Page 22 of Wicked Destiny

nine

Two Weeks Later

Thank God for Priya.

My bestie takes one look at me sliding into the chair beside her and places her phone face-down. She realizes I need her rapt attention.

Her tell: Priya doesn’t surrender her phone for anything short of a crisis or a truly excellent story.

Today I’ve got both.

“Okay.” She snaps her gum. “You’ve been weird for weeks and finally agreed to a manicure which, for you, is basically checking into the ER. Talk.”

I’ve rehearsed this all morning and it still comes out like I’m five years old. “I’m in deep shit. I’ve got a crush. More than a crush, actually.”

“Love this for us.” She rests her chin in her palms. “Details.”

I leave out his name and the part where forty million people worship the ground he walks on. I stick to how he’s much older than me, we got thrown together for the school project, discovered our common experience with grief and now it’s turned into something friendship plus-ish.

Or, maybe it hasn’t.

Hell, how can I define who we are to each other?

I can’t.

Gah. So many questions. This is why I need advice.

“We kinda hooked up.” I scrunch my nose. “Twice.”

Priya shoves one hand under the LED lamp to cure her first coat. “Elaborate, and don’t skip the good part, I will know.”

“Well, how’s this for good…” I drop my voice. “A few weeks ago, he fingered me and made me come.”

“That’s it?” Priya blinks. “The whole reveal?”

“Don’t downplay. He gave me the first orgasm in my life.” I shoot her a glare. “I’ve never been able to make it happen on my own and Owen never went out of his way to get me there. It took this guy mere minutes. I screamed loud enough to scare myself.” I glance around, hoping I’m not scandalizing our nail technicians.

Priya’s waves me off. “Owen. Schmowen. You’d have figured it out eventually. I’m still coping with the fact you let an AARP dude diddle you.”

“He’s not that old,” I blurt out. “He’s so fucking hot, Pri. There’s more.” I drop my voice another notch. “A few days after, I offered to give him a blowjob. He accepted. I sucked at it, pardon the pun, but he coached me through it.”

Priya’s free hand flies up off the table. “Coached you? WTF?”

“Look, Owen didn’t like blowjobs so I had very little experience.” I shudder at the memory. “I was so nervous. Sucked too hard. Stroked too fast. Used my teeth. He was sweet and patient. Told me how to spit, how to stroke him, how to breathe. When he, um, finished, he returned the favor and went down on me.”

“Whoa. Slow down, sister.” Priya squints. “Sweet and patient? Catch a grip. A young, beautiful woman offered to suck an old guy’s dick. Of course he coached you. He’s probably some sort of lolicon and you fell into his trap. Serious red flag.”

I resist the urge to defend Beau.

Ordinarily, I’d give some credence to Priya’s red flag instincts. In this case, I’m the one who’s pursuing him. Definitely not the other way around.

I’m the red flag. An orphan with a daddy complex.

Shit.

“It’s more complicated. When I met him, I never envisioned sex, per se. It’s hard to explain. We vibe. When you see him, you’ll get it. I was physically attracted to him right away. For real.” I pick at the edge of my thumbnail before the tech swats my hand. “This assignment is a trip, though. We’ve spent the last few weeks learning every detail about each other. If he were my age, I swear he’d be the perfect man. I’m halfway in love with him and I get the impression I’m a mistake he’s trying not to make.”

“Mistake? He said this out loud? What a fucking asshole.” Her mouth drops open.