Page 34 of Liam

Charlotte swept some hair away from my face. We had stayed in contact after we ended whatever it was we'd been doing, going back to our previous relationship as friends.

No surprise. We made better friends than lovers.

Charlotte pinched my arm with her false nails. "How's my favourite doll?"

"Saying an absolutenoto what you suggested."

Charlotte sighed and put her arm around my shoulders. "That makes me sad."

"Que?" Emily asked. "You suggested what?"

"I attempted to convince Liam to try drag," Charlotte replied. A collective squeal went up from the women, followed by waves of undecipherable words until Mia shushed them.

"I want to hear more," she said.

"Oh, Liam … do it." Karen clung to my arm. "You'd be gorgeous."

"Solidno. There's no chance I'm getting up there in drag to dance and lip sync."

Mia reached across the table and put her hand on mine. "You're an incredible dancer. Plus, you've seen enough drag shows, you know the moves already."

Charlotte winked at me. "Might have trouble tucking that monster of yours away."

I snorted out a laugh. "It would be fun to try but the answer is stillno."

She frowned. "I was looking forward to beating your face."

I nudged Charlotte gently. "I'm not sayingnoto that for a bit of a laugh."

"Small victories." She looked toward the bar. "I've got to go. Starting soon."

The drag show was fabulous. Charlotte worked the room like the professional she was with a perfect blend of lude jokes, games, commentary, and sultry and energetic dance moves.

Imagining being on stage dressed in drag did nothing for me. The makeup interested me but not the rest of it. Having someone like Charlie to help me would be fun.

I was thankful we had retained our friendship.

I ended my night earlier than the girls. They would continue for hours more fueled by alcohol. I'd get the recap from Karen tomorrow. I took a cab back to Cindy's house where I had left my car and drove home with Jamal on my mind. The depths of his rich brown eyes at the coffee shop had heated an ember in me. I would be helpless to deny him if he decided to set me fully ablaze.

Thanksgiving dinner was made for the kind of plate arrangement Jamal and I shared. He didn't organize his food by calorie count, but he had made an impressive pinwheel of items.

I started eating at the braised carrot quadrant.

"Jamal says you're going to help the kids with using the gym equipment," Meera said.

I nodded. "Proper technique is important."

"You spend a lot of time at the gym?" David asked.

Jamal tipped his head as he gave David an incredulous look. "What do you think?"

"I'm there every day," I confirmed. Sometimes twice a day but I wasn't about to share that. "Plus, I go for a run early in the morning if I can." The only thing that would stop me—if I had beenentertainingthe night before. The kind of sex I had burned a lot of calories.

I'd been running every day.

"Jamal and I go for a run through different parks sometimes," David said.

I looked along my shoulder at Jamal. "Yeah?"

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