Page 4 of November

“She does, but I told you I was done with that. I get it, Finley. You and Molly are happy.”

“We’re in love,” Finley said.

India swallowed hard and felt the dryness take over her throat. God, she needed a drink and maybe even some more of that damn Halloween candy.

“It’s been a few weeks.”

“I know, but not really. It’s weird, but it feels like a lot has happened since Molly and I got together. And she had a bit of a head start on me, too. I don’t want to hurt you or anything, but we say it all the time now, and if she’s here, odds are, one of us will slip up, even though we said we wouldn’t say it around you. I said it to her when she walked away from her desk today – I just said, ‘love you,’ – and she turned and glared at me.” Finley laughed. “Luckily, no one was around, but I didn’t want you to be surprised if it happens later.”

“Yeah, okay. Thanks for the warning,” she said, wondering why she was thanking her ex for telling her ahead of time that she might confess her undying love to a woman she had only been dating a few weeks when she and Finley had been together for four months before India had said it first.

“Okay,” Ava said when she returned and sat down next to India. “Are you ready?”

“Sure,” Finley spoke with a light laugh. “You look really excited.”

“I am,” Ava said with a wide smile. “I slept with Stephania last night.”

“I’m sorry. What?” India asked.

“And the night before. And the night before that. And oh, my God, is she good in bed.”

“You slept with the supermodel Stephania?”

“Yes. And she’s coming here in, like, ten minutes, so be cool.”

“How–” Finley began.

“Remember how Asher gave me Stephania’s number at the barbecue? Well, we texted back and forth, and she was already scheduled for some photoshoot here around Halloween, so we talked on the phone and did a FaceTime thing before we met up her first night here. She came straight from the airport because her flight was delayed, and she ended up staying with me instead of going to the hotel. One thing led to another, and wow.”

“Wow?” India teased with a laugh.

“I’m trying not to be all head-in-the-clouds about this because I am normally a very practical person, but yes, wow is accurate.”

“So, you’re sleeping with a supermodel now?” Finley asked.

“Not much sleeping so far. Maybe I’ll get some when she goes back to LA.”

“It’sthatgood?” India asked.

“Don’t tell Logan, but this is the best sex of my entire life.” Ava nodded toward her ex-girlfriend, who was now her best friend. “She was before Stephania, but now… there’s no contest.”

“Damn. What does this woman do, and can she teach me a few things?” Finley asked.

India remembered that she’d taken some of the candy from the office earlier, pulled a mini-size candy bar out of her bag, and opened it, taking the whole thing into her mouth inone bite as she sat there, listening to Ava talk about how good Stephania was in bed but also just how much she liked her. They’d gone on dates. It hadn’t just been about sex. And they were planning on keeping in touch when Stephania left. India ate another candy bar and decided she’d go for an extra-long run in the morning to try to counteract these calories.

“She’s here,” Ava said, looking at the text she had just received on her phone. “She’s a model, yes, but she’s really chill and normal, so please don’t be weird with her.”

“No problem,” Finley replied.

Finley hadn’t ever cared about celebrities, so her even-keeled reaction to meeting Stephania, one of the most well-known models in the world right now, didn’t surprise India. Seeing Ava stand up and Stephania pull her into an immediate and pretty deep kisshadsurprised her, but then, she found another candy bar and pulled it out of its wrapper.

“You okay?” Finley asked. “You never eat junk like that.”

“I’m great,” she replied sarcastically with her mouth full.

CHAPTER 3

“Can you put the posters over there for now?” Maisie asked.