That brings a small smile to my face. “I’m dying to know how it ends. I hope they stay together. If Webflix breaks up my favorite fictional couple, I will protest.” We’ve watched the show together all season, sometimes on Zoom, and sometimes in person.
“See? We already have plans for a watch party,” Emerson says, cajoling me. And she’s right—there is that.
Easton sips his coffee, going thoughtful. “I think we keep in touch with the people we really want to stay in touch with. No matter how hard it is. You can’t just kick me out of your life.”
TJ offers a sympathetic smile, too, as he reaches for a cinnamon roll. “I’m not very easy to get rid of. Ex-boyfriends might say otherwise, but everyone else would pretty much agree.”
Nolan nods, straight-faced. “He’s pretty much a barnacle. I have barnacle tendencies too,” he adds drily.
I wiggle my arm. “Barnacle here as well! And hey, maybe it’ll just be a short stint. Maybe it’ll be like a year. I’ll try to come back as often as I can.”
Even as I say it, though, I question my own words.
Will I?
I’m obsessed with my job.
Dating has fallen by the wayside. My forays into the world of apps feel like ancient history. I didn’t meet anyone who floated my boat or rocked my bed.
Truthfully, I haven’t since grad school. Since Jacob. Sure, I’ve dated, had a few short-term boyfriends, but no one I fell for like that. No one who made me want to change my life.
No one who hurt me that badly either.
But I’d like to meet someone. I absolutely want to meet a fantastic man. Someone who likes the same things I do, who has the same dreams, who’s warm and witty and outgoing. A people person. Like me. That’s my dream guy.
“Just don’t sublease my place to somebody you’re going to like better than me.” I add a laugh, but it comes out like a sob.
“Impossible,” Emerson says, and everyone else chimes in too.
We switch gears to the practical, finishing the coffee and cinnamon rolls, then turning to the hard work of packing.
When I head to my bedroom to sort clothes, TJ and Emerson follow. “We have some gifts for you,” Emerson says.
She hands me a book of the most photogenic spots in London, curated by top Instagrammers. I arch a brow at her choice. “Are you trying to get me to fall for the city?”
Emerson shrugs, like she’s saying we know you so well. “It’s just places to check out when you decide to explore.”
“Take pics for us,” TJ adds. “You know, so we don’t forget your face.”
I stare at him. “You’ll get a ton of shots for that remark.”
“Excellent,” he says.
I hug the book to my chest, grateful for the gift. “I will.”
TJ goes next, offering me a paperback with a strapping stud on the cover. My favorite kind. “It’s an advance copy of Hazel Valentine’s new book. I know you love her.”
I beam, giddy at the chance to gobble up her story before anyone else. “Almost as much as your books.”
“Keep that praise coming, girlfriend. And listen, we have a plan for you.” His baritone voice always feels like a warm hug—especially now, but also when he’s being sarcastic, which is ninety-nine percent of the time.
Emerson tips her head his way. “It’s his idea.”
TJ deals her a sharp stare. “You didn’t have any issues when I first mentioned it to you.”
“Fine, fine,” Emerson concedes. “I approve of this plan too.”
I park my hands on my hips. “What is it, then?”
TJ’s eyes gleam with mischief. “You know what you really need in order to embrace London?”
I’m dying for the answer. “Tell me, tell me.”
TJ draws a deep breath. “A red-hot one-night stand the night you get there.”
Emerson raises a finger to make a point. “Or the second. She might be jet-lagged. Sometimes you have to think practically.”
“First night, second night, whatever. There is nothing that makes a city better than a one-night stand with a sexy stranger who’s got a smoking accent,” TJ says.
It’s not a bad idea. Orgasms do have a way of making everything feel a bit better. They give you a hazy glow.
I wouldn’t mind a little glow. Something to take away the missing. To ease the entry into my new country in one week.
“Am I Tindering?” I ask, then I shake my head. That’s led nowhere for me. “The guys I’ve met there are too young and immature.”
“You need a guy who’s lived a little, JoJo,” TJ says, like a dating sage.
I turn to Emerson. “Is he right?”
She shrugs, a he’s not wrong type of shrug. “I’m not saying a grandpa. But I don’t see you with someone who has Snapchat,” she says.
I laugh. They know me so well. “And where does that leave me in this one-night stand pursuit?”