Chapter 9 – Famous Last Words

“Small mocha please,” Adeline said to the barista as she pulled out her card. “Light on the whip – and if you could add just a dash of cinnamon, it would be fantastic.”

The barista nodded and walked away to make the coffee as Adeline sat her card down on the counter. She sighed, knowing this mid-day treat would keep her up until one or two in the morning and she would be dog-tired at five-thirty when she woke up – but she needed the extreme pick-me-up.

It wasn't as if she had slept a lot lately anyway. It wasn't just her late-night escapades from the night before, although she had felt the full, painful effects of it that morning. She was far too confused by her relationship with Lance – if you could call it a relationship. She wasn't dating the guy, or even friends with him, but even she had to admit that it had moved beyond a work relationship.

Why did she kiss him last night? He had challenged her, that was why. And when he challenged her, she had a tendency to lose her head and do stupid things. She always paid for it in the end, usually the next day. She wanted to keep on believing that she had no feelings for the guy, but when she lost her head like that it was difficult to go on trying to convince herself.

“Put that away.”

She heard the voice behind her and it startled her out of her daze. She quickly turned around and saw, of all things, those green eyes staring back at her, along with an extra set of dark brown eyes.

“Oh, hi,” she said to Lance, glancing briefly from him to the brown eyes and back to him. “I didn't expect to see you here.”

“I had a lunch date, remember?” he said. “Put that card away. It's my turn to pay.”

“It's no problem, I got it,” she said, placing her hand on top of the card. “I totally forgot about that. So that means you must be Joey, right?”

He smiled at her. “That'd be me.”

“I'm Adeline,” she said, holding her hand out to him.

“Lance's new assistant, I know,” he said. “He's told me about you. A few times, actually.”

Joey smiled as if he was the only one in the room who knew a secret, and she felt herself blush at the knowledge that Lance had talked about her.

“I'm sorry about the golf game, by the way,” Joey said. “Lance told me that you had to end up playing. Sorry if I put you out.”

“Oh no,” she said, shaking her head. “It's totally fine. I'm told I didn't suck too bad and at least I didn't smack myself with a club. So it's...totally fine.”

“I'm paying,” Lance said. “You came close a couple of times.”

Adeline sighed. “You know what, Bass? That first time was a fluke, and the second time was your fault because you distracted me. And you're not paying.”

“I seem to have that effect on you. And I am paying.”

“No you're not. And what is that supposed to mean?” she asked.

He smiled. “Just that you were collected before I walked in, and now that you know I'm here you look like you have your head in the clouds.”

“You startled me,” she said, nearly gritting her teeth. “When someone comes up behind you in New York City making demands, that tends to happen.”

“Muggers typically ask you to give them your money, not put it away,” he said. “So put it away.”

“I won't,” she said.

He reached toward the counter for her card, but she was prepared and slid it out of his way just before he got to it. The action had caused him to move closer to her, closer than her normal comfort zone and she felt those familiar feelings again.

He looked her in the eyes and smiled.

“You're frustratingly stubborn,” he said.

“So are you,” she replied with a smile. “What is taking that barista so long? I'm ready to pay here.”

“You guys feel that?” Joey said. “That's what it physically feels like when someone says you could cut the tension with a knife.”

They went on looking at each other, ignoring Joey entirely.

“Let me pay,” he said.

“Why should I?” she asked.

“Because I have a favor to ask you. I want you to come to my Halloween party this Sunday,” he said. “Full costume, free drinks, good company – you'll hate it.”

She scrunched up her nose.“You're right. I will hate it.”

“Girl, you'd better let him pay,” Joey said. “I've seen him beat down Timberlake for refusing to let him pay – blood splattering, teeth pulling...it isn't pretty.”

Adeline looked into his eyes for a few more moments before relenting, grabbing her card off the counter slowly and breaking eye contact. She would pay for this exact moment tomorrow anyway.

The barista finally came back and started putting the purchase into the register, and he smiled and pulled out his wallet.

“I'll see you Sunday,” he said to her, watching her finish putting her card into her bag and grab her cup off the counter.

“Yes, I'll see you Sunday,” she said to him. She turned to Joey. “It was nice meeting you, Joey.”

“You too, Adeline,” he said.

Both men watched her walk away and through the door.

“Holy hell,” Joey said.

“Put her coffee on my bill,” Lance said, smiling at the girl behind the register.

“What was that?” Joey asked his friend.

“What was what?”

“Oh, God,” Joey said. “Don't even.”

“She's bought my coffee a million times. I owed her, that's all.”

“I'm not talking about the coffee. I'm talking about the volcano of tension that nearly exploded and blew up this entire store.”

Lance gave the barista his order for his coffee and Joey's usual. When she walked away, he looked at Joey.

“Her and I don't always get along so well.”

“Yeah, um...I got a different impression.”

“I just like pushing her buttons,” he said with a smile. “It's so easy to do and she gets all worked up. It's fun.”

“Maybe too much. I thought I was going to have to clear the store while you two worked out your frustrations naked on top of the counter.”

Lance laughed. “No, Joey. She'd never even dream of it. She hates me so much that she wouldn't give me the time of day if she wasn't on my payroll.”

“Again, I got a different impression.”

Lance sighed. “Granted, she's cute--”

“Try again.”

“Okay, granted she's hot,” he said. “And yeah, if she came onto me I would not turn her down. But she is very set in how she feels about me.”

“I don't think she is, dude. I saw that look in her eyes. Plain as day, she wants to hate you but there's no way she does.”

“She has a funny way of showing it,” Lance said. The barista had come back with their coffee and took his card and cashed out the order.

“Well, she's married, right?” Joey said as they walked to a table and sat down. “Maybe it's a front. Maybe she really does want to hate you but she doesn't. She's afraid of what could happen, so she pretends.”

“Her first day on the job she threw a pen at my head and cut me. If she's pretending, she deserves an Academy Award.”

“In her defense, sometimes I want to throw things at your head, too,” Joey said.

“Her husband sounds like a real tool anyway.”

“Here we go,” Joey said, taking a drink of his coffee.

“What?”

“I don't know who's trying to pretend more – you or her. She's overcompensating on hating you, but you're clearly jealous that she's married. Admit it.”

“Jealous is a stretch,” Lance replied. “All I said was that the guy sounds like a tool. I think he's cheating on her. And who leaves their rich husband all the way across the country to take a measly assistant job unless they're looking for a way out of it? I'd sleep with her, but I enjoy being single too much to put up with her as a girlfriend.”

Joey laughed harshly.

“Enjoy. Who gets dumped by their fiancee one month before their wedding then says they enjoy being single?”

Lance's expression changed.

“Watch it, Joe,” he said.

“Hey, sorry for opening an old wound, but you just proved my point for me. You enjoy being single as much as she enjoys pretending to hate you. You both want to believe it's true because it makes you feel better.”

“I don't need anything to make me feel better. I feel just fine.”

Joey's expression softened.

“Good thing she's doing all the acting, 'cause you suck at it,” he said.

Lance said nothing; instead, he took his coffee in his hand and looked out the window.

“Quit trying, Lance,” Joey said. “It's okay to admit that it still hurts.”

“It doesn't hurt, Joe. Like I said, I feel just fine.”

“You really do have yourself convinced. I know better because I'm the only one at this table with any sense.”

“That's laughable,” Lance said with a chuckle. “Joey Fatone, have sense? Maybe pigs can fly, too.”

“See, you put up this facade trying to be some big, tough bitch and you forget that I've known you for years. I spent most of my time on a tour bus with you. You hate being this mean. You're the tool here.”

Lance leaned back in his chair and sighed. Even he had to admit that was a mean thing to say to his best friend.

“Sorry, Joe,” he said.

“Hey, s'okay,” Joey said, smiling. “You didn't hurt my feelings. We give each other a hard time; that's what friends do.”

“I guess you're right that it still hurts, a little. It only hurts when I think about it.”

“Mackenzie did a shitty thing,” Joey said. “Who takes off to film a movie in Germany a month before they're supposed to get married? But I see things, and I see that there's something between you and Adeline.”

“There's really not.”

“Lance, you hired your stripper friend to spend the night with you and pretend to be your one-night stand in an elaborate scheme to make your personal assistant jealous. That may be lots of things – outlandish comes to mind – but it's definitely not nothing.”

“That was payback, not jealousy,” Lance corrected. “She ditched me. Of course, at the time I didn't know why. I swear, I like pushing her buttons. That's it.”

“Oh, you want to push her buttons alright.”

Lance laughed. “You're a pig. But given the opportunity...”

“See? You wanna do a little boom chicka wow wow with her.”

“Wow, Joe. Too much. Never say that again.”

“No more boom chicka wow wow?” Joey said, faking a hurt expression.

“No, Joey, no more.”

“Not even at the Halloween party?” Joey raised his eyebrows.

“Especially not at the Halloween party,” Lance said, laughing.

“Are you afraid I'll embarrass you in front of sweet Adeline?”

“I'm afraid you'll scare off all my female guests.”

“It doesn't matter. You only have eyes for Adeline.”

“I swore we dropped that about ten seconds ago,” Lance said, shaking his head.

“I can't believe you invited her,” Joey said.

“Why wouldn't I?”

“Because she's married,” Joey said. “Duh.”

Lance paused. “As usual Joey, I'm not following your derailed train of thought.”

“You, costumes, alcohol, and hot women don't mix well. Last Halloween you ended up sleeping with that drunk friend of Jamie-Lynn's that was wearing that sexy little genie number. So one of two things is going to happen – either Adeline will end up hating that drunk girl, or she'll end up being that drunk girl. And again, she's married.”

“She's married to a tool.”

“Tool or not, she needs to stay out of your tool box. Otherwise, someone will get hurt.”

“Joey, it's a Halloween party,” Lance said. “Not an orgy.”

“Well damn, I must have misread my invitation,” Joey said, snapping his fingers. “For reals, though – you need to be careful. She's got a husband. And if the guy really is a tool, who knows what he'd do to you if, you know...boom chicka wow wow.”

“Joey...”

“Sorry,” he responded. “I had to get it out of my system.”

Lance sighed. “She'll come to the party, I'll give her a hard time and she'll get upset – she might drink too much, she'll threaten me or tell me how much she hates me, and I'll send her drunk ass home in a cab. What's the worst that could happen?”

Joey, upon hearing the stereotypical famous last words, looked him in the eyes and made an explosion sound while motioning it with his hands, telling Lance all he could say about that. He knew this would eventually implode on his friend if he didn't heed his advice. He just hoped it didn't end too badly.