Sisters and Husbands Read Online Free PDF Page B

the pretty ones.”
    She laughed again. For some odd reason, she found this geeky guy and his weak jokes heart-stoppingly alluring. He was nothing
     like the cool Casanovas she normally went for, and that was refreshing.
    “So, are you a friend of Valerie’s?” Julian asked.
    Beverly nodded. “I’ve known her for years, ever since college. And she’s standing right behind you.”
    Beverly pointed and Julian turned as Valerie, wearing an ankle-length denim skirt and a white cotton blouse with the collar
     turned up beneath her shoulder-length black hair, approached the two of them. “I see that you guys have bumped into each other,”
     Valerie said as she picked up a carrot from the buffet table and dipped it into the veggie dip.
    “Literally,” Beverly said. She and Julian laughed.
    “Oh?” Valerie looked from one to the other, not quite getting the joke.
    “We came within inches of colliding,” Beverly explained.
    “Almost spilled my drink on her,” Julian added.
    “Ah,” Valerie said, nodding with understanding.
    “How do you two know each other?” Beverly asked. She was curious but also wanted to be sure that Julian wasn’t someone Valerie
     was interested in before she explored him any further. Beverly and Valerie had met at Hampton University in Virginia when
     Beverly discovered that her then boyfriend was cheating on her with another woman. That other woman turned out to be Valerie.
    Beverly had lived on campus. Valerie lived in Newport News, a neighboring town, with her parents and a baby daughter whose
     father she had divorced. Beverly and Valerie met in English class, became friends, and soon realized that they were dating
     the same man and that each was in the dark about the other. By the end of the first semester, they had both ditched the guy.
     They had been friends ever since, and fighting over men was a no-no. Not that anything would necessarily develop between her
     and Julian, Beverly thought. But just in case, she wanted to be sure she wasn’t barging in on her best friend.
    “Julian works with me,” Valerie said. “He’s the best computer animator this side of the Atlantic.”
    “I wouldn’t go that far,” he said modestly.
    “It’s true,” Valerie said.
    “What exactly is an animator?” Beverly asked.
    “I’m the one who transforms Valerie’s creative ideas from hand-drawn artwork into pixels on the computer monitor.”
    “Fascinating.” Beverly nodded and smiled. So he worked at the graphic design firm where Valerie was employed, and he really
was
a geek. The three of them chatted for a few minutes until Valerie asked Beverly to help her out in the kitchen and the girls
     walked off.
    “My co-worker likes you,” Valerie blurted out as soon as they were out of earshot. Valerie walked to the refrigerator and
     removed two trays filled with carrots, celery sticks, and broccoli and placed them on the countertop.
    Beverly began to remove the plastic wrap covering one of the trays. “Get out. I just met the dude.”
    “So?” Valerie said. “I’ve worked side by side with Julian for a few months now, long enough to get to know him. He likes you.”
    “How can you tell?”
    “The way he looks at you. Or rather the way he can’t
stop
looking at you.”
    “I do think he’s cute. A little geeky maybe, but cute.”
    “I agree,” Valerie said, laughing. “He’s a total geek, but anyone who thinks geeks can’t be cute and sexy is dead wrong.”
    “I know. They’re the ones who rule the world, I always say. They get the best jobs, make the most money.”
    “And they’re less likely to cheat on you than the playas.”
    Beverly nodded. “I’m surprised you never mentioned him, since you two work so closely and you’re always trying to fix me up
     with someone when you’re not interested in them.”
    Valerie shrugged as she removed the plastic wrap from the veggies. “Guess I didn’t think he was your type.”
    “What’s my type?” Beverly asked,