Page 79 of When You Blush
Chapter Eighteen
HARPER
“Do you need an ice pack?” Ava asks as she slips a french fry in her mouth, then grins at me.
“For what?” I stab some lettuce on my salad and take a bite.
“For your vag after two straight days of sex with Dr. Big Dick.”
I choke on my salad, and Ava cackles like a nutjob. I take a few sips of my water, then scowl at my best friend.
“Shut it. You can’t call him that here.”
“Oh stop.” She waves me off and glances around the hospital cafeteria, where we’re having lunch on my break. I haven’t seen her in what feels like forever, and she had time to meet me today. “No one even heard me. Listen, I’m just jealous. Because he’shotwith a capital H, and he has it so bad for you.”
“You think?”
“Was I the only one at that book club meeting?”She snorts and eats another fry. “He couldn’t stop looking at you, and his eyes got all soft and gooey. I’m surprised cartoon hearts didn’t float and pop over his head.”
“We’re not that disgusting.”
“You’re totally disgusting,” she counters and smiles so widely, she could light up the room. “And I love it for you. You deserve someone who thinks you hung the moon, Harps. Because you fuckingdid.”
I stare at her and blink slowly, feeling my eyes heat and my lower lip quiver.
“Don’t make me cry at my job,” I whisper.
“Okay, how about this. I met a guy,” Ava says nonchalantly, trying to change the subject. “At the grocery store, actually.”
“Holy shit, talk to me. I need details. Who, what, where, and when. The why is obvious.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re the shit.”
She preens at that, making me chuckle.
“Okay, so his name is Joe.”
I lift an eyebrow. “Are we sure that’s his real name?”
“I mean, I didn’t ask for identification. Why would he lie? Men are named Joe.”
I nod and shrug. “Fair enough. What does Joe look like?”
“He’s pretty cute. Taller than me, red hair, muscles. He likes to run.”
We stare at each other, then both say, “Ew,” before dissolving in giggles.
“You know, he’s a little not toxic enough for me, but I’m enjoying him for now.”
I shake my head at her. “Is that your way of saying he’s a nice guy, and you’re not into nice guys?”
“Kind of. Listen, I like a guy who’s a little morally gray. A little mean to me sometimes.”
“No, we don’t want that. Trust me. No being mean.” Jesus, Ireallyneed to tell Ava everything that went down with Nathan because I know for a fact that she does not want mean.
“Not asshole mean. I’m talking in the bedroom mean. Bite me, smack my ass, call me a whore. You know, that kind of mean. Joe issovanilla. I told him to pull my hair, and he stared at me like I’d lost my mind.”
