Alys

“So, it seems like I’m the odd man out.” Lili pouted, stirring her margarita with the straw.

We were sitting at the bar at one of my favorite restaurants, the Wild Chili, chowing down on free chips and salsa and sucking down five-dollar margarita pitchers. Usually, it was the three of us, but ever since Phil had inserted his giant ass into Kenna’s life, we hardly saw her anymore. It was fine really. We were used to her working like a freak and never being around. But we’d at least gotten her in the evenings and on weekends.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Well, Kenna’s got Phil. Now, X is sniffing around you, and I know your weakness for the gingers. It just looks like I’ll be spending a lot of time by myself.”

A wave of empathy welled up inside me. “It’s not serious with X; you know that. If it came to it, you know I’d pick hanging with you over him.”

But it would never come to it because Lili wanted me to be happy, like Kenna finally was. And hanging out with X was making me happy.

“So, you guys still haven’t done the dirty?”

I shook my head. “No. We’re getting to know each other for now. We haven’t even kissed.”

“But you want to, right?”

“I don’t know,” I replied.

And that was the truth of it. I had no idea what I wanted. The wound left behind by Connor was still so raw, but when I was with X…he made me forget to feel it. It was as though he was a numbing balm to the pain I constantly lived with, and I found myself wanting to spend more time with him because of it.

He was funny and sweet, and he was always trying to make me laugh. Not to mention, he was handsome. More than handsome. In fact, the more I got to know him, the better looking he got. His smile dazzled me. His eyes were the brightest, most shocking blue. They suited him. And his hair was the thickest, wildest flame-orange, straight and flopping around his head like a violent wind had just torn through it.

“What’s holding you back?” she asked.

The dull ache forever surrounding the place where my heart used to be.

“Well…I guess I just don’t trust the whole situation.”

“How so?”

“These guys just spent the last six years touring the world, right? They’ve probably banged half the population in Europe alone. If I’m going to have some sort of…relationship with X, I want to be sure it’s for the right reasons, you know? The shit these boys have gotten up to is nothing we’ve ever considered, and we’re pretty laid-back and understanding.”

Lili nodded. “I didn’t think about that.”

Up until that very moment, I hadn’t either, but, man, it made a great cover for the real reservations I had.

“So, you think Kenna is being reckless with Phil?” she asked.

“I think Kenna needs a little recklessness,” I muttered. “Maybe I do, too. But I can afford to be cautious at this point. What Phil and Kenna have is something different. Possibly unique. He’ll never let her pull the brakes, and I think she needs someone like that to show her another side of herself.”

“What does that say about X?”

“I don’t know. He told me that they were all tired of the rock-star life they’ve been living. I guess finding someone to settle down with is part of it.”

“Makes sense. Although I wonder what’s going on with Jason and Sheri now.”

“If I were her, I’d do more than nut-chuck him. What he did to her at Mr. Deveraux’s barbecue was appalling.”

“Mmhmm,” Lili agreed. “I wish we’d witnessed Phil busting his face.”

“X said it was horrific.”

“Well, Jason’s face looks horrific, so one can imagine. Still, your uppercut to his nuts was a thing of beauty.”

I snorted into my margarita. “If our association with these guys keeps on this track, I’ll have beaten up all the members of NOLA’s Junk by the end of the month.”

“I think it’s why X likes you so much. If he makes you fall in love with him, you can fight all his battles for him.”

We both busted out into laughter. When we finally settled down, someone was standing next to Lili. She hadn’t noticed him because she was facing me, but if my eyes weren’t deceiving me, then that someone was a very famous half-Asian fusion chef.

“Holy shit,” I faintly whispered.

Lewis Lee smiled. “Hi.”

Lili whipped her head around and gasped.

Lewis’s grin got even bigger. “I was wondering if this seat was taken.” He patted the stool next to her.

“No,” we answered in unison.

“May I join you?”

I poked Lili in her side.

“Sure!” ejaculated from her mouth.

He sat down, making sure to face Lili. “I’m Lewis,” he said, holding out his hand.

Lili took it and breathed, “I know.”

He smiled again, and I could feel myself going cross-eyed at how attractive he was in person.

“And your name is?” he asked her.

At least I assumed he was asking Lili since he hadn’t spared me another glance.

“Lili,” she croaked.

“Lili,” he repeated. “Even more beautiful than the flower.”

Oh my God, what cheese! I even snorted in my head.

“It’s short for Liliana,” said Lili.

“It’s still beautiful.”

And, just like that, I was the odd man out. It took at least fifteen minutes before Lewis thought to ask me my name. Lili seemed to have forgotten I existed entirely. So, I ate my free chips and salsa, chugged back some margarita, and called X for some company.

“Hey, babe!” he answered. “What’s up?”

“Nothing much. I was hanging out with Lili, but she’s being hit on by Lewis Lee, so I’m just here, getting buzzed on my own. What are you doing?”

“Hangin’ with Erika.”

“Is Becca there?”

“No, thank God. We’re having dinner at Chiang’s Dim Sum.”

“I’ll let you go then.”

“Naw, it’s okay. She’s in the restroom, and we haven’t ordered yet. We got a few minutes.”

“Okay.”

“So, Lewis Lee, huh? Why does that sound familiar?”

I ducked to the side and whispered, “Because he’s a famous chef. He’s got a shit-ton of restaurants all over the country.”

“Well, that’s fuckin’ awesome for Lili.”

I smiled, feeling bubbly for my best friend. “Yeah, it is. And, my God, he’s even more gorgeous up close, X.”

“I bet. Is he tall?”

“Average height. Taller than me and certainly taller than Lili.”

“Who isn’t taller than Lili?”

I cracked up. “Yeah.”

“Well, Erika’s heading back now. Wanna call me later? I can’t keep her out all night. She’s got school tomorrow.”

“Are you staying at Phil’s tonight?”

“I can if you want me to.”

I debated on this for a few seconds. “Only if you want to make the trip.”

“I’ll see you later, babe.”

Grinning like a goof, I hung up, checking to see if I was still being ignored. I was.

After about an hour of this, I’d had enough. “I’m heading home.”

Lili jumped and looked at me, finally remembering I was there. “Okay!” She turned to face Lewis. “It was nice meeting you.”

I leaned down and whispered in her ear. “You don’t have to come with me.”

“Yes, I do.”

“All right then.”

“May I have you number?” Lewis asked her.

“Yeah, sure,” she replied, sounding cool and aloof.

She gave him her digits, and when she got to her feet, he got to his and pulled her into a hug that definitely made their groins connect.

“I’ll be calling you,” he told her. “It was nice meeting you, Alison.”

“Alys,” I corrected. “And it was an absolute pleasure.”

Lili made me swear I’d say nothing about Lewis hitting on her to anyone, so when I met X on the patio of the Plantation House after Lili and I got home, I made him swear not to say anything about it either.

“Why does she want to keep it a secret?” he asked, taking me by the hand and leading me inside.

“Her excuse was that she didn’t want to get her and Kenna’s hopes up if nothing came of it.”

“Why would Kenna have her hopes up?”

“Because she’s a huge fan of his. She watches his shows with an almost religious fervor.”

X laughed and kept on walking.

“Where are we going?” I asked.

“My room. I thought we could watch a movie or somethin’ without people traipsing in and buggin’ us the whole time.”

A flutter of excitement tickled my belly. “All right. Have you moved in here then?”

He laced his fingers with mine as we headed upstairs. “Not officially. I love hangin’ out with my family, but it’s real weird, being back in my parents’ house. Like, my mom wants to know what time I’ll be home and shit. I’ve lived away from them for too long to have them be all up in my shit all the time.”

“Yeah, I can see that being a pain.”

All the bedrooms in the Plantation House were a decent size with their own en suite bathrooms—seven in all, including a master bedroom that no one used. X’s room in the far-left wing looked out over the front of the house. It was decorated in neutral colors, like the rest of the house. There were a couple of basses on stands in a corner and a pile of clothes on a chair in another, but other than that, there were no personal items that made the room his.

X kicked off his shoes and went straight to the bed, scooting over to the far side and patting the empty space next to him. I took my shoes off and joined him. He cozied up to me, his right arm draping around my shoulders, while he clicked on the giant plasma TV mounted on the opposite wall. He found a movie channel with Little Women about to start.

“Wanna watch it?” he asked.

I bit my lip, trying not to laugh. “Do you?”

“Sure. I dig chick flicks.”

“Really?”

“Winona Ryder and Claire Danes are hot.”

“Very true.”

I’d seen the movie several times already and read the book, but X had no clue that Beth ended up dying, and when she did, he was sniffling and wiping his eyes.

“What bullshit!” he hissed. “She was supposed to live.”

I cracked up.

“She was such a good person. She didn’t deserve to die like that!”

“She’s based on the author’s real sister, who died of scarlet fever.”

“Shut the fuck up!”

He sniffed again, and I turned to face him. He looked at me, and his eyes appeared luminous with the faint trace of tears.

Then, he leaned forward and kissed me.

For a second, I didn’t know what to do. I hadn’t kissed anyone but Connor in over eight years. But X…he was warm, his breath sweet, and his lips were soft but firm. It felt good.

Really good.

When his hand reached up to cradle my face, I melted against him, and he deepened the kiss, slipping his tongue past my lips.

“Damn,” he panted, his lips brushing mine. “I’ve been dyin’ to do that for a long time.”

“Do it again,” I whispered.

In a swift move, he tugged me flat onto the bed and rolled on top of me. Kissing me again, his fingers tangling in my hair, he lightly ground himself between my legs. He was tentative, letting me know that I could stop this at any time.

To my utter astonishment, I didn’t. It didn’t feel a thing like doing this with Connor, but…it didn’t feel wrong. Not at all. It was exciting in the sense that it was new. X was smaller than Connor, lighter, but just as beautiful. Just as sexy and a skilled kisser.

And he wanted me.

I gasped and pulled back. “No sex tonight, okay?”

With a wry grin on his face, his eyes sparkling like blue topaz, he brushed the first two fingers of his right hand over my brow and down the left side of my face. “I’m cool with that, babe.”

“Yeah, but for how long?”

“For however long it takes. Your pants are the only ones I want in, and I ain’t gonna stop tryin’. And, once you let me in ’em, I have a feelin’ I ain’t ever gonna wanna leave ’em.”

That made me laugh.

He responded with another kiss. “Can I at least touch your tits? Because they’re fuckin’ off the chain.”

“Yeah, all right.”

X had given me a couple of orgasms from a decent dry-humping. I’d woken up in his arms, a hand squeezing my boob. I didn’t have any time to rush home and shower, so I would have to go to work in the same clothes I’d worn the day before and woken up in.

All day Friday, I felt the best I had in a long time. I was happy, jubilant even. My father even remarked about my stupid grin, which I could not get off my face, no matter how hard I tried.

When I got home from work, Kenna’s car was in the driveway.

“Anyone home?” I called out as I walked inside.

“Up here!” came Kenna’s answer.

I dumped my bag and keys on the couch and headed upstairs, still unable to wipe the grin off my face.

That was, until I got a load of Sheri in a pair of jeans and a pretty yellow top. She looked so different, so…wholesome.

“Holy crap!”

“What do you think?” Sheri asked.

“You look gorgeous! You guys went shopping?”

Sheri nodded. “I bought a whole bunch of jeans. And Kenna bought a dress. Phil’s taking her out on a date tonight!”

I looked at Kenna in shock. “A dress? You bought a dress?”

Grinning, she confirmed it. “I bought a dress.”

“And pumps!” squealed Sheri. “They’re so cool!”

“Show me!” I demanded.

“I will…once you tell me why you didn’t come home last night!” Kenna said.

My face felt flash-fried. “That’s because I slept over with X.”

Sheri clapped her hands and jumped up and down. “Yay!”

“We didn’t have sex! Just made out a little and…maybe some heavy petting. But I told him I wouldn’t sleep with him. If that’s what he’s looking for, he can find someone else.”

“Good for you,” said Kenna.

“He said he wouldn’t stop trying to get into my pants until I let him, and after he got in them, he wouldn’t be leaving them.”

“Ha-ha. Wait, does that mean he’s your boyfriend?” Kenna asked.

The thought of X as my boyfriend was so damn alien to me. Anyone else but Connor would have been the same, I supposed. “I don’t know. We’ll just have to wait and see.”