Page 37 of Breakaway Hearts

“If he was here right now, I’m not sure I’d stop you. But it doesn’t matter. It’s over and done with anyway.”

I huff out a breath. “Yeah, maybe it’s over, but that doesn’t mean it’s done with. He fucked with your head. He made you feel bad about yourself. Just because he’s out of your life now, that doesn’t stop me from wanting to beat the ever-loving shit out of that motherfucker.”

Callie smiles even as another tear rolls down her cheek, and I don’t stop myself from reaching up to brush it away. She leans into my touch a little, and as she does, it strikes me just how beautiful she is in this moment. Even when she’s just lounging at home in her sleep shorts and a t-shirt, no makeup on and her eyes a little red from crying. With her curly red hair pulled back in a ponytail, her soft, smooth skin, and her beautiful soul, it amazes me that she hasn’t been with anyone since that asshole.

She’s gorgeous.

She’sperfect.

Anyone would be lucky to have her.

And there’s not a single fucking man in the world who deserves her.

“Hey,” I murmur, grazing my thumb over her cheek. “What Austin said was super fucked up and definitely not okay. You know that, right?”

“I know.” She nods, and I drop my hand away.

“Good.”

Then she hesitates, making a face. “But he was right, in a way,” she whispers. “Iamsuper inexperienced. I never knew what I was doing in bed, and Austin could barely ever make me… you know. It always felt awkward and lame, which is why I started reading romance after we broke up. I thought I could pick up some things here and there, and I did, I think. I’ve gotten really into the books, and I love so many of the ones I’ve read. But still, I haven’t had the confidence to go out and date since he and I broke up.”

I try to keep the shocked expression off my face, but I’m not entirely sure I do a good job of that.

How long exactly has it been since she and Austin split up? Over a year, for sure. And she’s been feeling this way the whole time since then?

More than anything, I just want to protect her. Protect her from men like that, who think they can say whatever the fuck they want without giving a single thought about her feelings. Because now Callie actuallybelievesthat shit. She genuinely believes she’s bad in bed or that she has to learn everything from romance novels. That she’s not good enough just the way she is.

“Not every man is like Austin, you know,” I tell her gently. “I never really cared for him, but I can tell you now with absolute certainty—that guy is a fucking pig.”

“I know.” She nods, looking so forlorn that it breaks my heart. “I want to try to find someone better. I want a love like my parents had. Something that makes me feel happy and good about myself instead of like I’ll never measure up. But I just—” She sighs. “I want to feel confident, and I just don’t. Not when it comes to sex.”

“Maybe you just haven’t been having sex with the right person,” I joke, giving her knee a squeeze. I want her to see that this isn’t aherproblem at all. If anything, it’s an Austin problem.

But Callie goes still, her leg tensing slightly beneath my palm. She looks down at my hand for a long moment, her brows furrowed and her bottom lip slightly pouted in the way she does when she’s thinking hard about something. Then she looks up, meeting my gaze. The tears are gone, and in their place, a fierce kind of determination blazes in her eyes.

“I want to call in my favor,” she tells me.

I draw my head back a little, taken aback by the sudden change of topic. “Oh. Okay. What do you need? Anything, Firefly. I already told you I owe you whatever you want. A lifetime supply of Blanton’s? Kicking Austin’s ass?” I snort a laugh, grinning. “Actually, that last one I’ll do for free, so that can’t be your favor.”

Her lips twitch a little at the corners, but she doesn’t laugh at my joke the way I thought she might. Instead, she lifts her chin resolutely as she says, “I want you to teach me.”

The grin drops from my face. “What?”

“Teach me,” she repeats, her tongue darting out to wet her lips. “That’s what I want my favor to be. I want you to teach me how to be better in bed.”

Chapter13

Callie

Reese stares at me, saying nothing.

His rich brown eyes are wide, his lips slightly parted, and for a second, I’m not sure why he looks so incredibly shocked.

Then the reality of what I just said hits me.

I basically just asked Reese, my best friend and my fake boyfriend, to be my sex tutor.

Holy fuck.

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