Page 63 of The Fool
“Not if it was consensual. Was it any better though?”
“A lot better,” he laughs. “I have a lot of experience now; I never have any complaints in that department.”
“You know, that’s not as attractive as you think it sounds,” I say as I lean in quietly. “Just makes you sound like a player.”
“Ok,” he says before throwing back the last of his whiskey. “Truth or dare, Miss Summers.”
“Well, I guess truth,” I reply, turning while bracing myself for the worst.
“Is it true you have thought about me naked?”
“You can’t ask that, this early on!” I gasp as I slap him on the arm. “Besides, how is that getting to know me better?”
“Sure, I can,” he says with a diabolically serious expression, “I need to know how dirty your mind is. So, fess up!”
“I’m not answering that question,” I reply before skulling back the shot, “you can’t make me.”
“I don’t have to, I already know,” he smirks. “I can tell you that I have most definitely picturedyounaked.”
“I bet you picture most women naked,” I counter, “in fact, I bet you have some kind of app on your phone or something. Truth or dare?”
“Not all women, just those I like,” he replies, then waits for a response, one I refuse to give. “Ok, let’s go for a dare.”
“Hmm, let me think.” I take a moment’s pause to consider my options, only to turn back as soon as I see his phone resting on the coffee table. “I’ve got it; I dare you to show me the last text message you sent someone who wasn’t me.”
“Oh, fuck, I can’t do that,” he laughs, “no way!”
“Why ever not?” I ask, sounding theatrically indignant over his refusal.
“Because it’s about you and it’s not particularly gentlemanly!”
“Ooh, I really want to see it now, let me have it!” I try and grab his phone from the coffee table, but he takes hold of my wrist before I can even reach it. His skin on mine causes an electrical sensation that shoots from my wrist all the way down to my stomach. Then he looks at me in such a way, I have to swallow back a nervous gasp. My head already feels fuzzy so my ability to hide what he’s doing to me has depleted to nothing. He lifts the corner of his mouth into a smile, one that reveals exactly what kind of desire is whirling around inside of his head. However, to both my surprise and disappointment, he lets go of me while extracting the phone from my hand. He then drinks his shot and moves back into his original position.
“Truth or dare, Beatrice?”
“Truth,” I whisper.
“When was the last time you had sex?” he asks with a now serious expression.
I wasn’t expecting that question, so take a moment to clear my throat and hide my embarrassment.
“Years ago,” I murmur. “After the night with Evan, I decided to stay clear of men altogether.”
“Why?” he asks with his brow furrowed in concern.
“I thought I was in love with Dean, but then he betrayed me in the worst possible way. He took my sister and my best friend in one callous move. I was hurt, and angry, and my confidence was shattered, so I took comfort in a bottle of vodka to help numb the pain, but it only led to someone else hurting me. I fell down a slippery slope and only just about managed to pull myself up again, but I came out different. I didn’t believe in fairytales anymore. In fact, I always believe in the worst possible situation so I can’t be disappointed.”
“Is that what you believe of me? That I will hurt you in the worst possible way?”
“No offense, Nathaniel, but you’ve been pretty hard on me for the past year and a half. You dry humped-me and left me in the middle of a dance floor, then told me you didn’t want anything to do with me. That’s without the fact that you have a very unscrupulous reputation with women, which you freely admit to. Tell me why I should believe that I am so different from any other woman you’ve been with?”
He looks at me seriously for a moment before leaning forward to place his glass down on the tabletop. He then shuffles over to where I am sitting but doesn’t attempt to touch me. Instead, he leans his head on his fist, with his elbow resting on the back of the couch and his other hand lying gently on top of his thigh, just a small distance from where mine is sitting on top of my own lap.
“I’ve never much looked at a woman beyond what most people see in me – their looks. Besides Lily and Callie, when I was much younger, I have always gone for the girl who has about as much emotional depth as I have. Sure, I have female friends, but none that I spend that much time with, not like Lils and Callie. When you came to work for me, day in, and day out, I couldn’t help but observe everything about you. At first, I wanted to know why everyone loved you so much, and they do. Everyone thinks you’re gorgeous, both inside and out. So, I began watching you from afar.”
I look at him as though he’s a crazy stalker, to which he laughs.
“Don’t worry, Miss Summers, I don’t have cameras installed or anything like that. I just took notice when you interacted with other people. For example, I noticed you always apologize, even when someone has bumped into you. I watch how you twirl your hair with your finger when you’re thinking about something. You blush when any man says anything to you. You smile when you are speaking to your brother…the whole time. You looked so amazingly excited when Callie came in to see you, as though you were shocked that she actually came. And whenever I speak to you, either in the past or right now, your finger immediately finds your bottom lip and runs across it.” He sighs at the same time as he pulls my finger away from my mouth to highlight his point. And just like he said, I instantly blush. “I think you are so damn beautiful I have to stop myself from throwing myself at you because I.Want.You. The thought of you being with anyone else drives me crazy.”