Page 102 of Home Game

I let out a pent-up breath. “Yeah.”

“You two will have fun.”

I blinked. It never dawned on me that I needed to get Zoey to her own party. Before I could ask her, she switched the subject.

“When is the last time you had a girlfriend?”

I blinked at Zoey’s question. “When is the last time you had a boyfriend?”

Her cheeks turned a pretty shade of pink. “You go first.”

I pushed my tray away, trying to be honest without showing what a dick I’d been in the past. “I guess my last girlfriend was three years ago. Her name was Carmen.”

Zoey’s eyes went wide. “You haven’t had a girlfriend in three years?”

“Why does that surprise you?”

Her cheeks flushed darker. “I thought someone like you would sort of need to..”

It took a moment for me to realize she was talking about sex. “When I stopped dating, I just hooked up when I needed to.”

So much for not looking like an asshole.

“Why did you stop dating?”

“I couldn’t keep up.”

“In bed?” she whispered, horrified.

I tried not to laugh, but I failed. “No, things were fine in the bedroom. I couldn’t keep up emotionally.”

Her eyes narrowed as she nodded. “They fell in love with you.”

“Things always seem to start out normal. Women tell me how independent they are and how they don’t want to get serious and within six months, they are dropping hints about engagement rings and babies.”

“What did you do?”

“It became a pattern I didn’t like. I had feelings for them, but I wasn’t ready to get married. I’d try to slow things down, and they’d get upset. The relationship always ended with the girlfriend falling apart and me feeling like shit.”

“I get it,” she nodded sagely. “So you decided casual sex was easier.”

“I like having a girlfriend, but the messy ending wasn’t worth it. I always ended up being the dick that was hurting someone I cared about.”

“They did it to themselves.”

“How so?”

“They should have told you up front they wanted to get married and have kids.”

“What about you?”

“What about me?”

“What’s your dating history?”

Her eyes wandered around the restaurant. “I don’t really date.”

I couldn’t imagine Zoey having casual sex, but then again, Zoey constantly surprised me. “So you just keep it casual?”

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