Total pages in book: 120
Estimated words: 111610 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 558(@200wpm)___ 446(@250wpm)___ 372(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 111610 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 558(@200wpm)___ 446(@250wpm)___ 372(@300wpm)
“Yet here we are, breaking all the rules,” Samantha says with a satisfied smirk. “You gonna show me your office after we get Rico evicted? And your big . . . hard . . . desk?” She laughs, proud that she’s got me on a short hook because I was not thinking about my desk and we both know it.
Fuck, I think I might be breaking a few more rules before the night is through.
CHAPTER 11
SAMANTHA
Rule number one of hookups: Don’t text him. It shows you’re potentially clingy, which I’m not.
However, I’m having a hard time sticking to that rule because it’s been a few days since Chance dropped me to my car after our Rico the Raccoon adventure. I’ve been hovering over my phone to see if he would message me and talked myself out of at least three different possible conversation starters I could text him.
Knee’s feeling much better. Should I expect a Dr. bill for the ‘house call’?
You up?
Another idea is a GIF I found of a raccoon wearing a party hat and confetti . . . a surprise Rico, if you will.
Of course, none of those are going to work. One makes it sound like I’m paying for dick, two is desperate, and three is stupid. All potential red flags.
I could just be honest—10/10 dick, would ride again!
But I’m pretty sure that’d have Chance blocking my number, not to mention making any run-ins with Luna and Carter a bit awkward. I’ve talked to Luna every day, telling her everything because that’s what besties do, and she was blowing up my phone by eight a.m. after Chance swept me out of the ice rink, wanting immediate answers. And a good story.
She was shocked when she connected my story about the hotel sex god with her brother-in-law, but when I told her about him blowing out my back again, she nearly crawled through the phone to shake me in excitement. For me, it confirmed that he’s as straight-laced as she’s always said he is, and this thing between us is a boundary-pushing adventure. For us both.
And could happen again . . . if he’d text me. Or call. Or send out a fucking smoke signal. I’d be there with nipple clamps on, ready to go.
“I’m pouring out my guts here, bitch, and you’re off in la-la land like I’m boring you to death,” a voice says, breaking into my reverie.
I’m lost, imagining ways I might get Chance back inside me, beneath me, or on top of me, but when I blink and focus, I find four pairs of eyes peering at me. Three look curious, but one is furious.
“Sorry, Natasha. You were saying that your date went well?” I’m echoing the bare bones of what she’s been ranting about for the last ten minutes because I honestly quit listening when she started repeating the same concerns over and over in a loop despite any advice to the contrary.
She huffs, “Not well. Immaculate. Perfection. Dream-like.” She iterates every word with a wave of her hands, like she’s doing magic in midair to bring them to life.
“But you don’t trust it because you’ve been hurt,” Sara adds, filling in for what I didn’t say. She’s got the trauma response on lockdown and knows it when she sees it, though we all see it in how Natasha’s behaving. Truthfully, even she sees it in herself, but that doesn’t mean she’s ready to deal with it yet.
“Right! How can I? I mean, Josh is perfect, which nobody is, so I keep searching for the red flag, testing him at every turn. But he’s all patient with me and shit, talking through my worries when I haven’t even told him what they are.” She looks downright offended at his caring response. “He even liked the Powerman 5K I got from Samantha and wasn’t intimidated by it at all. Sat right there and sexily jacked off with one hand and flicked my bean while I took care of business with the vibe. Who does that?” She throws her hands wide, looking at us expectantly.
“You got that one?” Daphne gasps, grinning in carnal camaraderie. “I did too! Did you know it’s waterproof? I tried it in the tub and almost drowned. Glub, glub, glub.” She makes a sound like her last breath is escaping from under the water and then grins. “Could’ve died, still would’ve been worth it.”
“Even better with a friend,” Natasha proclaims, stuck on Josh.
I did catch that she met him on campus when she was grabbing coffee in the central quad area. He’s an employee, not a student, already well established in the computer science administration, and he’s sexy, smart, and kind, according to Natasha. And thankfully, great in bed, because Natasha near immediately broke her proclamation swearing off men when she met him. Another selfish sex incident or ghosting like with her rugby player probably would’ve sent her to the nunnery. Instead, she’s staring down a lifetime of happiness with a great guy and freaking out about it.