Page 24 of Something Real with the Sea Monster
“Awww. I’m sorry. I didn’t realize. Let me think of something to distract you.”
“I’m not sure—”
“I know. Want to know the weirdest place I’ve ever fucked someone?”
I make a choked sound as the wheel turns again and we’re at the very top of the circuit.
“Oh sorry. TMI?”
“No. Just… We’re really high up.”
She squeezes my hand. “OK, well there was one time in the bathroom at a club, but that hardly counts. Everyone’s done that once.”
“Uh huh.” I’m not really listening. All I can think about is how many seconds it would take to hit the ground if I fell off.
“I have made some questionable choices at work,” Tegan continues, “but I’m not sure I’m ready to tell that story yet. Oh! I know! Don’t judge me, OK, but there was one time in a graveyard.”
“A graveyard!” Despite the situation, we’re both laughing now.
“Don’t judge me, I said.” She giggles. “It wasn’t a funeral or anything like that. It was this beautiful quiet spot I used to go sometimes on a break from work when I was at uni. And, long story short, there was this guy I kept seeing there. One day we got to talking and, um… well, I had just broken up with a boyfriend. I sucked him off in the park overlooking all the graves. I never learned his name and never saw him again after that.”
I cough, trying to pick my jaw up off the ground meters below us. God damn. This woman! “I bet he still thinks about you every day.”
She sighs. “I doubt it.” It might be my imagination, but for a moment her jaw gets tight and she looks away, and I wonder if it bothers her.
It shouldn’t. She’s amazing and can do what she wants with her body, but I wonder if she’s ever been judged.
I’m just starting to feel comfortable when the ride actually starts, and my whole world starts spinning toward the ground.
“Hey, Jack?”
I glance at Tegan, who grabs the top of her shirt, yanking it down and flashing me her right breast, and suddenly the Ferris wheel is the last thing on my mind.
God, could she be any more perfect? Even the color of her nipples is the perfect shade of pink. Her breast is full and rounded and looks so tempting to squeeze.
She tugs her shirt back into place, but I’m still staring.
“Good distraction?”
I nod. “Yeah. Good distraction. What were you distracting me from again?”
She laughs. “I think it worked then.”
“Would it be very bad of me if I told you it didn’t in the hopes that you might do it again?”
“Ah! See… this is why we need to get you a date. Don’t worry, we’ll find someone you want to date. I know we will.”
I force a smile. I’ll never date again. I just need to find a way to tell Tegan why.
TWELVE
Tegan
Another week goes by, and I don’t spare a single thought for Mark. After work, I hang out with Mia and Luke or Mia, Luke, and Jack, or sometimes just Jack. I make sure to emphasize that Jack is my friend when I talk about it with Mia and Luke. I don’t want them getting the wrong idea.
I wake up on Monday morning to a message.
Mark: what if I made a mistake? Because i miss u
