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This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is entirely coincidental. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
Copyright © 2018 by J. S. Cooper
PART I
Prologue
Present Day
“You’re the sexiest woman I’ve ever met,” he whispered into my ear as his fingers played in my hair. I curled up next to him as I stroked his chest. My fingers ran up to his face and I played with his beard before running my fingers across his lips. He almost purred at my touch and I smiled as I gazed at his handsome face.
“I love you, Janie. I love you.”
The words from his mouth were almost inaudible. If I hadn’t been staring at his face, I would have missed them. I almost did. I wasn’t even sure if I’d heard him correctly. I’d been about to tell him that I felt the same way and then, then he dropped the bombshell. A secret so big that I’d fallen back in shock, my heart racing. Everything had gone still in that moment. Everything in me had frozen.
“Janie. Speak to me.” He sat up, his blue eyes worried. “Janie?”
“Janie, are you daydreaming again?” Anabel’s voice interrupted my reverie. “What are you thinking about?”
“What I haven’t been able to stop thinking about for the last three weeks.” I sighed and closed my eyes as I rubbed my temple. “I never thought this would be my life.” I bit down on my lower lip as I contemplated the events in my life. How had I gotten to this crazy place?
All my life I’d been the girl who was in love with love. All my life I believed in fairy tales and happily ever afters. I thought that you’d see a guy, fall for him head over heels and he’d feel the same way, and then you’d ride off into the sunset. I can’t remember how many times I imagined myself floating on cloud nine with my dream guy.
How naïve had I been?
I sighed as I opened my eyes and looked into Anabel’s worried ones.
“Janie, you have to make a decision. He’s left you a letter.” Anabel handed me an envelope, and I took it from her gingerly. “You have to let him know what you’re thinking.”
“I know.” I sighed. “I’m scared to read his letter.” I looked down at his neat handwriting and sighed again. “I’m scared to read what he has to say. What other news does he want to share with me?”
“It’ll be okay.” She smiled at me warmly. “Trust me.”
“When did life get so hard?” I sat down on her leather couch and curled up my legs. “I remember when I was an immature girl who was in love with love. I had no idea what love was really like.”
“I remember that girl.” Anabel laughed. “I loved her, but I’m glad you grew up.”
“I’m not sure I’m glad.” I laughed at her. “It was nice being young and naïve. It was nice thinking that anything was possible.”
“But that wasn’t reality,” Anabel said. “And you got us into way too many crazy situations.”
“Well, I guess I’m paying for my immaturity now.” I moaned. “Reality is hard.” I ripped open the envelope and pulled out a single sheet of crisp white linen paper. It was completely filled with his words and I swallowed hard as I stared at the first line.
To my dearest Janie.
His dearest Janie? Ugh. I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes. How the hell was I going to make a decision? How the hell was I supposed to get over what he’d told me? How the hell had I gotten myself into such a mess? If I would have known seven years ago that that day would bring me to this place, I’m not sure I ever would have ventured into the library.
PART I
Chapter One
Janie
Seven years ago, in college
“Oh my God, oh my God, he is the hottest guy that I have ever seen in my life! And I mean, hands down, the hottest!” The words tripped out of my mouth as I talked excitedly about the dreamboat I’d just seen. “I think he might just be my future husband.”
“Janie, you say that about every guy.” Anabel laughed at me as she played with her light brown hair. “And most of them aren’t even hot.” She made a face at me, and I found it hard not to laugh at the goofy look on her pretty face.
“Trust me, this guy is so hot he could burn the sun,” I exclaimed as I tried to convince my best friend that this time I meant it. I really had just met the most gorgeous man in the world.
“Uh huh.” Anabel looked back down at her textbook as I continued to ramble on about the guy I’d just seen in the library.
“I think I’m in love.” I sighed dramatically, needing her to understand just how magical the moment had been. I still had butterflies in my stomach from the first moment I’d seen him. I could still remember how my heart had skipped a beat as soon as I’d laid eyes on him.
“Again?” Anabel sounded exasperated.
“This time it’s for real.” I laughed as I collapsed down on her bed and closed my eyes so that I could picture the hot guy I’d just seen in my head. “He looked like a Greek god—Zeus or Apollo.”
“Are they Greek or Roman?” Anabel giggled and my eyes popped open. This time Anabel was looking at me with a wry smile.
“Uhm, Greek, duh.” I laughed, though I wasn’t really sure.
“So, what’s this Greek god’s name?”
“Nate.” I grinned at her dreamily. “He’s tall, like maybe six feet, he has dark blond hair, sky-blue eyes that make me think of tropical island beaches and—”
“Let me guess,” Anabel interrupted me. “He has a golden tan, perfect white teeth, the best body you’ve ever seen, and oodles of cash.”
“Actually, no.” I laughed. “He has crooked teeth—well, slightly crooked. And he’s only a little tan, and I don’t know if he has any money. We are in college, you know. I don’t know many billionaire college boys.”
“Well, he sure doesn’t sound like a perfect Adonis.”
“That’s what makes him even more perfect,” I rushed out. “He’s perfect for me because I love him even though he’s not perfect.”
“Janie, how can you love him? You just met him.”
“Sometimes you just know.” I winked at her. “I have a good feeling about him.”
“So how did you meet him?”
“We didn’t actually meet,” I admitted slowly.
“So how do you know his name?” Anabel looked at me suspiciously. “Don’t tell me you went through his wallet.”
“Of course not. I would never do that.” I paused. “Well, I would never do that again. I was drunk that night, and I didn’t really know what I was doing.”
“Not a good excuse, Janie.” Anabel shook her head. “That guy almost called the police, he thought you were trying to steal his identity.”
“He was an idiot.” I rolled my eyes. “I was looking for his driver’s license, not his credit cards. I just wanted to know his name and date of birth, so I could figure out his star sign and see if we were compatible.”
“You’d only just met him.” It was Anabel’s time to roll her eyes. “Yet you thought he could have been the love of your life as well.”
“I was young and dumb.”
“That was three months ago, Janie.”
“Yeah, yeah, whatever.” I shook my head. “Trust me, this guy—Nate—he really is the love of my life.”
“Janie, you’re boy crazy. You really need to stop worrying about boys and focus on classes. We have midterms next week.”
“I know, I know. Why do you think I was at the library?”
“To check out guys?”
“No.” I made a face at her. “I was there to study ...” I started giggling. “But then I saw Nate, and well, you know.”
“How do you know his name, by the way?”
“Oh, some girl ran up to him.” I made a face. “She was so eager, throwing her arms around him and stuff. She was like Oh, Nate, so good to see you! Yuck.”
“Are you sure that wasn’t his girlfriend?”
“Trust me, it wasn’t,” I responded quickly. Nate hadn’t held her as if she were his girlfriend. Not at all.
“Okay.” Anabel sighed and then shook her head. “Well, good luck with Nate. I need to study now.”
“But I need your help,” I whined. “You can’t study.”
“What do you mean, you need my help?” She looked up at me once again. “You need my help for what?”
“I need your help to find him.” I gave her my most innocent and sweetest look.
“How the hell am I meant to help you find him? I’ve never met him, never seen him, and all you know is that his name is Nate.” Anabel shook her head. “You’re crazy, Janie.”
“I know his name is Nate—and I also know something else.”
“Oh?” She cocked her head to the side and gave me a look. “Continue.”
“He’s in a chess club.”
“Huh?” She frowned. “A chess club?”
“Yeah.” I nodded excitedly. “The skank asked him how chess club was going.”
“Janie, you can’t just go around calling girls skanks.” Anabel shook her head. “That’s not—”
“Not now, Anabel,” I cut her off. “I looked online, and they have a chess club meetup tonight. We should go.”
“Can’t you go alone?” She made a face. “I don’t even know how to play chess.”
“Well, neither do I.” I sighed. “That’s why I need your help. I have an idea.”
“Oh, God.” She shook her head. “I don’t want to be a part of one your crazy schemes.” She thinned her lips. “No thanks.”
“Pleeeeease?” I whined. “I really, really need your help.”
“Janie!” She sighed. “Really? Why don’t you just wait and see what happens? Maybe you’ll meet him organically.”
“Anabel, this could be the love of my life. I could be Mrs. Nate.”
“Mrs. Nate, huh?” She snorted. “You don’t even know his last name.”
“Don’t be a spoilsport, please.” I made a face at her. “Trust me when I say that I think this guy is the one. I just felt something in my bones when I saw him. And ... guess what?”
“What, Janie? He asked you to marry him?”
“Don’t be silly.” I jumped up. “He looked at me and gave me a sweet smile for a few seconds, and I swear to God that I felt a visceral reaction in my body. Just from looking into his eyes. I’m not even joking.”
“Janie, I swear to God that you act like you’re in high school.” Anabel sighed as she looked at me staring down at her with my best puppy dog eyes.
“I’m telling you. I really felt it. I think he could be the one.”
“There is no one.” Anabel shook her head. “You need to get that thought out of your head.”
“You know that I believe in the one, a soul mate, a perfect match ...”
“You don’t even know this dude.”
“Please, Anabel.” I changed the subject as I knew she wouldn’t understand. “It’s hard to explain, but from the first moment that I saw him, I just felt something special. I really think that he could be it.”
“Uh huh, this guy you saw for all of five seconds.” Anabel threw her hands up in the air and shook her head vehemently. Her blond tresses swung back and forth. “I know I’m going to regret this, but because I’m a good friend, your best friend, I will come. But if you do or say anything stupid, I’m leaving.”
“Yay, I love you!” I bent down and hugged her. “You’re the best.”
“I know I am.” She sighed. “I hope I don’t regret this.”
“You won’t.” I grinned happily. “When you’re the maid of honor at the wedding, you can say, ‘I remember when they first met.’”
“Uh huh.” Anabel shook her head and then started laughing. “I’d be saying a lot more than that.”
***
“HI, WELCOME TO THE chess club. Is this your first time here?” A tall nerdy guy walked up to Anabel and me, looking especially pleased and eager to see us.
“Yeah.” I smiled at him warmly as I looked around the small classroom. Where was Nate? “But we really love chess.”
“Awesome.” He grinned even wider. “Welcome, my name’s Will, and I’m the president of the club.”
“Nice to meet you, Will. I’m Janie and this is my best friend Anabel.” I pointed over to Anabel. “We’re so excited to be here.”
“How long have you guys been playing?” He started talking rapidly. “Maybe you can join our team for the national tournament.”
“Well, uh ...” I stumbled over my words as I stared at his eager face. Oh shit, what was I going to say now?
“We’d love that,” Anabel said evilly. “When’s the next competition?” She gave a sweet smile. “I might not be able to make it as I have a fairly busy schedule, but Janie here could most probably go. And she’s like, a chess grandmaster, so with her on your team, you are very likely to win.”
“Wow, you’re that good, huh?”
“Yeah,” I said weakly. “Some people call me Grandmaster Janie Kasparov.”
“Oh, is that your last name?” he asked me curiously.
“No.” I shook my head. “Wasn’t that that chess master’s name, Garry Kasparov?” I frowned as I thought. “Or maybe it was Gray Sarsaparilla? Kasporilla? Gorilla?” I paused as I noticed Will’s puzzled face.
“What’s that about a gorilla, then?” A deep voice sounded from behind me and I turned around. My heart immediately started beating rapidly as I looked into the deep blue eyes that were staring at me. It was Nate. In the flesh. My skin warmed at the sight of him. He was perfection in human form.
“Sorry, what?” I said as I looked at him.
“You were just talking about gorillas?”
“Oh, haha.” I smiled at him. “It was nothing important. I’m Janie, by the way.” I held my hand out and waited to feel his fingers on mine.
“Nice to meet you, Janie,” he said as he shook my hand warmly. A frisson of excitement ran through me at his touch. “I’m Nathan, though my friends call me Nate. I’m the vice president of the chess club.”
“Wow, that’s awesome. Vice president. Very impressive.” I beamed at him as I fluttered my lashes up at him. This couldn’t have been going any more perfectly.
“And what’s your name?” He turned to Anabel with the same friendly smile and I felt my stomach drop slightly. He seemed just as excited to be talking to her as he had to be talking to me. But I knew I shouldn’t feel too discouraged. Guys were often a lot slower than girls when it came to love.
“Anabel.”
“So, you girls play chess?”
“Something like that,” Anabel said in a muffled tone as she gave me a wry look. “Janie’s the real master. I’m still a beginner.”
“Don’t be modest, Anabel.” I glared at her. She was taking it too far. I didn’t want anyone thinking I was so good that they actually wanted to play with me. “I’m hardly better than you, seeing as you were the one who taught me how to play.” I smiled innocently at her. “So, Nate, I assume you must be an amazing player?”
“I’m okay.” He shrugged, and I watched as he ran his hands through his slightly too long hair. Oh, how I wanted to reach over and run my hands through his tousled locks as well. “Do you guys want to play?” He nodded toward some tables at the front of the room. There were three chessboards set up and two very nerdy guys sitting there, already playing a game. “Will and I can play you guys.” He nodded toward Will, who was still standing there, looking at us like we were gifts under his Christmas tree that he couldn’t wait to unwrap.
“Oh, I think Anabel and I wanted to play each other today,” I said quickly. “We wanted to have a rematch because our last game was very contentious.”
“Oh?” Nate looked at me curiously. “How so?”
“Oh, well, we played for ten hours and then came to checkmate and it was, uhm, quite unexpected.”
“Oh?” He tilted his head, a puzzled look on his face.
“Yeah, uhm, my king was in a battle with some pawns. Back and forth, back and forth.”
“Huh?” He blinked, his eyes narrowing as he tried to process what I’d just said.
“Joke, joke.” I pretended to laugh instead of trying to clarify what I’d been saying. I had no idea how to play chess and that was going to become very apparent any second now. “So, what are you studying?” I said quickly. “Are you a sophomore as well?”
“Engineering.” He laughed. “And no, I’m a senior. You guys are sophomores?”
“Yeah.” I nodded. “And wow, engineering. You must be so smart.”
“You’ve already told him that,” Anabel said, and I shot her a death look.
“Well, vice president of the chess club and an engineering major says he must be pretty smart.”
“Yeah, I bet you’re a regular Einstein, aren’t you, Nathan?” Anabel said as she rolled her eyes.
“Not quite.” Nate looked a little confused as he stood there. “But thanks for the vote of confidence. Shall we go over and play?”
“Sure.” I nodded quickly. This was starting to go south already. Maybe I shouldn’t have brought Anabel with me after all. Sometimes her snarky personality was too much to take. And she certainly wasn’t helping to make me look good in front of Nate. Even though she knew there was a high possibility that he was the love of my life. “Lead the way.”
“Will do.” He smiled at me and walked over to the tables. I stared at his legs and his ass as he walked and I heard Anabel start to laugh as we stood there.
“What?” I hissed as I looked at her. “What’s so funny?”
“Lead the way, Nate,” she whispered back at me. “Lead the way to your heart.”
“Anabel!” I blushed furiously as I hit her in the arm. “Ssh!”
“Why? Shouldn’t he know that you’re the one?” She giggled and then she quickly walked away from me before I could say anything else. I was about to stick my tongue out at her behind her back, but my inner voice stopped me.
“He will,” I said as I glared at her. “Trust me, he will.”
***
“WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’RE playing at?” I whispered to Anabel as we sat down and started to play the game. “You’re supposed to be helping me. Not making me look bad.”
“Janie, I’m not going to tell you I told you so, but how am I supposed to help you when I have no clue how to play chess?”
“Well, neither do I,” I hissed as I stared at the board. I could see Nate staring at us from the corner of my eye and it was all I could do to not start crying. I was pretty sure that he had to know that I was a fraud and that I had no idea what I was doing.
“Having an intense game there, girls?” I looked over at Nate and he was grinning at me in a way that made my heart melt.
“You know it.” I grinned back at him, trying to stop myself from melting into his big blue eyes. Boy oh boy, was he cute. Panty melting cute. I blushed as the thought crossed my mind.
“We’re nearly done. I’d love to see you guys finish,” he continued and the smile nearly left my face.
“Nearly done already?”
“We like to play five- and ten-minute games. Keeps our brains ticking,” he said and I just nodded as my own brain went into overdrive. There was no way that I could allow him to come and watch us play, no way at all. He’d know that we had no clue what we were doing.
“Oh, cool.” I attempted a light laugh, but I felt like I was going to cry. I knew Anabel thought I was crazy, but I really did feel something for Nate. Something that felt like it could be special. I looked over at Anabel, and I think she could sense the panic emanating from me because she rolled her eyes slightly before standing up and exclaiming.
“Oh my God, I just remembered that I have to go and feed my boyfriend’s dog.” She looked worried. “And Janie, you need to drive me there.” She paused and winked at me as I gazed at her in shock. “Now.”
“Oh?” I blinked up at her. “Right now?”
“Yes, Janie. Right now. I’m afraid we don’t have time to finish the game after all.”
“Oh, okay.” I sighed, trying to not to look at her too gratefully. “I guess.” I stood up slowly and looked over at Nate with a sad look on my face. “This sucks.” I pouted.
“Maybe we can play soon?” he said and my heart thudded. He wanted to play with me? Maybe he liked me.
“Sure.”
“Or maybe you guys could do something else,” Anabel suggested and then cleared her throat. “What are you doing on Friday night, Nate? Maybe you can come over to our apartment. We were thinking of playing a new board game.”
“Oh, that sounds cool. Thanks.” He looked away from me and smiled at Anabel. “I’m actually going to the Sigma Ep party on Friday though. Maybe you guys can come by?”
“That would be great,” I said excitedly. “We’d love to come by.” Immediately my spirits lifted, and I started thinking about what outfit I would wear to the party.
“Okay, cool. Well, see you guys then.” He gave me another smile and then turned back to his game. “Bye, Anabel, bye, Jane.”
“It’s Janie,” I said, my heart dropping slightly. “It’s Janie, not Jane,” I muttered as I walked out of the room, behind Anabel, feeling my excited buzz dimming. I walked out of the room, not quite sure how to feel, but I was proud of myself. I was already on the way to making Nate realize that we were destined for each other. Though I would never tell him that. I wouldn’t even repeat those words to Anabel. I knew how crazy they would make me sound.
Chapter Two
Janie
“Hey good-looking, what you got cooking?” Anabel whistled at me as I walked out of the bathroom dressed in my shortest black skirt and a push up bra that left nothing to the imagination.
“A steak and fries,” I giggled as I winked at her. “Hey, can I borrow your red lipstick? I can’t find mine.”
“Sure.” Anabel laughed and I watched as she stood up and walked over to her vanity. I stared at her skinny frame and sighed with envy. Anabel was one of those natural effortless beauties. She was wearing a pair of faded jeans, a cute gray top and little makeup, yet she still looked stunning. Her hair hung straight in a bob, accentuating her heart-shaped face, and when she handed me her Chanel lipstick, her hazel eyes were sparkling. I would have hated her if she weren’t my best friend.
“You know you’re a gorgeous skinny bitch and I want your figure and hair, and natural rosy cheeks.” I stuck my tongue out at her as I grabbed the lipstick and walked over to the mirror to apply it.
“Janie.” She laughed. “I will take those words as a compliment. You know you’re a sexy beast. Don’t even pretend that you wish you had no curves, like me.”
“You call them curves. I call it fat.” I glared at my reflection in the mirror. My black hair was wavy and mid-back, my brown eyes looked like they held dark naughty secrets and the red lipstick made me look vampish. Overall, I was pleased with my appearance, but I still wanted to lose a good twenty pounds. “Do I look like I’m trying too hard?” I spun around and looked at Anabel. “You look so casual and I look so dressed up.”
“It depends on what you’re trying too hard for.” Anabel grinned at me. “You’re sexy and you know it. Own it girl.”
“Own it?” I raised an eyebrow at her. “Have you been watching reality TV again?”
“Like duh, holla.” Anabel started giggling. “Okay, maybe we shouldn’t have taken shots of vodka before the party.”
“It’s called pre-gaming.” I giggled again. “I mean, we’re even lucky that Louise gave us that bottle. It’s not like we can buy it ourselves yet.”
“And that’s exactly why we shouldn’t be drinking. It’s not even legal yet.”
“Waa waa.” I rolled my eyes. “We’re nineteen, it’s fine.”
“Janie, sometimes I just don’t know about you,” Anabel said with a small sigh. “You’re my exact opposite.”
“And that’s exactly why our friendship works so well.” I turned around and grinned at her. I grabbed her hands and danced around the room. “Aren’t you so glad I’m your best friend? Your life would be so boring without me.”
“I don’t know if that day in eighth grade was the best or worst day of my life.” She smiled at me as she shook her head. “We’re dancing to no music, you know?”
“I can sing us a song.” I suddenly stopped and started swinging my hips. “And what do you mean you don’t know if it was the best or the worst day of your life?” I glared at her.
“Oh, Janie.” She shook her head at me. “Of course it was the best day of my life. Now let’s get going to this party, so that we can have you meet lots of hot frat guys.”
“Uhm, there’s only one guy I’m going to meet.” I sighed wistfully. “And hopefully make out with.”
“And marry and have kids and grandkids,” Anabel continued.
“And we will live in a mansion with five cars and two nannies.”
“No nannies.” Anabel shook her head. “You don’t want him sleeping with her and your kids calling her mummy.”
“You’re right, no nannies. You can help out.”
“Uh huh.” Anabel laughed. “I’ll take care of your kids and my kids.”
“Sounds like a good plan to me.” I grinned. “Maybe Nate has a brother and you can marry him.”
“Yeah, let’s ask him tonight after he proposes to you.” Anabel grabbed her bag. “Come on, silly. Let’s go.”
“You’re making fun of me now, but just you wait. When Nate and I end up together, I’ll be the one laughing.”
“If you and Nate end up together. I will very happily enjoy watching you laugh,” Anabel said and we walked out of the room arm in arm.
***
THE SIGMA EP PARTY was in full swing by the time we made our way through the front doors, and I was slightly overwhelmed by the amount of students who were packed into the house. The music was blaring and there were lots of hot girls dancing with even hotter guys. The lighting was dark and the booze looked plentiful. I gave Anabel a look as we made our way into the house and she just grinned back at me.
“This is crazy,” I said as we walked into the living room. “Do you see Nate?”
“Are you going to make a beeline directly for him?” she asked curiously as she looked around the room. “There are a lot of other guys here. Really hot ones. Maybe you’ll fall in love with one of them instead.”
“Anabel.” I glared at her. “I’m not flakey.”
“Uh huh,” she said as we walked over to a fruit punch bowl.
“I’m not. You know that,” I continued.
“Hey, there ladies.” A cute Asian guy handed us two cups. “Drink?”
“Sure, thanks,” I said as we took the cups from his hand. I took a quick sip and started coughing. “What’s in here?”
“Gin.” He laughed. “Ever had that before?”
“Not really.” I shook my head. “And now I know why.”
“It’s not so bad once you get used to it.” He grinned. “I’m Chen, by the way.”
“Hi, Chen, I’m Janie. This is Anabel.” I nodded toward my friend.
“Nice to meet you ladies.” He gave us both a wide smile and nodded his head. “Want a tour of the house?”
“Maybe not now,” Anabel said quickly and gave me a look as if to say no. I rolled my eyes at her. Sometimes she had no faith in me. I wasn’t going to tell him yes. No matter how cute he was.
“Are you sure?” He flashed a wide smile and his dimples set in. “I can show you my room.”
“Yeah, we’re sure,” Anabel said and grabbed my arm. “Thanks for the drink, Chen. We’ll see you around.”
“Ah, okies.” He shrugged and I saw his attention turning to some other girls as we walked away.
“You didn’t have to cut him off like that,” I said to Anabel as we walked away. “He was just being friendly.”
“Yeah, he was just being friendly because he wanted to get us into his bed.”
“No, he didn’t.
“Ah, yes. He did.” She made a face at me. “He most probably thought that it was his lucky night and he was going to have a threesome.”
“Anabel!” I laughed. “No, he didn’t.”
“I bet he did.” She grabbed the cup from my hand. “And don’t drink anymore of that. He might have roofied it.”
“Anabel, I’m sure he didn’t.”
“Not worth the risk,” she said as she grabbed the cup. “Okay,” her voice lowered. “Don’t look now, but today is your lucky day.”
“Oh?” I immediately looked behind me and my heart started racing as I saw Nate approaching us. He looked so handsome in a pair of dark blue jeans and a crisp white shirt.
“Hey, girls,” he said as he joined us. “Nice to see you, Anabel.” He gave her a hug and then he turned to me. “And you too, Jane.” He gave me a quick hug as well and the warmth of his body against mine made me want to melt. “So glad you girls could make it.”
“Thanks, the party seems hopping,” I said. “Are you in the frat then?”
“No,” He laughed as he shook his head. “I’m too much of a nerd to be in a frat.”
“You don’t seem like a nerd to me.” I batted my lashes up at me.
“I hide it well.” He threw his head back. “I mean I’m only vice president of the chess club and an engineering major.”
“You’re so smart,” I said, just gazing at him.
“Did you sort out your boyfriend’s dog—or was it cat problem?” he asked Anabel, and I could feel jealousy whirling up in me. Was he interested in Anabel? Why did he seem to be asking her more questions than me? I tried to ignore the envy that was growing as I watched him staring at her appreciatively. I couldn’t fault him for finding her attractive.
“Yeah, I did. Thanks for asking,” Anabel responded nonchalantly.
“Would you like a drink?” he asked her as he moved slightly closer to her. My skin grew cold as I watched him paying all of his attention to her.
“No, thanks. I don’t want to be drugged.” Anabel shook her head.
“Drugged?” He tilted his head to the side. “Would I do that?”
“I don’t know? Would you?” she bantered back at him, and he laughed. I could feel a coldness in me as I stood there.
“Never.” He then looked at me. “You don’t think I would do that, do you, Jane?” He stopped for a second and his hand flew to his mouth. “Oops, sorry. It’s Janie, isn’t it? Not Jane.” He looked apologetic, and once again I was on top of the world. His eyes gazed into mine, and I nodded happily.
“Yes, it’s Janie, and no, I don’t think you would drug us.”
“Good.” He smiled at me warmly. “Would you like a drink?”
“Sure.” I nodded happily. “That would be great.”
“Hold on, stay here and I’ll be right back.”
“Yeah, okay.” I ran my hands through my hair and gave him my best flirtatious smile. “Oh my God, he’s so cute!” I hissed to Anabel as soon as he was out of earshot. “I want to just push him against the wall and plant my lips on his.”
“Then you should do that.” Anabel nodded her head. “Go for it, Janie.”
“Really?” I looked at her in surprise.
“No, of course not.” She gave me a look. “Be cool. Don’t be too eager.”
“I don’t know how to be cool.” I pouted. “Not when the feelings are this strong.”
“Janie.” She threw her hands up in the air. “Are you kidding me? You don’t even know him. You—”
“I’m joking.” I started laughing. “I know you think I’m crazy, but I’m not that bad.”
“You are that bad.” She started laughing as well. “You forget I’ve known you since we were fourteen, and you’ve always been boy crazy.”
“I’m not boy crazy.”
“Okay, well, love crazy.”
“I’m not love crazy. I just believe in true love.”
“Every guy you meet and find hot isn’t your true love.”
“I know that.” I sighed. “But I feel something special for Nate.”
“Yup, it’s special all right. I mean, you know him so well.”
“Anabel, don’t be facetious.”
“Would I ever?” She winked at me. “And it’s fine. One of these days you will actually meet the one, and all your dreams will come true.”
“You don’t think Nate is the one?” I grinned at her.
“Honestly?” She stared at me. “I very much doubt it, but then neither one of us knows him very well.”
“Yeah, he is super cute though, don’t you think?”
“Yes, he’s cute.” She nodded, her face thoughtful. “But ...” Her voice drifted off.
“But what?” I asked her suspiciously.
“Nothing.” She shook her head swiftly. “Nothing.”
“Do you like him?”
“What?” She frowned at me. “No.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m sure.” She made a face. “He’s not my type. You know that.”
“Hmm, yeah,” I said, but a part of me still wondered if she was into him. Anabel had always put her studies first, but I knew that she also believed in true love—that was something we had in common. She just didn’t always jump in with her heart right away, like me. She was cautious when it came to love.
“Here we go, ladies.” Nate popped up in front of us with two drinks. “I brought one for you as well, Anabel.”
“Thanks,” she said as she took the drink. “If it tastes weird, I’m going to spit it out on you.”
“Sexy.” He winked at her as he handed me my drink. I took it from him and watched them carefully. I took a sip of the drink and stood there, trying to think hard of something flirtatious to say.
“Do you like it?” He looked at me as I continued to sip it.
“It’s delicious. What is it?” I asked.
“It’s a Nate special.” He laughed. “I cannot divulge my secret recipe, but I’m glad you like it.”
“Aww, okay.” I took another sip.
“Nate, my man, what’s good?” A tall, stocky guy joined our group and gave him a fist bump.
“Not much, Travis. How are you?”
“Good, good. Introduce me to your friends.” Travis looked at me and Anabel and winked.
“This is Janie and this is Anabel,” Nate said dutifully. “Girls, this is Travis. He is a Sigma Ep.”
“Yup, you girls in a sorority?”
“No,” I said as he ogled my chest. Maybe it hadn’t been such a good idea to wear a low-cut top.
“Aww cool, cool.” He chugged on his beer. “You dating Nate?” He licked his lips as he stared at me hopefully.
“No.” I shook my head and gave Nate a look to see if he was jealous that Travis was trying to chat me up. I felt disappointed that he didn’t seem to care. He was texting someone on his phone, and I wondered if it was another girl.
“Sweet, so I can ask you to dance then?”
“Uh ...”
“We’re not ready to dance yet,” Anabel interjected.
“Okay?” Travis looked over at Anabel. “You girls lesbians?”
“No.” Anabel gave him a weird look.
“Dude.” Nate laughed. “Not cool.”
“What?” Travis shrugged. “Is that not a PC thing to say?”
“You can’t just assume a girl is a lesbian because she doesn’t want to dance with you.” Nate punched him in the shoulder. “Be cool.”
“It’s fine. I’m cool with that.” Travis looked at me and Anabel. “To be honest, it’s always been my fantasy to have a threesome with lesbians.”
“Travis.” Nate glared at him. “Dude.”
“What?” Travis laughed and hit him in the shoulder. “I’mma get out of here. Have fun tonight, buddy. Let me know if you need any Trojans.” Travis walked away laughing and we all stood there in awkward silence for a few minutes.
“Hey, sorry about him. He’s an idiot.” Nate made a face. “I hope he didn’t offend you.”
“No, I’m fine,” I said quickly.
“Do you girls want to dance?” Nate asked and I couldn’t tell if he was more interested in dancing with me or Anabel.
“I’m going to go and check out the food,” Anabel said quickly. “You guys dance, and I’ll catch up with you both.”
“Oh.” Nate paused. “We could all check out the food and then dance if you want.”
“No, that’s okay,” Anabel said, as I just stood there awkwardly. He totally wasn’t interested in me. He wanted Anabel. I almost felt like crying. I wanted to just leave the party. I was an idiot.
“Ready, Janie?” He grabbed my hand before I could walk away. “I warn you, I’m a terrible dancer.”
“That’s okay. I suck as well,” I said, almost giddily as he pulled me across the room to the makeshift dance circle that had started.
A Drake song started playing on the speakers and I watched as Nate started moving back and forth, his head beating in time to the music. He was laughing as he rocked back and forth out of time, and I quickly sipped the rest of my drink and started moving with the music, tossing my hair back and forth like I had no cares in the world. In that moment, I felt like I was on top of the world. Maybe he did like me. Maybe this really was the beginning to my fairy-tale story.
“So, Janie, tell me,” He grabbed me around the waist and pulled me toward him so that we were dancing closer together. His lips came down toward my face and I knew for sure he was going to kiss me.
“Yes?” I said as I looked up at him, my lips slightly parted. “What do you want to know?”
“What’s Anabel’s story? Is she serious with her boyfriend?” he whispered in my ear, and it took everything in me to not pull away from him.
“Yes, yes, she is,” I answered, not making eye contact with him.
“Oh, okay.” He nodded. “She’s cute.”
“Yeah,” I said, as we continued dancing. I wanted to tell him that I thought he was a jerk. What about me? Didn’t he think I was cute?
“You seeing anyone?” he asked as we continued dancing, but he didn’t sound like someone that was dying to hear the words no. I pretended not to hear him and he didn’t ask me again.
“So how long have you been playing chess?” he asked me as we stopped dancing and walked over to the side of the room.
“Not very long,” I said, not even caring to lie about it any longer. I just wanted to leave. I didn’t need his small talk.
“We should play some time,” he said, his face eager as he looked at me. My heart skipped a beat, but the pessimistic side of me realized that he was most probably asking me just so he would have an excuse to see Anabel.
“Yeah, one day.” I looked around the room to see if I could find Anabel. There was a guy staring at me and smiling and I could feel myself blushing as he gave me a small wave.
“What about this weekend?” Nate asked me, but I was too focused on the cutie in the plaid shirt to pay attention to him. “Janie?”
“Sorry, what?” I said as I looked at his frowning face.
“Do you want to play chess this weekend?” he asked me with a shy smile.
“Nah.” I shook my head. “Maybe ask Anabel. She’s most probably free.”
“Oh ...” He looked confused, and I watched as he ran his hands through his golden locks. “I guess I can ask her.” He stopped talking and we just stared at each other for a few seconds. “So, I was wondering if ...”
“Hi there.” A deep voice interrupted our conversation and I turned to see the cute guy in the plaid shirt next to us.
“Hi,” I said with a wide smile.
“Hey, Brad.” Nate grunted. “What’s up?”
“Not much, man. You?” Brad fist bumped Nate. “Introduce me to your hot friend.”
“This is Janie. Janie, this is Brad,” Nate said reluctantly, as my face burned. Hot friend? Me? Brad thought I was hot? Yay!
“Nice to meet you, gorgeous.” Brad took my hand and kissed it.
“You, too,” I said, a little taken aback by his gesture.
“Hope you don’t mind the kiss. I’m a Southern gentleman.” Brad batted his eyelashes at me. “And when I see a lady I have to treat her right.”
“Oh, no worries.” I giggled. I could see Nate’s carefree expression had changed and he looked disapprovingly at us.
“You’re so gorgeous, Janie. Where have you been all my life?”
“Brad, you’re laying it on a bit strong, dude.” Nate made a face at him. “Janie and I were just talking.”
“Dude, you were talking, but she was looking. Directly at me.” Brad winked at me. “You must have been boring her.”
“Brad.” Nate glared at him.
“Dude, the truth hurts.”
I looked over at Nate, who looked angry. I was surprised at his expression. What did he care if Brad was flirting with me? He wasn’t interested in me. He was only using me to get to talk to Anabel. I couldn’t believe he’d had the nerve to ask me about her boyfriend and say she was cute. What about me? Why hadn’t he said I was cute? Why hadn’t he asked if I had a boyfriend? Shit, he had barely even remembered my name.
“So, Janie.” Brad leaned toward me and put his arm around my shoulder. His bright blue eyes were a few inches from mine and I could smell the beer on his breath.
“Sorry, dude. We’ll catch up with you later.” Nate grabbed my hand. “We were just going to go outside to chat.” Nate pulled me with him toward the front door, and I could see Brad staring at us as we walked away.
“Hey, what was that about?” I asked him as we walked out of the back door and into the yard.
“Brad’s a douchebag,” he said as he let go of my hand. “Trust me, I just saved you from a fate worse than death.”
“He seemed nice to me.”
“He seems nice to every girl, until they wake up the next morning naked with him gone.”
“What?” I frowned at him. “What do you mean?”
“He just wants to get laid. Once he gets laid, he’s no Southern gentleman, trust me. He’s gone, like the wind.”
“Uhm, okay,” I said. “I wasn’t going to sleep with him.”
“Yeah, that’s what they all say.” He winked at me. “He has charm.”
“Unlike you, huh?” I said, starting to feel annoyed. What was Nate’s deal? I barely knew him, but was already starting to feel like maybe he wasn’t the Prince Charming I’d assumed he was going to be.
“I’m not a one and done man,” he said and laughed.
“Wow, okay.” I made a face at him. “That’s crude.”
“I’m just being honest.”
“You’re nothing like I thought you were going to be,” I said as I stared at him.
“What did you think I was going to be like?” He looked curious. “We only met once at the chess club.”
“Yeah, I know ...” My voice trailed off. I wasn’t going to tell him that I’d seen him in the library and had an insta-love moment with him. Especially now that it was already fading. Easy come, easy go, I suppose.
“I’m glad you girls came to the party, though,” he said. “I don’t meet many girls that like to play chess.”
“Well, you know.” I shrugged. “I guess that’s just how life is.”
“Huh?” He looked confused. “Ooh, look, a shooting star.” He pointed up at the sky. “Cool, huh?”
“Yeah, that’s cool,” I said as I looked up, suddenly feeling calm and at ease again. “It’s a beautiful night,” I said as we stood there.
“It sure is.” His voice was sweet and as I looked over at him, I could see that he was staring at my face.
“What are you doing?” I asked nervously as he looked at me, a soft look on his face.
“What do you mean?” he said, his eyes not leaving mine.
“Is there something on my face or something?” I said self-consciously as he continued staring at me. He moved over closer to me and I could feel the heat radiating from his body.
“No.” He shook his head and smiled. “I don’t think so.”
“Oh, okay.” I took a step back, confused as to what was going on. Was he making a move on me? And why? I’d thought he was interested in Anabel.
“You’re really pretty. You know that?” he said as he grabbed my hand.
“Thanks.” I blushed. His hand was warm against mine and I stared into his blue eyes, completely mesmerized by his gaze.
“Would you like to go for a walk?” he asked softly. “We can climb up to the top of the hill and look down at the city. There’s a cool swing at the oak tree right over there.” He pointed to the right and I could see the hill he was talking about.
“Sure,” I said, wondering what was going on and if I should invite Anabel. My heart was racing. Was he going to try and kiss me? Maybe I’d misunderstood his earlier comments. Maybe he really did like me as well. Maybe he wasn’t really interested in Anabel.
“Shall we look for Anabel and invite her as well?” he asked just then, and my heart sank again. What the hell was up with this guy?
“Yeah, I don’t think tonight is a good night,” I snapped at him. I wasn’t in the mood for his games. “I shouldn’t leave her alone at the party and I don’t think she will want to go for a long walk. She’s wearing heels.”
“Oh, sad,” he said, and then he gave me a winning smile. “Can I do something else instead, then?”
“What’s that?” I asked, wanting to just walk away from him.
“This.” He lightly pressed his lips against mine, before stepping back. The moment was magical, and I swore I felt a little sparkle of electricity buzzing between us as our lips met. I just stared up at him, his face illuminated by the moon. We stared at each other for a few seconds, and I could see he looked a little dazed.
“We should go back inside.” He blinked at me, walking away quickly as he headed toward the house again.
“Okay,” I said, once again confused. This guy was obviously bipolar or some sort of weird yo-yo human being. I couldn’t keep up with him.
“Sorry about that.” He stopped outside the door. “That was totally inappropriate of me.”
“It’s fine,” I said. “It was barely a peck.”
“Yeah, but I shouldn’t have just done that. I hope you don’t think I’m that sort of guy.”
“What sort of guy?” I was starting to think he was crazier than me.
“The sort of guy that tries to take advantage of pretty girls.”
“You think I’m pretty?” I blushed at his words.
“Yeah.” He looked confused as he nodded. “But you know that. Every guy here has been trying to talk to you.”
“No, they haven’t.” I shook my head, but I felt like I was floating on air. “You’re a weird guy, Nate.”
“I told you. I’m a nerd.” He laughed and then grabbed my hand. “Shall we go back in and grab another drink?”
“Yeah.” I smiled back at him. “Let’s do that.”
Chapter Three
Nate
The music was too loud and the room was packed with too many people. I was starting to feel annoyed at all the guys that were staring at Janie. And at the fact that she was constantly by my side, batting her eyelashes up at me. I handed her a drink and she took it eagerly, sipping it down as if it were Kool-Aid. I could tell that she was already a little bit tipsy and that frustrated me. Why was she getting drunk at a frat party full of guys she didn’t know?
“What do you want to do?” she asked me, her eyes bright as she smiled at me uncertainly.
“I might get going soon,” I said as I looked around the room. I was starting to feel tired and I had get up early the next day to go for a bike ride with some friends. “You going to be okay?”
“I’ll be fine.” She nodded, her eyes moving away from mine.
“Shall I help you look for Anabel before I leave then?”
“Don’t worry about it,” she snapped and I looked at her more carefully. What was her deal? She’d been acting weirdly all night. I didn’t know this girl, but I did wonder if she was suffering from sort of bipolar disorder. She was super fun and bubbly one moment and then distant the next. I could barely keep up with her. I felt bad that I’d kissed her. I sure hoped that she wasn’t reading anything into it. I knew that some girls got a bit carried away when guys were flirty, and I sure didn’t want to give her the wrong impression.
“Do you want me to take you girls home?” I asked, wondering if it was safe to leave them here. I knew the Sigma guys would be happy to hook up with either of the girls, and I would feel personally responsible if something went down, seeing as I’d invited them to the party.
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” She rolled her eyes at me. “Anabel has a boyfriend, dude.”
“I know that. And?” I gave her a look. What was her problem?
“Nothing.” She shrugged and sighed. “It’s been a long day.”
“Apparently.” I studied her face for a moment and wondered if I should ask her why she and Anabel had pretended to know how to play chess, but I decided against it. I didn’t have sisters but I knew enough to know that girls could be weird if they got caught out in a lie.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked, her cute face pinched as she stared at me. Her big brown eyes were wide and accusatory and her lips were a thin red line. I wondered what she would have done if I’d leaned forward to kiss her. She’d either slap me or reach her hands down my pants. One of two extremes, and I wasn’t willing to find out which way she’d go.
“Nothing.” I gave her a smile and before I could stop myself I reached over and touched her hair. “You have really pretty hair.”
“Uhm, okay. Thanks.” She offered me a confused smile as I stared at her now wavy black tresses. They’d been straight when she arrived and I wondered if she knew that she looked better when her hair was more unruly. It suited her personality. She definitely seemed like she would be a handful. Not the sort of girl I would want to date, for sure. She seemed like she was way too much drama, but she would be a fun friend. I was about to ask her if she wanted to play chess the next week, but I could see her attention had shifted and she was smiling at some guy to the right of us. If I wasn’t wrong, it was Tad, one of the guys from the football team. I could feel myself growing tense as I saw her playing with her hair and eyeing him. I looked over her body and I could feel myself slightly aroused. She was hot, no doubt about that. I was annoyed that she had shifted her attention away from me.
“So, Janie.” I grabbed her hand and her eyes flew up to mine in surprise.
“Yeah?” she said, her face confused and her voice flustered. I held onto her hand and pulled her closer toward me. She batted her eyelashes up at me and I smiled down at her. I could feel my tension easing. I had her full attention now.
“You interested in Tad?” I asked her, my voice sounding gruff.
“Who?”
“Tad.” I nodded toward the football player, who was now already flirting with another girl.
“I don’t even know him.” She shook her head, and I put my arms around her waist. She felt warm and soft against my body. I wasn’t sure what I was doing, but I liked the feeling of her next to me. She started dancing slowly and I could feel her body rubbing up against me. She was starting to turn me on, and I leaned down and kissed the top of her hair. It smelled like vanilla beans and I smiled. Of course she would smell delicious as well. Everything about her was scrumptious, from the way she smiled to the way she moved. She was sexy and funny, but I knew that she wasn’t the sort of girl I was interested in getting involved with.
“Do you have a boyfriend, Janie?” I wasn’t sure why I was asking her, but I was curious.
“No.” She smiled up at me. “Do you have a girlfriend?”
“No.” I laughed. “I’m not interested in dating right now.”
“Oh, okay.” I could tell she wanted to say more. Most probably find out why I didn’t want to date, but she wasn’t asking.
“I’m applying to grad schools next year. Most probably out of state. No point trying to have a long-distance relationship at that point, you know?”
“Sure.” She nodded. “So you just sleep around and have fun?”
“Would you judge me if I said yes?” I winked at her and laughed as she shook her head, her eyes showing her disapproval. She was definitely an old-fashioned type of girl.
“No, I don’t judge. I just don’t believe in sleeping around.”
“So, you’re the sort of girl that wants a commitment before you get down and dirty?” I whispered against her lips so that I was almost kissing her.
“What are you doing?” Her face reddened and I pulled back slightly.
“Sorry, was just trying to figure out if you wanted a kiss.”
“I don’t understand you,” she said suddenly. “Are you playing games with me?”
“Games?” I blinked at her, surprised at her words. “What do you mean?”
“You try to kiss me, but you keep asking about Anabel? What’s up with that?”
“Uhm, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I dropped my hands from around her waist and took a step back. “I’ve just been friendly to both of you. That’s it.”
“Well, you’re confusing me.” She sighed. “I can’t read you.”
“There’s nothing to read.” I ran my hands through my hair. “Look, sorry. It’s been a long week. I’ve got to get out of here.”
“Uhm, okay.” Janie stood there staring at me like I was some sort of alien. I knew that I was being weird. I knew that she most probably didn’t understand where I was coming from or why I was acting the way that I was. I knew she didn’t understand because I didn’t really understand myself.
“You can come if you want.” I wasn’t sure why I said the words. I knew it wasn’t a good idea, but I couldn’t help myself.
“Come where?” she asked me and I started laughing. This girl really didn’t have a clue, did she?
“Nowhere.” I shook my head at her. “You’re an odd duck, aren’t you, Janie?”
“No.” She made a face. “But you may very well be.”
“I most probably am. Yes, yes, I most probably am.” I gave her a big smile and then threw my hands up in the air. “Well, that’s it for me tonight. Have a great night. Tell Anabel I said bye.”
And with that I headed to the front door and left. I walked to my car and sat there for a few seconds thinking. Part of me wanted to go back to the party. Wanted to continue dancing with Janie. Maybe even kiss her. Maybe even go home with her. She was cute, but a gut instinct in me told me she wasn’t the sort of girl to have a one-night stand with. She wasn’t the sort of girl who seemed like she would know what the deal was. I drove away from the party feeling strangely lonely and sad. I was going to have to stop hanging out with all those frat guys. I wasn’t sure why, but I no longer enjoyed their parties as I used to before.
Chapter Four
Nate
“Hey Janie, Janie, wait up!” I ran toward the exit of the Humanities building as I saw Janie leaving. “Wait!” I tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention as she continued walking. She stopped abruptly, emitting a slight sound and then turned around and gave me a weak smile, her face slightly frazzled as she looked at me.
“Hey,” she said simply.
“Nate,” I said in case she’d forgotten. It made me feel slightly angry that she could have forgotten me already.
“I know who you are.” She laughed, her face lighting up momentarily and I grinned at her, happy to see that she was in a good mood to see me.
“I was calling for you to wait. Did you not hear me?”
“Oh, sorry.” She shook her head and looked away slightly. “I must not have heard you.” I paused for a second, knowing instinctively that she was lying. I wasn’t sure if I should call her out on it or not. Why was she lying? Maybe she was upset about the party?
“Did you and Anabel get home okay the other night?” I asked, hoping nothing bad had happened. “I wanted to call and check, but I realized I didn’t have your number.”
“Yeah, we got home fine. Thanks.” She looked at me again, her brown eyes gazing into mine as if they were searching for answers to some unasked questions. “Do you want my number then?” she asked hesitantly. “I mean if you want to text or whatever.”
“Sure.” I shrugged and grabbed my phone. “That would be cool. What’s your number? I’ll send you a quick text now so you have my number.”
“Awesome. 510-555-9832,” she said, and I sent her over a quick text.
“So, what are you up to now?” I asked her as my stomach grumbled. “I’m about to head out to grab a slice of pizza at the Pizza Shack. Wanna join?”
“Oh, now?” Her eyes lit up and I could see her thinking.
“Yeah.” I nodded. “They have two-dollar pizza slices today. I’ll even treat you.”
“You don’t have to do that.” She shook her head, but she was smiling widely. “But yeah, I’d love to come.”
“Excellent,” I said with a smile. “That’s truly excellent.” I watched as she played with her hair slightly and adjusted her gray sweater and pulled it down to cover her ass. Her very pert and perfectly shaped ass. I couldn’t stop staring at it, but I managed to move my eyes forward after about thirty seconds. I didn’t want to be a complete creep.
“So, what have you been up to? Play any chess recently?” Janie asked me and I had to forcefully stop myself from asking her if she really played chess or not. I was pretty sure the answer was not, but I didn’t want to embarrass her.
“Actually, I’ve been practicing a lot online. There’s a chess tournament coming up in two weeks that I’m headed to, so I want to make sure I’m ready.”
“Wow, a tournament? National?” She looked impressed.
“Yeah. Maybe you can try out and join,” I suggested, holding back a grin. “I know we have a spot left. Maybe you or Anabel could join.”
“Oh, wow, yeah,” she said, her face turning red. “Let me ask Anabel, she’s better than me and would likely want the spot. Though that might be the weekend that we have planned for our yoga retreat.” Her voice drifted off.
“Ooh, you’re into yoga?”
“Kinda,” she said timidly. “Uhm, but anyways, tell me more about what you did after the party. Anything fun?”
“Went home and to bed.” I smiled at her. “What about you?”
“Oh, Anabel and I ended up dancing for a bit and then we went on to an after-party.”
“Oh?” I frowned. “Who with?”
“Just some guys we met.” She shrugged. “It was fun.”
“That doesn’t sound smart. Had you just met the guys?”
“Yeah, but I mean, it wasn’t just us there.”
“You shouldn’t go to random after-parties with guys you don’t know. That’s not really safe.” I could hear my voice rising. Was she stupid? Had she not heeded my warning about the frat guys at the party?
“It was fine.” She sighed. “Nothing happened.”
“Hmmm.” I looked away from her. I wasn’t sure why I was feeling so agitated about what she’d done, but I was really annoyed. Did she not know how dangerous that situation could have been?
I watched as Janie ate her slice of pizza eagerly, the cheese dripping from her mouth as she laughed at my joke. Her brown eyes shone happily into mine, and I felt an inexplicable pleasure at the way that she laughed at my jokes.
“I guess they call you the pizza monster, huh?” I teased her as she took another big bite of pizza and grabbed some of my fries.
“How did you know?” She laughed as she took a sip of Coke. “I suppose you’re used to girls that only eat salads and stuff?” She raised an eyebrow at me and then wiggled them before she started giggling.
“You’re silly,” I said with a smile. “And yes, I know a lot of girls who seem to love salads.” I shrugged. “I like veggies as well.”
“You mean you like skinny girls?” She leaned forward and gave me a wry smile.
“I like all girls.” I bit down on my lower lip and winked at her. “I don’t discriminate.”
“Uh huh.” She sat back and sipped some more of her Coke. She had a thoughtful look on her face and I wanted to ask her what she was thinking. “So ...” she said and her voice drifted off.
“So ...?” I asked her after a few seconds of silence. “Were you going to say something?”
“Yeah.” She nodded. “So, I was wondering ...”
“What were you wondering? Unfortunately, I’m not Sherlock Holmes, and I can’t read minds yet.”
“Sherlock Holmes can’t read minds—” she began and I cut her off with a laugh.
“Don’t change the subject.” I pointed at her. “What were you going to say?”
“I was going to ask you if ...” She paused again. “Actually, not if. I was going to ask you why you were acting so funny at the party last week.” She blushed and looked away.
“Oh,” I said, surprised. Most girls didn’t ask those sorts of questions that quickly. I wasn’t sure she’d even been aware that I’d been a bit put out.
“You don’t have to answer,” she said with an awkward smile. “I know that might seem a bit forward.”
“Uhm, not forward at all,” I said, but I didn’t really know what to say. I barely knew this girl and I didn’t know what I wanted from her. Sure, she was hot, and I’d love to hook up with her, but I wasn’t looking for a relationship, and I wasn’t sure if she was either. Well, that was a bit of a lie. I was pretty sure that she wasn’t looking for a hookup. She seemed like she was the sort of girl who needed to have a boyfriend before she had sex. And I wasn’t that guy. I didn’t want a girlfriend. I didn’t need the pressure or the stress. And frankly, I just wanted to have some fun, get laid, and not have any strings attached. “I didn’t think I was acting funny at the party?”
“Maybe not funny, but weird,” she said lightly. “Kinda hot and cold.” Her face brightened as she nibbled on her lower lip.
“Oh? I didn’t realize,” I said, even though that was a lie. How did I tell her that she confused me? That I thought she was too intense. That I liked her but I was scared she’d be a clinger. I knew I couldn’t tell her that. I liked her. I wanted to be friends with her, maybe flirt a bit, but I didn’t want any drama. And she seemed the sort who could be drama.
“Yeah, I didn’t know if you were trying to avoid me or something.” She looked nervous and I wanted to sigh. This was the exact reason why I didn’t want to get involved with her. If she was acting like this after one small peck, imagine how she’d be acting if we did anything else.
“Why would I be trying to avoid you?” I continued the conversation even though I knew I shouldn’t.
“I don’t know. Why do guys act weird?” She looked at me and shrugged. “If I knew the answer to that question, I’d be a millionaire.”
“You’re a funny one, aren’t you, Janie?”
“Uhm, is that a question or are you just making a statement?” She laughed and then continued. “But yeah, I guess I am unique. That’s what Anabel tells me, anyway.”
“You and Anabel have been best friends for a long time, huh?”
“Yes.” She sighed and the tone in her voice changed.
“Do you have a problem with me asking you questions about Anabel?” I asked her finally. I had noticed at the party that she seemed to get more tense when I brought up Anabel and I wasn’t sure why.
“No, why would I? Do you like her or something?”
“Huh?” I frowned at her, confused by her question. “What do you mean?”
“You’re always asking questions about her.”
“She has a boyfriend,” I said, realizing that this chick was as crazy as I thought. She was jealous!
“So you don’t like her?” she prodded.
“She’s cute, yes, I noticed that.” I shrugged. “I don’t know her well enough to like her, so no, I don’t like her.”
“Would you date her if she didn’t have a boyfriend?”
“If you’re asking if I would ask her out and try to get to know her, then yes. She’s hot. She seems nice ...” My voice trailed off as Janie’s face grew red and she started blinking rapidly.
“So now she’s hot?”
“Sorry, what?”
“Just now you called her cute and now you’re calling her hot!” Janie’s voice was rising. “I see.”
“Sorry, what do you see?” My mind was boggling at the conversation. Why was she so upset? “Is it wrong for me to think your best friend is attractive?”
“No, no, of course not. Why would it be wrong?” She gave me a big smile. “Good to know. So, do you have any cute single friends?”
“Uhm, I guess.” I paused and stared at her for a few seconds. This conversation had been a mistake. A big, big mistake. I didn’t even know what to say next. I realized now that I shouldn’t have invited her for a slice of pizza. I should have let her just keep walking. She was definitely drama with a capital D. Something I didn’t need. I’d dated a girl in high school who was drama, and it had all been way too much for me.
“So, doing anything fun this weekend?” I tried to change the subject. Maybe she and Anabel had a weird history I didn’t know about.
“Not really.” She looked at me nervously. “Hey, I want to apologize if I sounded like a complete psycho just now.” She made a face and scrunched up her nose. “I’m really not a psycho. I was just a little confused and I had verbal diarrhea.”
“Okay.” I laughed, willing to forgive her and ignore the warning signs in my stomach. She had such a cute face. “No worries.”
“What are you doing this weekend?”
“Going to a mini chess tournament.” I nearly started laughing as her body froze. “Interested in coming?”
“Oh?” she answered hesitantly.
“To watch me play.” I let her out of her misery quickly.
“Oh, really?” She grinned at me widely. “I’d love that.”
“Really? Awesome.” I grinned back at her. “It might not be the most fun you’ve ever had.”
“I’m sure it will be great. Thanks for the invitation.” She played with her hair for a few seconds and then I saw her look at her watch and make a face. “Oh my, I have a class in ten minutes,” she said. “I should go.”
“Can’t you skip?” I asked her, not because I wanted to encourage her to miss classes, but because I wanted to spend more time with her. I wanted to get to know this strange, curious, beautiful girl who said whatever was on her mind without thought to how it might sound.
“I guess.” She looked at me questioningly. “Did you want me to?”
“Yeah.” I nodded. “I do. Skip and let’s go do something fun.”
“What’ll we do?” she asked excitedly, and I paused for a few seconds while I tried to think of something exciting to do.
“We could go down by the lake,” I said, thinking that sounded fun. I felt my phone vibrating in my pocket, and I pulled it out to see who had messaged me.
Hey, Nate, still wanna hang out today? It was Talissa, the hot blonde I’d met at a lit quiz a couple of weeks earlier. I’d been trying to get her to go out with me for the last two weeks and she always had an excuse as to why she couldn’t make it. And that was the times she responded to me. There were many times that she just never answered my message. I stared at Janie across the table and held in a sigh. Why couldn’t Talissa have texted me five minutes before I’d asked Janie to hang out?
“Something wrong?” Janie asked, concern in her voice as she leaned forward and looked down at my phone screen.
“Yeah, no, I mean everything is fine.” I really wanted to see Talissa, but I didn’t want to be a jerk to Janie. She didn’t deserve that. “I just remembered I have something to do around six, but we can hang out until then, yeah?”
“Oh, sure.” She nodded, a smile on her face. “That’s good with me.”
“Okay, awesome.” I grinned at her, happy that it was all working out. “Give me a second and then we can head out.” I quickly responded to Talissa’s text. I’ll pick you up for dinner around 7. I hit send and then put my phone back in my pocket before Janie could see what I was typing. I felt slightly guilty for scheduling a date tonight while I was hanging out with her. But it wasn’t as if Janie and I were dating or boyfriend and girlfriend. She had no reason to expect that I wouldn’t be going on dates with other girls. I wasn’t doing anything wrong. Yet for some reason I couldn’t shake the anxiety from my stomach.
***
“SHALL WE GO FOR A SWIM?” Janie’s eyes glittered as she stared at the water. “It looks so calm in the water. I bet it would feel amazing in this heat.”
“You wanna go in?” I asked in surprise. “Do you have a bathing suit?”
“No.” She laughed.
“You want to go skinny dipping?” My jaw dropped as I looked at her. Maybe I’d read her completely wrong.
“No.” She laughed even harder. “I could go in with my underwear on.”
“Oh, okay.” I laughed and tried not to picture her in just her bra and panties. “Sure, if you want to.”
“Are you going to come in as well?”
“Yeah, of course,” I said and before she could even say another word, I started pulling my shirt off and then my pants. I stood there in my boxer shorts and threw my hands up in the air. “It’s your turn now. Take it all off.”
“Haha.” She shook her finger at me. “If I didn’t know you better, I’d think you were telling me to strip naked.”
“I wouldn’t say no if you did.” I winked at her, and she blushed. I felt a warm stirring in me as she pulled her jeans down and stood there in her hot pink panties. She blushed again as she pulled her top off and I could feel myself hardening as I gazed at her ample breasts, barely squeezed into her bra. She looked over at me in a shy way and in that moment all feelings of friendship were gone. I wanted her badly. I wanted to have her naked. Here on the grass. I wanted to take her. She was sexy. Sexier than she knew. And that was what made her even more adorable. That was what made me both want to fuck her hard and protect her against the world. It was a weird amalgamation of feelings that I’d never felt at the same time before. Sure, I’d wanted other women before. Shit, I wanted Talissa just as badly. But I didn’t feel the warm, caring feelings for Talissa. She didn’t evoke in me a need to want to hold her close and kiss her head. Not like Janie. Janie affected me in more than a base way. It was a weird feeling, and I didn’t like it. I liked to compartmentalize my feelings. Women were for sex or friendships. Not both. And rarely friendships. I hadn’t grown up with sisters and I didn’t really know how to be soft and sweet, and that’s what women needed. Especially women like Janie. It was weird that I already knew that about her. It was also weird that I felt that bond toward her already. Kinda fucked-up really. To want to protect her as my sister, but also want to fuck the living daylights out of her like some whore. Not that I thought she was a whore, but shit, the things I could do to her. I stiffened my back as I realized my mind was wandering to bad places. I could see her nipples through her bra and I wanted to reach over and gently pull her right breast out of its cup and take her nipple in my mouth. What would she say if I did that? Would she tell me to stop? Would she ask me to suck harder? Pull her left breast out?
“Hey, Nate, you okay?” Her voice was concerned, and I realized she’d walked over to me in the few seconds I’d been daydreaming.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine.” I nodded quickly and then ran toward the water as fast as I could before she could see the raging boner that was trying to poke through my boxer shorts. “Come on, Janie!” I called back to her after I came up from my quick dive. The water was cold and refreshing on my body and just what I’d needed to stop my horniness.
“Coming!” She ran toward me, and I watched as she splashed into the water, her body illuminated by the sun. Her face was glowing, and I swam toward her so that I could pull her down into the water and splash her. “Nate!” she screamed when my arms reached around her waist so I could dunk her.
“Yes, Janie?” I laughed as she splashed water in my face. I splashed her back, and she giggled as she tossed her soaked hair back. Her lips were wet and I couldn’t keep my eyes off of them. I leaned forward about to kiss her, when she pushed against my chest and broke away from me. She started swimming and I watched her fluid strokes for a few seconds before swimming along behind her.
***
“HEY, SO DO YOU WANT to come back to my room?” I asked Janie after we’d come out of the lake, not knowing if it was a good idea. “We can check out that video I was just telling you about.” I smiled at her, my eyes not leaving her body. She looked so hot as she waited for her skin to dry off from the water. Why did she look so hot?
“Sure. I thought you had plans tonight though?” She looked confused.
“Yeah,” I nodded and thought for a second. “I can change them, though.” I knew Talissa would be upset and maybe I was blowing my shot with her, but she shouldn’t have played so many games with me.
“You sure?” she asked, with a small smile.
“Yup.” I reached over and touched the side of her face. “We can watch the video and eat more pizza, Ms. Pizza Monster.”
“You’re silly.” She laughed and grabbed my hand. “That sounds fun. Let’s go.”
“Awesome.” I grinned at her as we held hands. “Thanks for coming to the lake with me. I hope it wasn’t too boring.”
“Not at all.” She shook her head. “It was amazing. So, so amazing.”
“Really?” I started laughing at her enthusiasm. “It was that good?”
“Well, maybe not that good.” She shook her head. “But still pretty cool.”
“You know who’s pretty cool?” I stopped and looked at her.
“No. Who?” She stared up at me.
“You,” I said before leaning down to kiss her. I took her tongue in my mouth and sucked. It tasted wet and slightly salty, but oh, so good. She kissed me back passionately, pushing herself into me as her fingers reached up to my head and played with my hair. Her fingers rubbed against my skull and she moaned slightly as I deepened the kiss, bringing her tighter to me so that her breasts were crushed against my chest. I reached one hand down to her ass and squeezed. She gasped slightly as my fingers ran down the crack of her ass and cupped her butt cheek before sliding my fingers between her legs.
“Nate.” She pulled away slightly, her eyes wide as I touched her lightly.
“Do you want me to stop?”
“No.” She shook her head and leaned in and kissed me hard. “No, I don’t want you to stop. Not at all.”
I grinned at her and took her hand and sat her down on the towel. I pushed her flat on her back and pulled her panties down quickly. She gasped as I lowered my head toward her private spot and her body buckled as my tongue found her pulsing clit.
“Oh, Nate!” she cried out as my tongue entered her and tasted her juices. She tasted sweet, and I lapped her up eagerly. I felt her fingers in my hair as her thighs trembled around me, and I closed my eyes as I worked on making her come. “Oh, Nate!” she cried out again and this time her voice was soft and almost loving. Something in me froze at the tone of her voice, but before I could think about it too deeply, she started coming, which turned me on even more and I ignored whatever worries I had in my mind.
Chapter Five
Janie
I woke up with a smile on my face and a flutter in my heart and stomach. I’d had a really sweet dream that had starred Nate. He’d been telling me how beautiful I was and then he’d pulled me onto his lap and started kissing me. And the kiss had been deep and passionate, and I’d been really upset when I’d woken up and realized that his lips really weren’t on mine. I grabbed my phone eagerly to see if I had any missed texts from Nate. Not that I thought I did, but it was nice to hope. I’d been checking my phone all night, but hadn’t seen anything from him. I sighed as I saw no messages from him. He obviously wasn’t thinking about me as often as I was thinking about him. I still couldn’t read him. There were moments that I really thought he liked me as much as I liked him, and then there were moments that it seemed he just wasn’t interested in me at all. I really wish I knew where his head was at. I really wish I knew if he liked me or not.
I was going to ask Anabel what she thought, but I knew that she wouldn’t understand why it was so important to me. She would think he was just another random dude I’d developed a crush on. She wouldn’t understand that he was special. That I actually felt something real, something deeper for Nate. It didn’t even really make sense to me. The connection we had, the way I felt when I was with him. The way my heart skipped a beat when I saw him and the way we looked into each other’s eyes when we were talking and laughing. It meant something real, something special. I’d never felt this feeling with anyone else before. Never. I knew it sounded weird, but a part of me really thought he was my soul mate. My someone special. My one. I got chills just thinking about it. Yet I wasn’t completely sure he felt it as well. A part of me really thought he did, but then he made comments and did things that made me doubt that feeling.
“Janie, you coming to breakfast with me?” Anabel opened my door and walked in. “I can’t believe you’re still in bed on Pancake Tuesday.”
“Dude.” I laughed as I sat up. “I just had the best dream.”
“Hmm, you dreamt you won a billion dollars?”
“No.” I laughed. “I dreamt that Nate and I were making out and it was flipping amazing.”
“Oh, God.” She rolled her eyes. “You guys haven’t made out yet in real life?”
“Well.” I blushed. “Maybe.” I paused as I grew hot thinking about our hot night together. “I thought he was going to go for it the other night, but he didn’t,” I lied and then immediately felt guilty. I wasn’t sure why I didn’t want to tell Anabel the truth. Maybe I felt slightly guilty that I’d hooked up with him so quickly.
“Weird.” She made a face and studied me.
“What?” I frowned up at her. “Why is that weird? Maybe he’s respecting my boundaries.”
“Janie, what boundaries? Have you given him any indication that you’re not interested in making out or even hooking up with him?”
“No.” I shook my head slowly. “But you know guys—maybe he’s not sure if I’m into him.”
“Highly unlikely.”
“Anabel!” I jumped out of bed and hit her on the shoulder. “Don’t be mean!”
“I’m just saying. Most guys, when they like a girl, and they know she has interest, well, they make a move. They don’t hold back.”
“Maybe it’s because he doesn’t want to disrespect me?”
“What?” She blinked at me. “Where are you getting that from? I’ve never heard anything so stupid.”
“Wow, thanks.” I glared at her. “So, you think he doesn’t like me?”
“I don’t know.” She shrugged. “It seems to me that he’s playing games, and you don’t need that.”
“Ugh.” I sighed. “So, I have something to tell you.”
“Hmm?” Her eyes narrowed.
“We totally hooked up the other night,” I whispered and she squealed.
“Oh my God, I knew it!” she exclaimed. “I knew it!” She started laughing.
“What’s so funny?” I frowned.
“You trying to say that he was going to hold off.” She rolled her eyes. “Guys like him don’t hold back when it comes to sex.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I don’t mean anything by it, I’m just saying that most guys that go on dates want to get laid.”
“So you think he’s using me for sex?” I glared at her for ruining my happy buzz. “Are you jealous?” I asked her accusatorially. Was she trying to make me feel bad because she wanted him for herself?
“Are you joking, Janie?” Her jaw dropped open. “Jealous of what?”
“The fact that he wanted me?” I gave her an ashamed look and looked away. I knew I sounded ridiculous, but I couldn’t stop myself from going on. “Or the fact that I have a new boyfriend?”
“Janie, are you crazy?” She started laughing, and I frowned. Why was she laughing. “You don’t have a new boyfriend, and why the hell would I care if he wanted you and not me? I don’t even know this guy.”
“Well, he’s a hottie, and I just ...” My voice trailed away as I saw her rolling her eyes. “Sorry.” I sighed. I jumped up and ran over to give her a hug. “I know I’m being crazy.” I shook my head as I pulled away from her. “I don’t know what I’m thinking. There’s something about this guy that drives me crazy.”
“What is it about him that drives you crazy?” Anabel stared at me. “And tell me, was the sex good?”
“It was absolutely amazing.” I felt giddy as I thought back to our hookup. “You wouldn’t think he was a college guy.”
“Oh?” She raised an eyebrow at me.
“He made me come right away.” I blushed as I spilled the details about my night with Nate.
“Huh?” She tilted her head.
“Well, you know...” I giggled. “Sometimes it’s hard to orgasm from just penetration, but with Nate ...” My eyes widened and I wiggled my eyebrows. “Let’s just say that he knew what he was doing.
“Ooh.” She started giggling. “So it was amazing, then?”
“It was amazing.” I nodded. “I’ve never been with someone who was so electric and sexy.”
“Oh, Janie.” Anabel shook her head at me. “You’re so dramatic.”
“I’m not dramatic. I’m just being real.” I sighed wistfully. “I want him right now.”
“Are you going to see him tonight?”
“Dunno.” My stomach sunk as I looked back at my phone.
“What do you mean, you don’t know?”
“I haven’t heard from him.” I bit my lower lip and sighed. “Should I text him?”
“Oh.” Anabel gave me a look. “You haven’t heard from him since you guys slept together?”
“Well, kinda.” I made a face. “He texted me the next day and said he hoped I had a nice day.” I smiled at the memory. “So he wasn’t completely using me.”
“Do you have plans to hang out again?” Anabel asked me softly.
“No,” I admitted sadly.
“Did you discuss hanging out again?”
“He kinda invited me to a chess thing,” I said, but then realized that we’d never actually made any concrete plans. “Do you think I slept with him too quickly?”
“Not if that’s what you wanted.” Anabel shook her head. “But,” she paused and gave me a look of regret, “there’s a possibility that he got what he wanted and that you’re not going to hear from him again.”
“Then you do think I slept with him too quickly.” I bit down on my lower lip and thought about how I’d gone to the lake with him and stripped down to my underwear. I’d been so excited to go into the water with him. I’d seen his boner right away and laughed when he’d run into the water to hide it. I’d wanted to jump him in the water. He’d turned me on right away. And the way he’d looked at me, wow, it had made me feel so special. Though I knew it could all have been an act. Maybe that’s how he always looked at women. But it had seemed so caring. So warm. Even the questions he’d been asking me before when we’d been eating pizza had led me to believe that he really cared about me as more than just a casual acquaintance. But I’d been dumb. I wasn’t sure why I’d let my heart convince my head that this was a good idea. Maybe I so badly wanted him to like me that I was willing to do anything. I mean, he’d been acting weirdly at the frat party. And then a bit weirdly at the pizza place. I mean, the fact that he’d gotten a text and said he just remembered he’d had plans had been suspicious to me, but I’d kept my mouth shut. I hadn’t wanted him to think that I was crazy. Though I was sure that he most probably already did.
“I think if you were comfortable with him when you had sex and you used protection, then it’s fine.” She shook her head. “There’s no time that’s too soon or too late. You have to do you, girl.”
“Yeah.” I sighed. “So I kinda fucked up a little bit.”
“Oh God.” She looked nervous. “What did you do?”
“Don’t be mad at me.”
“Oh Janie, what did you do?” She glared at me. “Do not tell me he didn’t wear a condom. Do we need to go and get you the morning after pill?”
“Does it work if it’s not the morning after?”
“I don’t know. I think so.” She pulled out her phone. “Let me check.” She then glared at me. “How could you sleep with him without a condom?”
“We didn’t have sex without a condom,” I said quickly. “Well, not really.” I made a face. “We started fooling around and were both naked and ...” My voice trailed off as I was still a bit embarrassed to be telling Anabel exactly what had happened.
“And?” Anabel raised an eyebrow at me. “Spill.”
“We started grinding and well, he kinda put himself inside of me before he put the condom on.” I reddened as I thought back to the memory. “It was so hot and I was so into him, and I knew I should tell him to put a condom on, but I just wanted to feel him for a bit. His skin on my skin.”
“Oh my God, Janie!” Anabel looked at me angrily.
“I know, I know.” I sighed. “I’m stupid. I mean, he did eventually put a condom on, but you know.” I blushed again. “I should have had him put one on before he entered me.”
“Yeah.” Anabel sighed. “You should get an STD test.”
“What?” I made a face. “You think so?”
“Yes.” Anabel squeezed my hand. “Better to be safe than sorry.”
“I suppose so. Oh my God.” I licked my lips nervously. “I’m so dumb.”
“No, you’re not.” Anabel smiled at me. “You got caught up in the moment.”
“Yeah, but he hasn’t even asked me out again.” All of a sudden, I started to feel bad about the situation. The sweetness of my dreams and memories were no longer enough to banish my doubts. “Why hasn’t he called me? Or texted me?”
“Maybe he’s waiting on you?”
“Do you think so?”
“Maybe?” Anabel shrugged. “Maybe he doesn’t know how you feel about what happened.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah,” she said. “It wouldn’t hurt to text him.”
“I could invite him over for dinner,” I said eagerly. “Maybe say I would like to treat him to a meal other than pizza to show him I’m not a pizza monster.”
“What?” Anabel looked confused.
“Nothing,” I said, all of a sudden feeling a rush of energy. I didn’t want to waste time explaining the inside joke to Anabel. I just wanted to text Nate. I was already planning a menu in my head. It would be awesome. Maybe I would make a steak dinner. Guys loved steak. And then maybe he could stay the night in my room and we could have dessert in bed. Some strawberries and whipped cream. That would be super sexy.
“Is your mind wandering again, Janie?” Anabel asked me.
“No,” I lied and then laughed. “Yes. I was thinking about Nate. I think I’m going to invite him to dinner.”
“Oh?” Anabel looked surprised. “You’re going to take him to dinner?”
“No, I was thinking that I would make him dinner.”
“You’re going to cook for him?”
“Do you think that’s a bad idea?”
“Noooo.” She looked doubtful. “Seems romantic.”
“Yeah, that’s what I was thinking,” I said, excited. “And then maybe afterwards we can have a talk and well, hang out a bit.”
“Bow chicka bow wow, huh?”
“Anabel!” I giggled and then went to grab my phone. “Give me a few minutes and let me text him and then we can get breakfast.”
“Oh, you’re going to text him now?”
“You don’t think that’s a good idea?”
“I don’t know.” She shrugged. “Do it. This way you won’t be daydreaming about him all day, and you guys can finally talk.”
“Exactly. Do you think I should ask him about what our status is now or wait?”
“I think that you should wait.” Anabel made a face. “I mean you barely know him. Yes, you’ve had sex, but this is not really a relationship yet. You don’t want to scare him and make him think you’re crazy.”
“Yeah.” I sighed. “Though I’d like to know if he’s thinking about me as a potential girlfriend or not.”
“Didn’t he kinda say he wasn’t looking for a girlfriend?”
“Yeah, but that was before we hooked up,” I said as I opened my text messages. I was disappointed that there was still no text from Nate, but I tried to quell my anxiety. Maybe he really didn’t know what to say and was waiting on me to call him. Maybe he thought I hadn’t been impressed with his bedroom skills. I opened my text message box as Anabel walked out of the room and started formulating my text.
