Page 30 of The Romantic Agenda
Fox’s proposal seems so counterintuitive, though—Malcolmaskedher to spend time with him. He’s expecting her to do it. But... whatwouldhappen if she fell for someone else while he’s watching? Even if it isn’t real, what happens if he believes it is? Joy can predict almost everything about Malcolm. Strangely, she doesn’t have an immediate answer for that.
“I’m not saying you’re right or I agree. But some points may have been made.” Joy tries to play it coy, looking over her shoulder at him. “What about Summer? What brilliant realization is she supposed to reach?”
“That Malcolm is in love with you.”
“He’s not, though. I’ll give you obsessed because that’s admittedly mutual, but he does like her. He’s not faking it, if that’s what you think.”
“I know,” he says. “But that doesn’t change the fact that they want us together, which is the topic at hand.”
“Summer. Not ‘they.’ ” As far as Joy can tell, Summer is the only one who stands to gain anything at the end of the charade. It adds up nicely: Malcolm told her about Caroline, which means he probably told her about the email. If she’s heard so much about Joy, she could have orchestrated a plan to meet in a controlled environment... with a distraction thrown Joy’s way so she could keep Malcolm to herself.
Or prove Caroline right. Joy is the problem. Joy is the one holding Malcolm back, sabotaging any chance he has being happy with someone else.
Shit.
Joy upgrades from chewing on her lip to gnawing at her cuticles. Summer truly has her stressed. “It doesn’t bother you that she’s doing this?”
“Things could be worse.” He meets her gaze. “Pretending to like you wouldn’t make the top ten worst things to ever happen to me.”
“What a nice, diplomatic way of saying I’m number eleven. Thanks.”
Fox tries not to laugh, but he’s struggling. He seems determined not to smile or show any expression other than harassed and grumpy ennui.
Joy crosses her arms in triumph, mirroring his posture. “Hypothetically, how would this work? Between us, I mean.”
His whole face brightens, but he still doesn’t smile. “Well, you said no kissing. No dry humping. Anything else off-limits?”
“A lot, probably.”
“Like what? I’m just trying to make sure you won’t slap me if Ihold your hand. If we’re not comfortable with each other, he’ll never believe us.”
“I think I’ll reserve the slapping for when you do something with a bit moreumph,” she says. “And I never said no kissing. Trying to lick my lungs and kissing are two completely different species of PDA. But don’t kiss me, though. I don’t like surprise kisses.”
“Is all kissing off-limits?” he asks. “There’s more than one kind of kiss.”
Affection can be tricky. It honestly depends on the person and her mood. Romantically speaking, she loves it when Malcolm touches her. There’s never been a time when she shied or shimmied away from his good morning hugs, drunken cheek kisses, or cuddles on his couch.
The thought of Fox touching her doesn’t make her stomach flip in excitement or turn into a black hole of anxiety. Thinking about him feels okay. Neutral. That could be promising.
“May I?” Joy holds her hands out to him, smirking. “Touch me, please.”
Fox looks at them, at her face, and then places his left hand on top of hers. She lets it rest there for a moment, waiting for something to happen. When it doesn’t, she takes his hand in both of hers.
“You’re so warm.” His skin is surprisingly soft, but his palms are rough and calloused from overuse. What could he possibly do for work to make his hands feel this way? Joy continues exploring, tracing the blue-tinted veins down his wrist.
“That tickles,” he murmurs.
“You have nice hands.” But what would it take to let her give him a manicure? Because his palms and cuticles are hollering for help.
“Hmm.” Fox pauses and adds, “Thanks.”
Joy lifts her gaze to his face so she can see his reaction when she smiles at him. He looks tired—gray half-moons have set up shop under his brown eyes—and tense. The movement is so slight, if she wasn’t looking for it, she would’ve missed it. Her smile affected him like he had to brace himself for impact in a good way. He knows the crash is coming and he’s ready for it.
It’s what convinces her to say yes.
“Okay, I’m in. I’ve tried everything else. Might as well go for the Hail Mary too.” Joy lets him go. “Don’t kiss me on the lips or anywhere near my mouth without permission. If I say stop, you have to give me space immediately.”
Fox places his hand on the counter, but only for a moment. He curls his fingers into a fist and moves it to his lap. “Maybe we should come up with a code word.Stopis firm but also alarming. I don’t want them to worry because we’re figuring out boundaries.”
