20
[GROUP CHAT]
TESS: Let’s talk about how Joel Adams went full alpha-male at the gym today.
SOFIA: The man is giving off serious husband energy.
KENZIE: Please don’t start.
SOFIA: Oh, we’re way past starting.
TESS: First, he practically branded you in front of Bobby.
SOFIA: And a room full of gossipy gym-goers. Myself included.
KENZIE: Wait. Weren’t you both in some dance class?
SOFIA: The room had windows.
TESS: Then when that guy broke his arm and you fainted, Joel caught you and scooped you into his arms like a sweaty Greek god.
SOFIA: I’m still recovering from the visual.
KENZIE: What visual?
TESS: Your hair was hanging down like a golden curtain, you looked all pale and delicate in his arms, and he was cradling you protectively against his chest.
KENZIE: Are you secretly writing romance novels in your spare time?
SOFIA: Everyone literally hit STOP on their treadmills to watch.
KENZIE: You’re exaggerating.
TESS: We’re underplaying it. The rumor mill is officially in meltdown.
KATE: I can confirm. You two are the most talked about couple in Brown Oaks.
KENZIE: We were supposed to keep things under the radar.
SOFIA: Under the radar left the building when you and Joel reenacted a scene from a period drama.
SOFIA: It was like Bridgerton on steroids.
TESS: He literally GROWLED at everyone crowding around you to give you space.
KENZIE: No one growls.
TESS: Joel managed it.
KATE: I almost regret not going to the gym with you guys.
TESS: Right?! I told you to come!
KATE: I said, almost.
TESS: Someone did record it on their phone. Joel made them delete the footage right there in front of him.
SOFIA: He was furious. The guy with the phone was shaking. Weirdly satisfying to watch, actually.
TESS: Which brings us back to our original theory that Joel’s hiding something.
KENZIE: Or maybe he’s just someone who prefers staying behind the camera. Not in front of it.
KATE: Kenzie has a point. Joel values his privacy.
TESS: For the record, if he ever hurts you, I will bury his camera under six feet of dirt.
SOFIA: You’ll need to make the hole wide enough for his body.
KENZIE: You two are actually unhinged.
TESS: Only because we care about you.
SOFIA: Deeply enough to commit a crime.