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“She is,” Jamie agreed. She looked away and then looked back at me again. “Did you…did you make it good for her?”
I blinked. Not the question I’d been expecting.
She flushed, but her embarrassment didn’t change the stubborn set to her jaw. “Her first time. It should have been good for her. She deserved that. Did you make sure she enjoyed it?”
First time?
It hit me with an almost physical punch. Jae had been a virgin.
Fuck.
Thirteen
Jae
Tuesdays had never been verybusy, which meant I’d spent most of the day here by myself. Today, I was especially grateful for that. I enjoyed the solitude on regular days, but I knew that if Starla had been here for more than a few minutes, she would’ve figured out that something had happened to me last night.
As it was, I’d almost held my breath when she’d come in a few minutes ago, but she’d gone back to her office after greeting me and making sure I didn’t need anything. She’d be gone for probably another twenty minutes or so, which gave me plenty of time to worry about what to say when she inevitably asked why I couldn’t stop smiling.
Sure, I’d had a bit of panic this morning when I’d woken up next to Damon, and the reality of what I’d done had hit me. Funnily enough, it hadn’t been the losing my virginity part of things that had had me scrambling to get in the shower, but rather the knowledge that if I hadn’t been able to get Damon out before Jamie had woken up, I would have had a lot of explaining to do, especially since Kevin wouldn’t have been around yet to interrupt any delicate questions.
I didn’t regret what I’d done, but I wasn’t ready yet to talk about it, not even with my sister.
The bell above the door dinged, and I looked up from where I’d been doodling on a piece of paper. The greeting died before it left my lips, the sight of Damon Holden walking toward me short-circuiting my thought process. As he came closer, I realized that he wasn’t smiling. He didn’t look angry, but there was something serious about his expression. My first thought was that something had happened to one of the other members of his band, but I didn’t see new grief in his eyes.
“Hey.” I mentally kicked myself for that eloquent statement.
“Hi.” He leaned on the counter, then straightened. “Is it okay if we talk for a minute?”
“Sure.”
Now I was worried. Maybe after having the day to think things over, he wondered if I was going to be weird about what’d happened. Weird, or something worse. I’d never heard about him having problems with exes, but just because I hadn’t heard it didn’t mean it hadn’t happened.
“I’m not sure how to say this other than just to be blunt about it.” He scratched the back of his head, like he needed something to do but didn’t know what. “Why didn’t you tell me you were a virgin?”
My jaw dropped, and I gaped at him. Of all the possible things that he could’ve said,thatquestion had been nowhere even close to my list.
“How…what…shit.” I flushed. “I’m not expecting anything from you, and you didn’t pressure me into anything. It just felt…right, in a way that it hadn’t ever seemed before.”
He studied my face for a moment and then relaxed. “I wasn’t prying or snooping. I forgot my wallet in your room, so I went back to your apartment to get it.”
I didn’t need him to finish the explanation. “Jamie told you.” I barely kept the groan that was building inside me from escaping.
“She wanted to know if I’d made it good for you.”
I heard the unspoken question, and it just made my face burn hotter. “I didn’t fake anything, if that helps.”
“Good.” He grinned. “She may or may not have also threatened to remove certain body parts and use them as holiday decorations if I hurt you.”
I sighed. “I’m the big sister, but she’s always been worried that someone was going to hurt me somehow.”
“Her son’s father?”
I nodded. “She’s never talked about who Kevin’s dad was, but since he’s never been in the picture, we’ve always assumed that things ended badly between them. Probably a one-night stand at a party or something like that because she’d never mentioned a boyfriend.”
“If you ever find out his name, let me know because I’d like to kick his ass for not accepting responsibility.”
The words might’ve seemed flippant coming from someone I didn’t know that well, but Damon was one of the most genuine people I’d ever met. That sincerity made me want to be honest too.