The plan for Friday was to pregame and eat cake at Brady’s then go bar hopping. I got the cake along with champagne (why not?), tequila and zero calorie margarita mix. When Carly arrived, she looked at my spread then looked away like she wasn’t impressed. Whatever. I was impressed with myself. I cut myself a huge slice of cake and poured a glass of champs.

Kendra, John, Preston, Nicole and Lexi showed up and we took shots/the usual. Nicole was being annoying and I heard Carly say to Kendra, “I seriously cannot deal with her.”

“Oh my gosh, same,” I piped up.

Carly giggled. “How is she even a real person?”

So that’s how Carly and I started talking again. First we talked about how annoying we think Nicole is, then we made tequila sours, then we were so drunk that Carly was sitting on my lap while she told everyone how scared she was to move.

When it was time to leave, our group was conflicted. Preston and Nicole wanted to go downtown and the rest of us wanted to stay nearby in Lincoln Park or Old Town. Originally I did suggest downtown because that’s where we go frequently, but honestly I wanted to go where my boyfriend was going.

“Seriously Reese? You said you wanted to go downtown earlier, why are you pretending like you don’t want to go now?” Nicole asked.

“I’m not pretending. We can make our way downtown eventually if the other places suck,” I suggested.

“I don’t want to stay in fucking Lincoln Park,” Nicole said, basically throwing a tantrum.

“Well, have fun. Maybe we’ll meet up eventually,” I finally said.

“But I want to hang out with my baby boo before she leaves,” Preston said, pulling Carly into a hug.

We literally fought about where to go for thirty minutes. We finally decided to go to Old Town then downtown which was super annoying. I decided before we even left that I wasn’t going downtown at all.

Nicole apparently knew one of the bartenders so she ran into the bar screaming. She turned to us and said, “Order whatever you want. My friend is the bartender.”

Obviously I was going to order whatever I wanted anyway. We got a table and sat around talking. Carly and I got bored and decided to go upstairs to see who was up there. We got up there and snagged a booth and ordered mozzarella sticks.

“Who am I going to eat mozzarella sticks at the bars with after you move?” I asked.

Carly smiled wickedly and then she burst into tears. I instinctively pulled her into a hug.

“What’s wrong? Why are you crying?” I asked her.

“I don’t know,” she sniffled. “I’m kind of freaked out. I know I’m making the right decision because I can feel it, I’m just kind of scared.”

“Scared of what?”

“Everything. I’ve never lived anywhere else.”

“That’s exactly why you should go. You can’t live here forever. Honestly, moving away changed me as a person completely. I didn’t know myself until I was away from my family and friends and everything I knew.”

I knew I was drunk because I started crying too. It’s true though. I changed a lot once I went away to college and was independent. You learn a lot about yourself. So Carly and I just sat at the booth crying and apologizing to each other and eating mozzarella sticks for a while.

After we finished eating I checked my phone and saw that Brady had texted and called me a few times. He’d said, “Hey, where are you?” and “Did you leave?” and “Why did you leave?” and “We’re meeting you downtown,” and the last message was the name of the bar they were all at which is downtown.

“Are you fucking joking?” I said and quickly explained to Carly what happened.

“I told Preston we were coming upstairs!” she said. “And Chris didn’t even text me.”

At this point I was so exhausted from crying in the middle of a bar that I was ready to go home. So I texted Brady back, “Over it,” and called an Uber to pick us up.

We got back to the duplex and I immediately got in bed and fell asleep, but I woke up when Brady came home.

“What the fuck? I can’t believe you left me,” I greeted him.

“I didn’t mean to leave you. I couldn’t find you and Nicole told us you left,” he replied defensively.

“Why would you listen to Nicole?! She’s a fucking meth head!” I shouted.

“How was I supposed to know? You weren’t answering your phone so was I supposed to just stand around and wait?” Brady shouted back.

“Yes!” I screamed.

“Okay.” He started getting ready for bed and I laid back down.

Once I felt him get in the bed next to me I said, “Will you bring me water and some Cheezits?”

Brady said, “No,” and I swear I gasped.

“What?”

“No. Get it yourself. I’m going to sleep,” he said.

I just stared at him in the dark for a few seconds. No? What does no even mean? Luckily I fell asleep and forgot about my Cheezit and water craving.

When I woke up on Saturday morning, there was a bottle of water and the box of Cheezits sitting on the nightstand next to me. Brady was not in bed though. I got up and found him in the kitchen on the phone. I waved and hugged him then sat on the counter until he got off the phone. I think he was talking to his brother and I could tell he wanted to hurry and hang up since I was in the room and obviously listening.

“Morning,” he said after he hung up.

“I’m sorry about last night,” I said. I felt bad about yelling at him and I felt bad that he obviously felt guilty about telling me no.

Brady seemed surprised that I apologized and said, “Oh, I’m sorry too. I honestly thought you’d left.”

“Do you really think I would leave without you?” I smirked.

“I mean, I didn’t know. Nicole had us all convinced that you told her you were leaving,” he said.

“She’s so weird,” I concluded.

And now I really think she’s weird because later on, we realized that every medicine item from the main bathroom was gone. The cough drops, the cough syrup, the Benadryl, the ibuprofen, etc. Except the ibuprofen bottles were still there, just empty. It was so fucking bizarre. I’m not saying she did it, but she did use the bathroom and she is fucking crazy. I never want to hang out with her again.

Anyway, so Carly and Chris are gone now which is super sad. I’m glad we were able to make up even if it was at the very last minute. It’s so crazy that she and Chris are like living together now and I just randomly suggested they hook up when he was our waiter last year. Funny how life works out.

Also, my parents are visiting me for the holiday weekend. They are getting along now and when I mentioned to my mom that I miss them, she suggested they make a trip. The scary thing though is that Brady said his parents are going to be near the city over the weekend too. He told them that we were considering traveling for the weekend (because we were until my parents decided to visit), but they mentioned wanting to see us (him). Can you imagine my parents meeting Brady’s parents? If we ever do get married, it’ll obviously have to happen eventually but I don’t think I’m prepared for that right now. Hopefully there isn’t a run in this weekend. That would a hot mess.

I stayed at work late with Luke on Monday night. We were mostly working, but also telling each other about our weekends. We were supposed to hang out on Friday night, but I ditched him to hang out with Brady and his friends. Obviously I should have hung out with Luke.

Brady texted me at around six letting me know that he was getting off soon. I told him that I would call him when I left work. I think I hung around the office for a lot longer than I should have just to stall. Finally around ten, Luke started yawning and getting restless so I told him we could leave. On my way home I called Brady. I felt a lot better about the situation (after reading all the wonderful comments!) and couldn’t wait to confront him about Jenny. I told him to come over and at the last minute I decided to meet him in the lobby to talk. That way we couldn’t immediately hook up or anything and would have to actually talk first.

“Hi,” I greeted him.

“Hey. How are you?” Brady said. He could tell something was up and looked at me cautiously.

“Can we sit?” I asked and sat down on a bench before he could answer. Brady followed and sat down next to me.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Well I have a story to tell you.”

“Okay…”

“On Friday… Your friend, Jenny… Basically she yelled at me for not being a great girlfriend to you,” I said and Brady just stared at me with a straight face. “She said you tell her everything about our relationship and show her our texts. Oh and she called me a bitch and a cunt.” I laughed.

“Wow,” he said.

“She said that I’m clingy and controlling and take advantage of you. All while you were getting the beer,” I went on.

“I’m sorry. I had no idea that happened,” Brady said.

“Yeah. I thought your other friends might tell you, but I guess not.”

“No. No one told me anything. She yelled at you?”

I nodded. “She made me cry.”

“I’m sorry. I wish you would have told me about this sooner. I can’t believe she yelled at you.”

“I guess it’s not a huge deal that she yelled at me. I’m mostly concerned about what she said.”

Brady looked at me.

“I think if you feel that way then we should break up,” I said.

“I don’t feel that way. I’ve told you how I feel about you,” he said.

“Okay… So why would Jenny say that then?”

“I think she came to her own conclusion about you…”

“Based on what you’ve told her.”

“Yes.”

“So you must have only told her bad things about me.”

Brady looked at me like I was being ridiculous. “No, it’s not even like that. I went to her for advice-”

“About how to handle me,” I finished for him.

“About being in a relationship in general.”

“It’s not like you’ve never been in a relationship before,” I pointed out.

“I’m sorry. I just feel like I suck when it comes to pleasing you. If I would have known this would happen, I would have never told her anything,” Brady said.

I crossed my arms across my chest, getting irritated at the thought of Jenny knowing everything.

“And showing her our text messages is a complete invasion of privacy,” I said.

“I’m sorry. I only showed her one text, but you’re right. I should have never showed her anything.”

“I wish you could have seen how crazy she went on me. I was not prepared for that at all,” I shuttered.

“I feel terrible. She would never have done that if I hadn’t said anything. I’ll talk to her,” Brady said.

I gasped drastically. “You’re still going to talk to her and be friends with her after the way she humiliated me?”

A panicky look appeared on Brady’s face. “Um, should I not?”

“I don’t know. Do whatever you want,” I said dismissively.

“What do you want me to do?” he asked and it sounded like he was getting impatient with me.

“I don’t care, but please don’t talk to her about me anymore. Thanks.” I knew I was being a brat, but at that moment I didn’t care.

Brady didn’t say anything so we just sat there in silence for a few minutes. Then I said, “I’m starving.”

“Do you want to get food?” Brady asked.

“Obviously.”

We ended up at a burger joint and got bacon cheeseburgers and fries. At one point, I sent Brady to get me more napkins and he left his phone sitting on the table. It started vibrating and I glanced at it and saw a ton of texts coming in. They were from Jenny. Since the phone was upside down I couldn’t read all of them, but one said, “I literally just can’t.” I wonder what he said to her.

Brady was kind of distant on Tuesday and I thought he was annoyed with me about what happened. Then I realized that that was ridiculous. He called me after work and invited me over so I got ready and high tailed it on over there. He was hanging out in the kitchen and I suddenly asked when his new roommate was moving in.

“New roommate?” he repeated, looking confused.

“Yeah, lawyer girl?”

“Oh. I don’t know about that-” Brady began.

“Yeah, it would be weird, right?” I cut him off.

“Yeah.”

I walked down the hall, yawning because I was kind of tired and I felt Brady following me closely. When I got to his room, I felt Brady’s hands rough on my waist.

“Oh, hello!” I said, giggling.

He started kissing my neck before I could even turn around. He stuck his hands down my yogas and grabbed my hips and ass before inching them down. I stepped out of my yoga pants so I was standing there naked from the waist down. Brady pushed me against a wall, moving my arms so my palms were flat against the wall supporting me. I heard the belt buckle jingle then felt Brady’s hand on my lower back and him slowly, slowly enter me. It was agonizing.

“Don’t tease me,” I instructed and he said okay.

It’s not his personality at all, but Brady is pretty dominant sexually. I kind of like it. It’s like his alter ego. We had sex against the wall then half way through I turned around and got on my knees to finish him off. I did that for a little bit before he grabbed my arm and pulled me back up so we could have sex again. He finally came inside me, which would be fine, but I missed like four or five days of my birth control pills and when I tried to catch up I got really nauseous and sick. So, I don’t think they’re even effective anymore? I didn’t tell him that though.

Afterwards we got in bed and I almost fell asleep, but Brady kept talking to me. So I sat up and talked back. At one point, he was showing me something on his phone so I grabbed it from him. Immediately it vibrated and a text notification dropped down. Guess who it was from? Daniela! And it was in Spanish so I have no idea what it said. What the fuck could they possibly be talking about? Hopefully she’s trying to find a way to quit that awful job and asking Brady for help.

Right after the Daniela text came in, his phone vibrated again and this time it said Hunter. I couldn’t even pretend not to see that one.

“You’re talking to Hunter again?” I asked.

“Yeah, did he text me?” Brady said, taking the phone back.

“That’s so good. How long have you been talking? What did he say?” I said excitedly.

“A few weeks. Um, his wife is pregnant.”

“Oh my gosh, she is? Wow! Now he really is stuck with her for life.” I couldn’t help thinking that Dom and I might be pregnant together. I should really figure out this birth control thing.

Anyway, Carly and Chris are moving at the beginning of next week so he sent out a group text letting us know that we will be going out on Friday (tomorrow) night. So I ordered an ice cream cake for the occasion (and because I love ice cream cake, duh!). It feels weird that Carly is moving across the country and we still haven’t talked so I should probably figure that out before they leave too. This is going to sound awful, but I haven’t even thought about her because I’ve been so busy with work and my own drama. I feel like the biggest bitch and obviously the worst friend.

On Monday the Chicago Blackhawks won some sort of trophy so everyone went crazy. I ended up staying at work really late with Luke and when we finally left, everyone was out celebrating so we decided to participate in the festivities. By then everyone was drunk and belligerent so we only lasted about half an hour before we downed our drinks and decided to just get food instead.

On Tuesday after work I stopped and got food then I went home (Brady’s house but whatever). When I got there, Chris was hanging out in the living room.

“Hi Chris,” I greeted him. “Do you want sushi? I got extra.” (Extra = I got one serving for Brady and two servings for me.)

“No I’m okay, Reese. I appreciate the offer though,” he said.

“More for me,” I said to myself and walked into the kitchen. I decided to take my food into the living room so I could talk to Chris while I ate. Chris and I don’t talk one on one often, but I figured I could pick his brain one last time before he moves.

I sat on the armchair with my plate of sushi in my lap and said, “So! Are you excited for your big move?”

“I am. I can’t believe we’re doing it.” He proceeded to tell me about he job he has lined up, something about managing direct sales. He sounded really excited about it. Then he talked about things (he thought) I should’ve already known like that Carly is going to be working as a receptionist. And I had to pretend like I already knew these things because apparently Carly didn’t tell Chris that she isn’t speaking to me. Which I appreciate.

“So, this is a big step,” I said. “Do you think you’ll get married and stuff?”

“Not anytime soon,” Chris replied without looking uncomfortable or awkward. “Neither of us are in any rush. We’re okay with the way things are.”

I nodded. “Well, make sure you hang on to her. She’s such a good catch.”

When Brady got home I told him to grab his food and join our party in the living room. Since I had both of them there I asked Brady if he was sad he was losing his roommate/bestie.

“Yeah, how are you ever going to find a better replacement?” Chris asked.

Brady shrugged and said he wasn’t sure. Chris mentioned that Brady was considering rooming with some girl and when Brady saw my face he quickly said, “She has a boyfriend.”

And Chris said, “She does, but they are swingers.”

I was so confused.

“Who is this swinger girl?” I asked.

“This girl we know,” Chris answered. “She’s a lawyer.”

“Oh the lawyer girl from Memorial Day?” I realized. “She’s a swinger? Ew!”

“We just mentioned that it’s a possibility. Nothing’s confirmed,” Brady said.

I think Brady living with anyone except Chris will be weird. Especially a girl swinger lawyer. Is it rude that I don’t want her to move in? I don’t care.

I got dinner and drinks with Kendra and John on Wednesday night. They are getting married in three months which is so bizarre to me. She’s not stressed or anything and seems to have everything figured out already. I guess that’s what happens when you date someone for seven years.

Some of Brady’s friends from college were visiting Chicago for the weekend so we hung out with them on Friday night. He told me they were kind of nerdy and I knew that if Brady called them nerdy then they had to be pretty nerdy. Figuring I had no one to impress, I wore a plain dress, flat sandals and my hair in a bun.

We got to the restaurant and Brady introduced me to Tim – very tall and lanky, glasses; Tim’s girlfriend, Amy – very short and skinny, dressed like a hipster, glasses; Collin – works as a chemist, beard, kind of hot in a grungy way; and finally Jenny – a tall, chubby Asian girl wearing a maxi dress, booties and glasses. They weren’t what I was expecting from Brady’s friends, but it seemed to make sense.

Someone (not me or Brady) suggested a round of shots to commence dinner. My kind of people. They all reminisced about college, talking about all the Adderall and coke they had to snort to handle their intense workload. Sounds like my college experience minus the school work! They asked about how Brady and I met so we told them. I told them a brief but funny version of the night we met story and then about our first date when he used all those big words.

Collin said, “Yeah, Brady’s idea of romance definitely involves an English and possibly science lesson.”

We all laughed. Amy told us that Tim is the same way and that their dirty talking sounds like a physics lecture. I didn’t want to imagine those two in bed, but I feel like they’re into super kinky shit. We had drinks and talked and joked around and I was pretty impressed with how well I was fitting in with the nerds. They definitely talk about different things than my friends and me (less clothes, hair and drama, more world crises, presidential elections and GMOs), and it was interesting.

Collin and Brady told us that they were going to get a beer tower for us and they would be back. As they walked away Tim said, “We’re going to tell Reese all your embarrassing stories while you’re gone,” and we all laughed.

I looked down at my phone, still giggling. I heard Jenny say, “I don’t like you.” I looked up, wanting to see the drama and was surprised to see her looking at and pointing at me. I glanced behind me to make sure she wasn’t talking to someone behind me, but she wasn’t.

“Me?!” I gaped at her.

“Yes, you,” she said back. “I don’t fucking like you.”

“Why? You don’t even know me,” I almost laughed.

“I don’t like the way you treat Brady. He deserves better.”

I started to defend myself but she ignored me. “Brady tells me everything. He’s the nicest guy ever and you take advantage of it. You’re clingy and controlling and walk all over him. You treat him like shit.”

“I completely disagree,” I said.

“Brady is one of my closest friends. He tells me everything. Shows me your text messages. He asks me how to handle you and do you know what I tell him? Fucking. Dump. The. Bitch. You don’t deserve him.”

Tim and Amy were looking around uncomfortably. Even though I know it was probably the alcohol talking, it hurt. She was right. If Brady was calling her to complain about me, I must be pretty bad. I felt a lump forming in my throat and when Jenny started to say something else, I burst into tears.

“Oh my God, I cannot believe you’re crying,” she said. “You’re a complete cunt to my friend and when I call you out, you cry? Are you kidding me?”

I stood up quickly and started to say, “I don’t understand what you’re talking about,” but I couldn’t even get any words out. I walked toward the bathroom to clean myself up and passed Brady and Collin with the beer tower.

“Hey,” Brady called to me and I turned my head and waved so he couldn’t see me crying.

If this happened a few months ago I would have gotten combative and shouted across the table back at Jenny. I would have told her that her makeup was terrible and that her outfit looked cheap. I probably would have lunged across the table and strangled her. It would have gotten ugly. But that behavior is why she was yelling at me in the first place.

I got in the bathroom and locked myself in a stall. After about thirty seconds of being alone with myself I stopped crying. What a hot mess. I can’t believe I just started crying like that in front of Brady’s friends. But something about what Jenny said really struck a nerve. The fact that Brady was talking shit to her, a girl who didn’t even know me, so badly that she hated me was really hurtful. I didn’t like that she knew the ins and outs of our relationships and read our text messages. I don’t even let my friends read our text messages.

I pulled my compact out and touched up my makeup then texted Kendra, “One of Brady’s girl friends just yelled at me because I’m a terrible girlfriend so I cried like a baby.” Then I texted Preston, “Let’s please drink tonight.”

I wasn’t sure what was going to happen when I got back to the table, but I got the courage to go back out there. No one said anything when I sat back down including Brady because he was busy talking to Tim.

“Do you drink beer, Reese?” Collin asked. I nodded and he filled a glass with beer for me. I started sipping it and Brady finally turned to look at me.

“Are you okay?” he asked, looking concerned.

“Mmhm, fine. I think I’m gonna go,” I replied.

“Really? Why?”

“Preston wants to meet up and I haven’t seen him in a while.”

“Okay… Do you want a ride?”

“No, stay here. Enjoy your night with your friends,” I said. I informed him that I had an Uber coming and convinced him that I wasn’t upset about anything even though I could tell he didn’t believe me. Before I left everyone (except Jenny) told me how nice it was to meet me. I felt a little bit bad about leaving like that, but I also needed to process everything without Brady watching me.

I met Preston, Nicole and Lexi up north and as soon as I sat down at their table I started crying again. I don’t even know why. I explained the story and Preston, “What a fucking bitch. I’m sure she just wants Brady to herself.”

“No, she’s right,” I cried. “Brady is such a sweet guy. He deserves a nice girl.”

“Babe, Brady loves you. Don’t let that skank make you believe otherwise. If Brady was unhappy he wouldn’t stay with you,” Preston said gently.

“Yes he would. He’s probably too scared to tell me how he really feels.” No one said anything so I continued. “I can’t believe he showed her our texts. That’s so fucking personal.”

“Reesie Piecie,” Preston sighed like he was getting frustrated. “You’re reading too much into this. Brady sometimes needs girl advice and goes to her. The chick was drunk and got carried away tonight. Let’s drink and forget about it, k?”

Preston ordered me a Long Island while I rested my head on the table. We finished a round of drinks then walked down the street to another bar. Brady texted me saying that his friends were going to a bar, but he was going home and did I want him to pick me up? As I read it I thought about him screenshotting our conversations and showing them to Jenny and felt weird. I didn’t say anything back.

I was in a tipsy antisocial mood so I stood in a corner of the bar with my arms crossed, not talking to anyone. Then I called an Uber and went home. When I woke up on Saturday morning, I felt happy and excited and immediately wanted to call Brady to go to brunch. Then I thought about what Jenny said and what happened the night before. It was like a black cloud following me everywhere I went. I just couldn’t stop thinking about it. I’m also weirded out that he supposedly confides so much in this girl who I’ve never met and he rarely, rarely talks about. I don’t know anything about her except that they went to the same college and had some classes together, but she knows everything about me apparently.

I didn’t see Brady again for the rest of the weekend. I told him that I wanted to give him space to see his friends even though he told me that it wasn’t necessary and they left last night. I know I need to talk to him and ask him about what she said, but I feel betrayed. Maybe I don’t have a right to feel like that but I do. And not only that, but I feel like Jenny is completely right. Brady does deserve better. He deserves a girl who a. he doesn’t have to complain about to his friends and b. won’t be selfish enough to be mad that he’s complaining. I think we should break up.

We left for Florida super early on Friday morning. I was busy at work all week and didn’t have time to pack so I stayed up late on Thursday night throwing bathing suits and heels in my carry on. When my alarm went off on Friday morning I seriously thought about skipping the trip and sleeping. Then I thought about the sun and beach and that got me out of bed.

We rented a car and drove about an hour from the airport to Brady’s grandparents’ house. It was freaking amazing. Apparently his grandparents were both doctors before they retired to Florida and bought this 8,000 square foot, 7 bedroom, 6 bathroom mega mansion with a pool that overlooked the beach. I’m not sure of the exact specs, but those are my estimates. We had to go through an elaborate gate and down a long drive way to get to the ridiculous Mediterranean style house. It reminded me of the fake decoy house they use on Keeping Up With The Kardashians.

“This is your grandparents’ house?” I asked, impressed.

“Mmhm,” Brady said and we grabbed our bags and went inside.

The inside was even more beautiful. It was all tile and marble and mahogany and spacious. When you first walk in there’s a wall of windows that overlooks the pool which has a lot of palm trees behind it but beyond the trees you can kind of see the ocean. There was a second floor wroght iron balcony, expensive looking lighting fixtures everywhere and Spanish style furniture and decor. I immediately wanted to know who the interior designer was and where everything came from.

“So yeah, this is it,” Brady said and at that exact moment a girl came walking out of the kitchen. She was wearing a traditional black and white maid outfit, but I don’t think she was any older than me. She was Hispanic and really, really pretty despite the awful getup.

“Is this a joke?” I turned to Brady and asked, but he was already greeting her.

“Hola,” he said and she seemed surprised to see him.

“Hola! Hi, Mr. Brady,” she said shyly and giggled like a little girl.

“Reese, this is Daniela,” Brady said and told Daniela my name as well. I stuck out my hand to shake hers and she kind of almost bowed to me.

Brady and Daniela had a conversation in Spanish while I stood there. She couldn’t stop smiling and blushing at him and it was actually kind of adorable. Then she turned and headed back toward the kitchen and Brady informed me that she was making us lunch.

“Your grandparents have a maid?” I asked as we picked up our stuff and headed up the stairs.

“Yeah, they have to have a housekeeper to take care of the property since they travel a lot,” Brady explained.

“But she’s like my age. And why do they make her wear that costume? I don’t like that,” I said.

Brady shrugged and led us into the room we would be staying in. “I usually stay here,” he told me.

The room had a bed on the back wall that was situated in between bay windows, there was a tray ceiling with two ceiling fans, a little TV mounted on one wall, mahogany wood built ins and a marble floor. It was ridiculous. There was an attached bathroom that was equally ridiculous so naturally I went in to take a shower and some selfies. By the time I got out, it was time to eat. Daniela had a mini feast set up for us at the little breakfast nook, but I could see a very formal dining room on the other side of glass doors.

Brady and Daniela had a conversation while she served us. She was all giggly and blushy and I could tell Brady was being overly nice to her. She sat a plate in front of me that consisted of a flatbread sandwich and a small salad.

“Gracias,” I said and she like curtsied and ran away. I felt really bad about her having to be our slave. I told Brady.

“It’s okay. She’s paid well and gets to live here for free. She doesn’t have much family anyway,” he explained.

“That’s sad. Where are they?” I asked.

He shrugged. “She’s fine. Don’t worry. Just be nice to her.”

“Well, of course I’ll be nice. Am I ever mean?” I said, offended.

“No, I’m just reminding you.”

After lunch, I wanted to hit the pool even though it was kind of cloudy. We changed into our bathing suits, had Daniela make us alcoholic beverages and went outside. We just hung out drinking and treading the water and talking. Besides faintly hearing people on the beach, it was really private and quiet and I didn’t want to ever leave. Well until my drink was gone and I was soggy from the water. We got out and lounged on the pool chairs enjoying the warm weather.

I was almost asleep when I felt Brady’s hand on my thigh. I glanced at him and his eyes were closed.

“Come here,” he said and I quickly obliged, straddling him in the chair.

“I love it here,” I told him.

“Me too,” Brady agreed with his eyes still closed.

I started kissing his neck and that made him wake up. Eventually, he got hard and said, “You’re sexy.”

I grinned. That was not a Brady thing to say at all, but I liked it. I pulled his dick out of his shorts and pushed my bikini bottom to the side so we could have sex in the pool chair. It was really quiet out there and neither of us said anything. We just had quiet, slow sex.

“Can Daniela see us?” I asked suddenly, realizing that there were huge windows behind us.

“Who cares?” Brady said and since he didn’t care, I didn’t either.

After that we went upstairs and napped then woke up and showered and got ready to go to the bar. I put on a little printed romper and Converse because we were on vacation and I needed to be comfy. I didn’t even bother putting on makeup.

We ended up getting pretty drunk though. Some things never change plus we were on vacation so might as well right? We took a cab back to the house (resort?) then proceeded to tear up the kitchen making nachos.

On Saturday morning, I woke up completely naked in the bed next to Brady. He was already up and sitting with his glasses on and looking at his phone. Baby looked so adorable.

“Hi,” I greeted him sleepily.

“Hey. Sleep well?” he asked.

“Mmhm,” I nodded. “I feel like I’m at a resort.”

“It does feel that way sometimes,” he agreed, putting his phone down. We small talked for a while until Brady insisted on going down on me. Obviously I let him because he’s so amazing at it. Since we were alone (besides Daniela I guess?) I didn’t feel like I needed to be quiet or anything. I was really, really close and practically on another planet when Brady suddenly got up.

I opened my eyes and looked at him, about to throw a tantrum for him leaving me hanging like that.

Then I heard a woman’s voice shout/sing, “Helloooooo? Who’s here?”

“Who is that? I thought your grandparents were traveling,” I said.

“They are. I think it’s my aunt,” Brady said. He swung the door open even though he was just in shorts and I was completely naked on the bed.

“Brady!” I heard the woman call from downstairs. “Come down here right now and give me a hug!”

Brady returned to the room. “Come on, get dressed and meet my aunt.”

I got up. “Can I like brush my teeth first? I look like shit.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Brady said, pulling a shirt over his head.

I found a pair of shorts and put them on with a hoodie and followed Brady out. A really tan woman with blonde hair and huge sunglasses on was waiting in the foyer. She was wearing a yellow sundress, wedges and a huge white Tory Burch bag. She reminded me of my mother which I found strange because she’s Brady’s mom’s sister (who is nothing like my mom). Brady and the lady hugged.

“This is my Aunt Katherine,” Brady told me.

“Kat,” she corrected him and shook my hand. “I’ve never met you before!”

Obviously.

“I’m Reese,” I said.

Daniela walked in to greet Aunt Kat, but Aunt Kat was so concerned with me that she ignored her.

“Brady, your mother didn’t tell me you were coming this weekend. We would have let you have a romantic weekend alone,” Kat said.

“It’s okay. We don’t mind,” he replied.

The front door opened and two blonde boys walked in. One was younger with a baseball cap on and the other was a teenager and was struggling to roll in the suitcases and carry all the luggage. Brady rushed over to help.

“These are my boys, Roper and Emerson,” Kat told me and affectionately watched the boys struggle with the luggage.

“Oh, cute,” I said. With those kinds of names, they have no choice but to grow up to be assholes.

“Boys, come meet your cousin’s girlfriend,” Kat called to them and I was kind of embarrassed.

Roper and Emerson ran over and Kat introduced me. In unison they said, “Hi, Miss Reese,” and she nodded proudly like she was trying to show off how well behaved her children are.

“Have you two eaten? Brady, go find the lady and tell her that the boys will have tuna salad sandwiches and I’ll have sliced cucumber with pepper and salt,” Kat said.

Brady nodded and walked off and she looked at me like, “See how well he listens?”

“Reese, have you met my sister and my brother-in-law?” Kat asked and it seemed kind of out of nowhere.

“I have,” I replied.

“Hmm. She hasn’t mentioned you so I wasn’t sure. Either way, so glad to meet you!”

Yikes. Way to make me feel small. I smiled and nodded. Kat sent the boys up to put the luggage in the room then she headed toward the kitchen so I followed her. Brady and Daniela were standing at the counter talking and Kat sat down at the nook, waiting to be served. I sat across from her.

“What do you do, Reese?” she asked me.

“I work in product development,” I said then proceeded to describe my job in detail when she just looked at me expectantly. When I was finished, Kat just stared at me like she had no idea what I said or didn’t care. So I said, “What about you?”

“My ex husband is a surgeon,” she said proudly as if that explained anything.

“Oh, nice.”

Kat just nodded and I felt like I needed to continue talking. “What kind of surgeries does he do?”

“Lap band and weight loss procedures. Not plastic or cosmetic surgery if that’s what you want to know,” she laughed softly.

Shade? I know I had just rolled out of bed, but did I look like I needed plastic surgery? Bitch.

Brady joined us at the table and we heard the two boys come barreling in.

“Boys, did you wash your hands?” Kat demanded.

“Yes, Mom,” they said in unison.

She smiled proudly. Daniela brought the food – what Kat requested and tacos for Brady and me.

We began eating in silence then Kat asked, “Will we be receiving a wedding invite from you two soon?”

“Aunt Kat,” Brady groaned like she was being ridiculous. I smiled happily.

“Just don’t run off and get married without telling anyone like your crazy brother. How is he anyway?”

“He’s fine.”

“Excuse me? Miss?” Kat called to Daniela, but Daniela didn’t hear her so Kat started snapping her fingers. Daniela rushed over. “Reese and I will have white wine and the boys will take apple juice. Brady?”

“Water, please,” Brady said.

I don’t know how Kat knows I’m an alcoholic, but I was grateful for the wine. She asked Brady about his parents and work and then she said, “Brady, what is that on your neck?”

Kat leaned across the table for a better look and I turned to look too. He had the smallest little hickey peeking out of the collar of his shirt. You could barely see it.

“What? I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Brady answered, rubbing his neck and turning red.

Kat grinned at me with wide eyes like this was the closest thing she’s gotten to action in years. I smiled back.

After we ate, Daniela cleared the table and Kat announced that they were going to the beach. She invited us to come and I could tell Brady was going to decline, but I was nodding. We hadn’t been to the beach yet and I wanted to go.

“Sure, we’ll go for a little bit,” he answered.

I went and changed into my most modest bikini because I didn’t want expose the little boys to T and A yet. We got down to the beach and set up towels and an umbrella for Kat (because clearly that tan was not authentic). I oiled up and laid back ready to get dark. Brady laid next to me for a little bit until the boys begged him to play with them. Brady told us he would be back then he actually went to go play with them. It was cute.

I was baking in the sun and almost fell asleep when Kat said, “How long have you been together?”

“Almost a year,” I realized out loud. We had a small little break, but I can’t believe it’s been that long already.

“And you’re just having fun?” she continued.

“What do you mean?”

“Brady seemed to clam up when I mentioned a wedding. Is that not a realistic expectation for you two?”

“I mean, not right now,” I said. I was starting to feel really put on the spot. “Eventually, I hope.”

“Was my sister nice to you?” Kat asked and for a moment I didn’t understand what she meant.

I nodded. Brady’s mom has never been overly nice to me, but she’s also not mean either.

“She’s very protective of her boys. I’m the same way. That’s why I asked.”

I didn’t know how to respond to this so there was silence. Then I asked, “Are you close?”

“We are ten years apart and honestly, we’re very different. But she was a great role model to have growing up. She’s quite inspiring. I wouldn’t say that we are extremely close, but I love having her to look up to,” Kat said. I think this was the most authentic thing she’d said all day.

“I don’t know if she likes me,” I said, suddenly feeling like I could be honest. “Any tips to get on her good side?”

Kat turned and looked at me through her (Prada) sunglasses (I had the same ones and my mom stole them). “Be yourself, Reese. She’s a wonderful judge of character so if you’re putting on a big fake show for her, she is going to know.”

I don’t feel like I’ve been fake with Brady’s mom. Maybe just a bit aloof which may have put her off even more. But I nodded and said okay. Kat and I continued talking and I found that she was really easy to talk to. She told me about her divorce and I told her about my parents and she was not judgmental about it at all. After a while, Brady came back and we decided that we were going to walk around. We got dressed and told Kat we would see them at the house later.

There was a strip of restaurants, bars and shops so naturally Brady and I went into a bar and got margaritas. We were being super sweet and affectionate to each other. I love when we get like that. After the bar, we walked down the strip and went into a few of the boutiques. I got another bathing suit because that’s exactly what I needed and a pair of sunglasses. Then we came upon a fine jewelry store. I insisted we go in.

The salesman asked what we were looking for and I told him to just let us look. Obviously I wanted to look at all the engagement rings and try some on. I slowly walked around the display cases until I found them. Aha! I stopped and peered at all the beautiful rings through the glass.

“You, engaged?” the middle eastern man asked, pointing back and forth between Brady and me. Brady said no before I could even open my mouth. I pouted. I thought it would be fun to pretend to be engaged, but whatever.

“Can I try this one on?” I asked, pointing to a pretty ring that wasn’t really my style.

“Sure,” my middle eastern friend told me. He opened the case and slid the ring on my finger and I was in love.

“You can customize it,” he told Brady. “Any diamond you want.”

“I want this diamond in a different setting,” I announced. “I want something dainty with a humongous diamond. What can you suggest?”

The sales guy’s face lit up. “I have one for you!” He scurried to the back storage room and I couldn’t help thinking about how easy it would have been to run off with the ring he let me try on. Is that bad? My friend came back two seconds later and said, “You will like it. Big diamond, small band. Perfect for your pretty little finger.”

“Show me!” I squealed. He opened a little black box and a huge diamond blinded me. The guy took it out of the box and replaced the old tiny ring with the new beautiful huge one. There was a ridiculously large cushion cut diamond with a halo, two smaller diamonds flanking it and a thin band of tiny diamonds. LOVE.

I turned and looked at Brady and he was standing far away looking super uncomfortable and ready to leave.

“Four carat center and sixty diamonds in total.”

“We’ll take it!” I announced.

“$45,000, okay? I will custom make it just for you, dear. Whatever you want.”

“Okay!” I nodded eagerly.

“Reese, no,” Brady finally cut in.

I scoffed at him. “Why not? You make that much in like a week.”

“I don’t want to do this right now,” he said.

I pouted and looked at the ring. I’m trying to be more mature and more considerate so that meant I probably shouldn’t push it. After one last look, I took the ring off and handed it back to the sales guy. “Nevermind!”

He looked like even he was surprised by how easily I gave up.

“$40,000 for you, dear. Engagement ring and wedding band.”

I didn’t dare look at Brady even though my friend was obviously cutting us a deal.

“No, it’s okay. Thanks so much though! I’ll send all my friends here!” I headed out the door and Brady followed me. There was an ice cream shop a few doors down and I wanted to go in a get a cone. We took our cones to a bench and ate them in silence. Usually I feel like I need to fill silences and start talking, but I was too busy thinking. Aunt Kat was right – Brady did get all weird whenever marriage was mentioned. Maybe he’s afraid of commitment.

“I’m glad the sun is out today,” he said suddenly, breaking the silence. Of course he wasn’t going to mention what just happened. But I was. I’m sick of always wondering what he’s thinking.

“Did that make you uncomfortable?” I asked.

“What?”

“The jewelry store. The engagement rings…”

Brady shrugged. “No, we just haven’t discussed it so I was caught off guard.”

“We haven’t discussed it,” I repeated, trying not to sound irritated. We have discussed it and he said I could pick out any ring I want. We may have been drunk, but I know what he said.

“There’s a lot we need to figure out before we do that. I don’t want to rush into anything just because you see a pretty ring,” Brady explained like I am four years old.

I sat there and licked my cone feeling dumb. The top ice cream scoop fell off my cone and hit the ground, beginning to melt almost immediately. I felt Brady watching me and he was probably wondering when my tantrum would start.

“Do you want another one?” he asked finally.

I shook my head. “No, this is fine. I probably didn’t need that extra scoop anyway.”

After we ate our ice cream, we went back to the resort and showered then napped. We woke up and fooled around for a little bit before Brady suggested we go watch a movie because the house had a home theater, of course.

Just when we got set up in the theater room watching American Sniper, the older of the two boys, Roper, came barging in.

“What are you guys watching? Is this American Sniper? I want to watch,” he said, flopping on one of the empty couches.

“Yes, it’s American Sniper,” Brady answered.

“What are you guys doing under that blanket?” he asked, eyeing us suspiciously. I had my legs draped over Brady’s lap and we were under a blanket so maybe to an immature sixteen year old it looked like he was feeling me up or something. Which, even if he was, was none of Roper’s sixteen year old business.

“Roper, does your mommy know you’re up here?” I asked sweetly.

“Who cares? I do whatever the fuck I want,” he scoffed and it was a compete 180 from the polite kid I met that morning.

“I don’t think your mother would like you using that kind of language,” I pointed out.

“My mom isn’t my boss!” Roper snapped. “I’m not a little kid. Did you take a hater pill this morning?”

I laughed because that was seriously so stupid. I wanted to ask if he took an annoying pill, but decided against it.

“Ro, do you want to hang out after the movie?” Brady asked.

“No, I’ll just stay here and watch,” he answered and kicked his feet up and rested his hands behind his head.

We watched for about six minutes before Roper started talking and being annoying again. Every time we would point out that we were trying to watch a movie, he would say, “Okay, okay, sorry. But wait – blah, blah, blah…” I wanted to lock him in a cage. Have I mentioned how much I hate children and teenagers?

After the movie, we finally got rid of him and retired to our room for the evening. On Sunday morning I woke up looking to snuggle with my boo, but I couldn’t feel him in the bed. I opened my eyes and saw that he wasn’t there. The bathroom light wasn’t on so I knew he wasn’t in there either. I figured he’d be back soon, but after about ten minutes I decided to go find him and some food. I got dressed and went downstairs then followed soft voices I heard in the kitchen.

Brady was sitting on a stool in front of the kitchen counter and Daniela was on the other side cooking or something. He didn’t have a shirt on and it looked like he was drinking coffee or tea or something.

“Hola,” I said and they both turned to look at me. I walked and sat on the stool next to Brady.

“Good morning. What do you want for breakfast?” Brady asked me.

“You,” I said sweetly.

He laughed and I said, “What are you doing? Why didn’t you wake me up?”

“You were sleeping so peacefully.”

Daniela said something to Brady in Spanish and they began talking and laughing and I wished I’d paid more attention to Spanish in high school because I felt left out. She made us pancakes and fresh squeezed orange juice and I asked if there was any tequila. Brady informed me that it was too early for tequila, but I reminded him that we were on vacation. Daniela brought the tequila and I put some in both of our drinks.

Kat and the brats came down while we were eating.

“Good morning, you two!” she greeted us. She was wearing sunglasses, white shorts and a tank top that showed off her obvious fake tits.

“Hi Kat!” I said back.

“Where’s the woman? We are starving! Boys? What do you want for breakfast?” Kat asked. Daniela appeared and Kat ordered breakfast like she was at a restaurant. Daniela scurried off to make their food.

“What’s her name? Is she the one we’ve always had?” Kat asked.

“Daniela? Yeah, she’s been around for a while. We had her grandmother before she passed away, remember?” Brady said.

“Oh, right. Daniela? Hold the cheese on my omelet, do you understand?” Kat said then looked back at Brady. “Does she not know English? She’s putting cheese in my omelet and I told her not to!”

Brady called Daniela and explained the cheese misunderstanding and she said sorry over and over again and started blushing. Brady told us he was going to put clothes on.

“I swear having her is almost more difficult than just doing everything ourselves,” Kat mumbled and walked over to the breakfast nook. I didn’t like how ungrateful she was being and I knew if she actually had to cook and clean up after herself, she would probably have an aneurysm.

After breakfast, Kat and I went out to the pool to bake and drink mimosas. She decided to tell me more about her divorce and how men are always looking for the next youngest, hottest thing. And that I needed to maintain my appearance if I didn’t want Brady to stray. Seriously, she said that.

“I mean, you saw how he was acting around the girl. I assure you, if a man finds a woman who is pretty and can captivate his attention, he will pursue her. Brady is such a great boy, but he’s no different,” Kat said.

“I think Brady is just really nice,” I said defensively.

“And do you know who takes advantage of niceness? Women.”

I really didn’t want to continue talking about Brady potentially cheating on me with the housekeeper so I asked Kat to tell me how she raised such well behaved boys. She went into this long spiel about private school and discipline and I almost fell asleep. Eventually I decided to go find Brady so I went upstairs to our room. I heard him talking and even though I thought I was above eavesdropping, I tiptoed outside the door so I could hear who he was talking to.

“I told you, Aunt Katherine doesn’t mind. Yeah. It’s fine,” he was saying. “Bye.”

I walked in and saw him sitting on the bed with his phone.

“Heyyyy,” I said, jumping on the bed next to him. “Who was on the phone?”

“My mom. Thinks I should have told her we were coming because apparently we are disturbing Aunt Kat’s weekend,” he explained.

“This house is big enough for all of us to stay comfortably,” I said.

Brady agreed. Then we had sex and got ready to go to the airport. Aunt Kat gave us hugs and told me it was such a pleasure meeting me and hoped to see me again. I think she actually liked me!

Florida was fun. It makes me want to work really hard so I can retire and buy a multimillion dollar mansion and hire a housekeeper to live with me and do my dirty work. Hope everyone had a fun weekend!

On Friday something miraculous happened: everyone was able to meet after work for dinner and drinks. Brady texted me around one saying that he would be getting off early and I decided that since it was Friday, I would too. I suggested we grab something to eat before we retired for the evening and then extended the invite to Kendra because she asked what my evening plans were. I went home and changed then Brady picked me up so we could go to the restaurant.

Kendra and John met us there then Brady informed me that Carly and Chris were on their way. Joy. Preston also came with Nicole and their new friend, Lexi who I actually love. Such a good turn out!

I ordered a grande margarita and a turkey burger with avocado. We all talked about work and life and Carly and I successfully ignored each other without making it awkward. I found out that she and Chris actually are moving to Philadelphia together at the end of the month. Like it’s a for sure thing. That’s so fucking soon. Can you believe that? After we finished our food, we stayed and had a couple more drinks before calling it an evening.

The drinks must have been pretty strong because I don’t even remember leaving and going back to Brady’s. But I suggested we go out. He’d said that his friend Jacob and his girlfriend wanted to meet up so I was like, “Yesss! Tell them we’ll meet them at the bar!”

I changed into jeans, a tank top and heels and swiped on some hot pink lipstick and eyeliner. I’m always pretty impressed with how well I put on makeup while drunk (meaning I don’t end up looking like Heath Ledger as the Joker). We walked to a bar near Brady’s house where Jacob and Stacey were already waiting. As soon as we got inside, Brady went to the bar and I went to find his/our friends.

Stacey ended up seeing me first and called me over to the table they were sitting at. I was like so happy to see them apparently. I squealed and pulled them into a group hug and they probably thought I was insane.

“So how are y’all? It’s been so long!” I said.

Stacey started telling me what they’ve been up to and I nodded and pretended to be really into it. I have absolutely no idea what she said. Brady came back with drinks for us and we sat down talking until I suggested we go upstairs where there were more people and booths to sit in. We got upstairs and hung out by the balcony overlooking the lower floor. I got bored doing that so I turned around and found two guys sitting at a table drinking beer. I started talking to them and one of them asked what I do.

I began a long monologue about my job and what my daily tasks are and then opened the floor up for questions. One of them wanted to know about the team I work with and what my school background is so I explained everything to him. He complimented me on my passion for my work and I beamed.

Then he said, “Are you on Molly?”

Like excuse me? You can’t just ask a woman that. And why would he think I was on Molly just because I was drunk and passionate about my job? I rolled my eyes at him and went to find my boyfriend.

They were still standing at the balcony drinking beer, but there were two blonde girls talking to Brady.

“Hiiiii. I’m Reese!” I said to them.

One of them legit rolled her eyes at me, but they told me their names.

“So how do you guys know each other?” I asked.

Brady kind of laughed. “We actually just met.”

“Ohhhh,” I said.

They were all silent and just looked at each other and I was about to say, “You can continue talking. Just pretend I’m not here,” but the girls said they were leaving.

“Aww, did I scare your new friends away?” I said, pretending I wasn’t satisfied.

Brady shrugged.

I got bored again so I walked around and this guy grabbed my arm. He was my height and looked Hispanic and he was kind of pudgy, but he was just so sweet looking.

“Hola!” I said, stopping.

He began saying something to me in Spanish and I nodded. He stopped talking and looked at me expectantly so I assumed he must have asked a question.

“Me no español,” I said, pointing to myself.

“I’m from Barcelona. No speak English good,” he told me.

“Oh my gosh! I’m going there soon!” I told him even though I’m not.

“Yes?” his face lit up. “You, me?”

“No, I’m going to visit soon. Not with you.”

He looked confused. “Visit?”

“Yes, visit. I’m going on vacation. On holiday. What places should I check out?”

He shook his head. “No, I no speak English. K?”

Then I remembered that Brady speaks Spanish and grabbed my friend so Brady could translate. I found them in the same spot and said, “Hey boo! I found our tour guide for Barcelona. This is-” I realized I didn’t know his name so I said to to my new friend, “Como te llamas?”

He said, “Tony.”

“Babe, this is my friend Tony and he doesn’t speak English very well. Can you translate a few things for us?” I said.

Brady laughed and said sure. I hugged him. He said something to Tony in Spanish and they talked for a moment before Brady turned to me and said, “He thinks you’re very beautiful.”

“Aww, Tooooneee,” I said, blushing. “Tell him I said thanks.”

They said something else and Brady said, “He wants to take you back to Spain with him.”

I laughed.

I watched them talk some more and then Brady shook his head. It seemed like Tony was trying to convince Brady of something, but Brady was not having it.

Finally, Brady said, “Adios. Bye,” and kind of shooed Tony away.

“What did he say?” I wanted to know.

“I’m not telling you.”

“Oh, pleaseeeee. What did he say?!” I begged.

“Forget about it. Do you want a drink?” Brady said and wouldn’t let me bring it up again. Blah.

We took a cab to another bar/club. It was the same bar I ran into Kyle at when I went out with my old coworker Leah. And guess what? We ran into Kyle there again.

The actual bar was packed and I was walking around looking for an opening so we could order drinks. I thought I spotted Kyle right in front of me, but I couldn’t tell. Then he turned around and saw me and made a face like, “Haha, are you fucking serious?”

“Hi Kyle!” I said as he patted me on the shoulder like I’m some sort of child. “Do you remember my boyfriend, Brady?”

“Yeah, of course. What’s up, man?” Kyle said. I watched happily as they shook hands and said hi.

“Kyle, why are you always here? Do you live here?” I teased.

“I’m only here as much as you are, sweetheart,” he said and I sensed that he didn’t want to joke around with me.

“K, well bye Kyle!” I said dismissing him.

He said goodbye and leaned down and kissed me on the cheek. Brady and I got another drink and hung out until I got tired and felt like I might vomit. We walked outside to get a cab then I spotted a late night diner that was still open and I insisted we go in. I ordered two hot dogs, fries and a Diet Coke and Brady just got a fucking grilled cheese. I rolled my eyes and told him he could have some of my food since he wanted to be all modest. But of course, I was finished eating in approximately two minutes.

On Saturday morning, I felt like shit and slept on and off until around two. Luke texted me inviting me to lunch so I got up and ready to meet him. Brady and I were going to a charity event at a rooftop later on in the evening so I needed to go home and get ready anyway. After I ate with Luke, I went home and changed into a romper and heels. I told Brady I would swing by and pick him up then drive us to the event.

“I can’t believe you won’t tell me what my friend Tony said about me,” I said as we were on our way.

“You don’t want to know,” Brady said.

“Was it bad?”

“Don’t worry about it. You won’t ever even see this guy again.” Brady patted my knee.

I was going to protest and tell him that was even more reason to tell me, but I realized that I was about to miss our exit. I glanced behind me to make sure the lanes were clear and they were (or so I thought) so I sped across three lanes to get to my exit. This freaking Prius came out of nowhere and I had to slam on my brakes and swerve so we all wouldn’t die.

“Reese, what the fuck are you doing?” Brady shouted.

“What? That car came out of nowhere!” I whined.

“Did you even look before you got over? You almost killed us!” he continued.

“Yes I looked. I know how to drive,” I said defensively.

We were silent for the next few minutes until I started giggling. Brady glanced at me and then I just couldn’t stop. I hate when that happens.

I told myself I would only have two drinks, but our tickets included an open bar so I couldn’t let that go to waste. I met a ton of people including this girl who has a successful fashion blog so I gave her my most fashionable friend, Preston’s, phone number just in case they want to be fashionable together.

By the time we left, I was really drunk and happy and smiley. In the elevator on our way down to valet, Brady said, “So you drove us here in your car, parked it with valet, and now you’re too drunk to drive home. What are you going to do?”

I giggled. “I’m totally not too drunk to drive.”

“Yes, you are.”

“Oh my gosh, do you want to drive?” I asked, rolling my eyes.

Brady said, “Yes.”

“Okay, thanks boo,” I said, hugging him. I think even if I wasn’t drunk, Brady would have insisted on driving home since I almost killed us before.

We got back to Brady’s house and I passed out in his bed with all my clothes and makeup on. When I woke up, I was still drunk and got on Instagram and Snapchat for a little while. Then I heard talking so I got up and went to find out who it was. Brady and Chris were hanging out in the kitchen.

“Hey guys!” I greeted them. “Where’s the pizza?”

“What pizza?” Brady asked.

“You know I always want pizza when I wake up. Pepperoni please? Hi Chris! I can’t believe you’re moving!” I said.

“Yep. I’m pretty excited about it,” Chris said.

“We should have a going away party. Oh my gosh, it’ll be so fun! We’ll get a cake!” I exclaimed.

“Okay, I’m down with that,” Chris agreed.

So now I have to plan a really fun going away party for them. I’m mostly excited for cake. The pizza came and I proceeded to eat half of it and let the guys have the other half. After I was finished pigging out, Brady said, “I don’t understand where all that food goes.”

“Are you calling me fat?” I asked.

“No, I’m saying you’re not fat. It’s impressive that you can eat like that and still stay in shape.”

I smiled and took his compliment. Sometimes I get into these health kicks where I’ll only eat kale, avocado and  dark chocolate, but these past few months I’ve just been eating literally everything in sight. But luckily I’ve found a workout routine so I don’t feel so bad about it.

On Sunday, Brady woke me up early so we could go for a run.

“Ew, it’s like seven,” I said, glancing at my phone with one eye open.

“I know, but we need to go before it starts raining,” Brady explained.

I was about to protest and throw a tantrum until I remembered that I’m trying to be better about that so I rolled out of bed without a fight. After our two and half mile run, I showered then slept until like one. I woke up thinking about food, obviously. Brady wasn’t in the room so I texted him, “Waffles and fruit please.” He showed up ten minutes later with waffles and fruit. He’s perfect. ❤

Our summer interns started on Monday. Because of the huge change we had in departments, we didn’t really have anything set for them to do. And since Whitney’s role is so small now she is in charge of babysitting them all day. Lucky her! We have all girl interns and one boy. He’s gay. Luke hates him.

After work, I got dinner (banh mi!) and went to Brady’s. He wasn’t home yet so I set up our feast and posted a picture on my Snapchat story so everyone would be jealous. When Brady got home we ate and talked about work and stuff. We were talking about needing to take a real vacation, like not just a weekend, and I suggested Spain. One of my Facebook friends is in Barcelona for the summer and I’m super jealous of his pictures. I literally log on just to see if he’s uploaded any new ones. Brady thought it was a great idea. I’m too afraid to plan it though because it might jinx us!

Later on, we were laying in bed with our laptops and Brady said, “Your dad told me to tell you to make sure you’re being nice to me.”

“What? Where? How?” I asked, oogling at his computer screen.

“He texted me,” Brady said and held up his phone.

I scrunched my nose up. “What? How does he have your number?”

“Uh, we exchanged numbers?”

“When?”

“Last time he visited.”

“Why?”

I was so confused. I don’t remember ever seeing my dad and Brady exchanging phone numbers or business cards or really even talking one on one.

“I don’t know. We just get along well. Is that bad?” Brady pushed his glasses up on his nose.

“No, it’s fine. Just don’t talk about me. And don’t tell him anything about our relationship,” I said.

Brady laughed and said he wouldn’t. I think it’s kinda interesting that Brady and my dad get along well and text each other although I can’t figure out what they possibly text about (Golf? Cars? IRAs? Me?!). And it makes me kind of sad that I can’t imagine ever texting his mom or dad and being friendly with them. We don’t have a single thing in common/they hate me.

On Tuesday night, Brady brought home macarons and wine for me. He’s so sweet. We watched Netflix and drank wine in the living room. A little while later, we heard Carly and Chris walk in. I watched them walk toward the kitchen, dressed all nicely like it was date night.

Fueled by the wine, I shouted, “Hi Carly!”

She stopped suddenly and looked at me, then did the meanest thing I’ve ever seen her do: she rolled her eyes at me. Rude.

“Ugh, what’s with her?” Brady asked after she and Chris disappeared.

I shrugged. So she was obviously still very mad. And it made me mad. So I decided to be done with her.

I was meeting with Kendra for happy hour after work on Wednesday and I decided to bring Luke along. And since I was bringing Luke I decided to invite Preston.

I’ve told them all abut each other and now they’re friends on Snapchat and Instagram and talk sometimes. Luke says Preston isn’t his type, but I was convinced once they met in person they were going to love each other. They’re both like the male version of me!

“You’re going to love him! He’s so much fun!” I told Luke as we walked to the restaurant. I’d been waiting for the day when my two favorites gays got to meet and it was finally happening!

Kendra was already there when we got there. We sat down and ordered and I discreetly told her about the impending meeting. When Preston arrived, he was with Nicole and she made this big scene about how happy she was to finally meet Luke. So annoying.

I watched Preston and Luke eye each other up. Preston is tall and thin with amazing skin, dark hair and eyes, and he wears lots of layers, boots, hats, etc. Luke is the opposite. He’s tall and muscular with light beachy hair, blue eyes, a five o’clock shadow, and he was wearing freaking Converse and a beanie.

“Nice to meet you, man,” Luke said in his deep voice.

After we sat down, Preston texted me, “He is SEXY.” I looked up and smiled at him across the table.

We started talking about Caitlyn Jenner because I wanted to get everyone’s opinion on it.

“She’s so brave and I think it’s amazing that she is finally able to show the world who she really is. Honestly, it brought tears to my eyes,” Preston said.

Luke side eyed him. “Dude, really? Are you thinking about transitioning too or something?”

“What if I am? Is that a problem?” Preston shot back sassily.

I giggled and sipped my drink because clearly they were kidding.

“I think his, I mean her, makeup could have been better. I mean, you’re on the cover of a magazine! She should have looked like a million bucks,” Nicole said.

We all looked at her.

“Well, she still looks much better than Kris Jenner,” I said and everyone laughed.

“She still looks like Bruce to me. I’m not really buying it. I think it’s for publicity,” Nicole went on.

“Publicity, doll, really? She’s being ridiculed by everyone!” Preston gasped.

“She gained followers on Twitter faster than the president of the United States. That’s hardly being ridiculed. Everyone is supporting her,” Luke said.

The two of them stared each other down while Nicole continued to offend the entire table. Preston texted me again saying, “He’s an asshole. I don’t know if I love it or hate it.”

“Love it. Try to be nicer,” I replied.

I heard Preston say, “So Luke, do you go out?”

“I do,” Luke answered.

“Where?”

“Wherever. Places around here.”

“Hmm. Have you been to B-Town?”

“Hell no. I avoid places like that.”

Preston’s eyebrows shot up. “Oh? Why?”

“It’s way too faggy and gross for me. Not my scene at all,” Luke said.

Preston looked wounded. “Okaaaaaaay.”

I texted Kendra, “They aren’t getting along as well as I thought they would. We need to mediate.”

“Mediate?” she responded. “We need to split them up before someone gets hurt.”

I put my phone down and decided to point out that they have more in common than they think.

“What gym do you go to, Preston? Luke goes to the gym every morning before work,” I said.

“I don’t work out, boo,” he said proudly. “I’m just naturally this fit.”

Luke scoffed and shook his head.

Nicole said, “It’s because of all he cigarettes and coke.”

“Nikki!” Preston gasped, slapping her shoulder.

Luke gave me a wide eyed look. That’s how the entire meal went. It was a disaster. Finally Preston and Nicole decided they were going to take their party elsewhere. As soon as they left I said, “He’s not normally like that.”

“Yeah. He needs to stop hanging out with Nicole. She’s literally too stupid to function,” Kendra said.

I was tipsy after we left and walked to a bar a few blocks away to meet Brady for the Blackhawks game. He was with guy friends and I was the only girl, but who cares. There were no stools available and no one seemed to want to accommodate me so I made Brady scooch over so we could share a seat.

“Hey baby,” I said in a low voice so only he could hear me. “Did you order food? I’m starving.”

“Hmm?” Brady said, smiling affectionately at me.

He clearly had no idea what I said so I looked around until I found a passing server. I’d actually eaten before at happy hour, but I always want to eat more.

“Can I have an order of cheese fries, a strawberry margarita on the rocks – salt, and a round of tequila shots for the table?” I said to the server.

“Reese,” Brady said.

“Loveeeee youuuuuu,” I said hugging him.

When our tequila shots came I happily announced to the group. Everyone looked around like they were unsure for a moment, but then we all took it. Afterwards I said, “So I’m dying to get everyone’s thoughts on the most pressing issue our country is facing right now… Caitlyn Jenner.”

Everyone groaned.

“Who cares?” Nate, I think, called out.

“I care,” I said.

“I think it’s bullshit that growing tits and cutting your dick off makes you a hero. What a country we live in,” said Jacob.

Everyone chuckled and I gasped.

“Yeah. ‘Courageous’ because he’s a drag queen.”

“Because he thinks God made a mistake.”

“It’s disgusting. I’m sick of seeing and hearing about it.”

I leaned over to Brady. “I never knew your friends were so Republican.”

“Yeah…” he said looking kind of uncomfortable.

“What do you think?”

“I mean, I don’t really care.” He took a long gulp of his beer. “It doesn’t impact my life at all.”

“But it brings forth a lot of issues people are normally afraid to speak about. It’s like racism. Every knows it’s there, but no one wants to talk about it.”

“I would hardly compare this to racism, Reese,” Brady said.

“How? It’s the same thing. Black people can’t help that they’re born black and they are still discriminated against for it. Gay people can’t help that they’re gay, transgender people can’t help that they were born the wrong gender…”

“You can’t compare someone’s appearance, their genetic make up, their culture, the way they were born to what is essentially a choice,” Brady said.

“Choice?!” I practically shouted. “Being gay is not a choice!”

“Maybe it’s not a choice, but coming out and being open about gay or transgender is a choice. People cannot hide their race or ethnicity.”

“You think gay people should hide being gay?” I asked in a low voice. “Brady, are you homophobic?”

I felt like I was going to cry. I can’t believe Brady and I had never had this conversation before.

“Of course not. I just think it’s an unfair comparison.”

I dug into my cheese fries and tried to digest the fact that my future husband is close minded and ignorant just like his parents. How are we ever going have a fulfilling life together? I plan on having a man of honor (Preston) and drag queens vogue-ing down the aisle at our wedding. For a moment I thought I should hook him up with Nicole and they could live a nice, transphobic life together. Then I looked at Brady and he was looking down at his beer bottle and he looked so innocent and cute.

“Hey,” I said, nudging him with my elbow. “I forgive you for what you said.”

Brady laughed. “Okay, thanks.”

After the game, we went back to Brady’s house and had sex. Afterwards as we were laying next to each other I said, “Brady, I just want you to know that I used to be a man.”

He gave me a weird look at first and then rolled his eyes when I started laughing. I’m so hilarious. I love myself.

Since I wasn’t working on Friday, I did a little shopping, got waxed and threaded, and went to Kyle’s condo to talk. He texted me asking if I’d talked to Carly and I said no and asked if he had any suggestions. Since I was on my way home, I just walked to his place so we could talk about it. He’d just gotten off work and was wearing slacks and this fitted dress shirt that showed off his big arms. I think he works in finance, but I’m not sure.

“I never thought I’d see you again,” Kyle said when he let me in. He smiled and pulled me into a hug and I instantly knew it wasn’t a good idea for me to be over there. I gave him the weakest one armed hug I could muster.

“I’ve never been here before. Give me a tour!” I said, trying to avoid too much eye contact.

“Okay,” Kyle said, laughing and following me into the living area. I walked through his living room and kitchen while he commentated. I peeked into his dark bedroom and quickly turned away before he could follow me in.

“Cute,” I concluded. We walked back to the kitchen and looked at each other.

Kyle ran his hands through his hair and said, “So how have you been? Do you want a glass of wine?”

His smile was so blinding that I literally had to look away. He’s so good looking.

“Sure, I’ll have one glass,” I said.

I stood there while Kyle poured us glasses of red wine.

“So Carly is giving you the cold shoulder, huh?” he asked as he handed me my glass.

I nodded. “I didn’t expect her to stop speaking to me. I’m really surprised honestly.”

“Yeah, when Carly’s mad, she’s mad. She doesn’t get mad often, but when she does…” He shook his head like he can’t even deal with her.

“Hmm,” I said. I hopped up on the counter and sat with my legs dangling off. “Have you talked to her?”

“A little bit. She’s giving me shit about it too.”

“Okay, you know her well and I’m sure this has happened before.” I gave him a side eye. “What should I do?”

“Just give her some space. She’ll have to get over it.”

When Kyle said this he moved his arm and accidentally touched my knee. Since I was wearing shorts, he touched my bare skin and I pulled my leg back like he was a hot flame. Kyle and I have always had a lot of sexual tension going on, but I knew better than to play into it.

“But if she’s talking to you, I want her to talk to me,” I said.

“She’ll come around, Reese. Don’t worry,” he sighed.

I was kind of annoyed. Carly hasn’t spoken a word to me, but she’s speaking to Kyle and both of us went against what she said. Plus he’s probably done this to her before.

“Why is she so mad?” I asked him.

He leaned against the counter and crossed his arms. “Dude, I don’t know. I’m not too concerned about it. She will be okay eventually.”

“But I just don’t get why she’s refusing to talk to me at all,” I mused.

“I dunno.”

We were silent for a minute and I took a big gulp of my wine so I could finish it and get out of there.

“Nice kicks,” Kyle said and he stood in front of me and picked one of my legs up so he could see my shoe better.

“Thanks,” I giggled nervously. One of his hands was on my calf and the other held my foot. He started massaging my calf and made his way up to the back of my knee. I told him to stop.

“Ticklish?” he smirked at me.

“Yes!” I nodded. I tried to pull my leg away but Kyle held on. And I’d also like to remind you that I was wearing short shorts so I was also trying not to expose my vagina.

“Kyleeee,” I groaned.

“I love it when you say my name like that,” he said, finally letting go of my leg.

I jumped down from the counter and scurried around him preparing to leave.

“Are you out of here already?” Kyle asked.

“Yeah, I’m meeting up with my boyfriend soon,” I said, even though I hadn’t talked to Brady all day.

Kyle looked away and I grabbed my Nordstrom bag and headed toward the door.

“Hey!” he said and followed me. “We can still be friends, right? I don’t want you to think we can’t.”

Friends? Y’all know I can’t be friends with guys. It’s just impossible, especially after we’ve already had sex. But I still nodded. “Of course, Kyle.”

He hugged me goodbye then I ran all the way home because it was raining. Brady came over later that night. I hugged him so hard when I saw him. There’s nothing like seeing your bae after practically getting molested by your former friend’s brother, right?

“Happy to see me?” Brady laughed.

“Yessss. I missed you,” I said.

We decided to go to dinner so I changed into a long sleeved dress and heels. After dinner we sat at the bar and talked about our trip to Florida. And then we talked about our dog that we haven’t gotten yet. And then we talked about the houses we are going to buy (yes, plural). We like to dream big.

On Saturday one of Brady’s fraternity brothers was visiting so he had to pick him up from the airport early. I went home and worked out then spent the day with Preston and Nicole. They were fun and all, but I started missing my boyfriend which I know is pathetic. I texted him, “Hey, what are you doing?”

He said, “Home drinking with Eric [frat brother], Chris and Carly. You?”

The fact that Brady and Carly were drinking together made me uneasy. What if she got drunk and blabbed to Brady that I slept with her brother? What if Chris blabbed? So I made it my mission to avoid the duplex for the rest of the day.

On Sunday, Luke came over so we could do some work. We worked for about two hours before we decided to drive to Wisconsin for no reason other than to get food from his favorite restaurant. Not a single regret.

I called Brady when I got home. He didn’t answer so I decided to just go over there. I had this premonition that Carly would be there and it would be awkward, but I thought it was extremely unlikely because it was Sunday evening and she would probably be in the suburbs.

Nope. Carly’s car was parked when I got there. I got really annoyed at first, but then I realized that it wasn’t her fault that our boyfriends live together. I made it safely to Brady’s room without seeing her and texted Kendra asking if I should talk to her.

“It wouldn’t hurt to try,” Kendra said.

I rolled my eyes at the thought of trying to talk to Carly in person and her ignoring me. My pride couldn’t take that and I would probably say something snide in retaliation so I decided not to say anything at all.

Also on Sunday, my ex added me on SnapChat. I didn’t realize it was him because his username didn’t have his name or anything in it. Random people add me all the time on Snap so I thought nothing of it. Then he sent me a picture of his bare torso and his boner in boxer briefs. His face wasn’t in it, but I know what his body looks like. Plus the caption was, “What’s up?” and who else would just say that like it’s normal?

Gross. I blocked him immediately.

Anyway, I feel like I’ve given Carly some time to cool off so I’ll try texting her again today. Hopefully she responds, but if not I’m going to give up. This is all way too dramatic.