cringed inwardly at Gretchen's reference to finishing up school. Even thought I was only nineteen, I was self conscious about the late start I had on my college career. It'd be one thing if I was all set to start, but at this point, I had no plans. Heck, I didn't even have plans for plans.
"You should get her number from Rachel," I said, trying to act unaffected by the college talk. "Even if she doesn't want to move down here to work at The Center, I'm sure she'd be all about helping you create some stuff for the restaurant." I was talking out of my ass since I hadn't actually met the girl, but I'd heard a lot about her through conversations with Rachel, and had even seen a couple of her paintings. She was good.
"You're right," Gretchen said. "S he'd be perfect. I can't believe I didn't think of it myself." She paused to consider the possibility of having Brit, her own resident artist, on hand. "And I'll bet she'd be willing to help us with The Center, even if she's not into the idea of moving to L.A. permanently."
Just as Gretchen finished speaking, her phone began to buzz, and she picked it up to view the screen.
"It's Joel," she said, reading a text. She looked directly at me when she spoke again. "He said Ethan came in first in the fifty free."
I felt a rush of heat flood my face at the sudden mention of his name. I hated blushing, especially at a time when it was totally obvious what was causing me to do it. I should have been embarrassed that the sound of his name had me turning ten shades of red, but I couldn't stop the smile from spreading across my face at the wonderful news. I was so proud of him.
"What's the fifty free ?" Hannah asked, apparently knowing nothing about swimming. "And who's Ethan?"
Chapter 12
Ethan
I had sex with a random girl when I was in Austin for the weekend. It didn't mean anything. She was a swimmer and I'd been with her before, which made the whole thing way too easy. And you may be wondering… Did I feel guilty for doing it with Sabrina when Emily was on my mind the whole time? The answer is no. It was Emily's fault that I was so damn pent-up anyway.
I saw Emily the weekend before I went to the meet in Austin, and it was the same old story. We had a great time together, but then she went on lock down when I tried to do anything but kiss her. I'm not trying to say I wanted to just stick it right in, either. I would have been content with some playing around, but Emily was locked up tighter than Fort Knox.
It had been a month since the meet in Austin, and I'd driven to L.A. two times to spend my day off with her. That was major considering that it only happened every other Sunday. I was beginning to think there was something more to this whole thing than virtue. If I were the suspicious type, I'd think Emily was with someone else and she was just stringing me along. I can identify the signs of being strung along because I'd done my share of it myself. The weirdest thing about the whole scenario was that, even though all the signs were there, I didn't think there was another guy.
I just co uldn't figure the girl out. I'd always had the kind of confidence that could overcome anything. My motto was: If another human being is capable of accomplishing it, then I am too.
Here's where the whole Emily situation gets weird for me. Some other dude has been in her pa nties—she told me that herself. So what, may I ask, am I doing wrong? What did that guy have that I didn't? Also (and maybe even more of a pisser) I really liked her. The feelings I had for Emily were already way deeper than I cared to admit, and she was still acting like I wanted to play her. But, hell, how should I know? Maybe she didn't think I was trying to play her after all. Maybe that wasn’t the issue. Could it be that she seriously wasn't attracted to me? At the risk of sounding like the most pompous asshole on the face of the earth, I just couldn't see where that would be a possibility. I know what I
"You should get her number from Rachel," I said, trying to act unaffected by the college talk. "Even if she doesn't want to move down here to work at The Center, I'm sure she'd be all about helping you create some stuff for the restaurant." I was talking out of my ass since I hadn't actually met the girl, but I'd heard a lot about her through conversations with Rachel, and had even seen a couple of her paintings. She was good.
"You're right," Gretchen said. "S he'd be perfect. I can't believe I didn't think of it myself." She paused to consider the possibility of having Brit, her own resident artist, on hand. "And I'll bet she'd be willing to help us with The Center, even if she's not into the idea of moving to L.A. permanently."
Just as Gretchen finished speaking, her phone began to buzz, and she picked it up to view the screen.
"It's Joel," she said, reading a text. She looked directly at me when she spoke again. "He said Ethan came in first in the fifty free."
I felt a rush of heat flood my face at the sudden mention of his name. I hated blushing, especially at a time when it was totally obvious what was causing me to do it. I should have been embarrassed that the sound of his name had me turning ten shades of red, but I couldn't stop the smile from spreading across my face at the wonderful news. I was so proud of him.
"What's the fifty free ?" Hannah asked, apparently knowing nothing about swimming. "And who's Ethan?"
Chapter 12
Ethan
I had sex with a random girl when I was in Austin for the weekend. It didn't mean anything. She was a swimmer and I'd been with her before, which made the whole thing way too easy. And you may be wondering… Did I feel guilty for doing it with Sabrina when Emily was on my mind the whole time? The answer is no. It was Emily's fault that I was so damn pent-up anyway.
I saw Emily the weekend before I went to the meet in Austin, and it was the same old story. We had a great time together, but then she went on lock down when I tried to do anything but kiss her. I'm not trying to say I wanted to just stick it right in, either. I would have been content with some playing around, but Emily was locked up tighter than Fort Knox.
It had been a month since the meet in Austin, and I'd driven to L.A. two times to spend my day off with her. That was major considering that it only happened every other Sunday. I was beginning to think there was something more to this whole thing than virtue. If I were the suspicious type, I'd think Emily was with someone else and she was just stringing me along. I can identify the signs of being strung along because I'd done my share of it myself. The weirdest thing about the whole scenario was that, even though all the signs were there, I didn't think there was another guy.
I just co uldn't figure the girl out. I'd always had the kind of confidence that could overcome anything. My motto was: If another human being is capable of accomplishing it, then I am too.
Here's where the whole Emily situation gets weird for me. Some other dude has been in her pa nties—she told me that herself. So what, may I ask, am I doing wrong? What did that guy have that I didn't? Also (and maybe even more of a pisser) I really liked her. The feelings I had for Emily were already way deeper than I cared to admit, and she was still acting like I wanted to play her. But, hell, how should I know? Maybe she didn't think I was trying to play her after all. Maybe that wasn’t the issue. Could it be that she seriously wasn't attracted to me? At the risk of sounding like the most pompous asshole on the face of the earth, I just couldn't see where that would be a possibility. I know what I
Similar Books
