Page 60 of Nailed (Dad Bod Contracting 3)
“Okay. See you later. Love you!”
“Love you too, babe. See you later, ladies!”
“Bye, Franco!” we all chorus.
Audra taps the red “hang-up” icon at the bottom of her screen to end the call, and then holds out her hands in a gesture of victory. “See?”
Nova is frowning. “Well, that works for you guys. I’m still not sure I’d be cool using that technique in my own relationship, though.”
Audra shakes her head. “You know it’s all in good fun, right? I do what I do because I love him, because I enjoy making him feel good, and because I just like doing that stuff. He’d do anything I asked without ever asking for anything in return, and I know it, and he knows the same goes for me. Throwing sexual stuff into the mix is just fun—it keeps things spicy and unpredictable. It’s not actual manipulation—that’d be shitty and horrible. If you were really using sex solely to get him to do things he didn’t want to do? Yuck. No way.”
Nova laughs. “Okay, okay. I see your point.” She waves a hand. “It’s all moot anyway, because I’m not in a relationship, and not having sex.”
“You could be,” Audra says.
Nova glares. “Audra—don’t. We’re not getting into that.” She sighs. “You are seriously like a dog with a bone about that.”
“I just think you’re in denial or something. You’re flat-out refusing to even think about or talk about something that could be really great for you.”
Nova groans, thunking her head on the table. “You are so impossible, Audra. God.” She takes a long sip of margarita. “I have my reasons.”
“Let me guess—something horrible and tragic lurks in your past, leading you to be isolated and cold, refusing to allow love into your life out of fear that you’ll be hurt again, and so you self-sabotage any budding relationships.” Audra arches an eyebrow at Nova, sipping her drink demurely.
Nova snorts. “Yes, Audra, you’re exactly right—my life is the plot of a cheesy romance novel. Let me rip off my bodice and throw myself on James’s turgid member.”
“Shows how many romance novels you’ve read,” I say. “He rips your bodice open, you don’t rip it off yourself.”
Audra giggles into her goblet. “Although, I’m pretty certain James’s member is plenty turgid whenever you’re around.” She gestures with a swipe of her finger at Nova’s chest—I’ve got an ample amount of silicone in my chest, and Nova’s tits make mine look like mosquito bites. “Those monster honkers of yours make sure of that.”
Nova glances down self-consciously—she’s in her scrub pants, as usual, with just a ribbed tank-top underneath an unzipped hoodie, which means her, um, ridiculous, all-natural endowment is prominently displayed. “Oh, shut up. They’re not that big.”
Audra reaches over and cups one of Nova’s tits, shaking it. “Um, hello? You’ve got Jell-O filled watermelons attached to your sternum, babe.” She kisses Nova’s cheek, making the other woman cringe away, batting at Audra. “I’m just teasing you, Nova, chill. I love you, and I only make fun of you for your tits because I’m a little jealous. Until you came along, mine were the biggest, and you’ve usurped my place as the biggest-titty bitch of the bunch.”
Nova sighs in resignation. “Story of my life. Men only see me for my tits, and women are jealous of me for them. I’ve thought about getting a reduction just to make my life easier.” She cups herself with both hands. “But I never do, because at the end of the day, I love my girls.”
“James sees you for more than your chest, Nova,” I say. “I saw that much at the party.”
Nova growls in wordless frustration, bending forward to thunk her head on the table. “CAN WE PLEASE STOP TALKING ABOUT JAMES?” she shouts.
Imogen grabs my hand and Audra’s. “Enough, you two. Leave her alone about it. She clearly is not willing to talk about this and we shouldn’t try to force the issue.” She lets go of Audra’s hand and takes my other in hers. “We’re here to talk about you and Ryder.”
I shrug. “I just…it’s a lot, really fast, and I don’t know what to do.”
“There’s only one thing to do,” Audra says.
“What’s that?” I ask.
“Hang on tight, and accept the fact that you’ve fallen into something real.” She pats my hand. “Trust me, I know exactly how scary it is. Falling in love with Franco was fucking terrifying. But if you just let go and accept that you’re in love and he’s worth it, everything will work out fine.”
“Wait, do I let go or hold on?” I ask, my expression somewhere between a confused frown and amused smirk.
“Both. That’s why it’s so hard,” Imogen answers. “You let go of expectations and doubts and fears, and hold on to—”
“His giant cock,” Audra cuts in.
Imogen backhands Audra’s arm. “No, you slut—not everything needs to come back to giant cocks.” She rolls her eyes, and then goes back to addressing me. “Hold on to the belief that he’s an amazing man and that loving him may not always be easy, but it’ll all be worth it.”
