Page 5 of Betting on the Bad Boy

Jess erupted into a fit of giggles next to me. “He’s got you pegged. If anyone could use a good screw, it’s you, Faith!”

I elbowed my former bestie in the side. “Thanks, but I’ll just take a beer for now.”

He shrugged. “You sure about that? Maybe a Red Lotus Cocktail instead?”

“Mmm, that sounds good to me.” Robin put her arm around my shoulder. “I think I’ll switch to that.”

Dammit, he did recognize me. I sat up straighter and cleared my throat. Even though I wrote about erotic romance, I hadn’t experienced much of it myself.

I resisted the urge to fan myself under the heat of the bartender’s scorching gaze. “Just the beer will do.”

“That’s too bad, Faith.” He winked at me, and a shiver ran through my core. “One Honeyweiss coming right up.” He moved away and grabbed some glasses from the overhead rack.

Jess swiveled toward me on the stool, her blue eyes wide with interest. “Are you sure you don’t know him? That’s the most I’ve ever heard him say.”

“I may have seen him around town or something.” My face flushed. At least he hadn’t outed me in front of my friends.

I didn’t have time to think about men. Between teaching the maximum number of classes I could, aggressively pursuing publication to get on a tenure track, and keeping my steamy side career a secret, I barely had time to brush my teeth, so I definitely didn’t have time to play around.

“Hey, I already called dibs. And it’s my birthday. That Sloe Comfortable Screw should be mine!” Robin stuck out her lower lip in a playful pout.

“Not this time. He’s got the hots for Faith.” Jess poked me in the arm and taunted in a sing-song voice, “Somebody’s gonna get some tonight.”

“As if.” I shook my head and waved my hands in front of me. “Don’t worry. He’s all yours, Robin.”

“Yeah, you know Faith won’t mess around.” Jess let out a loud sigh. “She doesn’t have time for that.”

I’d received more than my fair share of teasing from the girls about my lack of a love life. There would be plenty of time for that later. I wasn’t even two years into my six-year plan. I’d be on a tenure track to full-fledged professor while my friends were still comparing dating stories.

“You and your stupid rules.” Robin shook her head. “Still haven’t caved?”

Before I could respond, Jess answered for me. “Nope. Not once. No dates, no sexting, no hook-ups. Not since what’s-his-face?—”

“Brad. His name was Brad.” I played with the edge of the flimsy paper napkin.

“That’s right, how could I forget Baller-Brad?” Jess rolled her eyes.

I groaned. “I never should have told you about that.”

Jess ignored me and leaned toward Robin. “Did she tell you he cheated on her during her grad school formal?”

“What’s up with that?” The bracelets on Robin’s wrist jangled as she lifted her hand to flip her braids back behind her shoulder.

I sighed. I’d confided in Jess in a weak moment over a bottle of Cabernet last winter. May as well get Robin caught up on my failed love life.

“The formal was in Chicago, so we had to stay at a hotel. Halfway through the dance, I got a horrible headache. When Icouldn’t find him in the ballroom, I went back up to get some Tylenol. I walked in on him screwing my roommate.”

“Ouch.” Robin grimaced.

At that moment, the bartender returned with our drinks. “Here you go.” He set two giant frosty mugs down on the counter then slid a fancy tall glass filled with a dark pink liquid toward Robin.

She squealed and took a sip. “Wow, this is really good. You should have gotten one of these, Faith.”

He leaned down on his elbows in front of me. “It’s not too late to change your mind about the Lotus, you know.”

“No thanks.” I gave him a wary smile and took a sip. “Mmm, yep, this really hits the spot.”

He returned the smile. “That’s my specialty.”