Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 88490 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88490 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
“Are you done?” Jess’s tone is lined with impatience.
“Sorry.” I drop the phone in the cupholder.
She takes another breath. “Look. I’m sorry I led you on at Jamie’s wedding. I shouldn’t have let you…uh…do stuff to me. It was good—”
“I do good work,” I say with a nod.
“—but it was a mistake.”
“Giving you orgasms is a mistake?”
“Yes, it is. Was. I won’t be falling into bed with you again, okay? I’m not in the right headspace to sleep with anyone right now. I’m starting a new school program. I’m in a new city I don’t know my way around yet. I need to buckle down and be serious for once in my life, and you, Blake, are not…um…”
“I’m not what? What’s so bad about hooking up with me again?” I challenge, just as my phone buzzes for a third time.
“Oh my God. Who is it now?” Jess snatches it from the cupholder, her lips tightening as she reads the message. “Britt wants to know if she can get an extra ticket for the next home game so she can bring her sorority sister Cassandra.” Growling, she slaps the phone in my hand. “That’s why I won’t hook up with you again. Three different chicks have texted you in the span of ten minutes! Three!”
I open my mouth to object, but she cuts me off again.
“You’re a player, Blake. You’re hands down the least serious person I’ve ever met in my life. You’re fun, I’ll give you that. But fun is the last thing I need at the moment. All I want to do is study my ass off and impress my instructors and keep my scholarship.”
Her little speech makes me bristle. Yeah, I get it. I’m fun. I like to laugh. I like to fuck. And why the hell not? Life is too damn short, and I want to enjoy every second that I have on this awesome planet. I want good food and fast hockey and hot girls and even hotter orgasms.
I tried the serious thing once before. I almost got married, and look where that almost got me. Serious is overrated.
Without a word, I move the gearshift and pull away from the curb.
“What, you’re mad at me now? Just because I was honest?”
“Honest?” I spare her a brief, smug look. “That wasn’t honesty, honey. That was you making excuses because you’re too freaked out by how much you want me. And PS? All those chicks who just texted? They’re my sisters, so you can retract those Jealous Jessie claws.”
Another glance reveals her expression to be a combo of frustration and sheepishness. “Your sisters?” she echoes dumbly.
“Yup. All three of them.”
“Brenna, Beth, Britt…and Blake. Did your parents stop watching Sesame Street after the letter B and not realize there was more to the alphabet?”
I snicker. “That’s a good one. Remind me to tell it to my ma next time I see her.”
I turn left onto Jess’s new street, and she directs me to a low-rise on our right. “Just park here,” she says. “This is my dorm.”
I give the building a quick appraisal. It’s made of red brick and looks bland as hell, but this area is safe and clean, so I approve. “I’ll walk you inside.” I move to flick the ignition.
“No, it’s okay.” She reaches for the door handle, then hesitates. With a sigh, she offers me a rueful look. “I’m sorry. That stuff I said about us not being friends. We are friends. You’re a good guy, Blake. Seriously. And now that I’m living in Toronto, I know we’ll probably end up seeing a lot of each other because of Wes and my brother. But it’s not going to lead to any sexy times, okay? I meant it when I said I don’t have time for that. I…” She blows out a tired breath. “I need to focus. I really, really need to focus.”
Aw. I have a Stress Jess on my hands. That’s what’s really happening here. I’ve been accused of having a bulldozer approach, but even I know to not push a chick who’s so clearly on the ledge. I’ll have to destress her obviously. Just not tonight.
“It’s fine,” I assure her. “You go ahead and focus on what you need to focus on.”
She eyes me suspiciously. “Really?”
“Uh-huh. Focus away.”
Her hand moves to the door handle again.
“Oh, one other thing,” I say before she can go. “A minor thing, really, but we gotta be on the same page, right? I mean, I like hearing someone tell me when I’m wrong. Constructive criticism, you know?”
“What the heck are you talking about? Who’s wrong about what?”
“You, about, well, everything.” I grin at her. “We’re way more than friends, Jessie.”
“Blake—” She sounds exasperated.
“But no worries,” I finish breezily. “I’ll just sit tight until you figure that out.”
Chapter 11
Cheezus
Blake
She hasn’t figured it out yet.