Total pages in book: 34
Estimated words: 32760 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 164(@200wpm)___ 131(@250wpm)___ 109(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 32760 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 164(@200wpm)___ 131(@250wpm)___ 109(@300wpm)
We reach the entrance, and Taylor steps up to one of the doormen, who has a terrible rouge dye job in his hair and a broccoli cut that is far too young for his age. He smiles at him, and the two begin chatting. He glances over Taylor’s shoulder and waves to us to enter.
“Thanks so much, Petey,” I hear Taylor whisper as we push past and slip inside. “Call me!”
“I will,” Petey replies.
“Did I or did I not tell you?” Taylor asks victoriously as he steps up behind us, throwing his arms over our shoulders.
“You told us,” I reply, doing my best to remain upbeat, but as we thread our way through the crowd, I can’t stop my eyes from drifting over to where Marlon was seated at the bar when we first met. It’s like he’s left behind a gravitational pull despite not even being there.
“Let’s grab that booth over there,” Jasmine says, pointing to the last open booth to our right. We quickly race over to it and grab it before a group of four guys who look like they work on Wall Street can get there.
“Sorry, bitches,” Taylor whispers, tossing them a side-eyed glance that causes us all to laugh.
“So,” Jasmine says simply, eyeing me mischievously.
“So…what?” I reply, fidgeting with my nails.
“So did you figure him out yet? Your mystery man?”
“Oh God,” I sigh. “You do not want to go there.”
“You mean you don’t want to go there,” she laughs.
Taylor slides into the booth beside Jasmine. “Who doesn’t want to go where?”
“Rain is having a hard time with her new friend. Just like…who said she would?”
I groan.
“Um, I think we did,” Taylor replies with a smirk, glancing at Jasmine, then at me, then back at Jasmine. “We did, didn’t we?”
“We totally did,” Jasmine replies. “We said you’d never be able to do a friends-with-benefits thing–”
“And that you’d want to figure him out–what was his name again?”
“Marlon,” I sigh.
“That’s right. Marlon.”
“And that you’d get too attached and that when he ended up cutting you off, bad things would happen,” Jasmine says. “And that’s what happened, isn’t it, Rain?”
“No, that’s not what happened,” I reply indignantly. “Something very different happened, in fact.”
“Oh, yeah? What’s that?” Jasmine asks.
“I’m the one who cut him off,” I reply. “Bet you didn’t see that coming, now did ya?”
The two look at each other doubtfully, then back to me.
“Cut him off for how long?” Taylor asks.
Uh-oh.
I drum my fingers on the table and pretend to examine a photo on the wall of old New York. “Well, it’s been three days…”
“Three days?” Jasmine replies. “You can’t cut someone off for three days, Rain. Cutting them off implies you’re done for good!”
“Right?” Taylor laughs. “That’s more like…oh my God, I was just so busy I didn’t have time to call or text you.”
“Three days.” Jasmine shakes her head. “And I bet you’ve been thinking about him the entire time. Obsessing even.”
“You know what? Fine. You’re right!” I snap. They both look back at me, shocked. “And I’ll tell you why if the two of you will actually listen! Will you actually listen?”
They both simply stare back at me for a moment, but then Jasmine slowly nods.
I take a deep breath and launch into the story of what exactly happened three days ago at Marlon’s penthouse. I realize just about halfway through that I’m starting to sweat and my heartrate is picking up, and when I’m finished, both of them are just looking at me.
“Well? Say something, you ass-clowns!”
“That is intense, girl,” Taylor replies quickly. He looks genuinely concerned.
“Super intense,” Jasmine agrees. “You need to give up on him. He clearly isn’t even remotely interested in a relationship. It’s like he’s using you as one of those hyper-realistic sex-dolls they have now.”
“Totally.” Taylor nods. “Like a fuck-puppet made from latex or something that creepy dudes buy and keep in their basements and dress up in outfits and–”
“Okay, I get it!” I interrupt. “I get your point, we don’t need to go into it.”
This is not going well.
“And he sounds like an asshole,” Jasmine adds. “And a total misogynist.”
“Misogynist?” I frown. “What makes you say that?”
“What makes me say that? Like everything you just told me? I thought that would be obvious.”
“I don’t agree with that.” I shake my head.
“You don’t?” This time it’s her that’s frowning. “You’re just going to ignore all the signs? Rain, you haven’t been seeing him long enough to be making excuses for him.”
“No, I don’t agree,” I reply as the waiter drops off my second mimosa. “You should have seen the way he treated me the first night. I felt like I was being given the princess treatment or something by one of the richest men in New York.”
“Oh, my good gosh,” Taylor groans.
“He even warned me from the start not to get involved with him. He wasn’t coming on to me with cheesy pickup lines or trying to rizz me up or get me drunk so I’d go home with him like some stupid frat boy.”