Sofia wasn’t sure how she’d ended up in such a disastrous situation, but she khere were several things she o sort out—and fast. Not only for her own fort, but everyone else involved.

  “So,” a fused Jordan said. “You wao talk. What’s up?”

  Sofia chewed her lip. This was a rather mortifying versation to be having, but it o be done. She wasn’t sure what Natalie and Jordan’s retionship was, but she also wao clear up this ‘bet’ that she’d made with Natalie—and whether it would be a problem with Jordan. She doubted it, since Jordan seemed ckadaisical about Sammy and others, but that was defihe sort of thialked about beforehand. Not only for the sake of her friendship with Jordan, but team cohesion. The party splitting up because of plicated interpersonal dynamics could easily happen, sidering Natalie’s css. Not that it seemed likely to—just that it could.

  “It’s about Natalie,” Sofia said.

  Jorda a rally polite expression. “It is?” There wasn’t a hint of sarcasm, but Sofia could read it anyways. Jordan had always had a dry sort of humor.

  She huffed. “Look, I know I was being kind of obvious back there. I’m sure you think I was jealous or something.”

  Jordan’s eyebrows raised, as if she hadn’t thought Sofia would address what had happened so directly. “It wasn’t, then?” she asked carefully.

  “Certainly not,” Sofia said. “Or … ly.” She rubbed her face with both hands. “Look, I’m still w it out myself. I fidently assure you that I’m not in love with her or something absurd like that, or even pursuing a retionship. I might have been slightly jealous, though.”

  “Uh-huh,” Jordan said. “And that makes seo you?”

  Sofia gred, but it was a reasonable tradi. Why would she be jealous if she wasn’t ied in Natalie? “It’s childish,” Sofia said, “but this was supposed to be my event. I know how egotric that sounds. And she was being—I don’t know, friehan usual. So when I saw her with Sammy, barely paying attention to me anymore, I got irritated. And it dragged up a few other annoyances.”

  Namely, how easily Natalie had always handled women. Sofia herself had always been rather terrible at it. Half because of disi—of the practical sort, wanting to focus on her career—and half because she simply wasn’t good at ‘wooing’. It seemed Natalie had always ma effortlessly, which bugged Sofia for reasons she couldirely put her finger on. If she was pletely ho with herself, Natalie’s appraisal that Sofia was ‘just mad that Natalie was better tha something’ might have a hint of truth, even if it was decidedly not the whole, or even the majority of the expnatioainly, though, her decades-long petitive streak with Natalie plicated things.

  “But that’s besides the point,” Sofia said. “I promise I’m n to pursue Nat—and I certainly don’t care she’s hooking up with Sammy. Or you, or anyone else.”

  Jordan’s brow furrowed. “Me and Natalie? Sorry?” There was even a hint of amusement, as if she were whimsically perplexed by Sofia’s words. She was a far, far better liar than Natalie. If Sofia hadn’t received firmation from Natalie herself, and hadn’t had her own major suspis, then she might actually have thought Jordan and Natalie weren’t together in any way besides friends—because Jordan’s rea was exceedingly ving.

  “She told me,” Sofia said. “Or, rather, I tricked her into telli was a bit maniputive. I shouldn’t have.”

  Jordan’s faked fusion disappeared, and she pursed her lips. “Well, I’m gd yhat. But I didn’t expect it to stay a secret forever. Especially not to our roommate. I get the feeling I’m missing a lot of text. Go ahead?”

  Sofia breathed in. The full expnation, then; they’d gotten sidetracked.

  She hesitated, despite having just braced herself. She forced herself to barrel forward.

  “Natalie and I hooked up. In the locker room, just now.”

  The absurd statement broke through Jordan’s collected demeanor. Her eyes widened. “Wait. What?”

  “She kind of goaded me into it,” Sofia said. “Or maybe I did her. I’m not really sure. It was a mess. But that’s not the part that matters.”

  “It’s not?” Jordan asked. “Then what is?”

  “That we made a bet if she could—“ getting the words out was difficult. “If she could … pleasure me fast enough, she would, um, ‘own me for the week’. And she did. So. There you go.”

  Maybe the exact details hadn’t been necessary.

  Jordan gaped at her. Sofia’s face burned red-hot. This was even more embarrassing than she had feared.

  “I’m telling you this,” Sofia said, “because first, you and her are involved, and so I wao make me and her immediately clear. I don’t know the details of your retionship, but unication is obviously something that o happen, or else our team could go up in a fireball.”

  Jordan collected herself. “Yes. That is something that could happen. It’s a mature perspective, and I agree.”

  “But seeing how we have a fused, hopeless moron for our third—“ Sofia breathed in, then steadied herself. “I’m sorry. That was rude. I’m still kind of mad at her.” And there were a lot of other emotions swirling around inside her—both fusing and ing—other than simply anger. “But I don’t think Natalie’s going to ha properly, so I wao talk to you.”

  “And what are you two? What is ‘us’?”

  “I don’t know,” Sofia said ftly. “But she made it abundantly clear that she pns to use her reward, me, to the fullest.”

  “So tell her that you ged your mind,” Jordan said ftly. “That’s a ridiculous bet you made. I’m guessiher of you were thinking clearly. I have zero doubts Natalie would refuse to, or even be upset.”

  “Well. Still. I’m a woman of my word.”

  Jordan gave her an incredulous look. “So you want to serve your sentence.”

  Sofia sputtered. “Absolutely not.”

  “Sofia.”

  She knew she was being hypocritical. She’d e to Jordan uhe guise of clear unication and uanding everyone’s retionships as to avoid problems. Yet here she was being obviously delusional.

  “Look,” Sofia groaned. “I’m not sure what I think about it all either, okay? But I made a bet, and I’m seeing it through.”

  Jordan studied her for a long moment, then her expression softened. “Okay. That’s more than fair, if you don’t know how you feel yourself. You’ve said what you o. And thank you fio the loop.”

  “Natalie would have done so too,” Sofia said. “But I wao get to you first. She’ll misstrue things.”

  “On act,” Jordan said wryly, “and she actually puts a lot of value in discretion, so she wouldn’t have given too maails. But yes, I think she would mix some things up.” Jordan turned serious. “But this brings up an important point. There’s something I have to ask, now. Or let you know.”

  “Okay?”

  “If you’re Natalie’s for the week, and me and her are together for a sense of the phrase,” Jordan said. “Well, then, aren’t you our pet, not just hers?”

  Sofia stared.

  “Just a thought,” Jordan said. “I’ll have to talk with Natalie first, of course.” She patted Sofia on the arm. “We’ll get back to you on that. Is that everything, Sofia?”

  Sofia tio stare. Was Jordan being serious? She’d always had a deadpan sort of humor, and Sofia did think it was halfway a joke, but more than that, she thought Jordan was testing the water in the guise of a joke.

  “Great,” Jordan said. “Good talk. But we should head baow. We’ve been gooo long.”

  She gave a mischievous smile before turning away, and Sofia couldn’t help but feel she’d somehow made her situation worse, not better, by being so ho with Jordan.

  Then again … maybe only worse in some ways.

  In others, maybe she’d made things much, much better.

  “Oh, heavens,” Sofia murmured, watg Jordan’s hips sway as she headed back to the group. “What have I gotten myself into?”