Page 37 of Yours to Lose
“How indeed,” I say dryly, and she laughs the way I knew she would. Even though she laughs all the time, for some reason, making her laugh makes me feel like I won something. Like her laughs are something you have to earn, and I did.
I put the magnifying glass in my pocket and glance down at the Fireball for a second, getting a quick flash of the last woman I used to eat Fireballs with before opening it.
“Can I ask you a question?”
I’ve noticed this is something she always says before she asks me a question that’s going to dig below my surface. Somehow, without even knowing me all that well, Jo has this uncanny ability to figure out which questions might be more sensitive, and asking me if she can ask is almost like an early warning sign. That she knows to ask almost always makes me want to answer. “You can.”
“Why do you always hesitate before you eat a Fireball? I’ve given you a bunch of them now, but you always look at it for a few seconds first.”
“Sorry, I know it’s kind of weird.”
Jo shakes her head. “J, it’s not, and you never have to apologize to me for being who you are. I was just wondering.”
You never have to apologize to me for being who you are. Her words hit me right in the chest, and it takes me a minute to get my own words out around the bubble of emotion. “I love Fireballs, but it was Allie who introduced them to me when we first got together. They were her favorite. Anything cinnamon.” I shrug and look down at my hands. “I guess they always remind me of her.”
“Did it make you sad when I gave you one that first time?”
“Nah, I was just surprised. I got out of the habit of eating them after she died. I guess every time you hand me one, I think of her for a second.” I look back up at Jo and see nothing but understanding on her face. “It’s nice to have that moment. I appreciate you giving it back to me.”
She flashes me a grin again. “I mean, it was purely an accident and a complete coincidence that Allie and I have the same favorite candy, but if having that moment makes you happy, then I’ll definitely take credit for giving it to you.”
Hearing Jo say Allie’s name so casually makes me feel a lightness I haven’t felt in years. And for a moment, I’m filled with gratitude for her and her sunshine and light and the way her friendship is exactly what I need. “You deserve it. So, we’ve eaten the best chicken fingers on the planet, and I have a magnifying glass of my very own. What happens now?”
Jo gasps dramatically, holding her hands to her chest. “Are you actually asking me what comes next with excitement instead of just dread for whatever I’m about to drag you to?”
I raise an eyebrow at her. “Definitely not. I’m just trying to prepare myself for whatever crazy is about to happen.”
She stands and tosses our garbage into a trash can on the corner, bouncing a little in her pink Converse and holding out her hand to me. “You have about three blocks to prepare yourself. The Scavenger Hunt starts in fifteen minutes, and I can promise you that crazy is exactly what you’re going to get.”
CHAPTERNINE
JORDAN
“Okay, I’m not a person who gets tired, but fuck, I’m tired.”
Jo takes a long sip of her coffee and collapses onto a bench, bringing her feet up so her knees are tucked against her chest. Her braids are a little messy from the long night, and she’s wearing an oversized I LOVE NY sweatshirt I bought her sometime around two this morning when the scavenger hunt sent us to the East Village to take a picture at the location of a former Prohibition era speakeasy and she said she was freezing.
It's a little before five now, and we’re in Battery Park. The sky is just starting to brighten the horizon and it’s as quiet as I’ve ever seen a part of New York. In the semi-darkness of dawn, all the way at the bottom of the island, it feels like we could be the only people awake in the world.
“Come sit, J.” Jo pats the bench next to her and I sit, my own coffee in hand. “Let’s look at all the pictures.”
I wince, thinking of all the bizarre things I’ve done over the past six or so hours. Part of the scavenger hunt was taking pictures of everything, and all the pictures have to be uploaded by seven a.m. to win. Unsurprisingly, Jo is insanely competitive. “Do we have to?”
She laughs and pulls her phone out of her bag. “We absolutely do. Not only are we uploading everything, I just decided I’m printing out all the pictures. We’re going to need a scrapbook of our summer of fun.”
“No rush on that,” I say dryly.
“Come on,” she nudges me with her elbow. “You can’t tell me it wasn’t cool hunting down theGhostbustersheadquarters and the oldest building in Manhattan.”
“Those, I liked. I could have done without you making me recreate the orgasm scene fromWhen Harry Met Sally.”
Jo snorts out a laugh. “That was my favorite part, mostly because of your face. You didn’t think I would really do it, did you?”
“Oh, no, I was absolutely sure you would, I was just hoping you wouldn’t make me play Harry to your Sally.”
She scoffs, shaking her head at me. “Come on, J. There is no Sally without Harry. Besides, the clue said very clearly to recreate an iconic New York movie moment. That particular moment required both of us and a diner full of people.”
“A diner full of people who literally stood up and clapped after your little performance. People were recording it. You’ll probably end up as some internet viral video.”
