, she’ll need a big hug.
Honestly, it will be nice to get things back to normal around here. Staying at her place combined with Garrett’s commentary on the rumor about us has me in a weird headspace. Like last night, for example.
Ellie came out of her bedroom wearing this thin little wisp of a robe, and I could totally tell she wasn’t wearing anything under it. With sunlight coming through the window behind her, I traced the outlines of her legs all the way up her thighs. There’s a wholly forbidden feeling when you can’t take your eyes off your best friend’s perfect tits. Maybe I didn’t realize how perfect they were before, but with the way the top of her robe gapped open, exposing those very large naturally resting breasts with a deep plunging cleavage line, I know now. I wagered with myself that her nipples were exquisite, and that’s when a very small amount of shame flooded my brain and sent my lust running for the hills.
For a moment, I was worried she’d noticed my overly wandering eyes this week and that’s why she’d been quiet. Because her best friend was weirding her out. But I don’t think that’s it. In fact, I would argue that as the week went on, her clothing choices became increasingly more… intimate. I’m not going to say revealing, because none of it was intentionally showing off her body. I’ll just say they were surprising choices considering my presence.
Like I said, things will be back to normal after today. I’ll no longer be occupying space with her twenty-four seven, and hopefully that will resolve whatever this is that’s happening to me.
“You look deep in thought,” Garrett says, his arms elbow deep under the hood of a Ford Mustang.
“That’s because I am,” I say. “You should try it sometime.”
“Damn, someone is snippy today,” he says.
He’s right. That was a little more snip than I had intended. “Sorry, just wrestling with something.”
