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“I’ve got better than that—we’re drinking cock-sucking cowboys.”
Cara choked on her breath and blinked.
Backtracking, I added, “But I do have champagne.”
“I haven’t had a cowboy before. I want to try one.” Cara’s excited grin was infectious.
I hopped up, reaching out for her. Hand in hand, we dashed inside, and I poured our drinks while Cara got set up. I bloody loved the guys for suggesting this. It was exactly what I needed. I was like a kid in a candy store, looking at all the nail polish Cara was laying out. I had no idea which one to pick. She started on the bottles soon after that, laying out cleansers, toners, exfoliators, face masks and a bunch of different treatments. She had a container of cucumber wipes and the fluffiest of towels. It was like our very own DIY spa. I couldn’t wait to get started.
Excitement and happiness pulsed through me, and I thought about Ash. This time my smile didn’t slip. I had no proof and there was no logic behind it, but I chose to believe that he was the one who’d made our paths cross at the university. He knew Cara would be exactly who I’d need. I hoped I’d one day be able to do the same for her.
I poured half a dozen shots, trying not to mix the Baileys into the schnapps, and carried the tray over to the table.
“Oooh, yum,” Cara exclaimed. “To girls’ nights.”
“And the best girlfriend I could ask for.” We clinked our glasses, and I tipped mine back, drinking the shot. It was creamy and sweet and packed a punch. The three each I’d poured for us would be plenty to have me tipsy for half the night—exactly what I wanted.
“We need music,” Cara added, pulling her phone out of her pocket.
I waved her off, turning on my sound system and upping the volume once we’d chosen a feel-good girl-power playlist.
We spent hours talking and giggling, doing countless treatments on our faces and drinking round after round of shots. The world had a hazy tinge to it, and my yacht was rocking a little more than usual, but I was light. I was happy.
“First kiss?” Cara asked.
“Don’t remember his name. He was cute though. I was in my first year of high school. I’d gone to primary school with this guy, and I found out he lived near me. Flynn couldn’t come out that night.”
I remembered the night like it was yesterday. He’d been trying to get me to hang out without Flynn for weeks. He was annoyed that we were always together. He was jealous that I was always with my best friend rather than spending time with him. I’d wanted Flynn with me, but it was his brother’s birthday, and he knew better than to go out—he was never included in any of his family gatherings, but if he wasn’t there at all, he’d get in trouble, and the punishments would last for weeks.
“We hung out at his school’s disco, but he bad-mouthed Flynn. So I kissed his best friend to piss him off and rang my dad to come and get me early. What about you?”
“Oh, um….” She pressed her lips together and scrunched up her nose adorably, her face flushing red. “I kissed a boy once, but he didn’t want to do anything else. I haven’t really even pashed anyone before.”
“That’s okay.” I shrugged. “There’s no timeline. It’s important that you feel comfortable. It’s okay if you don’t want to do anything like that either.”
She sighed and threw her arm over her eyes. “No, I do. I really do. But I’m not exactly popular, and I get nervous around people.” She lifted her arm and peeked at me from under it. “I wish I had your confidence.”
The truth was, Cara didn’t need my confidence. She was enough all on her own, and I hated that she didn’t think that. She had confidence in spades when it mattered. It was a fierceness and loyalty that was rare to find. The way she’d stood up to Ezra when he’d spoken to me at the bar the night we’d all gone out was incredible. She just needed to realize it.
“I don’t think you should change a thing about yourself. You’re so great, and you will find your perfect guy. And you do have confidence. Remember when you went off at Ez? That was fierce.”
She flushed a pretty pink and giggled. “He was being nasty to you, but it was fun to tell him off.”
She picked up a nude polish that was delicate and a little sparkly. “You should use this one. It’s you,” she suggested. It was feminine and sweet and the total opposite of any colour I would pick to represent me, but I agreed. I liked that Cara thought the colour fit me.
Cara smiled wistfully. “I’d love to be brave enough to be able to walk up to a boy and ask him out. But I don’t think I could. Maybe I just have unrealistic expectations. My ideal guys all seem to be written by women.”
“Book boyfriends are the best.”
“They are. Where are my guys to rescue me when I get in every embarrassing situation? Guys in books are always, like, a pro-footballer or hockey player. You know the type—strong and silent and grumpy toward everyone except his girl. Then there are the hot silver foxes. They’re in need of a second chance at love. They’ve been burned and are wary. Our book boyfriends fall for the heroine and one another, and their group is always a perfect match.”
She’d suggested before that I sleep with both Flynn and Ry and even now hadn’t batted an eyelid when I told her I was with both of them. My sweet friend may have been a virgin, but she knew exactly what she wanted, and without even realizing it, she’d come out to me as being polyam. I didn’t give a fuck what society said and whether it thought I was a cock slut, but having a friend whose sexuality was like mine was an incredible feeling.
“Real life needs to imitate art more often,” I sympathized.
“You can talk.” She laughed. “Two of the hottest guys on the planet are madly in love with you. I need what you have, but with a couple of guys who love curvy girls.”
“Cheers to that.” I handed her a shot glass and raised my own. We clinked and drank back the creamy liquid, and I grabbed a handful of blueberries off the charcuterie board Ry had set up for us. We’d demolished most of it and downed half the bottles too. I would have a monster hangover tomorrow.
