Total pages in book: 27
Estimated words: 25248 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 126(@200wpm)___ 101(@250wpm)___ 84(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 25248 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 126(@200wpm)___ 101(@250wpm)___ 84(@300wpm)
I mock-frown.
“Romes, the guys in that magazine aren’t going to jump out of its pages. They’re not available. Besides, Johnny’s cute! Sure, he’s not the smartest guy in the world, but it’s probably all the concussions from playing football. Give him some time. After graduation, he won’t be on the gridiron anymore, and so maybe his intelligence will improve.”
But my friend merely shrugs again, languidly turning a page to reveal another gorgeous male model who’s totally nude.
“Mmm, look at him,” she murmurs, not even listening as she eyes the stud’s equipment. “Wow, if that thing comes down to his knee now, I wonder how long he is when he’s erect?”
“Romy!” I say in an exasperated tone. “OMG, are you going to let Johnny Thayer twist in the wind? Seriously, girl. You haven’t been interested in boys for the last year or so and it’s getting weird! I mean, we’re still looking at dirty magazines, so I know you like guys, but what gives? Before Johnny, there was Ron, right? And before Ron, there was Harrison Barnes? What happened? There are so many guys who’ve been interested in you, but you seem to have lost all interest in dating them.”
At that, Romy sighs and flops onto her back, finally tearing her eyes away from the magazine.
“I just don’t like boys,” she says again. “I like men.”
I sputter.
“Romes, Harrison Barnes is in college now. He’s two years ahead of us. I don’t know what you mean by ‘boy.’”
My friend merely shrugs before getting a devilish smile on her face.
“Well, let’s just say I like them older.”
I fix her with a look.
“Like how old? In their twenties? That’s fine, but I think Harrison is twenty, so he qualifies, right?”
Romy shakes her head, her blonde curls bouncing.
“No, Pipes, I like them real old these days.”
“Twenty-five?” I query, one eyebrow raised. “Or even thirty?”
Romy giggles and flaps her hand at me.
“No, you’re so unimaginative, Piper! I like them in their forties.”
I gasp because forty is old, sort of. I mean, of course there are handsome, virile men in their forties, but we don’t interact with any forty-year-old men in a romantic way. Yet something’s boiling under the surface, and I shoot my buddy a curious look.
“Do you have someone in mind, Romy? Are you dating someone that you haven’t told me about?” I ask in a slow tone.
She shrugs and gets a secretive smile on her glossy lips.
“Maybe.”
I gasp and stare at her.
“OMG, you have to tell me! Who is he? But wow, forty. Yeah, that’s kind of up there.”
“I didn’t say forty, Piper,” my friend says in a lofty tone. “I said forties. For your information, he’s forty-five already.”
My jaw drops.
“Seriously?”
Piper flaps her hand at me again.
“Don’t be so shocked, girlfriend. Men are very virile at forty-five, and I’d even go so far to say that some men are hitting their peak at that age. I mean, they’re powerful, they’re on their game, and they’ve been around the block a few times. So yeah, I’m attracted to real men, and not these silly boys who love to play puppy dog.”
I nod, squinting a little.
“Yes, but who is it? And how did you meet him?”
Romy looks around, although we’re alone in her bedroom at home. Then she leans forward, aquamarine eyes dancing.
“It’s George,” she whispers. “Don’t tell anyone.”
I cock my head to the side.
“I don’t know any Georges,” I say in a slow tone. “Does he go to Fairlawn? Or is he at Atherton? St. George’s Prep?”
“No, because he’s forty-five!” she squeals. “What forty-five-year-old guy is still in high school? No, it’s George! You know, my stepdad George.”
That makes me go silent as I stare at her.
“You’re shitting me.”
But my friend merely shrugs, unconcerned.
“No, I’m not. You know that my mom skipped out on us a while back. I have no idea where Camilla is now, and frankly, I don’t care either. But when she first left, I was a mess and George was there for me. We grew close over time, and at some point, there was an attraction.”
I stare at my friend again.
“Yeah, but your mom left when we were freshmen, right? So you were only fifteen. I don’t know, Romes. That sounds scandalous.”
“I was sixteen when Camilla left,” Romy retorts smartly. “And don’t worry because nothing happened until I was legal. George made sure of that because he’s principled that way. But yeah, there was electricity sparking between us for the longest time, and on my eighteenth birthday, George had a special gift for me.”
I stare at her.
“What was it? I thought you said he took you out to dinner.”
Romy winks at me.
“He did take me to dinner, but we didn’t go to a restaurant. Instead, he cooked for me, right here at home and things got romantic afterwards. Let’s just say I had the best eighteenth birthday ever because afterwards, I went upstairs and spent the night with the man of the house in his bedroom. It was amazing, Piper,” she confides in a low voice. “There’s a huge difference between a man and a boy, and he taught me so many things. Plus, George knows how to make a woman feel good, you know? It’s not over and done with in ten minutes, with his pecker halfway in you and halfway out. No, my stepdad is masterful when it comes to enjoying women, and I love it.”