Page 7 of Landlord Daddy's Girl

“Seriously, you said you haven’t seen him in a few years. How’s he holding up?”

I laugh. “My God, he’s only thirty. It’s not like he’s a senior citizen.”

“Okay, so he’s thirty. But how’s he holding up?”

I think back to being in his apartment. In blue jeans that framed his backside exquisitely and a black t-shirt that hugged every plane of his chiseled body, he was like a Greek god. Just standing next to him got me wetter than I think I’ve ever been before. So wet, I had to change my panties before coming to school. The thought makes me smile.

“He’s holding up okay, I guess,” I say.

Monica smiles fiendishly. “Judging by the way your face just lit up, I’m going to assume he’s holding up a lot better than just okay.”

I take another bite of my scone and chase it with a swallow of coffee to cover the smile on my face. It doesn’t work. Moni is always able to see right through me. She’s been able to see through me from day one of our friendship. It’s simultaneously one of the best and most annoying things about her.

“Come on. Spill it,” Moni says. “Tell me everything. And give me a detailed description of this man who struck your fancy so long ago. I need details, girl.”

I laugh but do as she asks and give her a detailed description of Slater. I tell her about meeting him when I was six—at least, as much as I remember. Mostly, I tell her about my pre-teen and teen years when I developed a massive crush on him. He was always nice but never really gave me the time of day, probably mostly because of my age but also probably because of my brother. He’s incredibly loyal to Derek. It’s actually something I appreciate about him.

“Okay, so he’s fine, he’s rich?—”

“I never said he was rich.”

“You said he owns a few buildings,” she replies dryly. “Some dude who’s broke as a joke ain’t going to have condos on the beach.”

I laugh softly. “I couldn’t care less about whether he’s rich or not.”

“I know, and it’s adorable. I love that about you,” she says. “So, as I was saying, he’s hot, rich, you two have history, he enjoys seeing you naked—not that I can blame him, you’re hot as hell, baby—and it sounds like he was flirting with you.”

“I wouldn’t say he was flirting with me.”

“Trust me because I’m a pro here. From what you just told me, he was definitely flirting with you,” she states.

“Well, I’m not sure about that.”

“I think the bigger question here is, did you flirt with him?”

“What? No?” I reply with a giggle.

A wide grin stretches across Moni’s face. “Oh, you totally did.”

I cover my face with a hand, unable to meet her eyes because I know I did. I didn’t mean to. It just kind of happened naturally. Something about the man brought it out in me.

“So, you like him?” Moni asks.

“I barely even know him.”

“Not as well as he knows you,” she says with a pointed look at my body, setting off another round of giggling from me.

“I so hate you,” I reply. “But even if I did like him, it would be wrong. I mean, I knew the guy when I was playing with Barbie dolls.”

“Yeah, but you’re not playing with Barbie dolls anymore. You’re a grown woman. You’re old enough to vote, join the military. You’re even old enough to order your own drink at a bar. Barely, but you’re old enough to do that.”

“And?”

“And that means you’re old enough to make decisions about who you see and, more importantly, who you’re going to have amazing sex with.”

The laugh that erupts from my mouth is more like a shriek, drawing more eyes to us. Putting my hand over my mouth, I try to stop cackling like an idiot and making a spectacle of myself any more than I already have.

“Listen,” I say in a quieter tone. “I just … I mean, he knew me when I was a little girl. Like a legit little girl. Isn’t that kind of weird? Or maybe creepy?”

---