Page 28 of The Sinner: James

“I can’t fucking believe it. You touched his lips... With your lips?” she asks, bewildered.

I chuckle because she’s funny, yet her words bring back the memory of that moment, making me shift my focus away from our conversation.

James’ image flashes in front of my eyes, awakening that sweet yearning that’s been building inside my body for some time.

Mesmerized, she looks at me, her eyes filled with curiosity, pure innocence, and irrepressible excitement.

We’ve been waiting for this moment for so long.

She’s glaringly more impatient than me, although I won’t lie… I’ve been thinking about it for a while.

You can call it an accident if you want, but the whole men and sex thing had taken a significant detour when it came to us.

We may be chock full of knowledge, but the actual experience of being with someone has just evaded us.

It’s not as if we’ve purposely postponed it.

For the most part, we didn’t think about losing our V-cards, and we kind of felt good about how we were.

I guess we weren’t ready, or maybe we didn’t meet the right men, as she has said many times.

Eve tried to be in a relationship, and some of her hookups lasted more than the others, but most guys weren’t interested in sexless dates, and despite being so eager to get it over with, she couldn’t do it with any random guy.

“Yes, I touched his lips. But I couldn’t tell if he was one of them. I couldn’t spot their bikes anywhere. And because they ambushed me in front of Red’s, I couldn’t figure out what kind of car they drove either.”

“I don’t know any other men who look like that. Not in this town, anyway,” she says, drawing her own conclusion while dismissing every other alternate theory.

A sound originating in the house rips through the air.

She glances at me.

“Is the evil one at home?” she asks quietly.

“No, no. Don’t worry. She’s not here.”

“So what was she doing at the club, anyway?” she asks.

I tilt my head to the side, smiling suggestively.

She laughs, entertained.

“Never mind. Why would I ask something so stupid? Of course, she was there. The woman is relentless when it comes to men.”

She pushes her black horn-rim glasses up her nose, tucks her hair behind her ears, and leans forward, her eyes glinting with mischief.

“So, did they say anything interesting to you?” she asks.

“Nope.”

“Nothing about their mysterious house or the urban legend making the rounds?”

I laugh softly.

“Why would they bring that up? And no. Of course, I didn’t ask them. What a great piece of conversation that would be. ‘Hey, so and so, my friend and I would like to know if you organize orgies at your place.’”

I pause, and we giggle.

“What do they look like?” she asks, leaning back in her seat.

---