“Sharing is a virtue, Josh.”
“I don’t give a flying fuck. I don’t share. Not when it comes to you.”
My breath hitched. Golden warmth spread through my chest and lit me up from the inside out.
I didn’t know how to respond, so I kissed his shoulder and basked in the moment instead.
I should get out of bed. Stella was coming home soon, and my clothes were still scattered in the living room, but I couldn’t tear myself away just yet.
One more minute. Then I’ll get up.
I buried my face in Josh’s chest, soaking in his warmth and scent. Between Michael and Max, our lives were storms of chaos, but at least we could find temporary peace in moments like this.
“Thank you,” he said quietly, breaking the silence. “For being here. I needed this.”
“Anytime.” I lifted my head, my chest pinching at the touch of vulnerability in his eyes. “But if you pull another edging stunt, I’ll chop your dick off.”
Josh’s face broke out into a dazzling grin. “I’d believe you more if you hadn’t come so hard around it multiple times, Red.”
I turned my nose up, my cheeks heating. “I was faking it.”
“Hmmm.” He leaned down and nuzzled my neck. “I can tell when something is real or fake. Your orgasms were real.” He grazed his nose over the line of my jaw before capturing my mouth in a soft kiss. “And so is this.”
The ache spread from my chest to behind my eyes and nose.
I didn’t trust myself to speak, so I turned my head away until I gathered my emotions.
I didn’t make a habit of trusting many people. I could count the number of people I truly trusted on one hand, and I never thought Josh would be one of them. But life had a way of blindsiding us, and for once, I didn’t mind.
Josh and I stayed entwined in comfortable silence until the clock ticked toward the half hour and he reluctantly pulled away.
“I’m gonna hop in the shower,” he said. “Stella’s coming home soon, right?”
“Yeah.” I sighed. I loved Stella, but in that moment, I wished I lived alone.
Josh gave me one last kiss before he climbed out of the bed and slipped out of the room. A minute later, the faint sound of the shower running filtered through the door.
His scent lingered even in his absence, and I wished I could bottle it up so I could carry it around with me all day.
If past me saw present me, she would’ve slapped me for being so sappy. But it felt good to trust someone enough to rely on them, and to have them trust you enough to turn to you when they were having a bad day.
I stared at the ceiling, unable to suppress a goofy smile.
I might’ve lain there all afternoon, or at least until Josh got out of the shower, had an incoming call not interrupted my cheesy inner ramblings.
“Hello, Jules.”
It was amazing how quickly two simple words could turn the mood.
A lead spike punctured the balloon of giddiness in my chest, and cold sweat slicked my palms at the sound of Max’s voice.
“What do you want?” The shower was still running, but I snuck a peek at the half-open bedroom door anyway in case Josh magically popped up again.
“It’s funny you should ask,” Max said. “I’ve just decided on the favor I need from you. Isn’t that wonderful? You’ve been so…eager to find out what it is.”
Dread formed a lead weight in my stomach. “Spit it out, Max,” I growled. “I don’t have time for your games.”
He sighed. “Where’s the patience, J? But fine, since you want to know so bad, I’ll tell you. I need you to retrieve something for me. I have some…friends in Ohio who are very interested in this item.”
Retrieve, AKA steal.
The lead weights multiplied. “And what is this something?”
“I’ll text you the picture and address.” I could practically see Max’s smug smile. “It took me a while to track it down. You’re welcome, by the way, for doing the hard work. All you have to do is what you do best. Lie and steal.”
Max hung up before I could reply.
That goddamn asshole. If I ever had the chance, I would chop off his dick and feed it to him.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t do a damn thing as long as he had that video of me, so I stared at my phone and waited for his text to pop up.
Once it did, I had to blink twice to make sure I was seeing correctly.
It can’t be. But no matter how much I stared, the image remained the same.
My blood iced over.
It was a picture of a painting. Brown and green splashed across the canvas in a way that was reminiscent of vomit, and tiny yellow spots added nonsensical detail on the edges.
The art was hideous, but that didn’t bother me as much as where I’d seen it before.
The item Max wanted me to steal was the painting in Josh’s room.
41
JULES
“You okay, hun?” Barbs eyed me with concern. “You’ve been unusually quiet all day.”
“Yep. Just stressed about the bar.” I forced a smile and refilled my coffee mug. I shouldn’t be drinking caffeine this late in the day, but I wouldn’t be able to sleep regardless. Max’s directive to steal Josh’s painting had kept me up every night since I received his text three days ago.
“I’m sure you’ll do great.” Barbs opened the fridge and handed me a Saran-wrapped plate of apple pie. “Here. Pie always makes things better.”
My smile was more genuine this time. “Thanks, Barbs.”
“Anytime, hun.” Barbs winked and left, her mug of beloved Earl Grey tea in hand.
I sipped my coffee and grimaced at the bitter taste. I loved a lot of things about the clinic, but its coffee wasn’t one of them.
While I choked down the drink, I stared at my dark phone and waited for it to light up with another text from Max. It never did.
He’d been clear. I had one week to steal Josh’s painting or it was game over for me.
Three days had already passed, which meant I had four days left.
My next sip went down the wrong pipe. I erupted into a fit of coughs, shaking so hard some of the liquid splashed out of my cup and scalded my hand.
“Fuck!” I wheezed. I placed the remaining coffee on the counter and ran my hand under cold water, all while coughing my lungs out.
“Everything okay?”
I jumped at the sound of Josh’s voice behind me. I knocked over the mug in the process and spilled the rest of my drink down the front of my dress.
“Fuck!” I repeated, more emphatically this time.
I reached for the paper towels, but Josh beat me to it. He yanked a handful off the dispenser and mopped up the coffee running down my leg while I tried to salvage my ruined outfit.
It wasn’t happening. The stain had already settled deep into the fibers and turned a substantial portion of the blue skirt a deep, ugly shade of brown. I finally gave up and tossed the paper towel into the trash with a small scream of frustration.
“I guess that answered my question.” Josh eyed me with concern and the tiniest hint of amusement. “Bad day?”
“How’d you guess?”
“My deductive powers are one of my many impressive talents,” he quipped. “Coffee spill aside, you’ve been distracted all day.”