Page 65 of Falling for the Forward

“So the best way to handle that is to kick him out and ignore him?”

“Who asked you?”

He laughs. “Babe, you should know by now that I don’t need to be asked for my opinion to give it. He’s kind of a caveman sometimes, but I’d kill for a man like that. Maim. I mean, can we trade lives for five minutes? So I can know what it feels like for your biggest problem to be that a crazy hot, rich pro athlete with a huge dick who buys you sweet presents is in love with you.”

Someone clears their throat and we all look over at our server, who looks sheepish. “Just checking in. Drinks?”

“Another martini, please,” Dex says.

“I’ll take another glass of wine,” Mara says.

“I’m good,” Harry says.

“Me too.”

We all return our attention to the trivia host.

“How many faces does a dodecahedron have?” he asks.

“Hmm. Dec means ten, right?” Harry says.

Harry is already writing. “It’s twelve. It has a Greek root—it’s a 3D shape with twelve pentagonal faces.”

“Okay, but how often do you get to use the word pentagonal?” Mara says with a grin.

She’s on cloud nine after having drinks with Professor Lumberjack. It went well—very well. I’m happy for her. She hasn’t been excited about a man in a long time, and she’s never had a relationship that lasted longer than a month. Maybe her time has come.

“I just don’t want to get burned again,” I say, returning to our conversation.

Dex puts his hand over mine and squeezes it. “I know. But real love is hot, babe. If it doesn’t have the potential to burn you, it’s not it.”

I nod, thinking about what he said. It hits a nerve. Are my feelings for Carter terrifying because of how high the stakes are?

I’ve never lived with a man before him. Never had a man buy me a diamond. Hell, not even a cubic zirconia. I’ve never loved children or known how it feels to hurt when they hurt. No one’s even done anything like the Nutter Butters for me other than my friends and family.

It’s like I fell from a cliff when Tyler left, and then I swam to the shore and started climbing again. I climbed past that first cliff and kept going. And going. I climbed until I reached the highest point, and now I’m standing there.

If this relationship doesn’t work out, I’ll fall further. Harder. Even after a couple of months, Carter has set a much higher standard for men than I’ve ever known. He’s not afraid to say he loves me, even if I don’t say it back. He had a chance to let the girls’ father raise them, but instead, he fought to keep them.

He’s ten times the man Tyler was. And if he’s willing to be vulnerable, I have to be, too.

I take a deep breath, returning my attention to the trivia host.

“Okay, guys. Bonus question here. This one is worth three points if you get it right. Here we go...the planet Uranus was originally named what?”

After a pause, he repeats the question. I look at Mara, then Dex, then Harry. All of them look as stumped as I am.

“Anyone?” Dex asks.

Mara shrugs. “My anus? That’s all I’ve got.”

He grins and starts writing. “We’re going with it. My...anus.”

“You guys,” I say.

All three of them look at me.

“I know I’m a dumbass sometimes, but I’m a genius when it comes to picking friends. I love you so much.”

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