Outrageously in Love by Jen Morris

6

Iglance at the shopping bags splayed out at our feet as we jostle along. I didn’t want to take the subway (I thought New Yorkers were all about cabs?) but Alex insisted it was easy and much cheaper than a taxi.

I, on the other hand, feel like we’re about to be mugged at any second.

My eyes dart around the train carriage, making sure no one is approaching us while we’re unawares, but everyone seems to either have their headphones in or their eyes on their phones. Still, I’m rigid with nerves. My hands are so sweaty I can hardly grasp the rail to steady myself. I don’t know how Alex does this alone. She’s so much braver than me.

“It was fun shopping with you today,” she says, gesturing to my bags.

After going through Alex’s wardrobe this morning, it became clear that most of her clothes wouldn’t work for me. She’s taller and curvier than me, and while I managed to find a dress of hers I could wear for the day, I knew we’d have to go shopping. Alex talked me into trying on some pretty dresses, and when I saw my reflection in the fitting room mirror, all I could hear were Luke’s words: You’re beautiful. I remembered the way he looked at me, the way he sent heat searing through my whole body, and in that moment I decided I’d like to put a little more thought into my appearance. So, as well as buying my usual jeans and sweaters to replace the ones currently missing in my luggage, I also got a handful of dresses, following Alex’s advice.

And—I can’t really believe this—I got some sexy underwear. It’s not something I’ve ever owned in the past, but today I felt inspired. The whole time I looked at lingerie—God, I know it’s stupid, but I couldn’t help myself—I kept thinking, would Luke like these? And when I tried on a red lacy bra with matching panties and felt pleasantly surprised at my reflection, I heard his voice in my ear again, murmuring, God, you’re hot. I got so flustered I had to quickly dress and get out of there—after buying the set in several colors, of course. I might not be seeing Luke again, but it won’t hurt to have some sexier bits and pieces, just in case, well… I don’t know. But I’m quite certain Harriet 2.0 would wear sexy underwear.

I smile at Alex. “It was fun. Thanks for your advice. I would never have tried on half of that stuff otherwise.”

“Happy to help. I can’t believe you listened to me! I don’t think I’ve seen you in something so girly before.”

“I know,” I say, chuckling. “But I’m trying to get out of my comfort zone and try new things.”

The train pulls into the next stop and Alex helps me gather my bags. I follow her onto the platform and up the steps until we reach the street, the tight coil of anxiety inside me slowly unwinding as we leave the subway. We walk for a few blocks until we come to a bar called Bounce where we’re meeting her friends, Cat and Geoff, for a drink.

It’s been a day of sensory overload out in the city, with the sounds and the sights and the smells (oh, the smells—everything from the pungent odor of garbage and car fumes to the sweet scent of bakeries and coffee. It was… a lot). I was looking forward to getting home and recharging my introvert batteries, but Alex has been so excited for me to meet her friends, I could hardly say no.

She smiles at a blond guy behind the bar as we enter, then points us towards a booth at the back.

“Who’s that?” I ask, following her.

“Cat’s brother, Cory. He owns the place, so we get cheap drinks.” She flashes me a grin as we slide into a booth.

I shove my shopping bags under the table, leaning forward to look at Cory. He’s got a short beard, dirty-blond hair cut longish on top and shaved close on the sides, and he’s well over six feet tall. He’s chatting with a petite, dark-haired woman behind the bar as she pours drinks. Then his brown eyes return our way and he waves.

“He’s cute,” I murmur.

“Oh, yeah. He’s hot. But he’s kind of a player. He hit on me my first night in town and Cat says he’s always taking girls home from here.” She tilts her head, regarding me curiously. “Since when are you checking out guys?”

“What?” I blush, shifting my weight. She’s right, I wouldn’t normally notice a hot guy. I think Luke flipped some kind of internal switch in me or something, because I noticed a few while we were out shopping today. Or maybe it’s just American men. “I’m thirsty,” I say, in a feeble attempt to distract Alex.

“Isn’t that the truth,” she mutters, laughing. “Okay, I’ll get us drinks while we wait for the others. What do you want?”

“Um, I’ll have a whiskey.”

Her eyebrows rise. “You drink whiskey?”

“I’ve just started. I’m trying new things, remember?”

“I guess,” she says, shaking her head as she wanders over to the bar. I watch her chat and laugh with the dark-haired woman as she pours our drinks. When Alex returns to the table, I take my whiskey with a smile.

“Thanks.”

“Guys! Over here!” She waves an arm and I follow her gaze to see a guy and a girl enter the bar. The girl is short, with cotton-candy pink hair and a cute floral dress, and she waves to Cory as she makes her way to us. I’m guessing that’s Cat.

Behind her is a guy with dark hair, square-rimmed glasses, and a warm smile. His slightly-pudgy frame is squeezed into a blue cashmere sweater and chinos. He hugs Alex when she stands, then turns to me. “You must be Harriet!” He leans over and pulls me into a hug, before sliding into the booth. “I’m Geoff. I’ve heard so much about you.”

“Cat Porter,” the girl says, hugging me as well. “It’s so good to finally meet you.”

“It’s nice to meet you too,” I say, touched by the welcome.

“Geoff is my boss at the bookstore,” Alex explains. “And Cat used to be my roommate. Though it won’t be Cat Porter for long!” She gestures to the ring on Cat’s left hand. “Soon it will be Cat Ellis.”

Cat glances down at the ring with a smile.

“Congratulations,” I say. “What’s your fiance’s name?”

“Myles.” When she looks back up at me, I can tell she’s trying to temper her grin. “He used to be a bartender here.”

“Yeah, and you kept him in the friend zone even after he declared his love for you,” Geoff says with a chuckle.

“Whatever.” Cat pushes to her feet. “I’ll get us drinks.” She heads off to the bar and Geoff turns to Alex.

“How’s the writing going?”

“It’s good,” she says, sipping her wine. “I took today off to go shopping with Harri.”

I twist to face her. “Do you have a lot of work to do?”

“Yeah, I still have about a quarter of my manuscript left to write. My editor is expecting it a couple of weeks after the wedding, so—”

“Your editor?” I interrupt. “I thought you were self-published?”

“I am, but I still work with an editor. And this one cost a small fortune, but it will be worth it. I’m lucky she could fit me in because she’s always booked.”

I frown, concerned. “If you have work to do, I understand. You don’t have to spend time—”

“Harri,” she says, placing a hand on my arm. “You flew all the way over here! I’m enjoying hanging out with you. I will have to work at some stage, but I can fit it all in.” She smiles, then rises from the booth. “I need to go to the ladies’ room. Back in a sec.”

Geoff fixes his attention on me. “She’s so happy to have you here. Ever since you decided to come, she’s been talking about it nonstop.”

Guilt weaves through me. Now that I’m here, spending time with my sister, I can’t believe I wasn’t going to come. “I’m glad I’m here too,” I say. “I’ve missed her. And I’ve never been a maid of honor before.”

Geoff chuckles. “I’m sure she’ll have a lot of wedding tasks for you.”

Actually, there’s an idea. If I help her get some of the wedding stuff sorted so she can focus on work, that might make up for me being such a crappy sister in the first place.

“Great,” I say, and the guilt dissipates slightly.

“Have you met Michael yet?” Geoff asks as Alex returns to the table.

“No,” Alex answers for me. “He’s had loads of meetings because he’s pitching a new book, but we’ll have dinner tomorrow.”

I smile. “Sounds good.”

“Okay, a toast,” Cat says as she settles back into her seat. She raises her glass. “To Harriet, for coming all the way to New York and meeting Alex’s fabulous friends.”

I laugh as we all clink glasses, thinking back to the last time I was out drinking, with Steph’s friends. I didn’t feel nearly as welcome as I do here, and it’s only been five minutes. I replay that night in the pub—and the conversation that started this whole thing—and curiosity gets the better of me. “I have a question,” I say tentatively. They all lean forward with interest, so I continue. “What’s the most outrageous thing you’ve ever done?”

“Ooh, that’s a fun question!” Alex says. I wait for another raunchy story, but she surprises me. “I think it was moving here after Travis dumped me.”

Admittedly, when Alex first announced she was moving to New York less than twenty-four hours after Travis ended things, I was shocked and pretty sure she’d come back home with her tail between her legs. But she created a life for herself over here; she built a writing career, which she’s always wanted, and she met a lovely man, which, well… ditto. I admire how she went out and made her dreams a reality, regardless of what anyone else thought.

I think of my own dream—of that napkin stuffed into my bag with all my board game cafe ideas—but push the thought away. It’s not the same thing.

“And, maybe,” Alex adds, her face breaking into a wicked grin, “the time Michael and I had sex in the back of his truck on the way up to the cabin a few months ago.”

I can’t help but laugh. There’s the Alex I know.

Cat stirs her drink. “For me it was probably when I stole my mom’s car. I was seventeen and didn’t even have my license. I wanted to visit a guy I liked upstate. Then she called the cops when she found it was missing, and I got pulled over and arrested. It was pretty bad.”

“I think I know mine,” Geoff pipes up. “I slashed my ex’s tires when I found out he slept with someone else.”

“Geoffrey Howard,” Alex says with exaggerated shock. “You didn’t.”

“I did. But he deserved it, obviously.”

I sip my whiskey as I listen to their stories. I want to share my own story, now that I have a good one, but I don’t know if I can. I’ve only just met Geoff and Cat. What will they think of me?

Geoff turns to me with a grin. “And what about you, Harriet?”

Before I can answer, Alex flaps a hand, chuckling. “Harriet doesn’t really do crazy things.”

There it is again: that ripple of irritation I felt when Steph dismissed me too. I know Alex is trying to save me the embarrassment of having to admit that to her friends, but this time, she’s wrong.

“Actually, I have done something outrageous.”

Her eyebrows shoot up. “Really? What?”

“Okay. Don’t judge me, but…” I push my glasses up my nose and stare at the table. I can’t look at anyone while I confess this. “I kind of, um, had sex with someone I met on the plane.”

“What?!” Alex nearly drops her drink. “Where? How?”

My face burns as I focus on my whiskey. “Erm, in the airplane bathroom.”

“You had sex on the plane?!” Alex exclaims and a guy at the next table glances over.

“Shh!” I hiss, raising my hands to my flaming cheeks.

“Sorry.” She leans closer. “But… are you serious?”

With a deep breath, I finally look up. “Yes.”

“Oh my God!” Geoff’s face splits into a grin. “I’m so jealous. I’ve always wanted to do that.”

“I think congratulations are in order.” Cat clinks her glass against mine. “That’s a bucket list item, right there.”

I drain my whiskey with a chuckle. At least this seems to have impressed rather than appalled them.

“I can’t believe it.” Alex shakes her head. “How did it happen?”

I shrug. “It just kind of happened. We talked for a few hours, and then we were at the back of the plane alone, and the next thing I knew we were kissing, then we were in the bathroom…” I trail off, biting my lip as the images come flooding back to me.

“Well, was it any good?” Geoff asks.

I bite my lip harder, heat swirling through me at the memories, and nod.

“Really?” Cat leans forward, intrigued. “It’s such a tiny space.”

“I know, but it worked. It was actually…” I look around at the three of them, wide-eyed as they hang on my every word, and feel an unusual swell of satisfaction. “It was the best sex I’ve ever had.”

“Holy shit.” Alex’s jaw is on the floor. “You really are trying new things.”

“You know,” Geoff says, his green eyes twinkling behind his glasses, “you’re going to fit in quite well with us here.”

My mouth tugs into a grin. I think he might be right.