Page 31 of Thirst Trap
12
Whitley
I have liveda blessed twenty-six years on this planet. However, in none of those years could I say that I had a healthy, functioning relationship with a man. Not in any phases of my life did I date anyone who I thought I could spend the rest of my life with. Heck, I’ve never even brought a man home to meet my parents.
Then I met Jake.
Yes, I know that we are only two weeks into our long-distance relationship. Yes, I know that we still have only seen each other once. And yes, I know we still have a lot to figure out.
But I also know I’ve never smiled this much. And that’s coming from a former beauty queen.
“Seriously, I can’t look at you anymore. It’s like you’re shitting rainbows twenty-four seven.”
I toss a bag of candies at Betsy, which misses her as she ducks with ease. “Don’t hate. Plus, this is your fault.”
“I couldn’t stand you moping around anymore. So, this was the poison I picked.”
“Well, I appreciate you,” I say, picking up another mesh bag to fill with the exact amount of assorted candies as we’ve been instructed to do per Ella Mae. “All I want to do is finish these up so I can go home and pack.”
“I don’t know why you need to pack,” Betsy says, tying a bow on her own bag of candy. “Not like you two are going to be wearing clothes at all this weekend.”
That thought only makes my smile grow wider. In less than twenty-four hours—ten hours and fourteen minutes to be exact—I am getting in my car and driving to a town I had never heard of two weeks ago. Heck, I’d drive to North Dakota if that’s where he was.
I miss him.
I miss him a lot.
And not just the sex. I didn’t memorize what it felt like to have his arms around me. I want to feel what his kisses are like when we aren’t against the running clock of one night. I want to hold his hand and go get dinner like a normal couple.
Damn, I have it bad.
“What are you packing for?”
The sound of Emmilene’s exasperating voice immediately dampens the mood. When Ella Mae asked Betsy and me to come over to help her put together some table favors, we were happy to help. What kind of bridesmaids would we be if we said no?
We thought we were getting an Emmilene free night. We were wrong.
“Whitley is going to see her Officer Sexy boyfriend this weekend,” Betsy says, wagging her eyebrows for good measure.
Emmilene lets out a disgusted grunt as she takes a seat across from Betsy and me. “I can’t believe you’re dating him. That’s so—”
“Romantic?” Ella Mae says, joining us in the living room. “And just imagine if I hadn’t pushed you two together? It’s like something straight out of a romance book!”
“Or porn,” Emmilene mumbles just loud enough for us to hear it.
That’s it. I can’t take it anymore. This bitch has gotten on my last nerve.
“Not that it’s any of your business, but would you like to tell me why you have such a problem with my relationship with Jake?”
Emmilene pretends to look shocked for a second before she rights herself. “All I’m saying is that you’re a southern woman with ties to the community and around the state. You’re a name, Whitley. And you… frankly, the fact that you’re slumming it with a man who takes his shirt off on the Internet is quite scandalous.”
You’ve got to be kidding me. This is still about the video? “You need to get over that, Emmilene. It was one video. It was a bachelorette party. No one in the city of Birmingham besides the three of us even know it was me.”
Emmilene’s eyes shoot up. “You mean you don’t know?”
What is she talking about? “Know what?”
As soon as the words leave my mouth, I already know I’m not going to like whatever it is she has to tell me. All I need to do is look at the smile she’s wearing. It’s like the one Cruella DeVil has when she sees a dalmatian.
