* * *
“Stop,you did not draw naked women for money,” I say as I sit across from Eli at home. We decided to pick up ice cream at the store and make sundaes. I will not be telling Blakely because I believe this would be considered cheating on her.
“Sure did. I needed the cash. Hockey was expensive, so I did anything to make a buck.”
“Are you good at drawing?”
“Fuck no.” He shakes his head. “But I convinced the guys at my school they needed my drawings. They went for ten bucks apiece.”
“Ten dollars? For someone else’s drawing, that they could probably do themselves?”
“Yup. My signature was pointy nipples. The guys loved them. Every girl had really pointy nipples, and it worked for me. I made around five thousand dollars on those things.”
“Wait, what? Five thousand dollars? That means you had to draw five hundred pictures of pointy nipples. When did you have the time?”
“I made the time. Luckily, school came easy to me, so I didn’t have to spend hours upon hours studying. When I was alone in the barn, I’d just start drawing. I’d replicate a lot and sometimes do different variations, but yeah, it was a great moneymaker for me. I have the horny guys in my school to thank for supporting my hockey career.”
“Would you ever get special requests?”
He smirks. “I got a few, but I didn’t stray far from what I knew.”
“Did Marge or Tobias ever ask where you were getting the money from?”
“Not really. They didn’t pay close attention. I used the money for new gear and gas for the people who drove me when I needed a ride. Simple shit like that.”
“Did you ever keep pictures for yourself?”
He lifts his spoonful of mint chocolate chip ice cream. “A few.”
Chuckling, I ask, “Did you ever get a boner drawing them?”
This time, he laughs and nods. “A few times.”
“Wow, just wow.” I wipe my mouth with a napkin. “I never would have pegged you for an erotic artist.”
“You have to make a living somehow. Thankfully for me, I found my niche and ran with it.”
“Did anyone ever try to copy your business model?”
“Oh, yeah. There was this guy who thought he’d try to undersell me, but his stuff wasn’t nearly as good as mine. I learned shading in my art class and used that to my advantage.”
“Do you draw still?”
He shakes his head. “Not really. And honestly, I think if I did, all I’d draw is topless women because that’s all I know how to draw. Then what do I look like at that point? Not someone trying to make money for ice time. I’d just look like a twenty-eight-year-old creep.”
“You’re right about that. Oh, I can only imagine what the guys would say if they caught you drawing on the bus.”
“Let’s not even think about it.” He finishes the last mouthful of his ice cream—which he took three giant scoops of. I’m not here to judge, but it was a lot of ice cream, and he ate it with no problem. “Ever step into the realm of drawing penises?”
“Only the basic silhouette on a random person’s notepad just to—no pun intended—dick around with them.”
“Were you a troublemaker in school?”
“Depends. When it came to class and school, I was a respectful student. I never wanted to get in trouble, and if I knew I could kiss my teacher’s ass for a better grade, I’d do it. But with my friends, I was a bit of a troublemaker. I had so much fun pranking Pacey, so I found ways to get under my friends’ skin as well. I was a tease.”
“Ah, kind of like the mild torture I’ve been through since I’ve been here?”
“Exactly.” I smile at him. “And I appreciate your use of the word mild because, let’s be honest, half the stuff I’ve done to you is barely a blip on the things I could be doing.”
