Chapter Eight

www.flavorsofthemonth.bloggerific.com

As you all probably know by now, photos of myself and the men I’ve dated so far this year have been made public with some not-so-nice comments attached to them. I would ask that you please respect the privacy of these kind, wonderful men who do not deserve any sort of backlash from all of this.

As for me, I will neither be embarrassed by nor apologize for my actions and hope you all still know my heart is in the right place both personally and professionally. I am not sure what caused the people behind a local tabloid to target me, but I’m sure they are getting thousands of clicks for their content, so I suppose I do have a good idea why they’d do it.

If you’d like to continue your search for love, we’ll be hosting another speed dating event this month. No paparazzi will be in attendance, so feel free to get to know each other in a safe, comfortable environment. Even if you don’t find a love connection, you’ll get some ice cream, so that’s still a pretty good night.

April 15

I’VE NEVER BEEN a big fan of showing up places unannounced, but I wasn’t sure how else to talk to Kim. I’m outside of her house with bagels, champagne, and orange juice and hoping the promise of mimosas will get her to open the door. I hold my breath and knock.

I hear her feet shuffle to the door and know she’s looking at me through the peephole, so I smile my best “I come here in peace” smile and wait. She opens the door, stares at me blankly, and finally says, “Oh, fine. You better have the cream cheese I like.”

Because I am not an idiot, I absolutely do have the cream cheese she likes, so I walk in and set everything down in her kitchen. I want to take things slowly, so I don’t say anything as I pull everything I’ve brought out of the bags, grab some glasses from her cabinets, and fix us a pretty nice little meal. I make the mimosas just how we like them (mostly champagne with a splash of juice) and I sit down at the table, gesturing for her to do the same.

“Are you in love with Javier?” I say, still on my whole blunt and truthful kick.

“I was going to ask you the same question,” she says.

“I thought I might be. But if there’s even a small chance that you are, consider those feelings ancient history.”

“It’s not your feelings I’m super worried about right now.” She looks on the verge of tears.

I sit and listen as she tells me she had feelings for Javier pretty much the moment she met him but was worried about the whole dating a coworker thing. Watching him date me was really hard and she began to resent me the more time I spent with him.

“I know it’s not fair because I was the one who introduced you,” she says. “But I couldn’t help it. Seeing you so happy with him was hard enough but knowing you could see how great he was and then continue to date eleven other men killed me.”

I nod sympathetically as she continues. She thought I would end the whole thing when it was clear I was falling for him, but when I slept with Carter, then acted like Javier being ready to propose wasn’t even a big deal, she went from hurt to pissed.

“I called Javier and asked if we could meet so that we could talk about everything that had happened,” she says. “I let him talk about you and tried to find a time to tell him how I feel, but he was so heartbroken that I couldn’t get the words out. I was one of the few people in his life who knew about you two, so I became the person he’d talk to when he was feeling down. I thought that maybe if I was a good friend, he’d eventually start to see me as something more.”

Javier had seemed like he was getting over me, so Kim decided to casually ask him out. The Prom supports a lot of the programs he likes to volunteer with, so she invited him to be her date, knowing I’d be there with Peter.

“I thought if he saw you there with another man, he’d really understand that you had moved on,” she continued. “It’s one thing to hear that you’re out with someone else, but to see it in person is even harder. I’m not sure what I was thinking. He did see you with Peter and seemed even more crushed. And then we both saw you leave with someone else, and he didn’t say a word. We haven’t talked about you since.”

“Is that why you told Ken I was falling for him?” I ask.

“Yes,” she admits. “I actually did think you really liked him, but I also thought that if you could get over Javier quickly, you might let him go and he could begin to heal. I was worried about him, but I was also hopeful for me.”

“I’m so sorry. I’m sorry I dated Javier in the first place.”

“No, I’m sorry. I never should have set you up with him, given how I felt about him. He’s such a great guy. How could you not fall for him? And how could he not fall for you?”

“I can think of a few reasons.”

“Don’t let that stupid tabloid shit make you doubt yourself,” she says, forcefully. “You are awesome, they are dumb, and you know the truth about this whole thing. You weren’t trying to hurt anyone.”

There’s the Kim I know and love. She’s on my side again and I feel stronger already.

“I wasn’t trying to,” I say, “but that doesn’t mean people still didn’t get hurt. And welcome back, friend.”

“It’s good to be back.”

We sip our mimosas, nibble on our bagels, and catch up about other things that have been going on with each other. I fill her in on Peter and she laughs her head off about the whole mix-up thing. She asks me about Eric and notices immediately that I take on a different demeanor when I talk about him. My feelings are clearly betraying me, but she doesn’t press me for more information.

“I can’t believe he took you to Disneyland that night,” she says, smiling. “He sounds pretty perfect.”

I nod, realizing there’s not a single negative thing I can say about him. That’s probably true for a lot of people you’ve only known two weeks though, right?

“I don’t know what to do,” I confess. “I have two guys right now who I think could be really great. How do I choose?”

“Well, if you’re not sure which of them to choose, I think you need to keep moving forward with the Plan. It’ll add more choices to the mix, but maybe you’ll get some clarity along the way. Plus, if you can’t choose between Carter and Eric, maybe that means neither of them is the one for you. Wouldn’t it be more obvious if it were?”

“I have no idea,” I admit. “I had no idea how Carter was feeling all those years, so who am I to act like an expert on this topic?”

“Yeah, you’re not great at noticing things, are you?”

We both laugh, but my heart quickens as I think again about the fact that someone has been following me these last few months without me noticing. Could I be any less perceptive?

“Hey,” she says, seeing my face fall. “None of this crap with the website is your fault, okay? And nothing they can post about you can dull your sparkle. You are Cynthia Fucking Blake, successful businesswoman and all-around badass. You are going to end this year with your head held high and hopefully your hand weighed down by a new, important piece of jewelry. And when we find out who is behind this whole mess, they’ll have to answer to me.”

I jump up, pull Kim to her feet, and wrap her up in a hug so tight I’m worried I might hurt her. “And Javier will come around,” I whisper in her ear. “If he knows what’s good for him.”

“Damn right he will.” She’s trying to sound strong and tough, but a crack in her voice betrays the emotions I know she’s fighting to hold back. I let her go and we both stand there for a second, happy to have mended this rift so we can move forward. “So, tell me,” she says, eyebrows raised, “how is Prince Eric in bed?”

“I’ll tell you after tonight. I mean, I already know, but I have something planned that I think is either the best or worst idea of my life.”

*

I’VE TALKED TO Eric a few times today over text to confirm where his lab is and that he’ll be alone there tonight, but I’m a nervous wreck as I pull into a parking space right next to his car. And not just because I can barely walk in what I’m wearing. That’s definitely a concern, but what if he thinks I’m an idiot for what I’ve got planned? I should really just drive home.

I look down at myself for the hundredth time and decide to go for it. I look sexy and this will be fun. It will be. Fun, not crazy. Here goes nothing.

I step out of the car and take tiny steps all the way to the door, then text him so that he can buzz me into the building. I can barely move in this outfit and I’m trying to slow my breathing, afraid I’ll walk into his lab a sweaty mess. I’ve got a long coat over the whole ensemble, and this wig is making me really hot. Maybe I should go back.

The door buzzes and I decide it would be rude to leave, so I open it and walk down the hall, looking for the door number he told me. It’s all the way at the end, of course, and I have to take another minute to catch my breath before I open it and walk inside.

Eric is sitting at a desk, hunched over piles of paperwork and clearly looking for something.

“Just one sec,” he says without looking up. “I need to find this one last thing and then I’m all yours. Aha—there it is. Now, how are you…”

He’s picked up a packet of papers triumphantly and looks up at last, but stops mid-sentence when he sees me. I’ve dropped the coat and am trying to strike a sexy pose, but I can’t tell if it’s having the right effect. His jaw is still hanging slack, and I’m about to bend down for the coat when his face changes to the biggest smile I’ve seen on it so far.

“Well, well, well,” he says, rubbing his hands together. “And what are you doing so far from the sea?”

“I came to rescue my handsome prince,” I say, doing my best Ariel impression to go with the costume I’m wearing. With a long, red wig, purple seashell bra, and skintight green sparkly skirt, I’m hoping I’ve created the fun fantasy he’s always dreamed of.

“Rescue away, my dear,” he says, clearly amused.

I start to take a few steps toward him, but he quickly comes to pick me up, seeing how hard it is for me to walk in this get-up.

“Guess I’ll be the one doing the rescuing,” he says with a laugh, carrying me over to one of the long desks. With one sweeping movement, he throws everything to the floor and sets me down. He takes another second to look down at me before leaning in to kiss me urgently.

“How do we turn you from a mermaid to a person?” he says. “Your fins are very much in my way at the moment.”

“Hold on,” I say, standing up to face him. “There was one thing I wanted to do for you while I’m still a mermaid.”

I ease myself down onto my knees in front of him and start taking off his belt. He laughs, but I can tell that somewhere, in a memory he’s never told anyone, he definitely fantasized about getting a blowjob from Ariel. I’m not sure why, but I’m suddenly certain every man his age did. So that’s what I do.

Maybe it’s the costume or maybe it’s just because I’m really good at it, but it takes all of about a minute to get him off. I laugh as he pulls me back to a standing position, but he’s too preoccupied with the zipper on my skirt to mind. He finds it and begins inching it down my hips and thighs, sighing when he realizes I’m not wearing anything under it. I step out of it, now wearing nothing but the wig, bra, heels, and a big smile as he picks me back up to put me back onto the desk. He sits me there just barely, so that I’m mostly hanging off the end.

He pushes me back gently to make sure I’m right where he wants me. Eric drops to his knees and moves my legs apart so that he can return the favor. And oh, does he. His face is between my thighs, and I feel tingly immediately as he kisses, licks, and fingers me to oblivion. He stands back up as I quiver and presses his dick inside me to feel the end of my orgasm from the inside.

I’m impressed that he’s able to go again so quickly, assuming that a fantasy from his adolescence is bringing out the teenager in him. But as he eases himself in and out of me expertly, I remember with a smile that no high school or even college guy ever had moves like this.

Beads of sweat come down from my neck and pool in my seashells, but I don’t want to take off the wig while he’s enjoying everything so much. I lean back slowly onto the table so that I’m now lying down completely while he continues to fuck me.

“You’re so hot,” he says, looking down at me.

“I knew you’d like it,” I say.

“No, I mean, you look like you’re burning up. Come here.”

We stop for a second while he stands me back up and I take off the wig and plastic bra. The air hitting my skin feels amazing, especially on the back of my neck, which is also covered in sweat. Eric turns me around and begins blowing gently at me, helping me to cool down. I put my hands down on the table, loving the feeling of the cool air on my back, and smile as Eric enters me from behind, apparently satisfied that I’m not about to pass out.

We finish in that position, but Eric turns me around to hold me in his arms and kiss me sweetly.

“That was amazing,” he says. “You’re amazing. No one has ever dressed up like a Disney Princess and shown up at my work so that I can have sex with her before.”

“I should hope not,” I say with a laugh. “I’d hate to think I’m unoriginal.”