Page 3 of Necessary Roughness

Sloane

For the first time since I could remember, I was hitting on a guy!

I had never been so forward before. Walking right up to him, tugging on his sleeve, and saying hi. The old me would have stood in the corner far too long trying to think of something witty to say.

But I had a superpower tonight: I didn’t care. I was newly single and unburdened by worries about striking out or being embarrassed.

Also, I was sloshed. That helped lower my inhibitions, too.

I took a long look at the tall, broad-shouldered man. Knox had a megawatt smile that had probably broken a hundred hearts. His dark blond hair was perfectly tousled, which matched the vibe of his mischievous green eyes. And his chiseled jawline looked like it was made to smirk.

“I’m Sloane,” I said, shaking his hand. “Holy shit. Your palm is like a baseball glove.”

“Leathery and old?” the other guy, the brunette, chimed in with a grin.

I stuck my tongue out at him. “I meant it’s huge. You could probably palm a basketball with those bad boys.”

“Or a football,” the brunette said. “I’m Logan, and yes, my palms are just as big. Maybe even bigger.”

“It’s not a competition,” Knox said.

“Bro, it’s always a competition,” Logan replied.

“If this is a competition,” I said, “then does that mean I’m the prize?”

They both chuckled, although I could tell they weren’t used to a woman being this forward. I delighted in the new attitude I had adopted. I was a girl who wanted sex, and nothing else, which simplified every decision and interaction I made.

“What are we drinking tonight?” Logan asked.

I turned my gaze to him. He had sun-kissed brown hair, warm hazel eyes, and the kind of easy smile that instantly made me like him without knowing anything else. “Whatever was in the keg,” I replied, sloshing the beer around and giving it a sniff. “I’m detecting notes of… beer.”

Logan did the same with his red solo cup. “From the beer region of Florida. The 2025 vintage.”

“You have a good nose for cheap beer,” I said.

Knox clapped him on the back. “You have no idea. This guy used to drink the rest of us under the table.”

“Used to?” I teased.

Logan shrugged. “Hey, I try to be responsible these days. Especially since next summer…” he trailed off.

“What happens next summer?” I asked.

The two of them shared a private look, then Logan said, “Graduation, I mean. Got to look good in our robes.”

Knox nudged me gently with his elbow. “You a senior?”

“Yes, but I’m on a five-year master’s program,” I replied. “So I still have another year after this.”

“Damn, you must be smart,” Logan said.

I shrugged. “Sometimes. I’m trying to numb that brain right now with alcohol. This semester is going to be long .”

“Tell me about it,” Knox muttered.

I was sick of talking about school. I wanted to blow off steam. Allowing my arm to brush against Knox’s, I said, “Do you guys live on campus?”

“Just off,” Knox replied. “We’re actually just a few blocks west of here.”

“I’m in the Atlantic building,” I told them. “The apartments for upper classmen. They’re technically on campus, but it doesn’t feel like it.”

“Best of both worlds,” Knox said, his eyes glancing to my lips before zipping back up.

Yeah. He was into me. A thrill of excitement filled my chest.

Logan cleared his throat. “I’m gonna go wander around, to leave you two alone.”

“Don’t go!” I found myself saying. “I’m enjoying flirting with both of you.”

“Is that what we’re doing?” Knox asked. “Flirting?”

I leaned a little closer to him. “Am I not being forward enough?” I cut my eyes toward Logan. “Stick around and chat with me. At least until I finish my beer.”

I blinked. I couldn’t believe how blunt I was being. I loved it. And based on their reactions, it seemed to be working.

“I won’t go anywhere.” Logan took a pull from his cup. “What do you want to talk about?”

“What’s the most controversial opinion you have?” I asked.

“That’s a random question,” Knox said with a snicker.

“I like it,” Logan said, crossing one arm over his chest. It was thick with corded muscle. “Controversial opinion. Hmm.”

“I’ll go first,” I said. “Peanuts are the worst nut.”

Both of them blinked down at me in surprise.

“Peanuts?” Knox asked.

“Peanuts,” I repeated with the utmost seriousness.

“I was expecting something really controversial,” Knox said. “Like an opinion on the death penalty.”

“Nope!” I said happily. “Peanuts.”

“I don’t know if that’s really controversial…” Knox began to say.

Logan’s face twisted in a scowl as he interrupted his friend. “Okay, that opinion is very wrong.”

I stuck my chin out stubbornly. “Literally every other kind of nut is better. And no, I don’t care that peanuts are technically a legume instead of a nut. My point stands. Cashews, almonds, pistachios… all superior to peanuts.”

“What the actual fuck!” Logan said, eyes wide with humor. “Peanuts are amazing.”

“False,” I countered.

Logan put his hand on my shoulder and leaned closer. “Two words: peanut butter.”

“Inferior to almond butter,” I replied.

Knox laughed, but Logan was only further incensed. “There’s no better feeling than slowly shelling a bag of peanuts while watching a baseball game.”

“Shelling a bag of pistachios is better,” I answered.

“I’m with her,” Knox said. “Pistachios are better at a ballgame.”

Logan let go of my shoulder and looked around. “I feel like I’m taking crazy pills. Is this gaslighting? I feel like I’m being gaslit right now.”

Knox was smiling at me. “That is a good icebreaker question.”

“Right?”

“Fuck both of you,” Logan joked. “They’re a working-class nut! Peanuts work in a steel mill in Pittsburgh, while cashews are… I don’t know. They’re like finance bros working in a Manhattan skyscraper.”

“What does that make almonds?” I asked.

“Almonds are wannabe actors who move to Los Angeles to become rich and famous, but end up working in porn to pay the bills.”

Knox and I glanced at each other, then busted out laughing.

“I don’t know why you’re laughing,” Logan scolded. “That was a warm shot of truth, with no chaser.”

“Okay, I’ve got one,” Knox said.

“I’m not done defending peanuts!” Logan complained.

“This is going to sound silly…” Knox said.

“Yes, good,” I said.

“Five should be an even number.”

I stared up at him. He was being totally serious. Logan was narrowing his eyes in confusion.

“Hear me out,” Knox said, gesturing with his red solo cup. “Five has even number energy . The multiples of five are nice and orderly. Five, ten, fifteen, twenty, twenty-five, thirty. That’s even number shit.”

“Kind of like how the letter Y is a vowel sometimes?” I said.

Knox jabbed a finger at me. “Yes! Exactly! I’m glad someone understands.”

“She’s just humoring you,” Logan muttered.

Knox put his arm around me and gave me a friendly little sideways hug. “And I appreciate her support.”

I leaned into him, savoring the physical contact. It was innocent. It was friendly.

But it felt like the promise of more. I let my hand slide along his ribs, feeling the bumps of hard muscle underneath his shirt, before he pulled away.

My phone vibrated in my pocket, so I pulled it out.

Gayden : You doing okay, honey? Just checking in.

Me : Totally fine, thanks!

Logan was staring at my phone with alarm, so I quickly said, “Oh, that’s just my friend Jayden. He’s gay. That’s why he calls me honey.”

“I don’t think he cares about who you’re texting,” Knox said. “He’s more concerned about the kind of phone you have.”

I gazed at the flip-phone in my hand. “Oh, yeah. Sometimes I forget people think this is weird.”

“ Think it’s weird?” Knox said. “Sloane, having a flip-phone is weird.”

“You’re either a drug dealer, or a time traveler,” Logan said.

Knox gasped. “Or a time-traveling drug dealer!”

“Were the nineties as great as everyone says?” Logan asked. “Is Kurt Cobain still alive in your timeline?”

Their bombardment of teases had me in stitches, and soon they were joining me in laughter.

“I ditched my iPhone for this bad boy last year,” I explained. “I realized a smart phone was bad for me. I got addicted to the dopamine rush of scrolling social media.”

“Uh, yeah,” Logan said. “That dopamine rush is fucking awesome.”

“I totally get your perspective,” Knox said, holding up his own iPhone. “I feel tethered to this thing. And not in a good way.”

“Exactly! Since getting rid of it, I read a lot more. Especially at night before bed. So much better than doomscrolling.”

“So, not a time traveler,” Logan whispered. “Which leaves drug dealer.” He squinted suspiciously at me.

I leaned over and touched his arm while laughing. “Wow. This is like touching a brick wall.”

Grinning, Logan flexed his bicep. “How about now?”

“Wow,” I said, allowing my fingers to trace the muscle down to his elbow.

Knox sipped more of his beer, and Logan unflexed his arm. It felt like we were reaching a point where they could disengage from me if they wanted.

But I didn’t want to give them the chance. I was feeling liberated enough to push a little more. To be as up-front with them as possible.

Do it, Sloane, I chided myself. The worst they can say is no .

“Listen,” I said. “I’ll get right to the point. I just got out of a long relationship. I’m not looking for anything special. I just want to have some meaningless sex. No, actually, let me be more accurate. Tonight, I just want to get fucked .”

I let the word hang in the air while downing the rest of my beer. It was too late to turn back now.

“I’m going to go get a refill,” I said, shaking my cup. “While I’m gone, figure out which of you is interested in going home with me.” I batted my eyelashes from one tall man to the other. “And if you can’t decide? Then I’ll try to think of a tiebreaker.”

Before I could change my mind, I slid between both of them—dragging my ass against Logan, and my chest against Knox—and headed deeper into the party.