AllFreeNovel
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Men don’t tend to share this way when we’re hanging out at the bar or watching sports. I know more about these guys than I know about some of my buddies from high school.
At around ten in the evening, Allie yawns and stretches. “I think it’s time for me to hit the sack,” she says. “Are you guys all set up with everything you need?”
There’s a murmur of affirmation, and Allie rises from the sofa and heads to the kitchen, fixing herself a glass of water. The room drifts into silence. All the attention is fixed on her sweet body and glossy hair and the way she walks, which is part sexy sway, and part girly happiness. When she passes, she waves goodnight, and everyone watches her relaxed assent up the stairs like hungry dogs fixating on a damn bone. Damn, those shorts should be made illegal. Or compulsory. I’m torn.
It’s not until the click of her door shutting is heard that every man in the room relaxes.
“Damn,” I say, shaking my head. “That girl…”
“She’s hotter than fire,” Jonas says.
“The way she talks about sex with confidence but then blushes is so damned adorable,” Gabe agrees.
“The way she moves,” Carson adds.
Oliver shakes his head and I think he’s going to object to our objectification, but he doesn’t. “She’s really something,” he says.
“Intelligent.” Tom lists, folding his finger over.
“Kind,” Russell says, and we all turn to stare at him. The dude barely said a word all night.
“Funny,” Clay adds.
“You mean, good sense of humor.” Trust Stefan to refer to our earlier conversation.
“Virgin,” Jimmy says, finally stating the thing about Allie that most of us have been thinking about.
“How?” I ask. “I mean…just, how?”
“I know, dude.” Jimmy rests his feet on the table, relaxing now it’s just the guys in the room. “How someone hasn’t tapped that yet, I don’t know.”
“I think it’s great,” Tom says. “Good for her. There are a lot of assholes out there. If Allie’s good at weeding them out, then more power to her.”
“But it’s such a waste.” Jonas stands, gesticulating with a passion that I understand. “All that pleasure she’s been missing out on.”
“Pleasure isn’t everything,” Russell says.
“And what is?” Jonas turns his attention to the quiet man in the baseball cap.
“Peace.” Russell says the word with a nod that punctuates it like a period at the end of a sentence.
“That’s definitely what you get when you don’t let men into your life to complicate it.” Tom reaches for his beer and takes a long swig. “I get the feeling that Allie doesn’t trust easily. Or maybe it’s that she’s scared to make mistakes.”
“I wouldn’t be a mistake,” I say. “I’d be an awesome ride. Like a rollercoaster. Hold on tight.” Gabe punches me in the shoulder, and we both laugh. “Maybe we should make it our mission,” I say. “One of us should show that beautiful girl what she’s missing.”
“That sounds a little creepy,” Oliver says.
I raise my hands, palms facing out. “That’s not how I meant it. I’ve been watching Allie when we’re talking about sex. She shifts around like she’s turned on. She blushes and licks her lips. She’s thinking about it and stifling herself. It would be like helping her wake up from a long sleep.”
“Sounds like you’re volunteering.” There’s a challenge in Oliver’s voice. A definite challenge that tells me he wants it to be him. Every man in this room wants to be the one. But we can’t all fuck her, can we? Firstly, she wouldn’t want that in a million years, and secondly, she’d be a physical wreck after.
“Not volunteering,” I say, “But I’m ready to step in if the lady requires me to.”
“Chivalry is alive and well.” There’s no malice in Stefan’s statement, but an amusement that tells me he gets what I’m saying. He’d volunteer too if he got the chance.
“So, we make it our mission to show Allie what she’s missing, if she wants us too?” I ask the group.
“This is a bad idea,” Oliver says, staring at the floor, gritting his teeth hard enough to shatter them.
