Page 18 of Sexting My Ex's Dad
Sent.
I lean against the cold bathroom stall door, clutching my phone, waiting for something…anything. But, nothing.
“Come on, Paul,” I whisper, willing my phone to vibrate with his response. But the screen remains stubbornly silent. The minutes stretch out like hours as I wait, each tick of the clock feeling heavier than the last.
I shouldn’t have sent that message…maybe Anastasia was wrong…maybe he’d never had a crush on me.
That’s what I get for listening to Anastasia…as much as I loved my best friend, why did I think I could count on her relationship advice? She never struggled with boys – they all seemed to just fall in love with her the second that they laid eyes on her.
Get a grip.
I scold myself, shaking my head at my own silliness. I can’t spend the whole night hiding in this bathroom, waiting for Paulto reply or pitying myself because he doesn’t. It’s time to face the world again – or at least the crowded bar outside.
Taking one last deep breath to steady my nerves, I fix my dress before stepping out of the stall and splashing some water on my flushed cheeks. My hazel eyes meet their reflection, and I muster up all the determination I possess to keep them from betraying my vulnerability.
I push open the bathroom door and step back into the dimly lit bar.
“Hey!” Anastasia exclaims, as she spots me. “There you are! I was starting to think you’d fallen in!”
“Ha-ha,” I retort, rolling my eyes good-naturedly as I slide onto the stool next to her. “No, just had to... powder my nose.”
There’s no way that I can tell her that I’d texted her brother and he hadn’t responded…dumped and rejected all in just a couple weeks…how pitiful.
“Right,” she drawls, clearly not buying my weak excuse. But she doesn’t press any further, instead offering me a conspiratorial grin.
“So, what have you been up to while I was gone?”
“Chatting with the bartender,” she replies, a playful glint in her eyes. “He’s pretty cute, don’t you think?”
“Anastasia, you think every guy is cute,” I tease, grateful for the distraction from my own thoughts.
“True,” she admits with a laugh, tossing her long blonde hair over her shoulder. “But this one has potential, I can tell.”
As we continue our banter, I can feel the tension slowly easing from my shoulders. Maybe that’s what I should have focused on in the first place – my best friend rather than some random guy that I probably wouldn’t see after one night with.
It doesn’t take long for the bartender to make his way back over to us which doesn’t surprise me. I haven’t met a man yet who’s been able to resist Anastasia’s charms.
He leans across the counter, his dark hair brushing against his forehead as he refills Anastasia’s glass. A charming smile plays on his lips, and I can’t help but notice how effortlessly he seems to navigate their flirtatious banter.
“Another round for you too, Stella?” he asks, eyebrow raised in question.
“You know my name?” I raise an eyebrow at him.
He laughs. “Anastasia told me.” So they were on a first name basis now?
Yeah, she’s not riding home with me.Anastasia happens to be the queen of one night stands.
“Um, no thanks to the drink,” I mumble, my face warming under his gaze. “I’m good for now.”
“Are you sure? You look a little... flushed,” he says, concern replacing the playfulness in his eyes.
“Ah, yeah, that’s just –“ I stammer, trying to come up with an excuse to explain my disheveled appearance. “It’s kind of hot in here, don’t you think?”
“Actually, it feels pretty cool to me,” Anastasia chimes in, as she takes a sip of her drink.
“Right,” the bartender agrees, studying me closely. “Why don’t I get you some water, just in case?”
“Thanks,” I reply, grateful for his thoughtfulness. The weight of my phone in my pocket feels like a ticking time bomb, ready to explode at any moment with Paul’s response.
