Lord, that’s good.
She waits a few seconds, giving me time to get my wits about me.
“How did you sleep?” she asks.
“Like the dead,” I say. My voice is still hoarse.
“You needed it.” She reaches forward to brush my hair from my face. My wonderful friend. I don’t know what I’d do without her. “You need a shower too,” she adds, wrinkling her nose. I roll my eyes at her. “I’ve found some clothes that should fit you,” she goes on. She’s so polite. Andy’s built like a ramp model, whereas I’m more of an hourglass girl. A 24-hourglass.
I nod my head, anticipating having to squeeze myself into whatever she’s provided – but I don’t care about that. I’m just grateful for all that she’s done for me…continues to do. “I don’t know how to thank you, Andz,” I say gruffly. She gives a flick of her wrist.
“It’s what friends do, hon,” she says. “Once you’re up, we’ll get some dinner and figure out what to do next. Sound good?”
“Dinner?” I respond. The coffee’s starting to work its magic, and I can practically feel the neurons firing up. “At 7 a.m.?” I ask.
“Make that 7p.m., Sleeping Beauty,” she says drily, “you’ve been out the whole day.”
Holy crap!
“Flip…I’d really better get out of bed,” I mumble. “But what about work? Aren’t you on night shift?”
“I called in and asked the hospital administrator to change my shifts for the next couple of days. Got some leave due anyhow. And I figured this was a situation that might need a bit of focus, you know?”
I bite my lip. “What would I do without you, Dr. Carter?” I try to joke.
“God alone knows,” she quips back. “But considering I’ve made more than my share of stupid love decisions, it’s only right for me to impart some of my hard-earned wisdom to you.” I shake my head, finding it hard to believe Andy could ever have been as foolish as I’ve been.
“I can’t imagine you’ve ever done anything this stupid, Andy,” I say firmly.
“You’d better believe it, babe,” she says. Her tone is light, but something flickers in her expression. I sense more hidden depths to my best friend that I’ve never been aware of.
God, I’m such a selfish bitch!
“Well, I’m pretty sure you’ve put that behind you now,” I say. “Somewhere out there, two fabulous men are waiting for a couple of catches just like us.” I don’t know why I say it when my heart is still pulsing with misery over Dario. But perhaps putting on a brave face feels better than flopping about like a dying swan.
“Oh, hell no!” Andy says sharply. “The only fabulous man I’m interested in will be the one who gets me off five times in one night, then fucks off out of my life before the next one arrives.”
My eyes widen. “Sheesh, chick!” I say, mildly alarmed. “Hardcore bitch much? And there I’d thought you had plans to get all soft and squishy with that asshole Mateo.”
She rolls her eyes. “If there was anything soft about Mateo, I would never have noticed him. Did you get a look at that package? Lord help me, I bet that guy has a 9-inch cock. At least. My only regret about getting you out of that place is that I never had a chance to ride that cowboy.”
I choke on my coffee. “Andy! For God’s sakes, woman! We were out at the pool with a little kid when you must have been eyeballing his ‘package’!”
“And you never noticed it?” she says.
“Hell no!” It’s true. I was too busy pining for Dario. Like an idiot. “You can’t tell me that’s all you look for in a man.”
“Nope. I like to check out their glutes too. Make sure they’re good and strong for…you know…humping all night.”
I roll my eyes at her, taking another slurp of my coffee.
“The bigger the cock is, the easier it is to keep them at arm’s length while you’re fucking them,” she goes on. “Trust me, you don’t want to get close to those bastards. It’s the best way. I already told you…my wisdom is hard-earned. But it can all be yours if you’ll just pay attention, young one.”
“What are you, like, the Love Yoda or something?” I find myself grinning, which surprises me. Trust Andy to lift my mood so quickly.
She gives a strange little smile. “Something like that.‘The best teacher, failure is,’” she jokes, then drags the covers from me. “Now get dressed, you must. I have much to teach you before you go back to the dark side.”
I want to laugh again, but something keeps nagging at me. I lock eyes with hers.
