Page 32 of Blindsided
I frown at his very random statement. “Yeah, I know, Mac. I’m not like most people.” I reach past him to press the number five on the panel, and the lift takes off. “Thanks for reminding me of that sad fact.”
Mac shakes his head and turns me to face him. “No, I just mean most people are young, so they forget how bad it is. You’re not young, Cookie.”
“Fuck off,” I snap, yanking my arms out of his grasp. I turn forward to scowl at the lift doors, willing the ride to go faster before I punch my best friend in his annoyingly square jaw.
“I’m trying to tell you that you’re not just a kid giving it away in the back of a car.” Mac moves to stand in front of me, demanding my full attention. His expression is earnest when he adds, “Your…maiden tag is special. Your first time should mean something. It should be with someone you care about. Someone you trust.”
I exhale heavily, his words causing a pang of uneasiness inside my chest. “Look, Mac, you know I’m crap at dating. I can’t even find a date for Roan and Allie’s wedding, let alone find a man whom I trust enough to have sex with. If I keep waiting for a boyfriend to have sex with, I might never lose it.”
“I’m not talking about a boyfriend,” Mac replies, his voice getting weirdly husky.
“What are you talking about then?” I nearly whine because this entire conversation is seriously my worst nightmare.
He swallows and looks down, an uncomfortable stiffness to his shoulders that I rarely ever see on him. “I’m talking about me,” he murmurs to the ground.
The lift doors open, and I stare at my best friend, mouth agape, eyes blinking in complete and utter shock. “If this is you taking the piss…”
“It’s not, Freya,” he says, grabbing my arm to lead me out into the hallway. His expression is fierce when he adds, “I was blindsided when you first told me, but then it dawned on me. It makes perfect sense to me. I’m your best mate. You trust me. Maybe if I help you with this, you won’t be so crap at dating anymore. I suspect walking around as a thirty-year-old virgin is part of the issue you have when speaking to men. Maybe if you were more experienced, you wouldn’t get so tongue-tied.”
I burst out laughing, my entire body shaking with hysteria because he has to be having a go with me. “Mac, I don’t believe what you’re saying right now.”
His face is stony serious when he replies, “Freya, I wouldn’t joke about this.”
My humour begins to die. “You kissed me, then I didn’t hear from you for days. If we have sex, surely I will lose my best friend forever!”
Mac winces at my very pointed jab, but I don’t care. If he thinks he can have sex with me and act normal, he’s seriously delusional.
“That was me being daft. I’m sorry about that.”
“You’re sorry,” I repeat, turning my shoulder on him and digging into my handbag for my keys. I unlock my flat door, and Mac follows me inside. I turn on my heels and hold my hand up to stop him in the foyer. “You and I haven’t gone a day without texting in over a year. Then after one stupid kiss, you ghosted me for days. Why would I risk losing you for sex, Mac?”
“You won’t lose me,” he says softly, his eyes wide on mine as he reaches out and tries to touch my cheek.
I pull away from his grasp and walk into my dining area to drop my handbag on the table. “How do you know?” I ask, making my way into the kitchen for some water.
He falters for a moment before answering, “Well, I’m still mates with Cami, and we had sex for over two years.”
I freeze with my hand on the refrigerator handle and slowly turn around to look at him standing in my dining room. “You still speak to her?”
Mac nods, his jaw tense. “We have lunch nearly every week when I’m in town.”
“You have lunch with her every week?” I exclaim, opening the fridge and grabbing a bottle of water. I close it and turn to face him again. “Why have you never told me that?”
Mac shrugs. “I think you and I are finding we still don’t know a lot about each other.”
“And you think adding sex is a good idea?” I ask with a laugh, walking past him and into my living room.
He follows me. “Sex with me is always a good idea, Cookie.”
I turn to see his comedic face, and I can’t help but laugh at him trying to give me sexy bedroom eyes. “You can’t be serious.”
“I’m dead serious.” He shoots me a cheeky smile and shrugs. “You know what they say, ‘A beard that rocks the red is a beard that rocks in bed’.”
I burst out laughing. “Who says this? I’ve never heard this said. Who is thetheyyou’re referring to?”
Mac’s smile falters. “Theyare clearly dead brilliant, that’s all I know.”
“Answer me then, who arethey?” I repeat, my eyes wide and curious.
