I inhaled slowly, exhaled deeply.“Nothing I can’t handle.”
She chuckled as she turned and left.“You always say that.”
I started for the stairs again.“I always mean it, too.”
That was the way I rolled.The more pressure, the better I handled myself.
The story of my life.
Jamie
When Tiffany called last night, I promised to meet her at the mall today for lunch.Since she spent every extra minute working at one of the hip clothing stores, we’d gotten used to sitting in the food court and scarfing down chicken sandwiches while sharing French fries and a chocolate shake.
“I want to hear all about the club.What was it like?”Tiffany blurted the instant my butt touched the hard wooden seat.
“Nice.”
Tiffany stared at me, disbelief making her eyes wide, her mouth hang open.“Nice?That’s all you’ve got?”She feigned hurt and disappointment as she rummaged through the paper sack, pulling out the French fries.“You go to the hottest BDSM club in the nation and you describe it as nice.”Big blue eyes latched onto my face.“Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?”
I laughed, unwrapping my sandwich.I had to be back at school shortly, so I had to be efficient.
“Fine.Tell me about him, then.What was he like?”
I couldn’t keep the smile off my face.“He was … Dom-like.”
My friend burst out in laughter, drawing the attention of everyone around us.I rolled my eyes, ignored all those curious gazes now shifting our way.
“Dom-like, she says,” Tiffany muttered as she lifted her sandwich to her mouth, pinning me with a glare.
It was my turn to laugh, but I did so discreetly.“Fine.He was nice.We toured the dungeon first.”
Her eyes widened again.“Does it look like a real dungeon?”
“It does.”
“Were there naked people?”
“There were.”
“Was some woman getting spanked?”
Before I answered, I cast a quick look at the tables closest to us, ensuring there weren’t any little kids close enough to overhear.
“She was,” I confirmed, grinning as I looked back at my friend.
“I knew it.”She dropped her sandwich, grabbed the shake.
Tiffany Lortimer was one of my two closest friends in the world.For the most part, we were inseparable.Between her and Jonah, I had absolutely no secrets.
Her voice was strangely soft when she asked, “Are you still a virgin?”
I couldn’t help it.I blushed.
I completely understood the disbelief my two best friends expressed when they talked about the fact I still proudly carried my V-card.In this day and age, it was unusual for a twenty-four-year-old woman not to have been in some sort of physical relationship with a man or two.It was true, nonetheless.Not only had I not had intercourse with a man, I also hadn’t done anything else.No beneath-the-clothes groping in the dark, no oral sex.Most people probably wouldn’t buy that I’d never even been kissed, but it was true, too.The one time Billy Boyd snuck up on me and smacked his lips on my cheek during my senior year of high school did not count.
As far as I was concerned, there were two reasons I was still a virgin: First of all, my brother was none other than the ruthless Sadist who could melt lesser men with a simple look.While my brother’s intimidation factor helped, I wasn’t giving him all the credit.I was, after all, a smart woman, and I could make decisions for myself.Who I slept with was certainly a decision I wouldn’t be taking lightly.Secondly, I hadn’t found the guy I wanted to give it up to yet.
Evidently, basing my answer on my reaction, Tiffany shook her head.“Well, that’s too bad.”
