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“Great,” I said flatly.
“Trust me, you feel like this now, but you won’t once we get there. The Vegas lights and the sounds of laughter and the silky sheets of the room will switch your tune in a heartbeat.”
I had no idea if that was true or not. I’d practically never been anywhere. Vegas always sounded exciting on TV, mysterious and intoxicating. I hadn’t had a night where I couldn’t remember my name since college. My entire focus had been on the center. Not on myself, or having a good time. Jessica was kind of in the middle, she could go either way, but Bianca was the wild child of the three of us and it seemed without her Jess was going to take that title. This was going to be a hot mess.
“How do you know? Have you ever been to Vegas?”
“No, but that’s what Lucas told me. And I trust his judgment.”
“I’m sure you do,” I murmured.
“Now, come on. Get a move on it. I want to do dinner soon and you aren’t done packing. Want me to get your toiletries?”
“No. Because for all I know you’re going to slip some sex toy in there for me to find at the most inopportune time.”
“Like when the man you choose for the weekend gets up to pee?” she asked.
“No like when Helga, my German masseuse tells me to grab my robe or some shit.”
“Oh Helga,” she swooned.
“You are insane and downright disgusting. Now cut that shit out,” I said, giggling.
“And yet, you’re laughing! Good. Because for your first vacation, we’re going to make it a memorable one.”
I finished packing up my things and stuffed my toiletries into the side of my suitcase. I zipped it up and rolled it to the front door of my apartment while Jessica ordered us some Chinese takeout. I turned on the television and flipped to the Discovery Channel, where some Planet Earth documentary or something was playing. It would be nice background noise for our dinner.
“You and your documentaries,” Jessica said.
“Oh, I’ve already seen this one. Though I do like the narrator’s voice. Very soothing,” I said.
“You are so secretly a nerd.”
“And why’s that a bad thing?”
“It’s not! But it makes finding you a man easier. Most nerds are softies. Romantic.”
“Jessica,” I warned.
“Look, I’m not going to get you drunk and force you onto someone. But why block out the notion of finding someone to spend your time with? It’s been over ten years since you graduated high school. What’s holding you back?”
“Don’t make me talk about this Jessica.”
“Why not? Maybe that’s the issue. Maybe the fact that you won’t talk about it is why you’re letting it hold you back so badly.”
“Because he didn’t just break my heart once, Jessica. He broke my heart twice.”
“What do you mean?”
“I…”
Sighing, I closed my eyes and mentally prepared myself for the story ahead. I hadn’t really talked to anyone about it since it happened. I had no passion to. But Jessica was right. Maybe part of my problem was that I hadn’t talked through it. Maybe it still affected me so badly to this day because I refused to deal with it even when I thought I had.
“What did he do to you, Andrea?”
“I met him when I was a freshman. And he was gorgeous. Tall. Stacked. I mean, really, really big for a high schooler. He didn’t play any sports or anything. Just generally kept up with himself. Pumped weights with the football team. Ran cross country to keep himself lean and limber. I mean, he was mouth-watering.”
“Got it. Okay. He was hot. So… what happened?”
