I smiled wider. “Nathaniel is the exact opposite though,” I continued. “He's all about making love, sweet kisses, giving me what I want. We just stare into each other's eyes and there's this really intense connection, you know?”
Talia sighed, a dreamy look in her eyes, and jealousy etched deep in her features.
“And then we have Dominic – he's probably the most fun, besides Jude. He's just so playful and into pleasing me. He could go down on me for hours on end,” I said.
I felt a tightness forming in my belly as thoughts of Dom floated through my mind. Not only was he amazing in bed, he was always so much fun to be around. The more time we spent together, the tighter our bond became, and I could feel myself falling for him.
He'd been offering me tips on law school as well, so we didn't just spend all our time fucking each other's brains out. No, it wasn't like that with any of the guys. We actually dated, all of us – and it was nice.
“And of course, there's Jude,” I said.
Even saying his name made my heart go pitter pat in my chest. I smiled so wide, it felt like my mouth was going to be permanently stretched out like that.
“I love him, Talia,” I said. “I really, really love him.”
“That's great,” she said and smiled.
Even through the thick haze of jealousy that surrounded her, I could tell she was happy for me. Genuinely happy for me. Which was nice, because I was happy too – and having my best friend in my corner only made me happier.
We finished our lunch and were waiting for the check when the subject of my mom finally came up. Talia's mother was my mom's best friend, so she'd heard some things already.
“Has your mom even reached out to you?” she asked.
“Nope,” I said flatly. “Not that she'd know how to reach me since she cut off my phone. But, I highly doubt she gives a shit about me, to be perfectly honest.”
Talia's eyes softened and there was a sympathy in her expression that was as deep as it was genuine. She didn't disagree with me, but I knew she felt bad for me – and I hated that even more. I almost wanted her to tell me I was wrong, that my mom was sitting at home, completely worried sick about me. Her agreeing with what I said only made me feel worse.
“I still can't believe she did that,” Talia said. “What a crazy bitch.”
“Tell me about it,” I muttered. “I'm sure she'd really freak out if she knew I was involved with her ex. I know it would only reinforce what she already thinks about me, and why I did what I did.”
I rolled my eyes and finished the last of my tea. Talia still didn't argue with me or tell me I was wrong, which made me think she hadn't heard any contradictory information. Hell, my mom apparently hadn't even asked her about me – which said a lot.
Tears started to well up in my eyes, but I didn't want to cry in front of Talia. At least not in public. I sure as hell didn't want to cry about my mom. She didn't deserve my tears. So I wiped them away and put on a fake smile.
“Ready to go, chica?” she asked, picking up the bill even though I told her she didn't have to.
“Yeah, it was nice seeing you though,” I said, pulling her into a tight hug. “We should get together once more before school starts, at least.”
My mind started counting down the weeks, and that's when it hit me – we were already halfway through July and I hadn't had a period yet. It occurred to me then, that I hadn't gotten my period since moving in with Jude. My heart raced as the realization hit me, and Talia could see something was wrong.
“What is it?” she asked.
“I –”
I bit off my words, not sure what to tell her. I contemplated not telling her anything at all, but she was my best friend and possibly the only person I could talk to right now. She looked at me with an expression of concern on her face – I could only imagine what mine must have looked like.
I shook my head and let out a long breath. “I just realized I'm late.”
“Late for what?” Talia cocked her head to the side, a confused look on her face.
“Late-late,” I said. “As in my period. That kind of late.”
Her face gave everything away, even though she tried to remain calm. Her voice shook only the slightest bit – which was probably a hell of a lot better than I could have done in that moment.
“Well, how late are you?” she asked softly.
I did the math in my head. “A week,” I replied. “Give or take a few days.”