Page 86 of The Bad Girl

I pull Tom’s Facebook profile up on my phone and hand it over to Jenna. “This is him.”

Her eyes widen, and she licks her lips comically. “Now, give me some of that!”

“Yeah. I know this may sound like a wistful teenage dream, but I can’t help but think everything happens for a reason. I totally get that maybe back then he wouldn’t want to screw his sister’s best friend, but so much time has gone by, it’s like we’re strangers. Maybe he had oats to sow, and what couldn’t have worked before could work now.”

“So, you want a long-haul kinda thing?”

“It’s all I’ve ever wanted. I’m not meant for casual relationships. My parents—”

I let my voice trail off, remembering how they’ve recently separated.

“Your parents, what?”

“Never mind. I just want something real, marriage, as close to a white picket fence in New York City as I can possibly get.”

“And you think this Tom guy can do all that for you?”

“I don’t know. He owns a bike shop in North Carolina, and he’s opening one up here. With me losing my job, it almost seems like fate.”

“Do you think you’re his type?”

“Well, that’s a tough one because all the women he’s with in pictures on social media are wearing jean cutoffs up to their woohas.”

“Yeah, you don’t seem like that type of girl.”

“You’re right, which is why I think he’s suddenly asked me to be his date. All men crave excitement, but in the end, they know they need someone stable. No man wants a train wreck as their baby’s momma.”

“So, you think that all of a sudden, he realized that he wants some sane, stable business-type?”

“Kind of, but you see, I’ve been approaching this with strategy. I know men crave excitement, statistical data proves that, so I’ve been working on being more of a ‘bad girl,’ with Maxwell’s help actually.”

Jenna chuckles. “You’re kidding, right?”

“No, I leave nothing to chance.”

“I’m gonna wanna hear how this all turns out.”

“I’m supposed to set a day this week to go get coffee with him, but with everything going on and being all but quarantined with my phone being monitored, I guess that’s going to have to wait.”

“Pull up his messages.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m your PR rep, we’re gonna handle this.”

“Oh-okay.”

With trembling hands, I navigate my Facebook messenger, pulling up Tom’s contact.

She scans the chat log. “Just a whole lot of I’m happy to hear from you bullshit.”

“Yeah, it’s been a while.”

“Set up coffee for tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? But I haven’t signed the paperwork yet.”

“Well, why don’t you? You’ll be handsomely compensated. You’re not being asked to lie. InStryde will help you maximize your earning potential. Girl, I am not your enemy. This is a great deal!”