“Don’t even go there. You guys were a special case, and you only got together because I wasn’t letting my bestie raise a rock star’s baby all by herself. No one is going to go full stalker mode to find my roadside cutie for me.”
“I could if you want me to.” Hendrix beamed, passing me one of the seedlings. “A private investigator isn’t that expensive.”
“I’ll survive, but thanks for the offer. It kind of takes away the spontaneity if I hunt him down afterward.”
“True,butit would probably be more flattering to get tracked down because you were an incredible lay rather than because you knocked someone up. Grateful either way,” he added hastily, “but one of those things allows for a lot more continued spontaneity than the other.”
I stared at the cheerful orange bloom as I loaded dirt around it. Getting myself a pack didn’t really fit with the whole freedom year I had going on, even though I had my moments of ungodly levels of jealousy that Meadow had a house full of gorgeous men who adored the shit out of her.
I was the fun one.
Men were happy to play with me to our mutual benefit, but Meadow was the type you brought home to meet the parents, not me. It didn’t help that I’d had such a good childhood that I had somehow developed reverse daddy issues and refused to accept half-assed bullshit from men. That usually resulted in them calling me a spoiled brat. But honestly, what the fuck was the point in being with someone if you didn’t want to give them everything? I wasn’t out here demanding diamonds, just a little fucking consideration.
Remember my favorite foods and flowers.
Don’t give me something I’m allergic to.
Show up on time for dates or at least message if that’s not possible.
You’d think I was asking these men to perform brain surgery with the way they reacted sometimes.
“I don’t need anyone,” I insisted to Hendrix. “I’m still not even sure if I’m staying in LA after the year is up, so it wouldn’t be very smart to get involved with someone and make that decision even more difficult.”
“Harvard and Yale don’t deserve you.” Hendrix passed me another poppy, and I dutifully dug a space for it. “UCLA, on the other hand…”
“You’re just saying that because then I wouldn’t have to move.”
“Maybe so, but Meadow loves you, and I want her to be happy. You could kick ass in the legal world from right here.”
“You guys wouldn’t be glad to have me out of your hair?”
Hendrix shrugged, giving me a sympathetic look. “My hair has grown accustomed to having a little Clover in it. We would survive if you went, but I think we’d all be happier if you stayed. I’m not saying that because of Meadow. I, for one, like having you around. Forest deserves to have the coolest auntie in SoCal.”
I laughed and whacked his arm with the flat of the spade. “I only getcoolest in SoCal? Not even the whole state? Criminal. I’m moving to the East Coast for that slight.”
His expression fell for a second.
“I’m kidding. There are a lot of people down here, so I guessI’ll accept being the coolest auntie of the bunch, even if I do think I deserve to be the coolest inallof California, if not the whole country.”
“I’ll put in an order for a wall plaque to make the title official.”
“And on that note, I need to go take a shower. I have been sweaty for entirely too long.”
“That’s cool. Abandon me and the poppies.” He laughed when I stuck my tongue out at him and waved on my way back around to the guesthouse.
I closed the curtains and stripped down on my way to the bathroom. The hot water was heaven sliding over my skin. I scrubbed down quickly, letting my mind wander while the shampoo suds went down the drain.
It definitely didn’t wander to the cutie who had gotten me off earlier. Not his sweet brown eyes and floppy curls the same shade as milk chocolate, or the strength in his hands where he’d gripped my hips, or the ego-boosting sounds he’d made when I sank onto him.
Nope. My brain wouldn’t torture me by thinking of someone impossible to have.
I also wasn’t thinking about him when I leaned against the cool tile, flicked the showerhead to the jet setting, and tucked it between my thighs. The memory of his fresh salt air scent teased me along with the water on my clit. A shiver rolled through me and my head thunked against the tile.
In my mind, he was in here with me. I traced my fingers over my skin in the way I’d want him to, knowing how every inch of my body liked to be touched.
It was unfair as fuck I didn’t have his hot lips against my throat or his hands squeezing my ass cheeks. The warm water pulsed, pulling me closer to the edge. Nothing truly compared to a lover, but an orgasm was an orgasm, even if some were better than others.
My kitty hated being empty when I came, but sometimes we didn’t get everything we wanted. I held the stream steady, ready and willing to come as many times as I needed to get it out of my system. The water made every muscle tense, pleasure blossoming through my core.
