Page 63 of Make Me Laugh

Jesus Christ, I’ll be living on the road with Joey… For two months. With an extended No Sex Contract and sexual tension out of this fucking world, letting the internet believe we’re dating so they’ll keep talking about us and we can make money.

What the fuck are we doing?

We’ve been crashing at my buddy’s downtown apartment while he’s traveling for work, giving ourselves a break from the cramped quarters of the RV, and when she posted the video, I got off the couch and walked out. I didn’t tell Enzo or Kell where I was going. They might not even know I’m gone yet. I haven’t gotten a text or call from either of them.

I didn’t watch anything until I was tucked into a corner booth at a coffee shop down the street with my headphones in and my hood pulled over my head.

I don’t know why I left, had no idea where I was going, and can’t tell you why it felt like Hex’s video was the last thing I was waiting for to make sure this was real.

Sure, we signed a contract, but I’d let her out of it if she changed her mind last minute. Joey posting as Hex for the world to see tells me she’s not going to back out… and that makes me realize I’d pretty much do whatever she asked if it made her happy, and for about a half an hour that terrifies me.

The uneasy feeling dissipates when I leave the coffee shop, headed back to the apartment. The smell of Boston’s salty early-autumn air calms me, and I finally feel like I can relax.

The news is out.

HexedHeroine is joining West Parker on tour, and everyone thinks this is our soft launch into a public relationship… Once more, I ask myself, what the fuck are we doing?

My phone dings with a notification, pausing the music I had playing for background noise. Siri’s robotic voice says, “Notification from Joey baby,” and I trip over my own feet, a woman nearly running into my back before I shuffle to the side and apologize amidst her grumbling.

Siri reads the text, but I’m scrambling to get my phone out of my pocket, and I only catch a few words.

Had. Tour. Salem.

Had tour Salem?

I finally free my phone, nearly dropping it three times before reading the full text.

Joey baby

Have you ever had a tour of Salem?

I stare at the screen, my heart racing from only eight words.

I am so fucked.

Me

No. Where should I start?

I press send immediately. No chill. The chill has left my body, never to return in the presence of Jo Daniels ever again.

Joey baby

Tonight? 6:30 at my place.

I almost drop dead on the sidewalk, but then she revives me with her next message.

Joey baby

Frankie invited Enzo. Enzo invited Kell.

Right. Right…

I can’t fall for Joey. I can’t be anything other than the man paying her… Her employer? Her boss?

Shit.

Is this a workplace romance?