“Hah! Not at all! I’m telling you. He’s like the second draft or something. I took notes from the horrendous first draft that was Kevin and I’m working this out to be much better.”
“I hope so. Just don’t get carried away.”
“Mandy, relax, okay? Do I need to remind you that I’m the one who came up with this pact thing to begin with? It’s really okay.”
I sighed and nodded before taking a large bite of my avocado toast. I sat back against the wall of the restaurant and stared at the small street in front of us. Cars drove by, people walked by, all of them going along with purpose. I saw some couples milling about from time to time. Everyone seemed so different from me. I was having a leisurely lunch with my friend because, at that moment, there was nowhere I needed to go with a purpose. I certainly didn’t have a boyfriend to spend time with. I didn’t even have a prospective date. All I had was a rich, hot guy I could call up for a night of fun.
“What about you? How’s everything with your rich playboy?”
“Oh gosh, stop calling him that.” I rolled my eyes.
“Well, isn’t that what he is?”
“Yeah, but, I try not to think about it too much,” I said with a small laugh, “I don’t want to judge myself too harshly for getting involved with someone like him.”
Tina shrugged, “Nah. No reason to judge. You’re just using him so what does it matter if he’s that guy? Besides, you’ve picked the so-called nice guys plenty of times and how has that worked out for you?”
“Ouch,” I said after gulping down a mouthful of ice-cold water.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to be so harsh but you get me.”
“Oh, I get you. He’s fun. I mean, sometimes I hate him, but it’s not like that stands in the way,” I laughed openly.
I ate the last bite of my toast with my mind still on Ethan and everything I had talked to Tina about. One thing was clear to me—I needed to be careful with him. Even with the type of relationship we had, things could go wrong. If anything, it just reaffirmed my belief that pushing things with him would cause trouble. I wasn’t going to let yet another man burn me in the way so many had in the past. There was no way around that. I had to keep up my end of the bargain, be mindful, and put up a wall so those dreaded things called ‘feelings’ wouldn’t get in the way. This wasn’t going to become anything more than the occasional fuck session. From the looks of things at least Ethan seemed to be on the same page.
My phone broke the silence. I snapped it up off the table quickly and answered the call without looking at the screen; I just wanted it to stop ringing.
“Hello.”
“Amanda Blake?”
“May I ask who’s calling?”
“This is Christopher Dallas.”
My heart leaped into my throat. I knew exactly who he was. Christopher Dallas was the casting director for the big play I had been crossing my fingers, praying to every god imaginable, and sacrificing small kittens to get an audition for. My hand holding my phone started to tremble and my voice quivered.
“Mr. Dallas, it’s great to hear from you. To what do I owe the pleasure?”
I wondered if he could hear the shakiness in my voice. If he did, I had to figure it wasn’t the first time for him nor would it be the last. He was a well-known casting agent and this was a big play he was working on. Anybody serious about their craft would be excited to hear from him. I practically zoned out with excitement and nerves as he told me they wanted me to audition for the part. It sounded like he was far away as my heart thumped, but I still managed to figure out what he was saying. This wasn’t a moment to tune anything out. I felt hot tears well up in my eyes. I couldn’t believe my ears.
“Yes. Yes, of course, Mr. Dallas. Thank you so much,” I beamed with excitement before ending the call.
I had scribbled the details on a napkin in an overwhelmed and emotional haze. I stared down at the writing in disbelief. I looked at my phone’s screen, now black, and then looked up at Tina. She had heard enough of the conversation to be excited for me. I swallowed nervously against the lump in my throat and stared at the napkin again, thanking my lucky stars the writing was legible.
This was it.
I was finally getting a real shot at my dreams.
It was Thursday evening and I was sitting in my green chair, once again waiting for Amanda to arrive. We hadn’t talked at all since the last time she came over. I had a small appreciation for the fact that not only was that not a big deal, it was perfectly okay. In fact, the both of us preferred it. Still, there was no denying I was looking forward to seeing her tonight. She still drove me wild and I intended to keep that going for as long as I could. It was all going well, which was why I came up with an idea for that night. It was something fun to add to our already great sex life.
There was a knock at my door.
“Door’s open!”
Amanda poked her head in first and asked, “Is that your waiting chair?”
I laughed, “It’s my favorite chair.”
“Why not the other one? It’s exactly the same,” she nodded toward the other hunter green chair right next to the one I was sitting in.
I turned to look at it and shrugged. There really was no answer to that, it was just one of those things. She walked over and sat on the chair beside me. She draped one leg over the other. The skirt she wore rode up a bit and I caught a glimpse of her smooth, creamy thighs. She had long, slender legs that were practically irresistible. I already wanted to reach out and touch them. I wondered if she noticed my wondering eyes. I felt a stirring in my stomach already just from looking at her and knowing why she was over at my place to begin with. Then I smirked; the little game I had in mind looked a lot better now that I knew she was wearing a skirt.
“I didn’t come over here just so you could stare at me,” Amanda finally said, “But this chair is pretty comfortable.” She looked over at me and smirked. She stood up and asked in a mockingly innocent voice, “Is yours even more comfortable? Is that why you like it so much?”
She swung a leg over me and straddled my lap. She placed her hands on my shoulders and stared me straight in the eyes, the smirk still playing at the corners of her lips. I looked at her with amusement. I was curious to see where she would go with this. Sure, the destination was known, but it was interesting to see the journey she was taking to get there. I grabbed her waist, but decided against it at the last minute. Instead, I just rested both hands on the chair. Amanda ground down on my lap and laughed.
I shifted in my seat. She was already getting a physical reaction out of me and she knew it.
“Well, this is alright,” she said.
“Just alright?”
“Hmm… Yeah. Just alright.”
“I think you need to reevaluate,” I told her.
That was what prompted me to place my hands on her waist and pull her forward. Her body pressed into me, lips mere inches apart. I could feel her warm breath on my mouth and smell its sweet scent. I gulped. It would be easy to get started now, but my mind kept going back to my original plan.
Amanda, however, was on a totally different track. She was on the fast track. She dipped her head down and planted a kiss on my neck, grinding down on me again with a little moan. I groaned and shut my eyes. She was making it hard for me to think about anything other than her body. She was making me want to speed things up now. As I felt her hands wander down my chest and slide under the hem of my plain, white T-shirt I figured there was no reason the game I had in mind couldn’t wait. This was working just fine. I ran my hand up her side and rested it at the side of her chest, moving in to kiss her.
Our lips brushed and she let out a small whimper. It was a sound I had heard before, just once. I could tell she was enjoying the moment, but was looking forward to everything that came after. It was the sort of sound most women I had been with faked unsuccessfully because it was what they thought I wanted to hear. With Amanda, though, it was genuine. Something about that clicked
in my mind. It made me stop her and look her in the eyes for a moment.
“Yes?” She smiled.
“How about we do something a little different tonight?”
“Mm, I like the sound of that,” she said flirtatiously, running her fingers over my broad shoulders. “What do you have in mind?”
I could tell there was a part of her that was waiting to determine whether or not what I wanted to do was too freaky. But she was also curious. It was the intrigue that she was allowing to drive her more than anything else. That was yet another thing that made her different. In so many ways, Amanda was entirely unlike any woman I had ever hooked up with.
“I want to play a game.”
“Well, this is play time,” she responded friskily.
I smiled at her enthusiasm, “Have you ever played ‘never have I ever’?”
Amanda pulled back a bit and tilted her head. I could see her trying to remember if she had heard of it. Slowly, she shook her head no.
“Well, it’s a game we can play to get to know each other,” I said.
“Get to know each other? That sounds an awful lot like a game you’d play on a date, Ethan.”
I laughed, “It could be, but it doesn’t have to be. You know, most of my memories playing the game are on drunken nights when I was younger.”
“Oh, it’s one of those types of games. I see now,” she sounded more open to the idea.
“Right. Well, the premise is simple. Back when I played it the consequence was drinking but I think for us we should switch it up a little.”
“Alright. How?”
“One of us says something we’ve never done. If the other person has done it, then they have to take off a piece of clothing.”
“Oh, now that does sound interesting. All right. Let’s give it a go,” Amanda said with a sly grin before playfully complaining, “Dammit, I wore flats today. I should have worn something with socks.”
“I’m glad you didn’t wear something with socks,” I smirked.
What I didn’t tell her was that I hoped she took her top off first. There was something about her slowly undressing as the game progressed and seeing her wearing just the skirt that really turned me on. I wondered if she would think about anything like that, but then decided it didn’t really matter. It would be fun and sexy no matter what.
“So you start,” she told me, “Since it’s your idea and I’ve never played. I need an example.”
“Sure you do,” I chuckled.
Amanda shrugged and climbed off my lap. She plopped down on the coffee table right in front of me. Had it been any other person in a different situation this would have irritated me. But with Amanda I didn’t care. If anything, I liked it. She was sitting almost dangerously close to me, I had a great view. The skirt rode up even more than before when she draped her leg over the other. She looked at me, waiting.
“Never have I ever kissed a woman,” I said with a snigger.
“Oh, come on. That’s just a blatant lie because you want to hear if I have.”
I arched an eyebrow suggestively, “Oh, so that means you have, huh? Interesting.”
“Oh, that does not mean I have! You should have to pay for cheating.”
“Whoever said that was cheating? I’ll just have to take something off right along with you.”
I lifted one of my legs to slowly take off one of my slippers. I wiggled my hips and moved slowly like it was the biggest tease in the world for her to watch me take off just one of my slippers and see my sock.
“Oh my gosh,” Amanda laughed. She shook her head, but quickly removed one of her flats and tossed it to the ground with a thud without saying a word.
“Oh! So you have! I knew it!”
“You knew it? Please. You’ve probably fantasized about it but, yes, I have.”
“Well, if I hadn’t fantasized about it before, I certainly will now.”
“Anyway! Next question,” she dismissed.
“Aw, come on, that was a fun conversation for a moment.”
“Yeah, for you.”
“Well, it’s your turn anyway,” I motioned toward her with my hand.
“Oh, right. Hmm. Let’s see. Okay. Never have I ever had a wet dream about a male friend.”
“What?!”
Amanda grinned proudly at me. “Oh, so you can ask the kissing question, but this is off limits? That doesn’t seem fair. Or fun.”
“Alright. I haven’t.”
“I don’t know. I think maybe you’re lying.”
Amanda smirked and leaned forward, giving me a nice view down her shirt. I gulped. This was definitely not what I imagined when I came up with this idea, but I couldn’t say I wasn’t into it. She seemed to really be enjoying herself and that made it fun.
“I’m not lying. Trust me,” I maintained.
“I think you just don’t want to admit it.”
“No, come on. That’s just weird. Why would I have a wet dream about a friend? I don’t know that gives me the creeps like I’m invading someone’s privacy.”
Amanda stared at me. It was obvious from the look in her eyes and her slightly open mouth she was stunned by my answer. “That’s your takeaway? That it’s a friend? You’re not even going to touch that it’s a wet dream about a man?”
I grinned. I felt quite proud of myself for throwing her off like that on her own game. I knew that would get her. “Right,” I said simply.
Amanda gulped, “Alright then.”
“Guess even someone like me can surprise you, huh?”
“That’s for sure,” she responded, “But I kind of already knew that you could.”
I stayed quiet for a moment. I knew exactly what she was referring to. She would have never pegged me for someone who grew up in the foster care system. Much less would she have expected me to actually open up about it. The silence hung heavily between us. I could feel the momentum of the game slowly dying.
“Never have I ever,” I said in an effort to keep things going, “had a threesome.”
Amanda shook her head. I smirked and kicked off my other slipper. She pretended to be coy as she took a look at my other sock. I had to admit I enjoyed seeing the actress side of her. She did a great job acting like she had just seen some excellently sexy exposure that had to be kept hush-hush. I chuckled.
“Never have I ever been skydiving,” she said.
I laughed. That was definitely not something I expected to hear. I reached down and took off one of my socks.
“That was a cute one,” I said.
“Cute? I wouldn’t exactly call it that.”
“Maybe you wouldn’t, but I just did.”
“When did you do it?”
“Just now,” I responded playfully even though I knew full well what she was actually asking about.
Amanda rolled her eyes and shoved my knee, “The skydiving, Ethan!”
I laughed again. I looked into her dark blue eyes and saw that she was enjoying this just as much as I was, even if she was annoyed by some of my remarks. I realized this was the most fun I had ever had with a woman outside of the bedroom. I rubbed my hand over my lips and looked out the window for a moment. These weren’t thoughts I was used to having and I felt the urge to push them away. I decided it was best not to make a big deal out of it. It was simple and I didn’t need to make it complicated. She was just good company and a great fuck. Nothing more. I didn’t need to be reading into anything.
“It was a couple of years ago. I was in Bern for a meeting with a buyer. I decided to take a couple extra days to sightsee since hey, I was already in Switzerland. I took a train about an hour out to Interlaken and that was that.”
“Would you do it again?”
“In a heartbeat. It’s such a rush and incredibly liberating. It was awesome. I’d love to experience that again in a different location.”
“Wow, that’s awesome. I don’t really have any travel stories. I went to different cities in Ohio and the only ‘real’ trip my family ever t
ook was to Toronto. We road tripped it there.”
“Guess we’ve both had experiences the other never has, then,” I said.
The difference was I would never know what it was like to grow up with a loving and tight-knit family. There was no way around that. It was impossible to go back in time and change that part of my life. Amanda, on the other hand, still had plenty of time to travel. Of course, that wasn’t something I was going to tell her.
“Yeah,” she said, somewhat sadly.
I could tell the guilt was setting in again so I quickly said, “Never have I ever cried my way out of a speeding ticket.”
Just Sex Page 9
