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“Give me the specifics.” He shrugged. “Why does he make you happy?”

She stared at him, her eyes intense, but the vibration of her phone going off broke her from his gaze.

As she answered the call, Gavin leaned back in his seat and watched her. He knew he might have crossed the line asking such a personal question, but he was unable to fight his instinct in not doing so. He had spoken with Dillon the night he left her apartment, and although he allowed Dillon to think he believed his story, he didn’t—not even close. He knew his friend all too well. The only question racing through Gavin’s mind was why Emily had fallen for it.

Emily stood up and tucked her phone back into her purse. “That was Dillon. I really have to go.”

Gavin rose to his feet and brushed his hand down her arm. “I hope you’re not upset with my question. My curiosity gets the better of me sometimes.”

She swallowed hard and shook her head. “I’m not mad at you, Gavin. However, to answer the only question that matters here, yes, Dillon makes me happy for many specific reasons. You’ll just have to take a rain check on me listing them for you, okay?”

He nodded as if that answer satisfied him, but it didn’t. Nonetheless, he wouldn’t push the issue any further.

He dug into his pants pocket. “Oh, I forgot. I have something for you.”

Gavin reached for her hand. He knew he held onto it just a little longer than he should have, but her skin felt so soft against his that it was hard to let go. Finally, when he knew he had reached his gentlemanly limit, he slipped a bottle cap into her palm.

She looked down and smiled. “So is this going to be an ongoing little thing between us—you giving me a bottle cap every time you see me?”

“That was one of the best games of toss-the-bottle-cap-into-the-pot I’ve ever played,” he laughed. “So, yes, it’ll be our little thing, along with me calling you Molly occasionally, too.”

She smiled at him. “Thank you.”

They made their way outside where Gavin hailed a taxi over for her.

He closed the door behind her after she got in and leaned himself through the window. “She’s going to Columbus and West 74th,” he said, handing the driver money for the ride. “This should cover the fare and your tip.”

He then banged on the top of the roof, alerting the driver that he could leave.

As the taxi pulled away, Emily told the man to stop. She jumped out of the cab as Gavin was walking away.

“Gavin, wait!” she called out, wondering exactly what the hell she was doing.

Gavin turned around with his hands in his pockets. He stared at her from a few feet away.

“I just wanted to say thank you,” she said, trying to catch a steady breath. “Not just for the cab fare—that was very sweet—but also for…for talking with me about my mother and for stopping by tonight. I know both of those things were hard for you. It was hard for me as well, but…” She looked down to the ground then back to him, willing herself not to sink into his eyes. “I don’t know. I’m just rambling on now. I have a tendency to do that. But I just wanted to thank you…thank you, Gavin.”

Although he wanted to move toward her—God knew he did—he had to stop himself from crossing the distance between them. “You’re welcome.” He stared at her for a few lingering seconds. “I’ll see you around, pal?”

Emily nodded. “Yes, I’ll see you around, pal.”

Gavin watched her get back into the taxi. He watched until his eyes hurt from focusing on the lights of the vehicle as it disappeared into the frenzied flow of traffic, turning into nothing but a tiny speckle of color. His tall hard body was somehow at odds with his emotions. He wanted Emily. He ached for her. It wasn’t just lust. Because all he really wanted to do was kiss her and feel her body pressed against his again. Every part of him longed to hold her and take care of her. Emily had stirred things within him back to life—things that he had shoved away for longer than he had realized. He wasn’t sure how she did it—making him feel the way he did when she was around him—but he knew the whole situation might consume him and set him ablaze, scattering his ashes from one end of the city to the next.

So friends…friends is what he would have to accept.

“Hello, beautiful,” Dillon said when Emily opened the door to her apartment. He got up from the couch, walked over to her, and pulled her into his arms. “I missed you. What took you so long?”

“We had a late rush,” she replied, trying to successfully pull off the lie burning a hole through her gut. “Did you get the movie?”

“I did. Go get in the shower, and I’ll set us up.” He scratched at his chest and sauntered into the kitchen. “Oh, there’s a surprise in your bedroom.”

Smiling, she cocked her head to the side. “What did you do?”

“Nah, nothing big.” He tossed a bag of popcorn into the microwave. “I was just thinking about you today.”

After dropping her purse onto the table, she made her way down the hall. Upon entering her room, she took in the sight of six-dozen red roses scattered throughout the space. Each dozen was in a beautiful crystal vase. He even scattered some petals across her queen-sized white duvet cover. Although touched by the gesture, her smile was weak. The scent of them pleasantly assaulted her nose while she tried not to fester in her guilt of just finishing her secret “coffee date” with Gavin.

Once showered, she slipped back into the living room and lay down with Dillon on the couch. His body curled possessively around hers as she absently traced circling patterns across his bare chest.

She looked into his eyes. “Thank you for the flowers. They’re beautiful.”

“Well, I’m glad you like them.” He kissed the top of her dampened hair. “Like I said, I thought of you all day.”

“You’re too sweet.” She nuzzled her nose against his neck. “Oh, I forgot to tell you. I got a call back from one of the schools I submitted my resume to.”

“Did you? That’s awesome, babe. Where is it?”

“It’s in Brooklyn.” She thought for a second. “Bush something. I have to look at what I wrote down. I have an interview on Monday.”

“Bushwick?

“Yes, that’s the name.” She smiled, reaching for a piece of popcorn on the end table.

“Em, you can’t take a job out there. It’s not safe.”

“Dillon, I’ll be fine.”

“No, Emily, I’m telling you—you’re not taking the job out there. Send some more resumes out and wait for something else,” he replied with finality in his voice.

“Are you being for real?”

“Babe, I’m just looking out for you. It’s not a good neighborhood,” he answered, pressing his mouth against her forehead. “You’ll wait for something else. Besides, we’ve already been over this—if you need money, I’ll give it to you.”

“It’s not that, Dillon. I’ve waited long enough, and I want something lined up for this coming school year.”

Before he could say anything further, the door swung open. Olivia walked in with her purse swinging cheerfully from her arm. She rolled her eyes in Dillon’s direction while making a gagging sound from her throat.

“Ollie, tell my girlfriend how bad Bushwick is.”

Emily waited for Olivia’s response, but it never came. She effectively ignored Dillon’s request, kicked off her shoes, and took a seat on one of the plush recliners.

“Hey, friend,” Olivia said to Emily, a beaming smile working over her lips. “How was your day?”

“Uh, my day was good,” Emily replied, unable to keep the slight laughter out of her voice. “But can you answer Dillon’s question? I’m interested in hearing about this bad-ass neighborhood.”

Still not answering, Olivia looked away as she studied the chipped pink polish on her nails.

“Liv, can you answer his question?” Emily asked with her brows now furrowed.

Olivia’s brown eyes narrowed like a snake on Dillon. “Sorry, Em, I don’t talk to assholes who jockey off their sperm, sowing their wild oats to any slut who’ll give them a blowjob behind my friend’s back,” she hissed, the words rolling off her tongue like a melted piece of ice.

Emily nearly choked, swallowing down a piece of popcorn. She felt Dillon’s body go rigid against hers right before he rose from the couch.

He shot Olivia a searing look, but his voice remained eerily calm. “Fuck off, you stupid dyke.”

Olivia plastered a smile over her gritted teeth. “Oh, that was seriously original,” she replied, her voice undaunted by his insult as she clapped her hands slowly.

“Oh my God, Dillon, how could you say that?” Emily looked to him in shock.

“Fuck her.” He casually walked across the room to the kitchen and reached into the refrigerator.

“No, honestly, fuck you, Dickhead!” Olivia spewed.

“Holy shit, would you two just stop?!”

“I’ll stop when you see the fake overcoat of charm he wears in front of you, Emily! He’s fucking around behind your back, and you’re oblivious to it!” Olivia stood up and wagged her finger in Dillon’s direction. “But, for now, he’s in my fucking house, so he can take it or get the fuck out!”

Dillon plucked his shirt from the couch, tossed it over his head, and dug his keys from his pocket.

“Dillon, wait!” Emily let out, crossing the room to go after him.

“Fuck that stupid bitch! I’ll call you later!”

He threw the door open and slammed it closed with a thundering force.

Emily stayed rooted to her spot in his wake. Her head fogged as she tried to process everything that had just happened. She spun her body around and glared at Olivia.

“You promised you wouldn’t say anything!” she spat, hot tears springing to her eyes as she moved across the room.

“Well, you know what, Em? I couldn’t help myself when I saw you cozying up to him like he did nothing!” Emily opened her mouth to speak, but Olivia cut her off. “And, not for nothing, friend, if you didn’t think it was true somewhere in that brain of yours, you would’ve never kissed Gavin,” she snarled, letting her words cut straight through Emily’s heart.

Emily inhaled, trying to quell the sudden urge to punch her square in the face. “You’re truly fucked up,” she said in a surprisingly calm tone—one that even threw Olivia off guard. “How could you say that to me, knowing what I’ve been through all week?”

“I didn’t mean it that way,” Olivia replied, cautiously moving toward her. “I just think you’re in denial, Em. I think that you’re in denial about the way Dillon treats you, and I think you’re seriously in denial that you don’t feel something—even the littlest bit of something—for Gavin.”

A wounded cry escaped her throat. “I’m not in denial, Olivia. I love Dillon, and I believe him. Why is that so hard for you to understand?” Emily turned and walked toward her bedroom, stopping at her door. “I didn’t see the whole kiss. I saw exactly what Dillon said I did. That skank pulled him into her, and I turned around before he backed away. The only reason why I kissed Gavin was because I didn’t see the whole thing. I was mad. My emotions got the better of me when we got back here. That’s all—it’s nothing more.”

An uncomfortable silence descended throughout the apartment before Emily retreated into her room, sinking herself onto her bed. She had never felt so mentally bruised by the stinging of Olivia’s words. Pinching the bridge of her nose from the sudden headache pulsing through her skull, she tried to put her feelings in check. She couldn’t lose her best friend over all of this, and she refused to lose Dillon either. She hated the phrase “caught between a rock and a hard spot,” but that was exactly the way she felt. Two of the people she loved most in her life despised one another more so than ever before. Emily’s mind was whirling as the pain of the whole situation crushed in on her.

Twenty minutes later, with a subdued knock, Olivia peeked in the door. “Can I come in?”

Emily nodded.

Olivia sat on the bed. “I’m sorry, Emily. I shouldn’t have said what I did,” she whispered, tucking her blonde hair behind her ear, her eyes glassy with regret. “You’ve been through so much. I just want to see you happy.”

“I am happy, Liv. Please trust me when I say that. I just can’t have you act like that around him,” she said, sitting up. “You two will give me a nervous breakdown.”

After a very long minute of obvious deliberation, Olivia let out a heavy breath. “Okay—only for you because I love you to absolute fucking pieces—I won’t say another thing to him. You do realize how hard that will be for me, chick, right?”

“I do,” Emily said. “And that’s why I love you to absolute fucking pieces.” They leaned in and shared a tight hug. “I’m going to make sure he apologizes to you for what he said.”

Olivia let out a huffed laugh. “I don’t need his apology, Em. Besides, he’s wrong. I’m not a dyke. I’m a certified equal-opportunity lover. I like both male and female, darling.”

Shaking her head, Emily laughed.

Olivia stood up and walked to the door. “I cringe saying this—God, I fucking cringe…” She exhaled a breath and rolled her eyes. “But Dickhead—which I’m not giving up his nickname by the way—is right. Most of Bushwick isn’t a good neighborhood. Something else will come along. Just hang out—you’ll see.”

A faint smile played across Emily’s mouth. “Thank you. I’ll take both of your advice and wait it out.”

Olivia blew her a kiss and walked out of the room.