Page 34 of Expiry Dating

“You and Brady? How long has this been going on, and when exactly were you gonna tell me? Do you know how humiliating it is to hear about your sister’s love life from Dotty?”

Bollocks. I could lie, tell her Brady was just there to make Rob jealous. Lily will see right through that though. She always knows when I’m lying.

“It’s nothing. I don’t want to talk about it.”

Smooth.

“Well, tough shit ’cos I’m not leaving until you spill.” Lily took a seat on the sofa, which was situated next to Alice’s chair, and turned her whole body so she could glare at the side of Alice’s face.

Great. Fucking perfect.

Wine. Wine will help. Liquid courage and all that. Alice rose and went in search of her stash. When she returned, Lily only scoffed when Alice offered her a glass.

“Okay, so, um, Brady and I might have been sleeping together ... for a few weeks.” There she’d said it. Let the judgement begin.

“But you hate Brady—you guys fight, like all the time. What changed? Are you guys an item? Is he your boyfriend? Is that why he was all over you in my kitchen?” Of course her sister had a million questions. Alice had a million of her own too.

“Yeah, well, turns out we fight less when we’re naked. And no, he’s not my boyfriend. It’s just sort of ... casual.”

Really, you’re sticking with that? It’s only sex?

Alice really wished there was a way you could beat your internal dialogue to death right about now. In the three whole days since Sunday, her brain had been trolling her. It wasn’t like she was in denial, she was well aware of the shift in their relationship. She was just choosing not to think about it at all, under any circumstances. Brady and her made sense in the bedroom. Not out of it.

Then why does calling what you have “casual” feel so wrong?

“You, Alice Hart, wouldn’t know how to do casual if it came in here and slapped you in the face.”

She tried not to think about just how true that statement was. “You know that doesn’t make sense, right?”

“Bite me.”

“Very mature.” Alice took a big, long drink of her wine.

“I’m serious, Ali. I know you’re all like I don’t want a relationship. I’m gonna expiry date. But even you’re smart enough to know that that’s bullshit. You’re just afraid of getting hurt again. This ridiculous plan of yours is just a way to try and protect your heart.”

“Lily, I really don’t want to sit here and analyse my love life. I told you what you wanted to know. Brady and I have been having sex. Really good sex, actually. It’s not a long-term thing, and I’m okay with that. He’s okay with that too. As far as the public display of affection goes, that wasn’t planned. And, in all honesty, I don’t know what that means for us. I’m gonna have to speak to Brady, but if he’s happy to carry on as is, then that’s what we’ll do.”

“Really good sex, huh?” Lily smirked.

Fricking mind-blowing. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Uh-huh. Okay. But you know everyone in town is talking about you guys, right? I hate to break it to you, but they think you’re dating. You really gonna turn around and tell everyone you’re just shagging?”

Alice let out an exasperated sigh. Small towns were the worst. Everyone knowing each other’s business. She wondered just how long it would take for her to get used to living like this.

“No, I guess not. I don’t want Dotty to have a stroke. I need to talk to Brady.”

The problem was, she had no idea how to start that conversation. Or if she even wanted to have it. But as panic started to set in, she knew she had to do something. She had to see Brady. Talk to him. Maybe if they just set a few boundaries, less blurry ones, they could continue what they were doing.

And what exactly are you doing?

Damnit.

***

It was Friday night when she finally caved and marched herself over to Brady’s. She hadn’t even made it into his house yet when his mouth was on hers and his big hands were pushing up her dress.

“Stop. We need to ... talk,” she managed to get out as their laboured pants filled the air.

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