Page 8 of Forbidden Fruit (Sweet Treats 7)

I look around too and hiccup a bit. Man, I must be coming off as the most pitiful, crazy, and all-around mess of a woman. But I take a deep breath. If this stranger doesn’t mind hearing my sad sob story, then I might as well pour it out and get it off my chest.

“Well, it’s prom tonight,” I say slowly, hiccuping a bit again while wiping at my eyes. “I was here with my boyfriend, who was also crowned Prom King by the way.”

The man nods and looks encouraging.

“Okay. That sounds like a good thing.”

I shake my head, suddenly overcome with sorrow again.

“It should, except that I just found Ryder cheating on me. With my best friend. In the room we rented for the night, where he was going to take my cherry.” Suddenly, I look up. “You know what taking a girl’s cherry means, right? I’m sorry if I’m speaking in riddles.”

The handsome man sits back and laughs, and for the first time since we met, his big form is relaxed and elegant.

“I know what taking a girl’s cherry means all too well,” he says, a bit darkly. “Trust me. I’m very familiar with the term.”

My cheeks blush and I stare at him for a bit. What does that mean? What are the subtle innuendoes behind his comment? But I shake my head and continue, too absorbed in my own misery.

“Well, Ryder and I rented a hotel room because we were going to … you know, explore together later tonight. But I went up early to run an errand, and they were there. They were boinking one another! Going at it like pigs in a sty! He was supposed to be with me, but instead, he was with my friend Kaylee, and the betrayal breaks my heart,” I sob, tears springing to my eyes again. “We’ve been best friends since middle school, and I don’t get why she did this! Who does this? I can’t believe this is happening to meeee!” I wail, breaking down again.

This time, the man takes my hand and hauls me into his lap. I’m surprised because this is unusual. Why would a stranger want me to sit in his lap? But his huge form is comforting, and I feel sheltered as I lean against his broad chest. He strokes my hair with a gentle hand while whispering shhh in my ear.

“It’s okay,” he says in a low growl. “Everything’s going to be fine.”

I sit there, leaning into his warmth while crying for a moment. It’s soothing, actually. I can feel his chest rise and fall with his breathing, and the beating of his heart is strong and steady. His brawny arms around me hold me tight, and I feel secure, like I’m in a safe space with this man.

“Don’t worry about that asshole,” the man says into my ear. “Neither your boyfriend nor your former friend knew what they were doing. I bet tomorrow, they’ll come running to you with apologies. I bet they’ll say they’re sorry, and it was a huge mistake, yada yada yada.”

I hiccup again and lift my head to look at him.

“You think?” I ask.

His expression is grave, and he nods.

“Yeah, they probably acted on impulse. High school kids aren’t the best at discipline, when it comes down to it. I think they’ll come crawling back to you, but the question is: what are you going to do?” he asks, tipping my chin to look at me more fully. “Are you going to accept their apologies and excuses? And what if they try to gaslight you?” he adds somberly.

“Gaslight me?” I shake my head, confused. “What does that mean?”

He exhales slowly.

“Your boyfriend and your ex-friend sound like they planned this. At least one of them did, at least. Things like this don’t happen on the fly. But a lot of times, people are conniving. You wouldn’t believe it, but I bet tomorrow one of them will try to make you think that it was your fault. That you did something to deserve this treatment, and that you had this coming.”

I stare at him.

“Actually, my ex-friend already did that. Kaylee said that I never treat Ryder right, and so it was her job to step in and take care of him as a real woman would.”

The man’s eyebrows lift as he looks at me seriously.

“I guess the gaslighting has already begun then.”

I stare at him.

“There is some truth to what she said,” I begin slowly. “I was thinking of breaking up with Ryder.”

The man looks at me seriously.

“But did you treat him poorly, like your friend said?”

I shake my head.

“No, never. In fact, the opposite is true. If anything, Ryder was always treating me poorly, which is why I was thinking of breaking up with him. I had my reservations about our relationship, but I didn’t take it out on him. Ryder’s not like that. If anything, he’s just too dumb to get it.”

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