“But—”
“Oh god, there is a but.”
“Shhh,” I say over her, and she chuckles again. “This is serious.”
Daisy pauses for a moment. “Okay, go on. I’m listening.”
I inhale a deep breath and stare up at my ceiling, twirling a piece of hair around my finger. “I know things will get complicated with Finn if I start something with JJ,” I start. “Hethinks it’s because of Finn, but it’s also because he doesn’t know what happened with Ben. I want to tell him, but I haven’t found the courage to yet.”
“Are you worried JJ could be like Ben?”
I pause for a moment before shaking my head. “No.”
“Then what?”
“I’ve felt different since the crash, like this body and mind aren’t mine. I don’t know. It’s stupid.”
“Ivy, it is not stupid. You are beautiful inside and out.”
Her words don’t even comfort me because I can’t seem to believe them.
“I—” I trail off, my throat clenching. “I don’t feel like it.”
“Are you worried about being naked around him or something?”
My lips roll together. “I’m worried about being vulnerable in front of him.”
“Ivy.” She says my name with purpose. “I hate to break it to you, but JJ has already seen you naked. You’ve already allowed yourself to be completely vulnerable with him by sleeping with him.”
The thought has my stomach rolling. “That doesn’t count.” I shake my head. “We were drunk. The alcohol gave me stupid amounts of confidence I’d never have had if I was sober. There was a moment I hesitated, but then I forced myself not to care what he thought about my body, because I didn’t think we were going to see each other again. We both wanted pleasure, and we got it.”
“Well, he saw you, Ivy,” her voice crackles through the line. “He saw your body and scars, and he still wants you. I wish you could see yourself how we see you. You need to pick up that confidence and show him who’s boss.”
An awkward laugh escapes my mouth. “Show him who’s boss… have you ever met me, Daisy? I don’t know how to be confident.”
“No…” she trails off. “But you can learn. You can learn to love that body of yours by making yourself feel sexy.”
“How?”
Daisy doesn’t talk for a few seconds until she eventually says, “Meet me in town in thirty minutes.”
“Wait—”
“No,nope. No excuses. Thirty minutes.”
Then the line goes dead.
I pull the phone away from my ear and stare blankly at the screen. My eyes shut, and I try to ignore my racing pulse. Knowing Daisy, she’s going to pull out all the stops for whatever she’s got planned.
A lingerie shopis Daisy’s idea of confidence boosting.
It’s safe to say that I’ve never purchased a sexy set for myself or anyone else. Not even when I was with Ben. I didn’t want to see myself naked or in lacy undergarments, let alone flashing it off to someone else. Sure, I’ve owned a thong, but I’ve never gone into a lingerie shop to pick anything up.
“Ooooh, this is cute!” Daisy exclaims as she tugs off a matching black bralette and thong. My brows furrow as I step closer and examine it. “It’s super hot.”
My fingers run down the fabric of the bottoms, and then I gawk at what I find. “Daisy, there is a hole in the middle of the pants.”
She chuckles gently. “Yeah, they’re crotchless. So you don’t have to take them off.” She winks.
