Page 114 of Pucking Sweet

“Because she told me.”

I sit up, jostling my ice pack. “When the fuck did you talk to her?”

“At the benefit. You know, the oneyouvolunteered us both to attend and then boycotted?”

Yeah, that was a shitty day. Speaking of emergency contacts, I got a call from someone at the hospital in Orlando saying my mom slipped and fell, cracked her head pretty good. They discharged her with a mild concussion, but she needed someone to monitor her overnight. What was I supposed to do, not help my own mother?

“I told you I had a family emergency.”

Novy snorts. “Yeah, which sounds like a flimsy fucking excuse. Pop didn’t buy it.”

“What do you mean she didn’t buy it?”

“She ran off all upset,” he replies. “I had to chase her down. It was a whole thing. But look—she wore this red dress and looked like Jessica Rabbit.” He pulls his phone out and flashes me a picture.

“Fuckme,” I mutter.

“Right?” He slips his phone back in his pocket. “If your excuse was legit, you should tell her. She thinks you don’t want her anymore.”

I sigh, adjusting the ice pack on my elbow. “Well, if she’s not ready for confessions of love, then whatisshe ready for?”

“She’s ready to come and get it—and by that, I mean your dick.” He points to my crotch.

“Nov—”

“Hey, I am not wrong about this. Underneath the business suits, she’s like a tiny blonde sex cheetah. Stop trying to wife her up and just let her get to know you. Dial back the Leo and date the girl. We’re talking flowers, favorite foods, naked massages.” He lists each thing out on his fingers. “And make sure she knows there are no strings attached. Just casual fun.”

“Casual fun? You want me to treat her like a bunny?”

“Honestly, maybe,” he says with a laugh. “She may not be ready to marry you, but she’s definitely ready to keep riding your train, if you know what I mean.”

“The wallpaper knows what you mean,” I mutter.

“Well, the sex was working, right?” He looks my way, waiting for my response. “Oh god, please tell me the sex was working. Because if you tell me she was just okay, I’m gonna push you out that goddamn window, and wife her up myself. Our sex was fucking volcanic—”

“I don’t want to hear about your sex.”

Lie.I’m getting hard trying not to picture it. It’s a total mindfuck.

“But it was good, right?”

I lean back against the headboard again. “It was good, Nov. God, it was so fucking good. I can’t stop thinking about it. I am so completely fucked.”

“That bad, huh?”

I toss my ice pack onto the bedside table. “Worse. Fantasizing about her for two years was already torture enough. Now that I’ve tasted the real thing? I want more, even as I know I’ll never get enough. But then I had to go and shove that stupid ultimatum in her face.” I groan, burying my face in my hands.

Novy’s quiet for a moment. “Yeah, why did you do that?”

Dropping my hands, I glare at him. “Because I had to. She can’t just date us both, right? Unlike Jake and Sanny, I don’t share.”

He nods. “Yeah, totally get that. Neither do I, but I’ve also never been in this position before.”

“What position is that?”

“The position where the only woman I’ve ever wanted to spend more than one night with wants me, but shealsowants the only man who wishes me a ‘Happy Birthday.’”

The mood in this hotel room shifts. Suddenly, it’s like a goddamn confessional. “What are you saying?”

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