Page 52 of Real Forever
“Well, you know what Dad would say.”
“Smoke ‘em if ya got ‘em?”
They both laughed softly.
“So, this whole time, Jake’s the guy you’ve been going out with on all your secret dates?”
“Yeah. Sorry. I didn’t want to lie to you. But I knew you wouldn’t like it and I had to do something.”
Lauren narrowed her eyes and smirked. “You like him.”
“What?” Madison’s cheeks flushed.
“You. Like. Him. A lot.”
“Oh fuck off.” Madison waved her off.
Lauren’s mouth dropped open. “Look at you. Oh my god, you’re blushing. You little ho. You really fucking like him, don’t you?”
Madison’s face was pained. “Yes,” she blurted. “Yes. I’m basically fucking obsessed with him okay? And he’s moving to Calgary soon and I’m going to be heartbroken and alone.”
“Wait, what? Oh, Mads. I’m sorry. Calgary? What for?”
“Work” Madison’s shoulders slumped.
“When?”
“I don’t know for sure. February? March?”
“Well it’s still a few months away. Still lots of time to have some fun until then. It’s not like you were going to fall in love and marry him or something anyway, right?”
Madison met Lauren’s eyes.
“Oh. Shit. Really? I thought you had sworn off love and marriage and were going to be free and happy and whatever other bullshit you’re always telling me?”
“Yeah. I thought so too. I tried to fight it but… I don’t know. It’s weird. I feel so… safe with him. Does that even make sense? Like, do you remember when we used to fall asleep in the truck driving home from hockey games and Dad would scoop us up and carry us into our beds? And, like, half the time we weren’t even really asleep?”
Lauren’s mouth curved into a sad smile and her eyes crinkled at the happy memory.
“Being with him feels like that.”
The women sat together on the edge of the laundry covered bed, each digesting the circumstances they found themselves in.
22
Jake
Jake:Good morning. Can you still meet for lunch today?
Madison: Yep. 12? Rita’s?
Jake: Perfect.
Settinghis phone down on his desk, Jake stretched his arms over his head and tilted back in his office chair. It was uncharacteristic of him to be tired. He always got to bed on time, but he’d spent most of last night tossing and turning. Half the time he was worrying about the Calgary move, and how he was going to explain it all to Madison. The other half he spent dreaming fitfully of the taste of Madison’s pussy.
The calendar on his desktop screen was full of back-to-back appointments, typical for a Monday, but Jake groaned at the sight of it. He gazed out the window at the sun peeking up in the pinkish orange sky. The days had already gotten so much shorter, but Jake was pleasantly surprised to realize the deep blue cloud that settled on him this time of year had yet to arrive.Must be the vitamin D supplements. Well… maybe. But I took those last year, and it didn’t seem to help all that much.
He spun his chair back around to face his desk and opened the file of his first client of the day. He liked to skim the file before the client arrived, to remind himself of all the details he’d been through with them. After getting through the first page, he found himself staring out the window again.
