really.”
The guilt I felt about lying to Madeline had made me lose my appetite. I should have just told her the truth. That I thought we were getting too close and that it wasn’t a good idea. Instead, I had made up a story that Troy needed help with something.
He didn’t need help with anything. So far, we’d done nothing productive.
“Well, I’m starving. It’s almost one, so I say we get out of here.”
“Okay. Let me hit the head first.”
I was in the middle of washing my hands when I heard Troy speaking to someone else.
“Ooh, I think you should get that one.”
I walked out of the bathroom to see him holding his phone in front of him.
“Model it for me,” he said with a grin.
“Who are you talking to? I sure hope that’s Christina,” I joked.
He flashed me the screen for a second. “Christina and Madeline.”
Upon hearing Madeline’s name, I walked around the back of the couch, so I could see over Troy’s shoulder.
Christina was holding up two baby-doll lingerie sets, which probably meant that Madeline was holding the phone.
“White or black?” Christina asked.
“Both,” Troy answered.
“Sorry, no can do. They’re not cheap, and I want to buy some other stuff. So, you have to pick one.”
“Hmm…surprise me.”
Christina didn’t look impressed. She looked up and over her phone. “What do you think, Madeline?”
“Hold them up in front of you.”
Christina did just that.
“I’d go with black,” I said.
Christina grinned. “Thanks, Griff,” she said while her fiancé gave me a dirty look over his shoulder.
“What? You weren’t picking one, so I did.” I patted him on the shoulder. “You’ll thank me later.”
Christina grabbed her phone after hanging the white teddy up. “Since you’re so helpful, Griffin, maybe you can help Madeline decide which one to get too.” She rolled her eyes. “Madeline is being way more difficult than me though.”
“I am not.”
Christina nodded at us through the phone.
“Just turn the camera around, so I can show them,” Madeline said.
The camera flipped to show Madeline against a rack of bras with three different teddies that she had hung up in front for us to see. They were much more revealing than Christina’s pick, and my heart sped up.
“They’re all the same style, but I can’t decide between black, white, or red. Black is classic, white has the whole innocent but not really innocent vibe, and red…well, red is sexy.”
“Hold them up in front of you,” Christina suggested.
“Try them on and send pics,” I blurted out.
Madeline leaned into the camera. “I don’t think so.” She backed up, pulled each teddy off the rack, and held them up in front of her.
Meanwhile, I pulled out my phone and sent her a text.
Me: I need to see pics.
I heard Madeline’s phone beep through Christina’s phone.
“Hold, please,” she said.
Christina turned her camera back around and asked Troy something about Sunday. I wasn’t paying attention because I was waiting for Madeline’s response.
Madeline: So you can jerk off to them later?
Madeline: I don’t think so.
Me: No, so I can tell you what to buy. I can’t tell you what to get when you only hold them up in front of you.
Me: Please.
Madeline: Sorry, dude. If you wanted to see it in person, you shouldn’t have canceled on me.
Me: This isn’t fair.
Madeline: Life’s not fair. But maybe Troy has something sexy he can put on for you.
“I’m done,” Madeline said in the background. “If Griff and Troy don’t have any opinions, I think I’m going to go with white.”
“I’d better go,” Christina said to Troy.
“Not white. Red,” I shouted, but the call was already cut.
I sent Madeline a text, telling her to get red, but she didn’t even open my message.
“Let’s go,” I said to Troy.
Troy’s face lit up. “We’re going to go and get food?”
“No, we’re going to the mall.” I grabbed my keys off the coffee table, where I’d thrown them down when I got there.
“But I’m hungry,” Troy whined.
“You can get something at the food court. We need to go now.”
“I have half a mind to tell you to go by yourself.”
“But then you won’t be able to have Christina try on her little outfit for you.”
He shrugged. “She’ll try it on when she gets home.”
I shook my head sadly. “You’re not even married yet, and you’d rather eat than see your beautiful woman half-naked.”
Troy gritted his teeth. “Fine. We’ll go to the mall. While my dick thanks you, my stomach is really pissed at you.”
“Grab a piece of fruit or something,” I told him. “It’ll tide