Page 19 of This Time Around

I don’t know what Memphis ended up doing because I was too busy following Andy up the wide, curving staircase to the second floor. It seemed like Andy didn’t want to discuss what just happened. He’d rather jump to conclusions like he did with Tucker than talk to me about it. Well, too fucking bad. I got angrier and angrier with every step I stomped on.

When Andy reached the second floor, he began looking at the ceiling. I suspected he was searching for water damage but realized I was wrong when he opened a door to reveal a narrow set of wooden steps. “Aha.”

“Why are you going up there?” I asked, anger replacing my fear.

“It’s just an attic, Milo. The roof is one of the most important parts of a house. I want to make sure it’s not leaking. If it is, that’s a huge expense to replace the shingles.” He was all business again, and I hated that more than his judgment minutes before. At least when he was judging me, it showed he cared one way or the other.

“I’m not going up there,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest. Yes, I’m aware I sounded like a pouting, five-year-old princess instead of the thirty-year-old princess I was. The lights above the steps went out as if to prove that I was right about the space being creepy as fuck. “See.”

Andy pulled out a flashlight from his toolbelt. “See.” Then he put it beneath his chin and clicked it on, highlighting parts of his face while others were cast in shadows. His sexy face took on a ghostly appearance. “Boo!” he yelled loud enough to make me jump. Then the jackass laughed and boldly trudged up the steps.

I couldn’t be outdone, so I caught up to him by the time he reached the landing or else I’d lose the light when he turned to ascend the next set of steps. I missed a step and crashed headlong into his ass, almost taking him down too. “Careful, Milo. Damn.”

“Sorry.”

When Andy reached the top of the steps, he found a light switch on the wall. Only one socket had a bulb in it, so it wasn’t bright enough for Andy to see anything besides trunks and trunks of stuff stacked everywhere.

I turned my head slightly to the left and saw the outline of a woman’s silhouette out of the corner of my eyes. “Ghost!” I yelled, then dove behind Andy.

“Where?” Andy asked, turning in circles and swinging his flashlight to illuminate every corner of the dark, dusty space. “That?” he asked.

I peeked around his broad back and ducked my head under his armpit to see. In the center of the flashlight beam was one of those old-fashioned wire mannequins they used to hang dresses on. In fact, the mannequin sported a flowing, white dress that looked like something a woman wore in the eighteen hundreds. Of course, the white color of the gown in contrast to the dark space gave it a ghostly appearance.

“Seriously, Milo? I nearly pissed myself over a mannequin.”

“You almost jizzed yourself earlier.”

“Don’t pretend I didn’t feel your hard-on pressing up against mine, Milo.”

“True, but that wasn’t what I was referring to.”

“Then what the fuck are you talking about?” Andy asked, sounding angry all over again.

“Simon!”

“You want to talk about Simon, Milo? We’ll talk about Simon.”

“Fine, I’m going first. Since when does your uncle want to fix you up with your cousin? What kind of fuckery is this?”

“Paul isn’t my biological uncle,” Andy said. “He and my dad are best friends. Uncle was an honorary title I gave him when I was a kid.”

“Oh.” Yeah, that took the wind right out of my sails. “Are you going to take Simon on a date?”

“Should I, Milo? Is he good in bed?”

I gasped dramatically, of course. “Are you slut shaming me?”

“Are you acting slutty?”

“And if I was?” I demanded to know.

Silence. “You make me fucking crazy, Milo.”

“That makes two of us.” I realized what I said. “Wait. I meant that you make me crazy too. So crazy that I can’t even think. You rob me of my ability to snark.”

“You act as if that’s a talent,” Andy scoffed.

“Those who can, do. Those who can’t, bitch.”