Page 87 of Rapunzel Is Losing It

“Oh no, Del, no. If I had known you were home,” she shot me a withering glare, “this wouldn’t have happened.”

“Exactly. Sock on the doorknob is like a universal roommate symbol forsomeone is having sex in this room.” Del shrugged. “I mean, it’s your house, so you can have sex in all the rooms, and I guess I could sharemyschedule with you. It might help if you knew when I was home.”

“Potatoes. Oven,” I said by way of excusing myself from this conversation and stepped out of Del’s embrace.

The second the girls considered me far enough away, the squealing started.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

The campaign rolledout one video after another, and I stayed off the internet. I waited for updates from Amani, and she thankfully kept them very brief and statistical. I only knew when Silas dropped the fake leak because the number of views on our first campaign video skyrocketed, when Amani had expected them to drop.

After that, I canceled the rest of my meetings and switched off my phone. I didn’t want to answer anyone’s questions about Victor.

All the time I should have spent working that day, I channeled into the plans for my new fish pond.

And when work hours were over, Irina and I spent way too much time trying to order food from five different places withoutme accidentally seeing my emails. Why on earth did every place require you to confirm a one-off email code nowadays?

An hour later, the living room was decked out in waffles, milkshakes, pizza and various other foods. Between all the styrofoam and paper boxes, the floor was covered with bridal magazines.

“Do you need something blue? Because this is gorgeous,” Defne mused, turning over her phone to show off a beautifully arranged cornflower and peony bouquet.

“I have something blue,” Del replied, hand reaching for her collar bone and the gold necklace with the small blue pearl on it. I had given that to her the first night we met. “But I like the flowers.” She stretched her hand out, and Defne placed the phone in her palm.

Leaning over to get a better look, my eyes caught on the notification that popped up at the top of the screen.

FromTheDarkRoom • 07:41pm

My whole bed smells like you.

“Oh!”I jumped and quickly looked back at the magazine in my hands. Clearly, that message wasn’t intended for anyone’s eyes.

“What’s wrong?” Defne asked.

Del chuckled and returned the phone. “Who is FromTheDarkRoom?”

Defne started grinning. “The guy single-handedly paid for my tuition this semester.”

Tabitha let out a loud whistle, and Del said: “Good for you.”

I clearly wasn’t in on something, but before I could ask, Defne caught my puzzled gaze. “It’s a little weird, but I sell worn clothes online. Mostly socks and tights.” She pinched at thesheer black tights on her legs and let them snap back into place. “I wear this stuff anyway, and this way, I avoid student loans.”

“Do you need money?” I asked.

“No, oh god, Cordy, no.” Defne shook her head vehemently. “That wasn’t me trying to get your credit card info. I mean, I rely on Delilah becoming my sugar mommy once she has a ring on her finger, but I’m okay. I’m making this work.”

Del grinned and shook her head. “Hey, if I’m marrying rich, you might as well profit off it.”

“Besides,” Defne bit her lip and pulled her shoulders up, “I like feeling wanted, you know? There’s some creeps, but they’re no worse than the guys on Tinder. This way, I get all the attention and money on top of it.”

“Just none of the sex,” Tabitha mumbled, then shot me a slightly panicked look, “which is fine, if you don’t want sex.”

“I do want it…” I hugged my knees to my chest. “I think we’re getting there.”

“Would you mind if I excuse myself?” Irina asked from where she was standing near the doorway. She had refused to sit with us. But she’d been sticking around religiously on the days Victor was training at his uncle’s.

“Sorry, TMI?” I scrunched up my nose. I had neither siblings nor cousins, but I doubted I’d want to hear about their sex lives.

“A little.”