Joy tries to keep her voice even to help bring Grace back down from hellfire on high. “Nothing. I’m going to stay in the dumpster like the trash that I am.”

“You are not trash. You’re only in the dumpster for Malcolm! Climb the fuck back out!” Grace says. “Stop letting him treat you like his kept woman. He’s your sugar daddy minus the sexual favors, but you caught feelings and he didn’t.”

Joy glares at her. “Thanks. So helpful.”

“I’m not here to be helpful. I’m here to tell you the truth,” she says. “Joy, my light, my love. It’s time to listen to the devil on your shoulder named Grace whispering in your ear. I know what I’m talking about. After everything that happened with the C-word? I don’t think it’s in the cards, babycakes.”

Caroline disappeared, but she hadn’t left quietly. She sent both Malcolm and Joy an email detailing exactly how she felt. Joy tries to not think about it, but after reading the carefully constructed sentence “manipulative, man-stealing bitch who is so pathetic and co-dependent you barely have your own life,” it’s hard to forget. Caroline felt that Malcolm put Joy before their relationship and she was always an afterthought.

Truth be told, it’s always been like that between Malcolm, his partners, and Joy. It starts out fine, but before long, they hate her for no other reason than Malcolm loves her more than they think she deserves.

Joy isn’t his family. She isn’t some ex he’s never gotten over. She’s just a friend.

Just.

A just who shouldn’t be important.

A just who should be discarded.

A just who should disappear.

Joy fought for Malcolm, refusing to drift away, standing by him, until he realized she would always be there. Until he believed it. And so far, she had succeeded where they all failed. The greatest love of his life was, as they put it, just a friend.

It had never reached such an extreme breaking point before, like it did with Caroline. Malcolm swears he doesn’t blame Joy for his relationship ending but she doesn’t believe him.

Summer being kept a secret is proof he does.

“Do you think that’s why he didn’t tell me about Summer? He’s worried I’ll ruin it again?”

“You didn’t ruin anything before. It’s not just you. You played a hand, but it wasn’t your game, you know?” Grace shakes her head. “I really think it’s time you started trying to move on. It’s time to let him go.”

“I can’t. Meeting Malcolm that day was my one-in-a-million lucky shot. I’ll never find anyone else like him.”