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Lilac laughed. “Only half-joking. He’s pretty hot once you get that doofus head off.”
“There are actual live Gastons walking around the much better park next door”—Gavin held a finger up so Lilac wouldn’t jump in to correct him—“and you’re telling me Silly Sandgrouse is hot. Reality check, Li.” Gavin brushed his bangs out of his face.
Brielle sat down on the bench once more, ready for a long conversation. “So how’s your love life, Gavin?”
Lilac snorted. “Don’t ask.”
Brielle cocked her head. “That bad?”
“Thatgood,” said Gavin, grinning mischievously.
“Okay, now I want to know more,” said Brielle, devoting her entire attention to the phone.
Gavin shrugged and avoided her gaze. “My roommates have a date here almost every night.” He looked up and gestured back and forth with his hands as if tabulating the numbers. “Okay, between them, there’s been a guy here every night.”
Brielle winced. “You must be getting a lot of sleep with all that… activity.”
Gavin stuck out his tongue like he was about to gag. “Yeah, well… One of their ‘dates’ decided to hang on my couch with me before heading off to the bedroom.”
“Please tell me you didn’t hook up with someone yourfriend brought over to bang,” said Brielle.
Lilac gasped and giggled.
Gavin raised and lowered both of his hands in turn like he was weighing his options. “Is it really so bad if he didn’t make it to the bedroom and decided to take me out for coffee instead?”
Lilac rested her chin on both hands and stared dreamily into the phone. “Aw, coffee. Not a drink. Not the bedroom, but coffee… Sure.”
“I don’t exactly have a bedroom to invite a guy to,” said Gavin matter-of-factly. His voice lowered. “Until I settle in permanently, I have to entice a guy to invite me back to his place.”
Lilac laughed and clapped her hands. “So innocent, this one.”
“Besides, I’m not a one-night-stand kind of guy. So excuse me if I wanted to get to know him a little better.”
Brielle could feel her face flushing. She wasn’t exactly comfortable discussing her friends’ love lives inthis muchdetail. “How’s the job, though? Think you’ll have an offer by the end of the summer?”
Gavin’s face soured. “I don’t know if I want an offer. I’m thinking of this as a resume-booster and hitting the classifieds in a few weeks to see if I can find something else in Chicago.” He made the hitchhiker’s thumb movement. “Otherwise, I’m just out of here.”
“Oh, but what about coffee guy?” cooed Lilac.
“Shut it,” said Gavin, but he was suppressing a smile.
“Why?” asked Brielle, confused. “I thought you were really excited about working there.”
“His boss is a huuuuugggeee asshole,” said Lilac. “Like, we’ve been having a competition for whose boss is the bigger asshole all week.”
Gavin pointed at the screen. “No, you win that, hands-down. If Gabriel starts grabbing my ass, maybe there’ll be an actual comparison.” He pinched his lips together, thinking. “No, even then, you’d win. I don’t know if Gabriel is married or not, but at least he’s hot.”
Lilac covered her mouth. “Ohmy god, you never told me he washot!” That seemed to make an actual difference to her.
“Anyway,” said Gavin. “Bri, you’ve barely told us what’s up with you. How’s your week been?”
Brielle shrugged, not sure how much to say. “Not much going on. I’ve been cleaning. I’ve applied for a few jobs. My sister and mom are at each other’s throats just about every day.” She shrugged again. “I… Well…”
Lilac grabbed a decorative pillow from off-screen and hugged it. “Oo, please tell me this is boy-related.”
Gavin shushed her and Brielle felt herself blush even deeper.
“Itis!” said Lilac.
