Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 69198 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 346(@200wpm)___ 277(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69198 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 346(@200wpm)___ 277(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
“Better?” I asked, casting my gaze around the living area. It looked very close to the same to me, but Asher seemed visibly more relaxed than he had when we first walked in the door.
“Much.” He perched on the edge of a cushion and set his clasped hands on his knee. “Our time is dwindling. What did you want to say?”
I flopped onto the other end, resting my elbows on my thighs. “Your friend is a good example of what I’m trying to fix. Topher thought I said my name was Jake and he told me I looked like a football player, and I went with it.”
“He said you took him to dinner.”
“Once. It was nice.”
“What did you talk about?” he pressed.
I squinted as if trying to remember an old conversation. “Science.”
“Really?”
“Really. Look, I never talk about myself or my life with hookups, and I rarely hook up with the same guy twice. Topher was an exception. He was…sweet, and he seemed very shy until I brought up asteroids or something like that.”
Asher slapped the armrest and rounded on me. “Why did you ask him on a date if you knew you’d never come out?”
“I didn’t ask him out. It was a mutual thing. We were talking about a new restaurant in Westwood and decided to go. The truth is…he probably assumed a few things about me, and I let him. He assumed he knew my name, and since he was only off by a consonant, I let it go. He assumed I played football and I did…in high school. He assumed—”
“That you didn’t have a girlfriend,” he interrupted. “And you did.”
“Not true. Like I said…I got together with Katie after my date with Topher,” I assured him.
“Then why not say hello? Why did you kiss her in front of him and…all of us? I saw tongue, and now that I know that tongue has been in my mouth too, I feel a little dirty.”
“Dirty?”
“Yes! Like I’m in the middle of some sex triangle.”
“Technically, four people would make a square,” I argued like an idiot. “And you aren’t in the middle of anything. It’s all in the past. I broke up with Katie, and you just said Topher has a boyfriend. That leaves me and you…and a clean slate.”
He crossed his arms over his chest and pursed his lips. “I hardly think it’s that simple.”
“It is that simple,” I insisted. “Hey, I can’t do anything to change the past. I know that. But I want to try to make a few things right. That’s why I asked you to meet me for coffee. I need help.”
Asher’s scrutinous gaze made me itchy. After what felt like ten minutes, he sighed deeply. “Everything you say seems sincere. But how would I know? You’re a self-proclaimed liar.”
“You’d have to trust me.”
“You’d have to prove yourself worthy of my trust,” he countered.
“That’s fair. What do you want me to do?”
“I don’t know. It doesn’t happen overnight. Trust must be curated over time.”
“Okay, but I don’t have a lot of time and if you think about this, I’ve already entrusted you with the biggest secret I have. Plus, you know my real name.”
Asher scoffed. “That shouldn’t be a big deal. Tell me something embarrassing no one else knows about you that has nothing to do with your sexuality.”
“Something embarrassing? Why?”
“Because in order for me to trust you, I need to sense your vulnerability,” he replied matter-of-factly.
“Are you going to share some big secret too?”
“No. It’s embarrassing enough that I had sex with my friend’s former booty call.”
I furrowed my brow, twisting to face him. “Hey, we’ve been through this already. We didn’t do anything wrong.”
“We had sex,” he stage-whispered. “I’ve seen your penis.”
Ugh, he was frustrating. “News flash…you didn’t just see it, babe. My penis was inside you.”
Asher hopped off the sofa and covered his mouth in dismay, rounding on me with wide eyes. “Rude!”
I stood with my arms open in surrender. “Let’s be rational here. I’m not asking for a sexy repeat. I’m just asking for advice.”
He visibly melted with a heavy sigh, lowering his head and shoulders. “Okay.”
“Okay? Just like that?” I repeated suspiciously. “You are a little freaking hothead. I’m not sure I can trust you now.”
That got him.
Asher marched toward me and stabbed his forefinger at my chest. “You are the menace here. Not me. And you still haven’t proved that you might be trustworthy.”
“How am I supposed to—oh, right. You want to know something embarrassing about me.” I rubbed my jaw thoughtfully and shrugged. What the hell? I didn’t have much to lose at this point. Might as well keep it real. “Here goes…when I was a kid, I was obsessed with Star Wars.”
He went perfectly still. “Really?”
“Yeah, I still love it. Sometimes, I’ll pretend I’m a Jedi knight when I walk down the hallway at school. I’m also a wannabe rock star. I don’t know how to play a single instrument, but I sing in the shower like nobody’s business. And if one of my favorite songs comes on the radio—in my car, in the grocery store, doctor’s office—I get this swagger…like I’m about to walk onstage in front of fifty thousand screaming fans. I did it when I walked into the coffee shop to meet you earlier. They were playing an Imagine Dragons song. I perked up and went into rock-star-in-my-own-mind mode. How’s that for embarrassing?”