But what should I say? If I was in bed already, I’d hit him with a big nope.
I’m not in bed though. I’m still dressed with the day’s makeup fading on my face. We’re currently sitting in the living room, watching Euphoria for what feels like the fiftieth time and talking about hot guys on campus. And what do you know, a hot guy from campus sends me a booty-call text.
Fitting.
“You going to answer him?” Gracie asks.
I glance up to find her watching me expectantly. I haven’t told her all the details about Tony yet. Specifically, that he’s only eighteen. I kind of don’t want to witness her reaction to this news.
And then again, I kind of do.
“Should I?” I ask her.
Gracie’s response is an enthusiastic nod. “Hell yes! Why wouldn’t you?”
“I don’t know.” I shrug, thinking of my father and how he wants me to have zero contact with Tony. He’d be so pissed if he knew how much time we’ve spent together already. “It’ll go nowhere.”
“Isn’t that the beauty of it all?” When I send her a questioning look, Gracie continues. “You keep saying you don’t want a relationship. You also told me this guy doesn’t want one either. I say you grab this unicorn and ride him like a bucking bronco until you get sick of his shit.”
She makes it sound so easy. Like I can just fuck him and dump him. I tell myself I can do that. I’ve done that with other guys before. But…
Will it be so easy with Tony? I like him. I like talking to him. I like looking at him too. Oh, and I like kissing him, that’s for sure.
“Here’s where I admit something to you.” I grab a pillow and cradle it in front of me, my gaze never leaving Gracie’s. “He’s only…eighteen.”
I wait for her reaction, bracing myself. The only thing she does is clap her hands together, the crack of her palms meeting so loud I visibly jump. “Is he a virgin?”
Say what? “I don’t know. I didn’t ask. And wouldn’t you think most eighteen-year-old guys aren’t virgins?”
“You never know. I encountered a few our freshman year.” She grins. “And I rocked their world.”
“You’re not reacting like I thought you would,” I mutter.
“What? Did you expect me to give you shit about robbing the cradle? If we were in high school and you were a senior dating a sophomore, I’d probably give you shit.” Her expression turn
s pensive. “Though there were senior guys dating sophomore girls when I was in high school, and no one gave a shit. There were seniors dating freshman girls and it didn’t matter. But if a girl dated a younger guy in high school? You got called out for it. Which is ridiculous.”
So ridiculous. I totally agree.
A sigh of relief leaves me and I sag against the couch. “I definitely thought you’d accuse me of robbing the cradle.”
“No way. Look, even if he’s had sex before, he’s like an unexplored gold mine. You’ve chipped off the gold, see if it has potential for more. So you keep working for it and eventually, you’ll be rich,” Gracie says, like this is a perfectly logical analogy.
“What in the world are you talking about?”
“I’m saying that he has a lot of potential. You can teach him your ways,” she says.
“It’s not like I’ve had a ton of sex.” I’ve had five partners. I lost my virginity at seventeen to the guy I dated briefly my senior year. Very cliché. I’ve messed around more than I’ve actually had intercourse, which I think is typical. It’s not like I have a ton of experience.
But I might have more experience than him, which I think is Gracie’s point.
“You’ve got two years on him. You’ve probably had more sex than he has,” Gracie says. “And you can teach him what you like. Make him an expert on your body. Girls will thank you later.”
The idea of me teaching Tony moves so he can use them on other women in the future leaves a sour taste in my mouth. “I don’t know about that.”
My phone buzzes, causing it to slide toward me from where I left it on the couch. I pick it up to find another text from Tony. All it says is:
????