“That’s not true.Burn for Meis a lot longer book, and it’s the first book in a trilogy,” Grandma said, shaking her head.“I need time to read all three.You know I have to finish a series once I start.”
“Naomi’s been pushing forBurn for Mesince we joined the club,” Cassidy whispered to Audrey.“So not very long, despite the way she’s acting.But she wanted us to read it before the club, too.”
Good to know.Audrey was enjoying watching all the dynamics between the group, even though she was sitting back and not interacting much.
Once the book discussion was over, Grandma brought out food, and the group ended up in smaller groups to talk about things.
She could hear her grandmother telling Mary and Karen about the ‘hot young thing’ she was hanging out with, and she decided she did not need to be part of that conversation.Similarly, she wasn’t sure how she felt about talking with Yasmine—just looking at the other woman made her feel guilty.Especially when she thought about how Mason had been at the bakery last night and the thoughts that Audrey had been having about him while he was there…
It hadn’t even been twenty-four hours since he and Yasmine ended things.Sure, they were over, but it still felt wrong.
Thankfully, she ended up with Cassidy and Jennifer, while Yasmine was on the other side of the room with Naomi, Claudia, and Ashley.And once Jennifer had asked how the grand opening of Cupcakes and Crumbs had gone, Cassidy took the opportunity to interrogate Jennifer, which meant Audrey was out of the hot seat.
“Does Richard know you went on a date with Jensen?”
“Yes.We’re not exclusive, so I didn’thaveto tell him, but it felt weird not to.”Jennifer made a face, taking a sip of her water.“He pointed out that we’re not exclusive and that I shouldn’t feel bad.”
“Mmm.Is he seeing someone else?”
“Not that I know of.I feel like he would have told me, since I brought it up.”Jennifer tilted her head to the side.“Or maybe not.Maybe that’s why he told me it’s fine and I shouldn’t feel bad.”
Dating multiple people at once was something Audrey didn’t really understand.Jennifer seemed way too calm about the idea that one of the guys she was dating was seeing someone else.On the other hand, she’d be a hypocrite if she was upset.
Audrey couldn’t imagine dating two men at once.
She definitely wouldn’t want the man she was seeing to be also dating other women, either.
“So, you’re going to keep seeing both of them?”
“For now.”Jennifer made another face, then sighed.“I’m not so sure Jensen’s really interested in me or if he just asked me out because someone else had.It might be nothing more than competition.So, I’m not putting all my eggs in one basket.Plus… I really like Richard.A lot.Enough that I don’t like the idea of him dating someone else, even though I know that makes me a horrible hypocrite.”
Okay, so scratch that about Jennifer being totally calm about sharing.That made Audrey feel a little better.
“And Richard’s kinky.”
“Yes, although we haven’t had sex yet.We’ve been to a few house parties, but we keep things platonic there.”Jennifer looked at Audrey.“My parents are heavy into the scene, and they have a lot of friends in it.I’m way too paranoid about someone I know showing up and seeing me butt naked or worse.”
“That’s why you don’t come to the club, right?”
“Yup.My parents are members, and I’ve got a bunch of aunties and uncles who are members.The owners of the club were basically my aunt and uncle growing up.”Jennifer shook her head.“I would need a whole lot of people to go on vacation at the same time for me to even be tempted to step foot in there.It’s not just about them seeing me at that point; it’s about me seeing them.”
That made sense to Audrey.It was one thing to go to a book club where they were talking about sex with her grandmother; it would be an entirely different thing for her to walk in on her grandmother doing some of the stuff they were reading about.
“So you can scene without sex?”Audrey was fascinated by the concept, which was so different from the books she’d been reading.It seemed like all they did was have scenes that ultimately led to multiple orgasms.
“Oh, yes.It’s not like the books where all the couples have sex all the time.They’re like that because we’re reading romances.There are plenty of people who scene platonically,” Jennifer explained.“Richard and I do, though, of course, there’s lots of chemistry, and he’s a lot more hands-on than the fully platonic scenes.He’sverygood with his hands.”
Her eyes took on a dreamy-eyed look that Audrey envied.Cash had been fine.She’d occasionally orgasmed with him, but she’d never looked like Jennifer did right now.
Thinking about him didn’t make her get all dreamy-eyed.
The fantasies that she had about Mason, on the other hand…
Stop it.Yasmine is RIGHT THERE.
Maybe Yasmine really had been hinting at Mason and Audrey getting together, but it still felt disrespectful.It was way too soon.
“Hey, so what are we talking about over here?”Grandma elbowed her way into the circle, grinning.
