Page 9 of Slap Shot Surprise
Which was fine by me.
My apartment wasmineagain. Quiet when I wanted quiet. Loud when I wanted loud. I could play video games without her sulking because I was ignoring her. I could grow a playoff beard and not hear complaints that I looked grungy. I could cook my dad’s pasta with meat sauce for dinner without listening to her whine that she couldn’t eat carbs. I could come and go as I pleased without any hassle. And I slept better at night with the bed to myself.
Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t planning to be celibate, just single. If I met someone who was up for a no-drama, no-strings-attached good time, I’d indulge. Otherwise, being alone suited me just fine for now. I got my fill of love from the game, from the fans, from the crowd. I respected what my parents and siblings had, but that didn’t mean I had to follow in their footsteps. I liked the idea of being my own man. Forging my own path.
Placing my hands behind my head, I spread my legs a little wider and closed my eyes.
Life was fucking great.
I wouldn’t change a thing.
THREE
mabel
“You saidwhatto a total stranger?”My best friend and sister-in-law, Ari, glanced over at me from behind the wheel of her car. We were on our way to her cousin’s wedding—I was her date, since my brother Dashiel was out of town.
“I told him I’d never had good sex,” I repeated, cringing in the passenger seat.
She burst out laughing. “You didn’t!”
“Oh, it gets worse. I also told him I’d never had an orgasm with a guy, and I’d been faking it for years.”
“What?” Ari shrieked.
“Seriously, I’ve never been so embarrassed in my life. Then I told him?—”
“Wait a minute, back up. Is that really true?Haveyou been faking it for years?”
I squirmed a little. “Yes.”
“Why didn’t you ever tell me that?”
“Because it’s embarrassing, okay? And I don’t like talking to you that much about sex because you’re marriedto my brother. I love that my best friend is now my sister, but there are just some details I don’t need.”
“But we can still talk about sex in a general way,” she countered. “I was your best friendwaybefore I married Dash. You’ve really never had good sex?” She sounded both surprised and sad for me.
“It’s not like it’s been terrible,” I said, a little defensively. “I don’t have any trauma about it or anything. I just haven’t been with anyone who knew how to...”Put the puck in the net, I heard Joe Lupo say in my head. “To get the job done on my end.”
“It’s not a job, Mabel.”
“You know what I mean. And maybe it’s partly my fault.” I pulled down the visor in the passenger seat and used the mirror to apply my lip gloss. “I’m not good at saying what I want. I’m a talker in every other situation in life except that one. I get shy.”
“Well, in the future, I encourage you to speak up.” She laughed. “Just maybe not to strangers on a plane.”
“I thought I was gonna die, okay?” I flipped the visor back up and stuck my gloss back in my clutch. “All these things were running through my head that I wasn’t going to live to do. I was too distraught to think straight. I practically propositioned him!”
“Like you asked him to join the mile high club?”
“I’m guessing he’s already a member, but no. I just told him I’d never had a one-night stand with a hot stranger, and he made a joke about how it wasn’t off the table.”
“Are you sure it was a joke?”
“Definitely. Trust me, this guy was way out of my league. He just felt sorry for me.”
“Well, I’m sorry too. I know howmuch you hate to fly.” Ari turned into the parking lot next to the Chapel by the Sea. “What did he look like anyway?”
“Brown hair. Blue eyes. Great smile.” I’d been thinking about his face nonstop. “His nose was kind of crooked, and he had a scar on his lip, but he was gorgeous. The most gorgeous guy I’ve ever met.”
