Neighbors With Benefits: Chapter 12

I was as giddy as a teenager when Aiden eventually left that night. It was probably all the endorphins flowing through my body. I really had been in a dry spell prior to tonight, and my fingers were a poor substitute for the real thing.

I had taken a lover.

That sounded so Victorian. It also made the situation seem casual, like we had agreed. He wasn’t my boyfriend or anything. He was my lover, a simple and clearly-defined role.

Although I wished he hadn’t had to leave so soon after our second round of sex. It would have been nice to cuddle for a little while. But he was afraid of Bash getting suspicious, and cuddling might have ventured too far into the realm of romantic intimacy.

To extend our evening a little longer, I texted him when I got into bed.

Me: Did Bash suspect anything when you got home?

Aiden: Nope! He waved, but barely looked up from the Phillies game. We’re winning three-to-two now, by the way.

Me: Oh good, that was my very next question.

Aiden: I’ll turn you into a Phillies fan yet.

Me: I’m too nice to root for any of this city’s teams.

Aiden: Keep talking and I will never mix your dough again. And yes, I mean that both literally AND as a euphemism for sex.

Me: I love the Phillies! And the Eagles! Go sports!

Aiden: I know you’re mocking me, but I’ll accept that response nonetheless.

Aiden: All right, I’m crashing. Night, Jazz.

Me: Night, Aiden!

I smiled into my pillow as I drifted off to sleep.

“Why did you insist on getting coffee today?” Cat asked me the next morning. “You usually only treat yourself to a caramel Frappuccino on the weekend.”

“This is a special occasion,” I said while we sat at a two-person table. “I have exciting news.”

Cat gave me a bored look. “Is it about work? Because I love you Snazzy Jazzy, but I can’t stomach another story about golf ball shipments.”

“If you don’t want to hear my story, then I’ll leave you alone.” I stood up and pretended like I was leaving. “But I slept with my neighbor last night.”

Cat flinched with her entire body, sloshing coffee over the rim of her mug. “JASPER BARNES. Don’t you dare toy with my emotions.”

“Full name. Ouch.”

Ignoring the coffee she had spilled on her jeans, she grabbed my arm and pulled me back down into my chair. “Are you being serious with me right now? You slept with your neighbor?”

Savoring her reaction, I nodded.

Cat let out a noise like a balloon losing all its air at once. “OH MY GOD. I’m so proud of my little slutskateer friend!”

“Cat, you’re shouting.”

“Of course I’m shouting! My best friend spent the last month insisting she didn’t want to get involved with her super-hot neighbor, and then she ambushes me on a Monday morning with the happiest news I’ve gotten all year!”

“Really?” I asked. “This is the best news you’ve gotten all year?”

“It’s been a boring year,” she said with a dismissive wave. “Wait. Which neighbor? Tall, dark, and handsome? Or blondie boy?”

“Aiden. The former.”

She let out another high-pitched screech. People at other tables were looking at us.

“You need to calm all the way down before I give you any details,” I warned her.

“Calm down?” she demanded. “You had casual sex with your hot, well-endowed neighbor and you want me to calm down?”

“I haven’t told you he’s well-endowed.”

“You didn’t deny it!” she exclaimed. “That’s a yes! Ohhh, I knew he had a big dick. That guy screams big dick energy.”

Suddenly, the manager was hovering next to our table. “Excuse me, ma’am?”

“First of all, I am way too young to call ma’am,” Cat replied. “And second, I can’t be held responsible for my current outburst. My friend here just ended a very long dry spell and has chosen to give me the news in a public place.”

“He doesn’t need to hear about my dry spell,” I hissed. “Neither does everyone at the coffee shop.” I smiled at the manager. “I’m so sorry. I’ll handle her.”

“I’m just so happy!” Cat said at a more reasonable volume. She leaned over and put her coffee mug in the self-bussing area.

“You didn’t even drink any of your coffee.”

“I need my full attention for this.” She leaned across the table. “Tell me everything. How big is he, exactly? Was he a generous lover? Where did it happen? Bedroom? Couch? That dilapidated greenhouse in your backyard?”

“Answering your questions in order: very big. Extremely generous. And it started in the kitchen before ending in the bedroom.”

Cat clamped a hand over her mouth. “I’m this close to making a scene that gets us kicked out.”

“Oh, and then round two was in the bedroom again,” I added.

A peacefulness came over Cat. “One moment, please,” she said with the calmness of a Buddhist monk. Then she stood up, carefully pushed her chair in, and walked outside.

There, in full view of the window, she started jumping up and down, and screaming excitedly. Everyone in the coffee shop turned to stare, including two baristas. The tirade lasted ten seconds, and then Cat calmly walked back inside.

“Sorry about that. I had to take care of something,” she said while sitting back down. “Two rounds? He couldn’t satisfy you the first time?”

“Oh, he satisfied me the first time,” I replied. “Twice. But it was so good that we had to do it again after a short snack break.”

“Enough with the vagueness. I need specific details about your night.”

“Did you know that when you eat cookie dough, it’s the raw flour that makes people sick? Not the eggs?”

“If you make one more joke without giving me the juicy details,” Cat threatened, “I will get us permanently banned from this coffee shop. And I know you like to come here.”

By the time I was done telling her all about it, she had to make two more scream-trips outside.

“And you think you can keep it casual?” she asked.

I shrugged. “Why not?”

“Because you have a habit of catching feels.” Cat put her palm on her chest. “As an enlightened bisexual goddess, I’ve learned to separate the act of sex from a deeper emotional connection. But I don’t think you’ve ever had sex outside of a relationship.”

“You make me seem boring!”

She raised an eyebrow at me. “Have you ever had a one-night stand? No? Then I rest my case.”

“Okay fine, I’ve never done anything like this before,” I admitted. “But that’s part of what makes it so exciting! For the first time in my life, I have a friend with benefits. A booty-call that lives thirty feet from me at all times.”

“But again: you don’t think you’ll catch feels?” Cat asked with concern in her eyes.

The same question had been running through my head since the moment I woke up this morning. It was easy to agree to it when Aiden and I were eating cookie dough nude in the kitchen, but now that the post-sex glow had faded and I actually had to make good on my promise…

“Honestly, I don’t know,” I admitted.

The concern left Cat’s face and she waved a hand. “That’s fine. As your best friend, I was legally obligated to ask you. But that’s enough over-analyzing. We should be celebrating! Let’s go get mimosas.”

“It’s Monday morning! We both have to go to work,” I reminded her.

“Ugh, you’re no fun.” She leaned across the table. “Does Aiden have a sexually-curious sister you could hook me up with?”

“He actually does have a sister of unknown sexual orientation.”

“That’s your homework for the next week,” Cat said. “Hook me up with his hot lesbian sister.”

“I don’t actually know if she’s a lesbian,” I reminded her. “Or if she’s hot, for that matter.”

“For the purposes of my fantasy, I’m choosing to believe she’s hot and queer.” Cat sighed wistfully. “Tall and slender, but with strong thighs. The kind that can really squeeze my head when I’m—”

“Cat!”

“Oh, so you get to brag about Mr. Bulgy Sweatpants but I’m not allowed to talk about having a three-course meal on his sister’s snatch? You’re not being a good ally, Jazz.”

I lowered my voice. “Want to know what he looks like with his shirt off?”

Her eyes widened. “Yes please. How many abs does he have?” She held up four fingers, then added another every second. “Tell me when to stop.”

We didn’t get kicked out, but the manager glared at us until we left.