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“He walked away. Told me that if I had cut down the trees, he wouldn’t have been able to do that to me.”
“Holy Jeebus,” Hayley wheezes. “That’s hot, right? Or am I a pervert for thinking it’s hot?”
“It’s hot,” Erica says emphatically.
“There’s more,” I say, and the girls lean farther, their expressions eager for the rest of my story.
I tell them about how the morning started with Coen coming to my door and that I kissed him to gethimto shut up.
“Oh my God,” Ann Marie huffs, a hand pressed to her throat. “I can’t believe you did that.”
“Me either,” I assure her. I tell them about sitting at Masha’s and Cici showing up.
“Bitch,” Hayley says.
“I’m drunk,” Erica announces. “She’s a cunt.”
Ann Marie smacks Erica. “Gross. Don’t use that word. But she is the C word.”
I recount how Coen appeared out of nowhere. I hadn’t noticed him as I was immersed in my drawings. How he chased Cici off and sat down at my table, claiming I was the friend he was meeting.
“So, he’s sort of a hero now,” Erica muses. “An asshole hero who gives unicorn orgasms.”
I snort, and then add on the biggest piece of news. “I also found out he’s a professional hockey player with the Pittsburgh Titans.”
“Wait… what’s his full name?” Erica asks.
“Coen Highsmith.”
“Oh my fucking God,” Erica shrieks, and people at tables near us turn to look. She lowers her voice. “Coen Fucking Highsmith ate you out? This is a goddamn dream, Tillie. The man is an amazing hockey player, and he’s all broody and got in all kinds of trouble after the plane crash. He was suspended from the team, and who knows if he’ll play next year, but jeez, the man is hot. He’s like walking sex on a stick.”
Erica didn’t tell me a thing I didn’t already know either from googling him or from personal experience. He’s got a bad rep now.
“Well, there you have it. My dirty little story,” I say with an anxious chuckle.
“Are you going to see him again?” Ann Marie asks.
I frown at her. “No. I mean, unless you count in court. We’re enemies, remember.”
“You’re sexemies,” Hayley points out, and my friends fall into peals of laughter at my expense.
“We’re nothing,” I assure them. “It was one of those once-in-a-lifetime experiences, but truly, he was only doing it to try to intimidate me.”
She cocks an eyebrow. “Orgasms do not intimidate people. They’re gifts. He gave you a freaking gift, Tillie, and he didn’t ask for anything in return.”
That thought makes me uncomfortable, so I change the subject. Slamming my hand down on the table, I say, “Let’s hit the next and last bar. I’ve only got room for one more shot.”
“Masha’s?” Erica asks, standing up. “If so, I’ll tell Hank to hang here, and we’ll walk over and come back when we’re ready to leave.”
Masha’s sits one block down and is our favorite place to hang out. In the summer, Coudersport gets touristy because of all the great fishing, but Masha’s is where the locals congregate. In a small town, that’s mostly a lot of fun because it’s people you’ve known all your life.
We walk in and immediately see Cici holding court with her cronies, so we veer in the opposite direction. There aren’t any tables available, but I see Alex and Sarah at the end of the bar and head that way.
After a round of hugs—we went to high school with both of them, although they were two years behind us—Alex puts in an order for tequila shots and graciously adds it to his tab. He and Sarah are high school sweethearts but haven’t married, and both will tell you they’re happy the way things are. Alex works in sales at his dad’s car dealership, and Sarah is a dental hygienist and has the prettiest smile I’ve ever seen on a woman.
The shots arrive, and we toast to friendship. This makes number four for me, so I’m done, but Hayley and Erica want another. Ann Marie has gone off to play pool in the back room with Xander Gaither, a science teacher from her school who she’s friends with but hopes for something more. I think Xander feels the same, but neither will make the move. I should have encouraged her to take another shot to loosen up, and then maybe she’d have the guts to proposition him.
Look at me go.
