Losing It
Chapter Forty-Two
Quinn
“I’ll start,” Dean says. “Never have I ever lusted after a virgin.” He makes a show of dropping a finger.
“Can he do that?” Wes asks.
Dean nods. Motions for Wes to drop his finger.
Chloe nudges Dean. “Dick face, shouldn’t you keep your attention on the road?”
“You want to take over?” he asks.
She nods sure.
He motions to the wheel take it then.
“I’m not climbing into your lap,” she says.
“Then why bother?” he teases.
She shakes her head you’re ridiculous, but it does nothing to hide her smile.
“See.” He motions to the windshield. Keeps his back to us. “Eyes on the road.”
“Good boy,” she says.
“Sunshine, you keep talking like that and I’ll—”
“Down boy.”
He laughs. “I’ll think about it.”
They’re cute, but she has a point.
Sure, we’re stuck in traffic on the ten, but we’re still in a several thousand pound killing machine.
Car accidents are incredibly dangerous.
Sure, I didn’t see many working as a scribe for an allergist, but I’ve heard horror stories from Owen.
And, well, if I go into medicine… who knows? Maybe I’ll become an ER doctor. Maybe I’ll spend my entire life glued to my stethoscope.
No family. No friends. No lovers.
Just medicine.
I… Uh…
Next question. “How are we doing this?” I ask. “I mean, is it clockwise, or—”
“Clockwise is good.” Wes reaches over the space between our seats. Offers his hand.
I take it. Squeeze tightly.
His skin is soft in some places. Calloused in others.
This is good.
Hanging with Wes.
With his friends. With people who are practically my friends. Almost. Kinda.
We’re getting there.
“Who dropped a finger?” Dean asks.
“I’m not narrating this for you,” Chloe says.
“All right. How about you have to say when you’re out?” Dean suggests.
“That’s actually a good idea,” she says.
“I have my moments,” he says.
“Not that many.” Griffin’s chuckle fills the car.
He’s still pressed up against Juliette. She’s still hugging his hoodie to her chest.
They make a really cute couple.
Sickeningly cute.
I mean, they’re not a couple.
And I’m totally minding my own business about that.
Totally.
“It’s fair.” Juliette holds up her hand. Nine fingers. “We were all teenagers once. We’ve all lusted after virgins.”
“Don’t think that’s what Dean means.” Griffin brushes a wavy hair behind his ear. “He means getting off on conquering uncharted territory.” He winks at Wes.
Juliette scrunches her nose in distaste. “But where’s the line? How do you say if your lust was because of the person or because of their inexperience?”
“You know.” Griffin nudges Wes. “Right?”
Wes shoots him a what the fuck look.
My cheeks flush. God, we’re so… I…
Ahem. “This isn’t… You’re not… It’s not about that.” Right? “It’s about me. Us. I mean, um—”
“Angel, you know I don’t have that kind of capacity for self-reflection.” He shrugs like he doesn’t give a fuck.
It’s convincing.
But I know better.
I stare into his eyes. “Is it?”
He stares back at me. “Quinn, you could have fucked a thousand guys before me. I would have said yes.”
Griffin claps. “This is a beautiful moment.”
“Oh my God.” Juliette shakes her head. “Let them have it.”
“Proud of Wes for facing his shit. It’s not like him,” Griffin says.
She presses her palm to her forehead. “You do realize you don’t have to verbalize every single thought you have?”
“Where’s the fun in that?” he asks.
“Gotta agree there,” Dean calls. “It’s any virgin, ever, for any reason.”
Everyone groans.
Even me.
“Your turn, sunshine.” Dean nudges his girlfriend.
She nods. “Never have I ever harassed a subordinate.”
He chuckles. “I’m out. Probably need to lose two for that.”
“Probably.” She laughs.
Wes holds up his nine fingers. “Never had a subordinate. Emma is technically management.”
“Not at first,” Griffin says. “And you were really fucking obnoxious.”
“She liked it. She was begging me to sub in for Hunter,” Wes says.
Griffin chuckles. “Keep telling yourself that.”
“I did,” Wes says.
“Fucking yourself to it maybe?” Griffin raises an eyebrow.
“Oh my God.” Juliette shakes her head again. “You have to—”
“I won’t,” Griffin says.
“All right. You got me,” Wes says.
Griffin, Juliette, Chloe, and I hold up our nine fingers. We’ve all lusted after virgins. (Who didn’t lust after a fellow virgin in high school?) But we’ve never harassed subordinates.
The game moves to me. “Never have I ever gotten a tattoo.”
The entire car groans. Everyone else loses a finger.
“Gonna have to change that,” Wes says.
“Until then.” I tap his index finger, the one curled into his palm. “That’s mine.”
“Already was.” His smile gets dirty. Very dirty.
I… Oh…
Yes. Good idea. But, I, um…
Ahem.
Griffin takes his turn. Says something about how he’s never done a water color tattoo.
Juliette brings it back to sex. “Never have I ever sent a nude picture.”
“Really?” Griffin raises a brow. “You’re missing out.”
Her blush deepens. “I don’t need my pictures on some horrible website.”
“You think someone would do that?” he asks.
“I don’t know. It happens,” she says.
“Jackson—”
“I thought I knew him.”
“Yeah, but would he really—”
“Can we not?”
“I would never,” he says. “No matter what happened.”
“Okay. I… Um… Your turn, Wes.” She swallows hard.