Page 104 of Three Pucking Words
The longer I study the image of us, the more it makes my skin heat. We look close. Really close. Like we’ve done way more than we have.
“Wow,” I breathe. The way he’s staring down at me, holding me, makes us look completely lost in one another. Then I see the number of likes, comments and shares it has. “This has over sixty-thousandlikes. And over four thousand comments. Holy shit. Why do people care so much?”
She takes her phone back, turning the screen off and sliding it into her pocket. “Because Bodhi Hoffman hasn’t been seen out with anyone these days. Nobody besides his daughter, and the media has the decency to cover her face per his request when they do get images of them together. Ever since his thing with Olive Henderson last year, there’s been nobody linked to him.”
How could I forget Olive? Has she reached out to him about these pictures? Has myfathersaid anything about them? He hasn’t said a word whenever we’ve had dinner together. It’s like he doesn’t care. And maybe…maybe he doesn’t.
“Huh” is the only thing I can think to say.
Mila smacks my arm, making me whine. “Is that all you have to say? Come on, girl. You’ve got a professional hockey playerwrapped around your finger. That picture has gone viral. And, honestly, the comments are pretty good overall.”
I flinch, not wanting to think about what the keyboard warriors have to say. I saw what they had to say on the photo he shared with Olive and her brother last year. They weren’t pretty. I’m not about to go down the dark abyss of opinions from jealous women and dickhead men online.
Taking a deep breath, I admit, “I told him.”
She doesn’t need to elaborate. “You did?”
I nod.
“And what did he say?” I can tell there’s pride in her tone, but also curiosity. She knows I planned on taking my crush to the grave and burying it along with the shame I felt for putting myself in that position to begin with. No matter how often she told me I was beating myself up way too much, I refused to believe it.
I let out a breath and tell her everything.
And it feels…good.
Great, even.
To feel this way.
Lighter than air.
Desired.
Wanted.
Special.
I’ve never felt the way I do with Bodhi.
Mila’s happiness is bright and genuine. “So what do you do now?” she asks me, holding onto both of my hands.
I take a deep breath and examine our hands, thinking about it. A warmth spreads through me as I realize something.
The weight has been lifted off my shoulders.
The guilt.
The embarrassment.
I look at my friend. “I’m going to go out on a date with Bodhi Hoffman,” I tell her.
Her smile spreads so wide it splits half her face. “I like the sound of that, H. I really do. You need a man who will treat you right. Who will scare off dipshits likeMax.” She spits his name the same way she did when I told her about my encounter with him and my mother at The Plaza during our weekly rant session. She’d been ready to track them down and shank them. Her words, of course.
“Do a favor for me, babe,” Mila adds, squeezing my palms. “Don’t push him away. Don’t fight it. Don’t let the past impact what your future could be. Okay? Can you do that?”
My swallow is thick. “I think so.”
She pulls me in for a hug. “Good.” When she pulls away, there’s mischief in her eyes. “Think of all the orgasms you can have in the span of forever.”
