Page 53 of In For a Penny
Chloe and Jane agree tomeet me the next day. I explained that I seriously needed to discuss something but didn’t provide any details. I want to see their genuine reactions when I tell them I slept with Oliver, so I choose to keep it to myself until I see them in person. This whole thing with Josh is becoming a thorn in my side, and I’m over it. I need advice on how to fix it.
To be honest, his response has left me reeling. I would have never expected that from him. He is usually such a level-headed guy.
It isn’t a secret to anyone that my favorite place in London has become the shoe department at Harrods, so the girls didn’t find it weird when I asked if we could hang out and later have teatime there. The luxury department store has several places where one can eat after a day of shopping, but my favorite is the little corner on the first floor at La Durée, the perfect place for a tea and shoe-shopping kind of day.
I’m in the middle of putting away a pair of beautiful Manolo Blahnik Hangisis that I will never be able to afford back in their box, sighing, when Jane interrupts my wistful train of thought.
“So, why are we really here, Penny?” Jane asks, picking up a shoe and flipping it over to check the price on the sticker. Her eyes widen at the four-digit amount, and she quickly puts the shoe back down on the display table as if it has just burned her hand.
“You normally do not invite us into your safe space,” she says with a sympathetic smile.
I sigh again and look down at my hands. I mean, I should just tell them in one go. Rip the Band-aid off. Make it as painless as possible since I feel that this whole secrecy thing would never have worked out anyway. Someone would have noticed eventually, right?
“Alright, but you can’t judge. I just need advice. I may have done something stupid and upset someone in the process.”
“Okay…what was this stupid thing you did?” Chloe asks.
“I may have slept with Oliver,” I say, wincing. My body folds inward, bracing itself for impact.
“I thought you said you did ‘something’ stupid, not ‘someone’ stupid,” Jane deadpans.
I groan, running a hand down my face, embarrassed.
“I mean, it isn’t that bad, is it? He’s a cool guy, and it honestly hasn’t changed anything between us. It’s been kind of nice.”
“Um, hold on,” Chloe says, raising her hand. “Why did you just say, ‘it’s been’? Is this an activity you’ve repeated and or intend to repeat?”
“Uh…” I say, getting nervous. I do not want to repeat my argument with Josh with my two closest female friends in the program. I need them. I cannot deal with the craziness without them. I still wholeheartedly stand by the fact that it’s my life and I get to decide how to live it, but I also don’t want to be ostracized due to the choices I’ve made.
“I mean…yes?”
Jane snorts, and Chloe’s jaw drops.
“But…he…why??” Chloe looks like she’s about to break down while Jane barely contains her laughter. “How did this even happen? It doesn’t make sense. He’s always been so…forward. And you’ve always seemed to hate it.”
I shake my head at them. “I know. I don’t know.” I sigh. “It’s like, yes, I get what you’re saying, and he can border on creepy sometimes, but…I don’t know. Is it weird that I found him so ridiculous that, eventually, it just became kind of…charming?” I shrug. “And I guess I just wanted sex, too. And he was there. And he looked like he’d be good at it. And God, that body.”
Jane bursts out laughing at this point. “And here we were, trying to set you up with Josh!”
I roll my eyes. “Yeah, thanks for that, by the way. I haven’t had the chance to thank you.” I glare at her, and she stops laughing immediately.
“Wait, you what?” Chloe looks at Jane accusingly. “Did you set them up?” A hurt look flashes across her eyes.
I shake my head, frustrated. “No. Ugh. Can we focus? It was just sex. And it was really, really good sex. And I think that, yeah, I intend to continue sleeping with him, to be honest, but that’s not really why I asked you guys to come here—I don’t think.”
I pause, waiting for one of them to pass judgment, but I get nothing.
“Listen, if that’s what you want, I don’t blame you. Oliver looks like a fab time.” Jane smiles supportively.
Chloe just shakes her head and giggles. “It’s a bit shocking, isn’t it? Never expected you to actually go through with it, but he really is a nice guy. I don’t think he would ever intentionally hurt you.”
I smile. After months of spending almost every day with these girls, I should’ve known better. They’re not the type to judge me for this type of stuff. We’re all grownups here. I guess I didn’t realize just how much their opinion mattered to me. I think that, because I had such a bad experience with people from my past, I may have expected them to act the same way my old friends would have.
“Yeah, Oliver is definitely a nice guy, and he’s been a good friend since day one, you know?” I smile fondly at the memory of my breakdown behind the pub the first night I met him and how supportive yet realistic he had been. He isn’t the type of guy to feed you any bullshit—a straight-shooter. I like that. I can trust that.
“So, what’s the problem?” Jane asks. “I don’t understand. That’s all you wanted to tell us?”
“Well, no, not exactly,” I start. “I told Josh what had happened.” I clear my throat. “I told him that Oliver and I had slept together, and he kind of went mental.
