AllFreeNovel
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Hitting send, I lock my phone and ignore the rest of my notifications. Finally, I turn and smile for my sweet friend. “Hey. Sorry.”
“Everything okay?” She wanders in, draped in sweatpants much like mine, and an oversized top, but the fabric is bunched and balled on the side to give her more shape. Stopping in front of me, she tilts her head and studies me, though a small smile lingers on her lips. “Your parents still giving you grief?”
I choke out a humorless laugh. “If bygrief, you mean ignoring my existence altogether, then sure. That’s what they’re doing.” I roll my eyes and back up until my legs hit my bed.
Snapping my laptop closed and setting it on the floor, I grab Viv’s hand and yank until we’re both lying across my bed, hip to hip, shoulder to shoulder. “I’ve been super absent lately. What’s happening with you?”
“Hmmm.” She makes the sound in the back of her throat and links her arm with mine until we each have our palms on our stomachs. “I kinda had sex with someone.”
“What?” I shove up and look down at her, only to laugh when her cheeks flame and she turns away.
I grab her hands and tug them down when she tries to cover her face. “Talk about burying the lede! When?”
“Saturday night.” Her jaw quivers with nerves. Embarrassment. I wouldn’t describe Vivian as prude. But shy? Absolutely. “I met him at Nicole’s party.”
“Who?” I swing my hips her way and end up straddling her legs. That way, I can free my hands and force her to meet my eyes. “Fess up, lady! I wanna focus on someone else’s sex life for once.”
“I can’t say.” She shoves me to the side, strong, despite her slender arms, and giggles when I land with a grunt. “I’m not ready to put that out there yet. Just telling you I even had sex is a big deal.”
“Do I know him?” I lie on my back but turn my face to study her profile. “Do Ilikehim? God, don’t tell me you slept with Raul or Jenson.”
She chokes out a laugh and brings her feet to the bed, her knees in the air. “Random request. But no, I didn’t sleep with either of them.”
Relief settles deep in my stomach, and the fact it does brings a frown to my brow.
“Do you want Raul for yourself?” Taming her smile, she glances my way. “You hang out a lot. It would be okay if you liked him like that.”
“No. I don’t. I just…” I work hard to organize my thoughts. “I dunno. The thought of you and him popped into my head for a second, and it didn’t feel nice. Now tell me who your dude is.”
“No.” She snaps her mouth closed and firms her jaw so I see the muscles flexing. “Not saying.”
“Is it a thing?” I ask instead. “Will there be repeats? Or was it purely a once-off?”
“A once-off.” She shrugs, like she’s not entirely sure. “Honestly? We haven’t talked since.”
I scowl. “What a jerk. Does he think this is a pony ride, something he gets to walk away from when he’s done?”
She snickers. “Thinking of having a relationship with this person doesn’t feel good either, but having a one-night stand with a man like that…” She trembles. “It was a fun ride.”
A childish giggle bounces from my chest. “Well hell, hoe. Then I guess I’m proud of you. When will you tell me who he is?”
But then my eyes widen, and my heart thumps to a stop.
It’s so dumb. So silly. But…
“It wasn’t Axel right?”
“Oh, god no!” She chuckles, blind to the relief washing through my stomach. “He’s on theno-touch-list. My girl has dibs, so that’s that. But that’s also…” She lowers her voice and chews on the inside of her cheek. “That’s kinda why I’m not ready to discuss this other dude.”
“Because he’s on the no-touch-list?”
She drags her bottom lip between her teeth and bites hard enough to make me worry. “I get the feeling he kinda belongs to someone else. And I’m not interested in that kind of mess.”
“You slept with a married man?!” I shove up on my bed and twist to study her eyes. “Vivian! You slept with a married man? What the frack is wrong with you?”
“Not married.” She presses her palm to my face and pushes me away, then using her stomach muscles to sit up, she stands and turns back to look down at me. “Not in a relationship. But it’s complicated. And I’m not all that interested in dealing with complicated. So…” she shrugs. “We had sex once.”
“Once?”
