Page 32 of Talk Nerdy To Me
My eyebrows go up. “I don’t know who Chloe is, but I do know Mav, and I don’t think he’s the best Sterling for you to model your love life off of.”
She frowns. “Why not? He’s always been happy, and now he’s in a healthy, happy relationship. He had sex with numerous women without emotional attachments or messy breakups. Tria assures me that the double standard for men and women is steadily declining.”
I scrub a hand over my face. “Killin’ me, smalls,” I groan.
“I’m too young and inexperienced to deal with those types of emotions, and I’m aware of that,” she tells me flatly.
I peer over at her in confusion. “What?”
“Dane lost his virginity to Rain, and vice-versa, and they were messy because of emotions—also due to youth. Kode obsessed about the wrong Noles sister for so long that he almost missed out on Tria, all because of youthful emotions. Corbin nearly destroyed himself and Ruby because of youthful emotions. Dale was insecure and somewhat self-centered, hurting someone who now means a lot to him because of youthful emotions. Maverick is the only one who didn’t suffer painful attachments or heartbreaks before he found Salem.”
She blinks at me, as though she expects me to piece all that together and tell her the conclusion she assumes I’ll draw.
Finally, she says, “I don’t want to suffer heartbreaks. I don’t want to love someone and lose them because of timing and maturity. I don’t want to do this wrong. I don’t want to feel rejected by someone I’ve allowed myself to care about that I shouldn’t have. I want to skip the dark undertones this time, and head straight for the happily-ever-after. But I want to enjoy life while I wait, because I don’t want to feel like I’ve missed out on anything now that I have the chance to be happy.”
I lean back, putting my guitar down as she gives me a lighter, more genuine smile.
“That’s something no one else knows about me,” she tells me, her smile slipping. “Please don’t tell anyone.”
“I thought you didn’t have secrets,” I say quietly, running my index finger over my bottom lip as I struggle not to give in.
Everything about her is testing my resolve.
“I don’t, but people feel sorry for me a lot of times when I tell the truth, and I don’t like that at all,” she explains.
Heaving out a breath, I shake my head. “I’ll give you a tip,” I tell her, smirking when her brow furrows. “Stop asking someone to simply do the deed like it’s a chore. It sucks the romance out of the moment, and things like this need to happen naturally. It’s just too much pressure on the guy when someone is forced to overthink it.”
Her smile immediately blooms. “Naturally?” she echoes. “Like in the moment. The way you said the pool was.”
“Exactly,” I tell her, walking a very frayed and fragile rope.
She nods. “That’s the first time a male has given me that advice. Maverick told me to make sure I brought up my hymen as much as possible. Corbin said to always be upfront with letting men know how much I was ready to be done with my virginity. Even press the issue. That way they don’t overthink it.”
I choke on air, then burst out laughing, my body shaking with the force.
“They sabotaged me, didn’t they?” she asks as I try to speak through my guffaws.
“Yes,” I manage to say, expecting her to be angry when I look up.
Instead, she’s smiling thoughtfully. “They sabotage each other a lot,” she says as she nods like it makes perfect sense.
“Any more tips?” she asks as she pulls out a notebook that seems to have one list after another on every page she turns.
“On how to get a guy in bed?” I ask incredulously.
“It doesn’t necessarily have to be done in bed,” she states dryly. “I’m open to suggestions.”
I am…going to get punched by a Sterling.
