Page 25 of One More Chance
“Hey, twin,” I say, approaching her.
She looks back at me, noticing my matching outfit and giggling. “Hey, yourself.”
“What are you thinking?”
“It’s just so peaceful here,” she says, inhaling deeply. Then she exhales, dropping her shoulders.
I nod, looking out to where her line of sight falls. The sky and the water disappear into each other, into the blackness. I rub the scruff on my chin and yawn.
“Are you ready for sleeping bags?” she asks.
I chuckle, stretching my arms over my head. “I could be convinced, as long as our pillow talk is interesting.”
Harper’s throat works up and down as she presses her lips together. I’m sure she’s giving my remark some thought. “Okay,” she finally says. “But I get two passes for things I don’t want to answer. Same goes for you.”
“I can live with that.”
We make our way to the tent and I let her crawl in first. Harper gets in her bag and zips it up to her chest, nestling against her pillow. She’s as close to the wall of the tent as she can get, clearly nervous about sharing the space.
I crawl in my own bag after her, slipping in and flipping it up to my waist, but I don’t zip it. I lie back on my pillow, tucking one arm underneath my head and making zero effort to hug my side of the tent. Turning to my side to face her, I can’t help but notice she’s trying to hold perfectly still. “So, Harper, got any questions for me? Or should I go first?”
“How many sexual partners have you had?” she asks, not even hesitating.
I shake my head. Wow. She had that one locked and loaded. “Uh, I don’t know exactly. Why?”
“I’m just trying to establish a baseline so I know what to expect when I go on actual dates,” she says. “What’s an average person’s number?”
“Uh, well, first, I don’t think you need to ask the people you date that question. And second, is it important criteria to you?”
Harper seems to give it some thought, her top teeth sinking into her bottom lip. “I guess it’s not important. But I’ve only been with one person and I know that’s probably not typical so I was just curious what their…level of experience might be, I guess.”
Ohhhhhh, okay, okay.I see where she’s going with this. “So you’re afraid you might not be…as good?”
“Maybe? Oh my god, why am I telling you this?” Harper puts her hand over her face, attempting to hide her reddening cheeks.
I reach for her wrist, gently pulling it down. “There’s nothing to be ashamed of. I’m glad you can talk to me about this stuff,” I offer, trying to reassure her.
“Did you know I’ve only ever kissed him, too?” she says.
Whoa.Okay, that’s intense. I can’t even imagine what that’s like. I mean, I know I was a late bloomer, but after I did, I went pretty wild for a second. “That’s okay too.”
Harper looks over at me, her eyes rolling back a little. “Somehow I don’t think going on a date and being like, ‘Hey, did you know you’re only the second guy I’ve ever kissed?’ is gonna go over well.”
I inhale, thinking about how I would feel on a date if a woman told me that. I don’t think it would matter to me. I mean, it doesn’t now. Then again, we’re just friends so the information is of no consequence. “Well, would it help if you could say you’ve kissed two guys and they would be lucky number three?”
Harper narrows her eyes at me, then they grow wide. “You mean you?” Her voice takes on a tone of disbelief.
“Um, well I am a man. With lips.”
“No way. That’s too weird,” she says.
Ouch. Okay. Try not to be wounded, Jensen. “What exactly is weird about my lips?”
“Nothing. I just mean it would be weird with you—kissing you. I don’t think we should do that. Do you?”
I shrug, trying to keep my cool. In theory, it’s not a big deal. Just two people kissing. “It’s just a kiss, Harper. It doesn’t have to mean anything. Just a notch on your belt and then you can walk with the confidence of having kissed multiple guys.”
She turns on her side toward me, studying my face as if she’s finally starting to consider my offer. Her eyes are still narrowed. “And you think it’d be that simple?”
“Yeah, why not?” I say, shrugging again.
“Okay,” she says. “Let’s do it.”