“It. Done it.”
She laughed and then turned serious again. “Well, what exactly did his sister make up about the two of you, or wasn’t it all made up? There are other things to do beside the big I,” she said.
Was this something I should feel comfortable doing? The girls at Pacifica seemed quite uninhibited when it came to discussing their love affairs. I remembered how embarrassed I was when Kiera first brought me to a meeting of that phony Virgins Anonymous club and the girls told their sex stories. Or made them up, I should say. Even though Kiera sent me her stories about her and Richard through the Internet, it was still embarrassing to know the details.
“Let’s just say she might have read your Kama Sutra book.”
“And?”
“I really don’t know what she said, Kiera. All I was told in school was that she was telling her friends that she saw us do everything.”
She nodded. “Very clever of her. That way, she leaves it up to their imaginations, and people always exaggerate when they imagine. I,” she quickly added, “don’t have to do that, of course. You want a drink?” she asked, getting up.
“No, not right now,” I said.
“I hope you’re not going to be the perfect little teenager or something up here.”
“I’m far from perfect.”
“Apparently, not according to Daddy Dearest,” she said, and poured some vodka into a glass. I saw she had ice cubes in a pail. She opened the minibar and took out the orange juice. “Sure you won’t have one? They’re good, and they’ll relax you. You’re obviously a nervous wreck.”
“Okay,” I said, “but I’ll pour my own,” I added quickly.
“Suit yourself. We have a little balcony out here,” she said, and opened the curtains and the sliding door. There was a table and two chairs on it.
I poured myself a quarter of what she had poured for herself and added more juice. The patio overlooked the parking lot but did afford a view of the mountains in the distance, too. I sat and sipped my drink.
I remembered that I had promised to let Jordan know when I arrived, so I made the call but got her answering machine. I left a message.
“Who are you calling already?”
“I promised your mother, but she’s not home. I could call her cell phone.”
“Will you relax? You left a message.”
I put my phone away.
“Richard called me from London last night,” she said. “He might be away longer than he thought. He’s very dedicated to his family. There’s no doubt that if I marry him, I’ll have to live in England. I know that would just break my parents’ hearts, especially my mother’s.”
“She’s trying.”
“Trying to what? Love me?” she snapped. And then she calmed and smiled. “I have someone who really loves me.”
“Where’s your engagement ring?”
“Oh.” She smiled. “Why discourage any other boys in the meantime?”
“What do you mean?”
“I told you we’re going to this fabulous dance club tonight. If I walk in wearing an engagement ring, I doubt I’d get the second look. I know I’ll get the first.”
“But . . . do you want to go out with other boys?”
“Do birds want to fly?”
“What if Richard finds out?”
“He’s not having me followed, Sasha, and I’m sure he doesn’t expect me to sit in my dorm room and do needlework.”