She snorts. “Holly? Seriously?”
Holly is the slut in our group of friends, or should I say Katie’s friends. She’s nothing more than an acquaintance to me, and an annoying one at that. She’s never invited anywhere, but shows up everywhere.
I feel the vein in my forehead begin to pulsate. “Yes, Holly.” I sit back up and reach for the mixed drink on the table between us. “No boyfriend, no best friend. Worst summer ever!”
“You could come with me.” She flashes me a wide smile.
I take a deep breath. “You know I can’t. If I could, I would be there in a second. I can’t get the time off work.”
She leans back and brushes her hands over her legs, the sand that clings to them falls away. “So? Screw that dead-end job. This will be the summer of a lifetime if you come with me. Who wouldn’t want to go spend the summer in Miami?”
“I would die to go on this trip with you, but I can’t afford it either,” I mumble, avoiding her gaze while scanning the ocean in front of me. I watch as two children pull away from their parents, giggling and splashing in the water while the couple share a secret moment together. The man places his hand on the woman’s hip and pulls her against him, whispering something in her ear that causes her to laugh and kiss him. A spike of jealously runs through me.
“You know I could—”
“You’re not paying for it, Katie. Seriously, you know how I hate to be your charity case.”
She lets out an exasperated sigh. “You’re not my charity case. You’re my best friend, and I like doing things for you. What do you say?” She flashes me ‘the smile’ which has always gotten her everything.
“No. It’s too much.” I relax back into my seat, pulling my long, dark hair out from under my neck, the strands clinging to my damp skin.
I honestly don’t know what I’m going to do with my summer. Katie is my best friend. We’ve never spent more than a couple of days away from one another since grade school. She’s always been here for me to lean on and talk to.
I’m shy, and don’t fit in easily. I never have. I keep to myself, preferring to read a book than go out drinking where I’m forced to socialize with people.
She is the complete opposite. She’s outgoing, fun, lovable, and gorgeous. Not only is she all of those things, she’s also rich. I mean, slap your grandma rich. I’ve always wondered why she picked me as a best friend.
We met the day she sat at my coloring table in kindergarten and we’ve been like sisters ever since. If it wasn’t for her, I never would have stepped out of my bubble the small bit I have.
“What do you say to dinner and dancing tonight since I leave in the morning?” Katie asks, interrupting my thoughts.
I roll my head to the side to look at her smiling face. Her blonde hair is tied in a knot atop her head, and her blue eyes sparkle whenever the sun shines against them.
“I don’t know. I was just going to order some pizza and read a book.”
She sits up fast and throws her legs over the side of her chair, spinning around to face me. “Oh, no you don’t. I’m going to be gone for three months. You’re spending the evening with me even if it kills you.”
I groan, “but dancing? Can’t you pick something else?”
She rolls her eyes before letting out a long, dramatic sigh. “Fine, how about we have a night in. We can order some takeout, do makeovers, watch a movie, and get drunk.”
I point my index finger at her. “Now you’re talking my language.” The corners of my mouth turn up as I stand. “Let’s get packed up so we can get this party started.”
“You’re such a dork. Who in their right mind would rather hang at home than go out and have fun?”
“Um, do you know me?” I fold up my towel and stuff it into my bag, ready to be in the comfortable confines of my apartment.
I walk out of the bathroom to find the coffee table in my living room littered with junk food. “What is all of this? I said dinner, not a months’ worth of junk food and a dentist bill.”
She laughs as she walks up to the table, looking over the selection. “Too much?” Her brow wrinkles with the question.
I walk closer. “Let’s see, Chinese, Tai, Pizza, Pringles, popcorn, Twizzlers, Raisinettes, and what is that?” I lean over the table to get a better view.
She frowns at me like I’m a crazy person. “That’s Dirt Cake. Seriously, you don’t remember Dirt Cake?”
I feel the corners of my mouth pull up. “Oh, yeah. God, I haven’t eaten this since we were in grade school.” I pick up the small container of chocolate pudding covered in crushed up cookies with gummy worms, and remove the lid. I sit down on the couch as I grab a gummy worm and pop it into my mouth.
“Really? I eat it at least once a week.” She flops down beside me and grabs the other container.
“Once a week? You’re as bad as a kid.” I laugh.
She shrugs. “What are we watching?”
I turn to her with a smile. “You know.”
“Dirty Dancing?” She grins widely.
I nod, causing her to cheer and bounce up and down with excitement. “God, we haven’t watched this movie in forever.” She pulls the blanket over her legs to get comfortable.
I turn on the movie and crawl beneath the blanket with a carton of Chinese food. “I know, but I bet we can still quote the entire thing.”
She looks at me with a dead serious expression, brows pulled together and lips pooched out. “Nobody puts baby in a corner,” she quotes the movie.
I laugh and smack her knee. “You should see your face when you do that,” I say around my high-pitched giggle.
She quirks her eyebrow at me. “Really? Think you can do a better job?”
I shake my head as my laughter subsides. “Nope, you’re on point.”
She breathes on her nails and wipes them on her shirt. “See, I knew those acting classes would pay off.”
I snort.
She quickly turns to look at me. “What?”
“How much did those classes cost you?” I ask, not turning away from the TV.
“I don’t want to talk about it.” Her voice has now taken on a bitter edge that I find amusing, but I do my best to keep the taunting inside.
The movie is almost over when she turns to me and asks, “so, have you talked to Nick since you found out?”
I feel my good mood leave, as if the simple question sucked it right out of me. “A little. He says he was drunk and didn’t know what he had done until the next morning.”
She rolls her eyes. “You’re not going to take him back, are you?” Her voice is shrill, cutting through me. I feel like she’s berating me, like she doesn’t approve. Of course she doesn’t.
I don’t look at her. I can’t. I’m too embarrassed. I mean, who would do that?
I would. I would do that.
“I don’t know, Katie. It’s hard, you know?”
“What’s hard? You deserve better than that asshole. Dump his ass!”
I finally look over to see the anger etched on her face. “Then what? Be alone? I’m not like you. I don’t have a line of men waiting to date me.”
“Who cares? And you do have a line of men. You just won’t look at them or take the first step.”
I start picking at the skin around my fingernail, not wanting the confrontation. “I can’t. I’m just not that person. I’ve never been Ms. Popularity like you.”
She levels her eyes on me. “You have to start seeing what I see in you, Jo. You’re more than you think. You’re a great person. You’re my best friend. You deserve to get out of here and see the world. You deserve to meet a great man and fall in love. Have you ever been in love?” she asks, knowing the answer to that question.
I scoff. “That stuff is only for books and movies.”
Her jaw drops before she stands and walks over to my desk. She grabs a tablet of paper and a pen.
I follow her with my eyes. “What are you doing?”
She plops back down besid
e me. “We’re making a list of all the things you’re going to do this summer. When you see me again, I want all of these checked off.”
“What if I just check them off without doing them?” I challenge.
She removes the end of the pen from her mouth. “I will know. I’m serious, Jovi. While I’m gone, I want you to live. Live like I’m here with you.” She points the end of the pen at me and it seems like a light bulb has come on above her head. “No, live like I am dead and you’re living for the both of us. You know how much I expect from life so you better fulfill each and every one of these things.”
I laugh it off. “Fine. Make your stupid little list,” I say, knowing damn well that I probably won’t do half of it.
“Number one: Dance in public, like nobody is watching. Number two: Kiss a stranger.”
I quickly turn my head toward her. “Really? That’s just gross.”
She smiles but keeps writing. “Number three: take a trip— for fun, not work. Number four.” She studies me. “Fall in love.”
“How am I supposed to fall in love in three months? It will take me that long just to work up the courage to talk to a guy.”
She ignores me and continues to think out loud. “Number five: have a one-night stand.”
My eyes roll automatically. “Oh, come on. Now you’re just making fun of me.”
She laughs but keeps writing. I don’t even bother paying attention anymore.
An hour later, the list is complete and lying forgotten on the coffee table under the copious amounts of junk food. We each have a fruity drink in our hand while she applies my makeup.
“I said, close your eyes,” she grumbles while trying to give me the smoky eye look.
“I can’t,” I complain while fighting with my eyelid to stay shut.
“You’re making a mess with all the blinking you’re doing.”
“Ouch, it’s in my eye.” I pull away from her and desperately rub my eye, hoping to flush out the black powder.
I finally look at her and see the wide smile she’s wearing. “What’s so funny?”
She shakes her head and covers her mouth to try and stop her laughter.
“Show me,” I demand in my serious voice.
She reaches for the mirror and holds it up for me to see.
There is black eyeshadow all over my cheek, my eye is red and bloodshot, and the makeup is smeared clear across my face. I can’t help but to laugh.
“Add, ‘learn to apply makeup’ to that list.” She points at me before sitting back and taking a drink.
I grab a tissue from the box on the end table and wipe at my face, trying to rub off any makeup I can. “I’m going to miss this.”
She gives me a sad look, looking up at me from beneath her long lashes while sticking out her bottom lip in a pout. “It’s only three months, and you know you can always come along.”
I shove the thought away with a wave of my hand. “I can’t do that. Sure, you can pay for the trip, but who’s going to pay my bills here when I get back and don’t have a job?”
She smiles, showing me her straight, white teeth. “You can move in with me. Why we were never roommates is beyond me. Why didn’t we get a place together?”
“Because I was determined to support myself, and I knew that would be impossible living with you. Especially with your accountant that pays everything for you. Do you even know what a bill looks like?” I tease her.
“Yes, I’ve seen the stacks you have lying around here.” She sticks her tongue out at me.
I laugh and take another drink before asking, “so what does Seth think of you being gone for three months?”
She begins picking at her perfectly polished fingernail. “I broke up with him,” she says casually.
“What? Why? You two have been together for almost a year.”
She pulls her legs under her and turns her body towards me. “Because this is it, Jo. I’m not being held back. This is the vacation of a lifetime. I’m going to watch the sun rise over the beach with a drink in my hand. If I find a sexy man I want to take back to my hotel, I’m going to take him back to my room. I don’t want my real life holding me back. I want to be free to take every opportunity that comes my way.” She holds her arms out at her side with a fluid movement like she’s prepared to take on the world.
Hearing her confession only makes me feel even more shut off. Why can’t I be more like her? She’s completely free, living however she wants without letting the rules control her. I’m afraid of everything. I’ve never been able to take a chance the way she does.
My head falls back to rest against the couch. “God, I’m so jealous. Why can’t I be more like you?”
She scoots closer to me, pulling my head against her shoulder as she wraps her arms around me. “I love you just the way you are, Jovi. But I admit, you could come out of your shell a little.” She pulls away slightly to look into my eyes. “Promise me you will try this summer. Try to check everything off this list.”
“Katie, that list is just silly. How will doing any of those things help me?”
“Come out of your shell little by little and I promise, by the end of the summer, you’ll be ready to pack up and leave this city behind you.”
“Have a one-night stand?” I question with my voice void of emotion.
She laughs. “Well, start with one of the easier ones.”
“Which is?”
She thinks it over. “Eat something spicy?”
I let out a chuckle. She knows me too well. I don’t eat spicy food.
“Kiss a stranger? Dance in public?” She shakes my knee. “Seriously, the next time we see each other, I want this list crossed off. Promise me that you’ll try. Just try.” The amount of love and friendship shining in her bright blue eyes makes me waver.
I smile. “Okay, I promise.”
She claps and bounces up and down. “Good, this will be the best summer of your life, even if I’m not around.”
Just the thought of her not being around for the summer makes me want to cry. She’s the only person I hang out with. With that, on top of breaking up with Nick, I’m looking at one lonely summer.
She looks at her watch before standing. “I should get going. It’s late and I haven’t packed yet.”
“You’re leaving in five hours and you haven’t packed yet?”
“Na, I figured I’d pack all night and then sleep on the plane,” she says as she slides her feet into her flip flops.
I follow her to the door. “Be safe and call me. A lot!”
She spins around and pulls me in for a hug. “I love you, Jo.”
“I love you too.”
She releases me and gives me a longing look. “This will be great, you’ll see.”
I roll my eyes. “Yeah, yeah. When you get back, you owe me a mani/pedi day for the horrible summer you’re about to inflict on me.”
She points at me. “Deal. Mani/pedi’s, dinner, and drinks.”
I let a silent laugh fall from my lips. “Have fun, and don’t catch any diseases!” I holler at her as she makes her way down the hallway.
She holds up her middle finger just before she rounds the corner to the elevator.
I giggle and close the door.
I walk through the apartment and turn off the lights, not bothering to clean up our mess. Tomorrow is Saturday, I’ll have all day to clean up.
I wash my face free of the makeup she’d caked on, and pull on some pajamas before crawling into bed.
I turn off the light and settle beneath the blankets. I hope that she is right. I hope this is the best summer of our lives. I need a break. I need to get out of my shell a little, but it’s so hard when I feel like I have to force myself to do something as simple as going to a bar and talking to strangers.
If it wasn’t for her, I’d probably be the crazy cat lady.
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Acknowledgments
First, to the ladies that keep me going. Dusty Summerford, Jennifer Jones, Amanda Campbell, and Jennifer Thomason. You guys are the best beta team I could ask for! I love getting to share everything with you first! I love the comments, the curse words, and the dedication you all have. I don’t know what I would do without you all. You ladies keep me going on a daily basis. It doesn’t matter if I need you to read something, if I need to vent, or if I just want to bug you, you’re always there. I can’t thank you enough. Thanks for being with me on this journey, ladies!
To everyone in K.B.’s Crazy Readers, thanks for joining the group! I love reading your comments on the things I post. I’ve gotten close with so many of you and that never would’ve been possible without that group! I love you all!
To the readers, thanks for continuing to read whatever pops into my head. When I started Dirty Chicago, I only had one thing in mind: Hate to love! Usually I try to write characters that are easy to love or to understand, but with this title, I wanted just one giant shit show of drama. I wanted imperfect characters. I wanted everything to be wrong. And… I’m pretty sure I got what I was looking for.
This story has been my therapy for a while now. Those of you that are in my group know how much stress I’ve been under with my dad’s health issues. I lost all desire to write. I tried picking up on the other stories I’ve been working on, but nothing could keep my attention. Until Madden Novelli introduced himself to me, and yes, he was just as cocky in my head as he was in this story. He demanded attention. And when Madden Novelli demands something, he fucking gets it.
Anyway, I hope you all loved — or hated to love the story! Want to know what happens to The Novelli Empire? Watch for Season Two of Dirty Chicago!
Also by K.B. Andrews
The Chance Series
A Chance at Forever
A Second Chance at Forever
Dirty Chicago_Season One Page 12
