“And then what?”
“She laughed up to the ceiling after I did a terrible ‘Orange you glad to see me’ joke.”
I throw my head back and laugh. Claire goes off, telling the rest of her story that involved an angry store manager, an unnecessary paramedic van, and a date.
Honestly, I have no idea how she’s still standing after the last twenty-four hours.
I offer to clean the dishes while Claire takes a seat at the counter.
“Tell me everything!”
I take off with my story, explaining everything Rowan divulged last night and how we ended up in bed together.
“So please tell me that Rowan’s looks aren’t just for show.”
“He’s more of an action kind of guy.” I grin to myself at the inside joke.
Claire cackles. “Great. I’m glad we now know he can use his tongue for good rather than evil. It’s a step in the right direction.”
I only laugh to myself.
“So you’re what? Fuck buddies?”
I wince at her choice of words.
“Okay. No.” She pauses. “How about friends with benefits?”
I shake my head. “We didn’t discuss labels.”
“Silly me. How could you with his dick lodged in your throat.”
My sponge splashes in the soapy water after I lose my grip. “Claire!”
She raises her hands. “What?! You walked into that one.”
“We didn’t define what we are because there is no us. At least not in that sense of the word. We’re just Zahra and Rowan. Two people having fun.”
Her brows pull together, and her face takes on a serious note I rarely see. “I don’t want you getting hurt. Casual relationships aren’t your thing.”
“Maybe that’s my problem. With Lance, we dove headfirst into a relationship. I’m looking to take things slow.”
“Well, hate to break it to you, but you drove past a red light at two hundred miles an hour.”
A laugh bubbles out of me. “It’s just sex.”
“Yeah, and he’s just the guy you’ve been texting every night before you go to bed.”
I sigh. “Is it wrong to go with the flow and not put us into a box so soon?”
She shakes her head. “Of course not. I only want you to be careful and I don’t want you to invest your heart in someone who doesn’t plan on reciprocating.”
“We’re going to keep it casual for now.”
The plan sounds solid and foolproof—the perfect way to protect my heart while having some fun.
Or so I hope.
32
Zahra
I walk into work Monday half expecting someone to call me out on having sex with Rowan. It’s laughable how I’m acting as if I have a yellow sticker on my forehead proclaiming I did the dirty deed with my boss. It wouldn’t even matter if they did know. Dreamland doesn’t even have a non-fraternization policy. Although it’s discouraged for individuals to work within the same workspace, it’s not prohibited.
Not to mention, Rowan would never let something like sleeping together get in the way of his decisions. And the idea of him showing me preferential treatment has me wanting to work harder to show him what I’m capable of. To show myself and others that it doesn’t matter who I am when my ideas speak for themselves. At least I hope so.