Chapter 14
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CURTIS
We love a good game night in our group of friends. Whether it’s poker, Pictionary, or good ol’ trivia, we’re up for a fun time.
The only game that’s banned is Monopoly for obvious homicidal reasons. That game has the ability to tear friendships apart and results in needing to dig a shallow grave and vow to never speak of its name again.
The shallow grave in question was for the actual game. Not a body. Though it was close.
The room is set up to start with Pictionary, and everyone is here except for Finn’s … date.
“Ooh, he’s late. Not a good first impression,” I taunt.
Melanie glares at me, and I shouldn’t be taunting her because if she utters a word about my fake relationship in front of the rest of our friends, there are going to be questions, and I don’t want to keep lying.
To her and David? Sure. Out of necessity. Because if they knew how close Finn and I are to giving them exactly what they want, there’s no way they’d back off.
“Maybe he wants to make an entrance. Or he can’t decide what to wear because he wants to make a good first impression,” she says. “You know, maybe he’s trying to make an effort.”
Dolcie, who’s sitting in between me and her husband, Sully, on the carpet, scoffs. “A man? Making any effort at all? Sounds like a myth.”
Sully mock gasps. “I put on a clean shirt for you, my love.”
“That I washed,” Dolcie says into her glass before taking a sip.
“But I—”
I interrupt him. “My man, put the shovel away before you dig yourself a deeper hole.”
He does as I say and closes his mouth. It’s the smartest thing he’s done all night.
Just as I’m about to suggest we start without the newbie, because if we’re playing teams, we’ve currently got even numbers, and it means I will be paired with Finn, the doorbell rings. Melanie and David jump up to answer it.
And here we go.
I ignore the way irritation is currently digging at me.
Josiah could be the love of Finn’s life, and if that’s the case, all I can do is accept it. It’s not like I have a say in what Finn does. I can’t when my interest in him is purely physical.
Sure, I’m attracted to his personality as much as his giant body and gorgeous face, but I can’t take that into account. Because that would mean admitting I have the potential to develop real feelings.
No feels allowed. Only physical feels. Touch. Taste. Fucking.
David’s and Melanie’s voices travel from the entryway, getting louder as they turn the corner with Josiah trailing them.
And damn it. He has to be attractive, doesn’t he? He couldn’t be one of those overinflated gym rats with steroid muscles and ugly-ass veins popping out all over his limbs.
Some people might find that attractive, but I’d prefer someone softer and rounder than the hard-muscle type, and Josiah certainly fits with my ideal man. He’s fit, but not too fit. Has nice, toned arms and wide shoulders, but has no definition on his pecs through his shirt.
Then again, it doesn’t matter what I prefer. Only what Finn does.
Josiah is conventionally attractive. Clear skin, straight teeth, kind eyes.
I hate him already.
Especially as Melanie introduces him to Finn. “This is my amazing big brother, who moved to Canada with me so I would have at least one familiar face here.”
“What about me?” David asks.
“You don’t count. I’m stuck with your face forever.”
“You mean, you have the privilege of seeing my face every day forever, right?” He pulls her close to him.
“Is that not the same thing?” She smiles, and my best friend of forever kisses her right there in front of us all.
They’re so … happy. It almost gives me faith that a happily ever after is possible.
Almost being the important word.
Of course they’re happy now. They just got engaged. Maybe if they’re still married in twenty years and seem as happy then, I’ll contemplate a relationship again.
“And this is … everyone else,” Melanie says.
“Let’s get things started.” David claps his hands together once. “We figured we’d start with Pictionary. Do we want three teams of two and one team of three, or do we make it even by having teams of three?”
Way to point out that I am here alone. As usual.
“Let’s do teams of two,” Dolcie says. “But we get the third, and I’m claiming Curtis.”
Yay, someone wants me. Even if it’s only because—
“It’s not an advantage. Sully is … artistically handicapped, so we’re basically a team of two anyway.”
—of that.
“Hang on,” Finn says. “Why do you get to pick the artist just because your husband can’t draw? What about us other plebs who also can’t draw to save their lives?”
“It’s okay,” Josiah says. “I’ve got skills.”
Even though he’s talking about his drawing talent, I can’t help but read into it and think it’s a line.
“Besides,” Angie, one half of the other couple here, says. “If Curtis is on the team of three, he won’t be drawing as much, so it won’t be a simple win for whoever he’s with.”
“But …” Finn’s lips form a flat line, and his disappointed gaze meets mine. I’m flattered he wants me on his team too. Even if both he and Dolcie are only using me for my artistic talent.
He doesn’t get to finish his thought.
“Great,” Melanie says. “Then it’s settled. Curtis can be on Dolcie’s team, and the rest of us will pair up.” Leaving Finn with the only choice of teaming up with Josiah.
I’d be mad if it wasn’t my game plan before Josiah turned up.
The game gets started, and they make me draw first to get the first easy win out of the way.
Which, okay, not to brag or anything, but Dolcie guesses The Wizard of Oz after a scribbled Emerald City skyline with a road leading toward it.
Didn’t even need to draw Dorothy or her three companions.
Each card I pick from the pile, with each new drawing, it goes the same way, barely getting anything down before Dolcie guesses correctly, and by the time the egg timer runs out, we have four points already.
“Maybe we should’ve made Curtis the official drawer for all teams,” Ben, Angie’s boyfriend, says.
“Where’s the fun in that?” I quip. “I’m so talented everyone would get all the points.”
“At least then we’d all have an equal chance of winning,” Ben says.
Everyone snickers.
And as everyone else takes their turn, they prove Ben right because he and Angie only get one point, and then David and Melanie follow it up with two points. Then it’s Finn and Josiah’s turn.
Josiah gets up there to draw, only making me hate him more and more as he breezes through with Finn guessing each drawing easily. They run out of time on the fourth one, but I have no doubt Finn would’ve gotten that, too, had he had a few more seconds.
Josiah isn’t even that good at drawing. It’s that his lines are concise and easy.
And yes, I’m pouting that Finn’s date is good at this game.
Round two is a disaster for us because they make Sully draw this time, and if his wife can’t even figure out what his shapes are, how am I supposed to?
“Told you!” Dolcie yells when the timer is up, and we walk away with zero points.
“I love you too, baby,” Sully says.
She grunts in frustration.
“Please don’t make us bury Pictionary in the backyard like we had to do with Monop—”
Dolcie covers her husband’s mouth. “Don’t you dare name the game that shall not be named.”
We might be a dramatic bunch, but we’re fun.
“I need to hear that story,” Finn says.
“What?” Dolcie asks. “There’s no story. No story. None.”
Josiah snickers. “And that sounds so convincing too.”
I wave him off. “Nothing like a bit of attempted murder to keep game night interesting. Finn, you’re up, seeing as you’re the next team with the most points.”
Finn stands and makes his way over to the stand with the large sketch pad on it. “I’m warning you all now, I don’t have an artistic bone in my body. If I have to draw a person, they’ll most likely be a decapitated stick figure, and any shape will look like a penis.”
Something tingles in the back of my mind, sure I’ve heard that decapitated line before from him …
but … was that him? I try to pull the memory to the front of my mind.
Why do I feel like it was via text? Which wouldn’t make sense because Finn and I don’t have each other’s numbers. Social media message or—
Wait. It wasn’t Finn at all. It was KingdomHearts.
There I go again, mixing the two in my head.
I can’t tell if the transference is because they’re similar or because I started talking to KingdomHearts around the same time I met Finn.
But it’s undeniable they have a lot in common.
Their rambling, their physique—especially if Finn was telling the truth earlier about how thick his cock is.
He probably wasn’t. He was most likely trying to torture me by making me fantasize about it, knowing I will never, ever see it.
They also have the same artistic ability.
I have no idea what is supposed to be on the paper in front of us, but he was right when he said anything that is not a decapitated stick figure looks like a penis. There are a lot of penises up there. With music notes around them.
“Are you sure it’s a band?” Josiah asks.
“Yes,” Finn cries out, even though he’s not supposed to be talking.
“Pass,” Josiah says. “Go to the next one.”
Finn picks up another card. “This is no better.” He flips over to a new page and draws … another penis under the heading “movie.” Only, this time, he also draws something coming out of the tip of the penis.
“Since when does Pictionary include pornos?” I ask.
Finn slumps, and the egg timer runs out.
“It was Top Gun,” Finn says. “See, fighter jet. Bullets coming out of …” He steps back. “Oh. Oh no. No, no, no, no.” He quickly scribbles over the drawing, pressing so hard it tears the paper.
Everyone laughs.
“I told you I’d suck at this game!” he says.
“Out of curiosity,” Josiah says. “What was the first one?”
“Flock of Seagulls. Whoever they are.”
“Oh. I wouldn’t have gotten that even if you could draw seagulls. Is Pictionary sure that’s a band?”