Page 42 of One Week Wingman

Piper snorts with laughter. “I knew this would be worth the detour,” she says in delight, pulling her sleek blonde hair up into a ponytail as if to prepare for some serious dish. We’re settled in at a high-top at this new Mexican place Nita found in the next town over, catching up on all the gossip.

AKA, my ridiculous fake love life.

Nita waves down the waiter. “We’re going to need more chips,” she says. “Lots more chips. This is like, a three-salsa alarm.”

“It’s not funny, you guys!” I protest. “OK, maybe it is a little funny,” I admit with a grin, sipping my sadly virgin drink. After last night’s drunken adventures, I’m sticking to cranberry and soda tonight. “But I don’t know what to do. Everything he does seems sexy now. He even looked hot drenched in stinky mud,” I add in despair. “It’s like he flipped a switch, and now there’s no going back.”

“You mean, he turned you on?” Piper asks with a smirk.

Nita toasts her. “Nice. You know, I don’t get the problem here,” she continues, looking delighted. “You’ve been needing a good fling. I say, go for it.”

I shake my head firmly. “I can’t.”

“Why, because he’s your boss at the bar?” Nita waves away the concern. “You said it yourself, he’s not even involved with the day-to-day running.”

“He’s not,” Piper confirms. “He’s too busy jetting around, being a dashing playboy.”

“Exactly,” I nod, trying to hold onto the many sane, sensible reasons why I can’t have that steamy fling. “He’s a total man-whore.”

Nita pauses. “Are we talking gross, retro pick-up artist man-whore?” she asks.

“No,” Piper replies, shaking her head. “More like, classic allergic to commitment, catnip for women, too charming for his own good man-whore. You should see him and Flynn in action on a Friday night,” she adds, rolling her eyes. “It’s like girls just throw themselves at their feet.”

“Well, that’s not so bad!” Nita cheers. “If everyone is a consenting adult and having fun. You don’t need him to put a ring on it,” she adds to me. “Just, you know, clear out the cobwebs and have some fun.”

“I don’t have cobwebs!” I snort with laughter. “My toys take care of that, thank you very much.”

“Ooh, give me some recs, I’m in the market for something new,” Piper says. “But that’s beside the point.”

“The point being?” I ask.

“What happens in Ashford Falls stays in Ashford Falls.” Nita says with a smirk. “Set parameters, agree that this is all in good fun, and then go ahead and ride him like a mechanical bull.”

I snort some salsa up the back of my nose. I can’t say the idea isn’t appealing, but something makes me pause…

“Don’t you feel like we’re getting too old for random flings?” I ask. “I mean, I’m not twenty-two anymore. Hooking up with some wildly inappropriate guy just for the thrill of it… Sure, it can be fun, but then you wake up the next morning, and realize, he doesn’t own any cleaning products and thinks Andrew Tate is a role model.”

Piper howls with laughter. “Don’t! The truth hurts.”

“It’s not like I need to be married just yet,” I add, “having kids like Jessica, and Megan, and Courtney—”

“—The three bitches of Eastwick,” Nita translates for Piper.

“—But I do want meet someone,” I say wistfully. “Fall in love. Have a real relationship. Something that makes me feel good about myself.”

“And Sebastian doesn’t make you feel good?” Piper frowns.

“No, he does. Now. But that’s the dangerous thing,” I explain. “You’ve seen how he operates. Everything is fun, and sexy, and thrilling until he actually catches whoever it is he’s chasing. And then he loses interest, regular as clockwork. Right now, we’re friends. Good friends,” I add, surprised by just how true it’s turning out to be. “I don’t want to have one wild night with the guy, and then be someone he can’t wait to get away from.”

“Don’t count anything out.” Nita says. “He might surprise you. Evan was meant to be a one night stand and look at us now.”

“Her fiancé,” I recap for Piper. “Smokin’ hot chef who rubs her feet every night.”

“I love it,” Piper exclaims. “When are you getting married?”

“We’re not,” Nita announces happily.

“Huh?” Piper frowns.

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