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“I can see that.” Sonia did nothing to conceal her dry tone. “Quite a mess for such a nice apartment.”
Jonah peered at her through his glasses. “We had such a good time, I didn’t really notice.”
Sonia picked up her purse with a dismissive snort. She knew Jonah’s type. All big ideas, not so big on the aftermath.
“Brendan will help clean up,” Jonah sputtered through a mouthful of cereal. “He always does.”
Sonia arched an eyebrow at Yasmin’s tiara, still perched on the sofa. “Well, Brendan’s driving up to Connecticut in a few hours for his brother’s wedding. He’s got other things on his mind. If you don’t want to wallow in filth all weekend, I suggest cleaning up. Hire someone to do it, if you can’t handle it yourself.” She smiled at Jonah, who looked confused. “It would be really great for Brendan to come home to a clean apartment on Monday. Don’t you think? I bet he’s done the same for you.”
“Wow.” Jonah blinked at her. “Uh… Yeah, he has, actually.” He gestured around at the mess, grinning hopefully. “Want to help? We could surprise Brendan when he wakes up. Even better!”
Was he kidding? She had no part in this mess. And she definitely didn’t want to be here when Brendan got up.
But Jonah was gazing at her like a lost puppy, and when she thought of Brendan waking up yet again to a home that looked like a disaster site, her feet refused to walk through the door.
“Fine,”she growled. “I’ll do the dishes. You do everything else. But if Brendan wakes up and comes in here, I’m leaving. So let’s keep it quiet.”
“Didn’t you just…sleep over?” Jonah eyed her warily. “No offense, but women never sneak out when they’re staying with him. They usually hate to leave.”
“I’m sure,” Sonia said drily. “Just tell me where to find a sponge.”
*
An hour later, she unlocked her grandmother’s front door. The house was peaceful, silent, and blissfully clean. Adrienne was probably still asleep.
Hurrying up the stairs, Sonia pulled a suitcase out of her closet and stared into its depths. It wouldn’t take her long to pack for the wedding. Which was fortunate, because she needed to catch her train in an hour.
Jonah had kept thanking her for helping out, trying to chat and asking a million questions, until she finally told him, as politely as she could, that she wasn’t a morning person and would rather not talk. If Brendan really hated being alone, living with Jonah was one way to handle that.
Throwing her red dress into her suitcase, Sonia grabbed a few other black and gray clothes at random. Everything in her closet went with everything else, which made it easy to pack. She tossed in a pair of red cowboy boots and some black bras and panties.
The wooden toy chest caught her eye. Opening it, she ran her fingers over the coils of ropes, the vibes and dildos and harnesses.
“Maybe I should pack you all,” she murmured.
Her phone jangled shrilly, interrupting the fantasy just starting to form. The screen readTrevor.
Sonia’s heart sank. Trevor wouldn’t be calling about the next free event on Elena’s list, suggesting that their cozy little dance crew all go together. No, he’d be calling about money for the company. She hadn’t spoken to him since Tuesday, when the last thing he said to her afterHamletwas, “Get out there. Hustle. We’re depending on you.”
Steeling herself, she picked up the phone. “Hey!” she said, trying to be cheery.
“Sonia?” Trevor sounded surprised.
“Yeah, it’s me.”
“Wow, an actual ‘hey.’ For a second there, I didn’t recognize you.”
Sonia drummed her fingers on top of her suitcase. “Kind of in a hurry, Trevor. What’s up?”
“Okay, look, I’m really sorry to say this. We’ve been friends — at least, the Sonia version of friends — for almost five years. But I owe it to you to be honest. I just wanted to tell you—”
“Spit it out.”
“I got an offer from another company,” he said in a rush. “I have to give them an answer by Monday, and if there's no guarantee that your company will continue, my answer's going to be yes.”
Springing up from the floor, Sonia began to pace. Trevor was one of her best dancers; she couldn't afford to lose him. And they'd been friends since college. How could he barrel in with this ultimatum?
But she couldn't blame him. He needed to eat, to keep a roof over his head. They all did.
