Page 42 of To Go
“No, that’s our age difference. And I don’t want to piss off Nessa. And I don’t want anything more than right now.” I need any excuse I can think of to put between me and him, even if they’re not entirely true. I look into his eyes, memorizing them.I will never be this close to them again.
“I don’t like when you’re wiser than me.” He knocks his nose against mine, pulling out a soft giggle.
“Bye, stud,” I whisper, allowing him to detach from me and walk out my front door. I stare at the back of his head until he’s completely gone.
This is a good thing. He’s leaving. You can’t keep him.I sigh, closing my door, storing the last hour of my life in my bean bin for later and scramble to find something decent to wear. If I’m going to be a liar, I may as well look good doing it.
Chapter 13
Stella
No sooner have I pulled on a sweater that is, unfortunately, not stolen than Hazel and Nessa come knocking at my door. I set my cute yellow kettle to boil on the stove as the girls pull out pastries, and for some reason, popcorn. I self-consciously tug on my collar, hoping that between it and my hair that I’ve left down, my hickeys won’t be noticeable.
I have never regretted not owning a turtle neck until now.
I join them in the middle of the room, them on the little loveseat I found outside of the building on moving day and me on my bed.
“So, how did you survive the storm?” Nessa asks, her mouth full of pain au chocolat.
“She stayed with James, I told you that,” Hazel says, mildly confused.
“Oh! I totally thought you were joking about that. You really stayed with him?” She turns to me, her shock painted across her face.
“Yeah, I stayed until it was safe to uber home yesterday.” I give her a quick rundown of the shop’s power dying, Maria not being at home, and James finding me outside.
“Well, that’s nice of him, if not entirely out of character,” Nessa says, once I’ve given her the sanitized version that in no way implies I sat naked in her brother’s lap for any part of it.
“Is he not normally that friendly?”
“Not with women he isn’t sleeping with,” Nessa snorts. I try my darndest to keep the blush from my face, jumping up to grab tea for everyone. “He doesn’t like having people in his space in general. Even as a kid, there was a ‘no girls allowed’ sign on his bedroom door.”
“So, he’s always been that surly? I thought maybe he grew into it,” Hazel says sipping on a coffee she brought for herself.
“Pretty sure he exited the womb scowling,” Nessa jokes.
“Well, I slept on his couch and played cards until I could get out of there.”
“So you’ve just been hanging out at home since then?” She seems suspicious.
“Yup! I caught an uber home and watched tv.” I hope I’m coming off as nonchalant.
“Because you are very… glowy for someone who spent the night at my brother’s house.”
“She does look glowy,” Hazel chimes in.
“Well, I’ve been alone since I got home, so I’m not sure what you’re talking about.” I am totally sweating from the stress of this moment, and also the most glorious morning orgasms, but I need to play this off. Apparently, I’m not that discrete, though, as I fix the neck of my sweater conspicuously.
“Oh my god, look at your neck! Look at her neck! You totally got laid! How?” Hazel gasps, her excitement pouring over.
“If you have to ask that, I don’t think Beck is doing his job right…” Nessa quips. Hazel throws a piece of popcorn at her,which Nessa catches in her mouth. She pumps her eyebrows before turning to me.
“Alright, spill. How big was his dick?”
I nearly swallow my tongue in horror as I scramble to find an acceptable response.
If only she knew who she’s talking about…
“I’m more concerned with who it was!” Hazel cuts her off, fully invested.
