Modern Girl's Guide to Friends With Benefits (30 page)

Modern Girl Tip #16 It Has A Shelf Life:
Don't get too comfortable. Remember, your special meet-ups can end abruptly and without notice. Be prepared for the inevitable. But understand your relationship will never be the same. There's something about seeing another person naked that changes everything.

Megan pulled out of the parking garage and started driving. She had no idea where to go now. She just knew she had to get out of there before she said something that would ruin whatever was left of their friendship. Honestly, she didn't know what was worse: her father telling the press she was a drunk; her brother and his friends trying to make decisions for her like she was a child; or that Peter thought she'd actually go along with his idiotic plan.

Marriage?
What the hell was he thinking? She knew their affair would end sooner or later, but she always figured he would be the one who ended it. Leave it to Peter and his white knight complex to complicate things. He saw a problem and he had to fix it. Even if it meant falling on his sword.

But she wasn't going to let him. He didn't really want to marry her. Hell, he'd been dead set against the friends with benefits agreement. There was no way he wanted to marry her. Was there? Sure, he'd be the one to insist they date and not just have sex. He'd wanted to call it a relationship, but that didn't mean he wanted to marry her. And even if he did, did she want to marry him?

Megan pulled onto I-90 and drove north, contemplating the idea. Yes, she was thirty. But just because almost all her friends were married or partnered didn't mean she was ready to settle down. Marriage wasn't something she'd aspired to like other women. There was too much you had to give up to be with another person. Megan liked her independence. She traveled whenever she wanted to and kept strange hours. She drank too much, like to flirt with strangers, and swore like a longshoreman. And that's the way she liked it. It would be near impossible to find someone who accepted her, eccentricities, foul mouth and all.

Peter does
, she reminded herself. But it wasn't the same. They were friends. They went on adventures and got into trouble together. She wasn't the type of woman you settled down with or had kids with. But it didn't matter either way. She wasn't going to marry him over some stupid scandal. By next week, this would all blow over.

The O'Hare exit was a few miles ahead. A hasty plan started to come together as she changed lanes. She'd get out of town for a couple weeks, and all this talk of quick weddings would go away. She had her laptop and credit cards. She could always buy clothing wherever she went.

Now the only thing left was to decide where to go. The lake house was out. It would be the first place they'd look for her, and the weather in Michigan in January left something to be desired. She could catch a plane to the Bahamas and drink mai tais on the beach, but the thought of going there alone was depressing. As were the dozen other places she considered, before deciding on New York. Her brother and Julia were going to head back, but it was a big city. She could visit Kim on the sly and meet with her agent. Maybe start that new series she'd been planning. She needed to focus on her career since it seemed like that was all she had going for her right now. It was time to do what she wanted. Stop pretending she was someone else.

Megan pulled into long-term parking just as the first flakes started to fall. With any luck, she could be out of Chicago in an hour. As she parked the car, she envisioned herself tossing a match into the monstrous SUV she hated and walking away with the violent chords of Rage Against The Machine echoing through the parking garage. Instead, she grabbed her computer bag out of the backseat and locked the door, humming "Killing In The Name" as she made her way to the ticket counter. It wasn't exactly a movie exit, but it was a big step for her.

There was a nonstop flight leaving at six. Megan got a first class seat because it had been a sucktastic day, and if she was running away from her problems she was determined to do it in style. The five hours until the flight gave her plenty of time to plan her next step. She thought about getting a suite at the Marquis, but this wasn't a holiday. She didn't want to be in all that constant motion. What she wanted to do was go home and curl up in bed. But she'd settle for Kim's sofa. Megan pulled out her phone and called Kim's cell.

"Megan, where are you?" Kim said as soon as she answered. "Both Peter and Simon have called, looking for you."

"I'm on my way to see you. Do you have room on your sofa?"

"What? You're not here, are you?" Kim muffled the phone and Megan couldn't make out what was being said. "I wasn't expecting company."

"I'm not there yet. It's not a problem, is it?"

"No, I'd love to see you."

In the background, she could hear a door closing. It was obvious that someone was there with Kim. "I don't want to be trouble. I'll stay at a hotel and you can come see me when you're free. Just please don't tell my brother I'm coming to New York. And whatever you do, don't tell Peter."

"Yeah, I saw those pictures."

"You and everyone else." Megan leaned her head against the cold window, watching the snow accumulate on the tarmac. It was beautiful. Snow had a wonderful way of masking the ugliness. If only there were an equivalent for the human heart. "There's a silver lining to all this. I took your advice and quit the school. I'm going to focus on my writing. Also, I'm pretty sure I'm disowned, so I might even move to New York. There's nothing keeping me in Chicago anymore."

"It would be great to have you so close, but what about Peter?"

"What about him? Why does everyone think I need to consult Peter when I make a decision?"

"Those pictures. I just thought maybe there was something more going on."

"It was just sex. Things went sideways and it's over now," Megan said.

She'd been worried from the start things would implode on them. He'd been a faithful friend for years. He'd do anything for her, especially protect her. He said he loved her, but the truth was she'd never know for certain. It was better to get a clean break than to wonder if he was with her out of some misplaced obligation.

"Hey, I get it. I'm the last person to give advice about guys. But I was in a relationship that was based solely on sex for three years. It's not for everyone. You might think it's great and uncomplicated, but there will always be something missing. That's why I was able to leave Micah and Chicago behind without a second thought. So if it really is just sex, and you're not in love with him, then moving here won't be a problem. But with all this media drama, it might not be the best time to make a big change in your life."

"It's not like I'm running to Vegas and getting hitched," Megan scoffed. "I just want to come see one of my friends and spend a few weeks regrouping."

"You know you're always welcome, hon," Kim said. "When you get here, you can spend as much time couch surfing as you need."

"Did you find her?" Peter asked as soon as Simon and Julia stepped through the door. Simon walked past, hardly acknowledging him, but Julia shook her head. "Did you at least figure out where she was going?"

Simon grumbled under his breath and headed to the bar, wearing his anger like a cloud. Peter had hoped their earlier discussion had settled things between them, but that assessment had been too optimistic. Simon might not have been pissed about the relationship. Hell, he wasn't even pissed about the secrecy. But all this press was eating at him. Peter couldn't blame him. They'd spent the better part of fifteen years keeping the press away from Meg. One month with him and she was on the front page half dressed.

Julia squeezed his arm, drawing his attention back to the moment. "We checked all her local hangouts. I think she really did leave town. Simon called Roger at the lake house. He knows to call if she shows up. Don't worry, we'll find her."

"We're talking about Meg here." Peter let out a frustrated breath and pounded his hand on the wall. "Fuck. For all we know she's on a flight to Italy. There's no way I can fix this if she leaves town."

"It's not like she disappeared for good. Naomi has one of her tech guys working on it. If she bought a plane ticket or a hotel room, we'll find out."

"Naomi should have stayed," he said, starting to pace the length of his apartment. He needed to burn off some of this nervous energy or he was going to go insane. "If she was here, we could help. I know most of her friends. The places she likes to stay when she travels. Maybe I should go over to Naomi's hotel and give her a hand."

"I think you've been enough help today," Simon said from the other room.

"Calm down, Peter. Naomi left in part because you were hovering," Julia said.

"Yeah, because driving women out of my apartment seems to be my specialty," Peter grumbled under his breath. "It wasn't my fault that Meg left," he said loud enough for Simon to hear in the other room. "She's stressed and ran. We had a plan. We all agreed it was the best solution. Why didn't she just listen?"

Julia shook her head and asked Simon, "Are all men this dense?"

"No. Peter's just a special kind of stupid." Simon shot him a bruising glare and settled into one of the recliners with a scotch.

"Peter, do you really think Megan is running away from bad press?"

"I know her," he said. "When she's under pressure, she has a tendency to do things without thinking. So yes, I think this whole media fiasco has her reacting instead of making good choices."

Although that wasn't exactly true. Meg had said she had the problem handled. A few hours ago her agent had released a statement that changed everything. She highlighted the success of Meg's series, even mentioning that the first book was being made into a film. She went on to talk about the way authors worked within the community for their research to bring authenticity to their writing. It was weird how the story went from a woman acting out to a successful writer and her process.

"She's pissed at me," Peter admitted. "But if she'd been rational, she would have seen the logic in my plan. If we got married, then none of this would matter."

"And you thought springing it on her like this was the best way to make it happen. You're an idiot. Both of you. 'We all agreed,' my ass. You forgot to ask the most important person." Julia patted his arm and walked into the other room. "You don't know her as well as you think you do."

And what the fuck is that supposed to mean?

"Of course I know her. I know her better than any of you. I know her secrets and her dreams. I know what she's passionate about. What makes her laugh and cry. Don't tell me I don't know Meg.

"Then you should have realized what a mistake your whole 'let's get married' plan was from the start."

He was missing something. Peter followed her into the living room, determined to get answers. "I agree the way she found out was less than ideal, but that's not why she turned me down. When it comes down to it, Meg's practical. Her running off was just a gut reaction. Once she calms down, she'll see why this is the best thing for all of us."

"Have you read any of Megan's books?"

"What does that have to do with anything?" Julia was complaining about men being slow. Maybe if women weren't so fucking cryptic all the time, men would have a clue.

"Megan's not as practical as you think. She makes a big show of scoffing at all the hearts and flowers bullshit, as she likes to say, but deep down she's a romantic. Every one of her stories has a scene at the end where the hero makes some grand gesture of love. It's what she wants. But I doubt that's what happened this morning."

"So you're saying Meg said no simply because I didn't get down on one knee? That's ridiculous." Or was it? Meg, his friend, was much different than the woman he'd grown to love. But even if Julia was right, Meg knew how he felt. There was no way she couldn't know. "You don't know what's been going on this last month," he tried to argue. "Things between us have changed. She knows I love her and that I want to be with her."

"Really?" Julia laughed, shaking her head. "You don't think hearing you arranged a quickie wedding in Vegas had anything to do with it?"

"We didn't have to go to Vegas," he tried to argue, but fuck if Julia wasn't starting to make sense. "Meg would have come around if I had more time to talk to her. What do you think, Simon?"

"I think you're an asshole who screwed this up," Simon mumbled into his glass before taking another sip. "You're lucky I promised Julia I wouldn't hit you…again."