Page 102 of Love, Luck & Clusterf*ck

“In a way. He didn’t want to wrap it up, so I told him it wasn’t happening. I won’t have sex without a condom. Ever. Well, apparently, he had a hard time keeping it up when it was covered. He begged me to change my mind, and when I refused, he started crying and telling me about his little problem. I couldn’t help feeling bad for him, so I let him spend the next hour sobbing all over me.”

Stephen snickered. “I gotta admit, I feel a little bad for the guy too.” He gave me a thoughtful look. “Not to get too personal, but we’re kinda doing that anyway… the ‘no sex ever without a condom’ thing. Even with your boyfriend?”

I nodded.Thank God. Especially since I’d unknowingly been sleeping with every guy Christa had. I was a regular Wilt Chamberlain by default.

“Remember he wasn’t always my boyfriend, and we weren’t monogamous before that, and….”We haven’t had sex since becoming a couple anyway. And we never would be having it again. “I have another confession, Stephen.”

He smoothed his hands together. “Another? This should be interesting.”

“Dre and I aren’t just fighting. We broke up.”

His eyes widened a bit. Did I want him to be happy or unhappy about it? As long as we remained friends, I guess it didn’t matter.

“When?”

“About a month ago. The same day I moved out. The same day I went psycho on Jillian.”

He rubbed his jaw. “Can I assume your roommate played a part in the breakup?”

I rested my head on the cushion. “I caught them fucking in the shower.”

“Shit, Perry, I’m sorry. That’s rough. No wonder you’ve been messed up lately.”

I gave him a half smile. “Yeah, it did mess me up. But it was mainly all Christa. I can’t say that I would’ve felt as gutted if I would’ve found him with anyone else. She was my best friend, you know?”

“I know.” He laid his head in the same position on the couch so we were both staring directly at each other. “You’ve had a shitty month.”

I snorted. “Yeah, you could say that. But it’s getting better. It’s just hurts how she could do that to me. And it makes me feel stupid as hell too. This wasn’t a one-time thing—it was going on for months. How could I have let them fool me like that?”

“You’re not stupid, Perry. From what I know of you so far, you seem very loyal to those you care about. You’re not going to assume the worst.”

“Thanks for that.” I still felt stupid, but I appreciated him trying to help.

“If you need a positive in this fucked-up situation, at least you never got inked for him.” I looked at him strangely. “You didn’t, right?’

“Uh, no. But how’d you know he wanted me to get one?” Before he could respond, I said, “Wait, the Brewhouse. I probably said all kinds of stuff that night. How do you remember all this?”

“I just do.”

Huh. “Speaking of tattoos…. I got a glimpse of yours earlier.”Among other things.When the heat started rushing, I had to look away.Someone throw me in a meat locker.

“I didn’t mean to surprise you like that, but when I thoughtsomething happened to you, my first thought wasn’t to put on clothes.”

I swallowed. “No problem. Um, so what is it? It looked like a lion and maybe some kind of flower design. Is it symbolic for something?”

I half wished I could take back my question. By asking about it, I was nervous that he’d take off his shirt and show me. He already looked too good not to touch, and I didn’t want to screw everything up by throwing myself at him.

“Yes. Strength and hope. It’s a lion and a lotus. My mom went through a really hard time at one point, and I guess you could say I got it to honor her. It reminds me that no matter what happens, there’s always a way to make a better life as long as you keep fighting for it.”

I felt my heartstrings pull. “That’s really sweet. What does she think of it?”

“She adores it.”

“And your dad?”

“He hates tattoos, which is exactly why I got one.” Hmm. I waited to see if he’d elaborate. He didn’t. But that didn’t stop me from feeling even closer to him.

I took his hand.This man. “I have to say, I think you’re my best friend right now.”

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