“I-no,” I said, suddenly pissed off that she would bring that up.

“If I thought her relationship with Eric was that serious, I never would have kissed her.” I looked at her skeptically and she smiled. “I wouldn’t have.”

That was interesting. A bit of curiosity gnawed at me for a moment or two before I asked, “And if you had thought, then, that my relationship with Max was serious, you…”

“I wouldn’t have slept with you.”

“Oh.”

So she was an egotistical *****, but at least she was an egotistical ***** with morals.

“I still don’t think it’s right,” I said as a last-ditch effort, even though I was entirely sure she was determined to go through with it.

She shrugged. “It’s not my place to deprive straight girls from the experiences they want, is it?”

“Yeah, but…” I chewed my lip and toyed with my spoon, stirring it in my coffee absently. “Sometimes… Look-realizing your sexuality? Not always the most fun thing in the world. I’m sure even you remember that.”

Bette looked taken aback for a moment, her coffee halfway toward her lips. She inhaled sharply and set her cup down. Ah. There. I had her.

Or so I thought.

“Not really.” She shrugged.

“Oh, okay, it wasn’t a problem for you?”

“No,” she said stubbornly.

“Right.” I tapped my spoon anxiously against the table. “Right. God forbid you’re not completely in control or something.”

I hadn’t meant to say it so bitterly, but there it was, and Bette immediately got sort of moody and refused to talk to me, although she made it seem as though she was just really engrossed in the magazine she pulled out.

Whatever. I didn’t want to talk to her anyway.

I watched Marina deliver a basket of muffins to a table. She noticed me looking and waved. I waved back. I should sleep with Marina, I thought. That might make Bette mad. As much as the prospect of making Bette angry gave me a certain amount of gratification, I had to admit that at the moment, the thought of sleeping with anyone other than Bette didn’t seem too appealing. She annoyed the ***** out of me, but I did sort of adore her to the point of distraction.