She does so without question, practically bouncing on the balls of her feet while we clean up the rest of my mess. We toss everything back into the original bin and I close the lid. Nodding to the back of the store, I tell Jo that I’ll be right back.
I put the bin in its proper place, and when I come back out to the floor, I tell Ethan I’m going to take a short break, and he miraculously doesn’t argue. He just nods curtly and continues whatever he is doing.
Odd. Maybe he is trying to be kind to me today.
Jo and I sit on a bench outside tucked between the bookstore and Claudia’s bakery. She hands me back my cup of coffee that I forgot about, and I take it happily. Taking a sip, I realize it’s a pumpkin spice latte, but the cup says it’s from Double Double.
“What is this? Jamie doesn’t sell anything with pumpkin spice.”
Jo smiles at me knowingly. “He does now.”
“What made him change his mind?”
She pretends to think really hard, rubbing her chin and squinting her eyes. “Let’s see. Perhaps it has to do with what you were about to tell me earlier. You know, about you deciding to have a little fun together.”
She nudges me in the side playfully, and I cave. “Okay. Yes. We moved to second base.”
“Second base?” she grimaces. “You’re gonna have to be more specific. I don’t play sports.”
Jo waits with bated breath as I take a sip of my latte and mutter the words. “He used his mouth this time.”
“Girl, use your words.”
Though I’ve found my courage when I’m alone with Jamie, it’s still awkward for me to talk about these things openly for some reason. I’ve never felt confident when it comes to sex.
I try again. “He went down on me. You know, he performed oral.”
Joanna raises an eyebrow. “You know that’s third base, right? But forget about that, how was it?”
Part of me wants to keep the intimate details of what’s happened between me and Jamie to myself, but I don’t see any harm in sharing the basic overview.
“It was…amazing.” I sigh like a lovestruck schoolgirl, and I realize just how smitten I really am. “I was a little nervous at first, but I just went with my gut like you said, and it wasn’t awkward or bland at all. I don’t think I’ve ever connected to someone like that sexually before. And we haven’t even had sex yet.”
Jo gasps in mock horror. “You didn’t take him for a full test drive?”
“Stop,” I tease. “I tested several of the features, and I’m definitely interested.”
“Well, well, well. Look at you. I have to say, as soon as I saw you up close, I could see a glow about you.”
“Ugh, I knew it,” I groan. “Everyone can tell, can’t they?”
She hums thoughtfully. “Not always, but with you it’s pretty obvious.”
I lean my head back against the brick wall of the building and fake a cry.
“Don’t worry,” Jo says, perfunctorily patting my leg. “Maybe with the festival coming up, everyone will be so busy they won’t notice two of Shadow Hills’ resident B.F.F.s are finally fucking.”
“Jo!”
She stands up abruptly and begins walking backwards away from the bench. “Gotta go get that dog food,” she redirects the conversation. “Keep me posted on which bases you hit next.”
She swings an imaginary bat then turns around and heads across the street, leaving me speechless and considering texting Jamie to ask what time he takes lunch.
Chapter Thirty-One
JAMIE
Things between Raegan and I have settled into a comfortable routine of waking up in the same bed, going to work separately, sometimes sharing our lunch breaks, then meeting back at home only to spend the rest of the evening learning all the possible ways I can make her cum, only to secretly relieve myself in the shower later. It’s been exhilarating, and a little bit exhausting, given I tend to stay up way too late doing that last part.
