Page 28 of The Irresistible Distraction

“That’s not what this is.”

We’re both silent for a moment. “Figures that the one time I want something more, you want Sexy Tourist.”

I shake my head, because he’s misunderstanding. “The opposite. What if you like Vacation Raquel better than . . . real me?”

“Never say never and all that, but from what I’ve seen so far? That’s statistically unlikely.”

I don’t check my messages until he’s pulled away. There are a few texts from Vera, letting me know Sebastian has gone to bed, that she hopes I’m enjoying myself, and also that she’ll expect all the PG-13 details tomorrow over breakfast. I text her a quick thank-you, just so she knows I’m safe before reading Maggie’s messages, which come through like a tsunami.

MAGGIE: OMG!!!

MAGGIE: OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!

MAGGIE: It’s 1am and you’re just now getting back to the diner?!?

MAGGIE: That means you’re alive right?

MAGGIE: Dry streak over?

MAGGIE: The vicarious sex better live up to my fantasy.

I give a thumbs-up to her message and am completely unsurprised when my phone starts ringing.

“Tell me everything. Was it dirty? Is Sexy Tourist some throat squeezing spanker? Was it in his car? Please don’t tell me you ended your dry streak in the Prius.”

I can hear Tyler’s voice, groggy and thick with sleep but not quiet. “Can you please talk sex with Sophie in another room? Any other room?”

Maggie must hit him, because I hear a decided oof before she returns to the call. “Tell me everything.”

“Not with Tyler listening.”

“I can kick him out.”

I hear a muffled Hey now and laugh. “I’ll tell you tomorrow or Monday, I promise. For now, just know I’m alive and . . . well.”

“Seriously? At least tell me a general rating. Two out of five stars? Three and a half?”

“Honestly?”

“Of course honestly! I told you when Tyler had that—I mean, I have always been honest about how awesome Tyler is all the time, one hundred percent.”

I laugh because Maggie is, as always, too much and also because I can hear Tyler groaning threateningly in the background. “Fine.” I take a deep breath and then admit to my best friend and myself, “It was life changing.” I take a deep breath, realizing that even though that sounds hyperbolic, it’s also . . . not enough. “Universe redefining.”

I hang up in the middle of her way too loud squeal.

The house feels curiously empty when I let myself in from the garage. Sebastian has spent the night at Vera’s, Jesse’s, and his grandparents’ before, so it’s not that I’ve never been alone, but tonight feels . . . different. Though I’m not a social media person, I finally let myself read the messages from Jesse, who I’ve gotten used to muting, unless it’s a Sebastian overnight. He has texted a few times, there are a few pictures of him with his parents, as if we’re still good friends, and also a nice shot of the fireworks, the same ones I’d seen from a different angle, while having sex with a man whose name I still don’t know.

JESSE: Too bad you couldn’t make it.

JESSE: You’re usually better about getting back to me.

JESSE: Everything okay? I know I haven’t been great about staying in touch more recently, but that’s going to change. You’ll see.

JESSE: I could delay leaving tomorrow, if you want to talk in the early morning?

Jesse isn’t usually one to rush toward confrontation, and I can’t help wondering if he’s texting more because I’ve been unusually silent, or if Mackenzie, his maybe fiancée, is driving this.

There was a time when I responded to every Jesse text with alacrity, when his texts (or lack thereof) had the power to make or ruin my day. Even as recently as a year ago, there were times when he’d text on an almost daily basis, where it felt as though we were a couple . . . in everything but name.