“That’s what you’re upset about?” Bobby asks.
“It’s the same thing Adriano’s butthurt over,” Doc says. “He’s recruited her onto his PR team.”
I ignore him and focus on Eli. “When I was locked in my room after I found out about my Zia, you all stayed away because you knew if you saw me, I could convince you to take me to her.”
Eli closes his laptop. “Or we left you alone because we have better things to do than deal with a hysterical little girl. Go upstairs.”
I don’t move. I promised Zia I’d get the better of them, and I will not bend. Adrenaline floods my system and suddenly I know exactly what I have to do.
“You would have done what Adriano did,” I tell Eli. “I can prove it.”
I pull my wet, bloodstained dress over my head and drop it to the floor.
As if I flicked a switch, the boys’ expressions morph from irritation to blank lust. I stand naked in their precious dining room, and look from stunned face to stunned face. Bobby blushes scarlet, Doc’s mouth falls open, and Eli’s jaw goes so tight I think his teeth might snap.
“I want to lose my virginity.”
My words sweep through the room like a summer breeze. Bobby’s eyes widen. Doc runs a hand across his angular jaw.
“Oh, you’ve decided that, have you?” Eli snaps.
“Yes.” I lift my hands, cupping my breasts. “Does anyone want to help me?”
Bobby makes a sound like a car stalling.
Eli glares at him. “Put your dress back on,” he tells me.
“Here are the terms of claiming my virginity,” I say. “Whoever admits, loudly and clearly, that they’re not better than Adriano and would have taken me to the hospital, can have me first.”
A long tense silence falls over the room.
Eli scowls.
Doc bites his fingernail.
Bobby tugs at the collar of his blue shirt.
I tighten my fingers around my boobs pressing them together. “This is a real shame. I just want to know what it’s like to have a man use my body for his pleasure.”
“Jesus fucking Christ,” Doc mutters.
The thing is, I’m not lying. I want to lose my virginity, hold it up to the sun before dashing it to my feet in a spray of blood and glory. I guess that’s why the guys aren’t getting angry. They know I mean it, they just don’t want to meet me on my terms. But they will.
“This isn’t going to work,” Bobby says in his math tutor voice. “You need to be respectful.”
“Respectful? To sleep with you?”
“Yes.”
Eli and Doc nod like he’s making sense.
“Get going, Tits,” Doc says. “Put your dress on and go for a walk.”
For a second my confidence falters, but then I think of all the beautiful strippers at Dreams. Of Betty. What would they do if they were in my position?
Bobby eyes my stomach and Eli is shifting in a way that says he’s hard inside his suit pants. They’re pretending to hold a united front but there are already cracks in it. And if I know anything about these men, it’s that they’ll turn on each other for a chance to touch me. All they’ve done is bet on my virginity and compete for it. The only difference is that this time, I’m in charge of who wins.
I approach the broad, wooden table and push a chair out of the way.
