"To be honest, I've never really paid attention. Besides, I wouldn’t know how to seduce him anyways." I shrugged and continue following Jenna through the store. Just as we approached the cash register, she stopped and turned to me, grabbing me by the shoulders. "You need to have fun with this, Sophie. Relax and have fun. I know it’s a new concept for you."
I ignored her words, made my way to the checkout, and paid for my purchase. As soon as we were out of the store, Jenna was pulling me over to Forever His, a small lingerie store. I walked over to my usual table—cotton bras and panties—and glanced over to where Jenna stood. I could feel my face heating at the items she was sifting through. I stood there blushing just from watching her. It wasn't a wonder I had never made my way over to that table, those things totally intimidated me. Ignoring Jenna, I turned back to the table I was looking at and picked up a couple of pairs of panties when I heard her call my name.
"Oh, Sophie, this would great on you!" She held up a black lacy bra.
I swallowed hard and nodded. I guessed I could pull it off, until she held up the matching panties. "Are they....are they crotchless?" I whispered, ripping them out of her hand before anyone saw what she was holding up.
Jenna let out a loud laugh. "Yes! You need these."
"Jenna, no. There is no way I am going to wear those," I said, turning my back on her and sifting through the pile of cotton panties that were way more my speed.
"Come on, Soph. Come on, lighten up. These are fun!" She giggled, “Matt loves…”
I held up my hand to stop her, "SHHH…I don't even know who I am shopping with right now," I said, throwing down the panties I had picked out and went to walk away.
"It's your best friend, who is making sure you are going to have the time of your life this week." She shoved the bra and panties into my hand, looking me in the eyes. "Trust me. One week, Sophie. One short week, and then you are going to have a bun in the oven, and your sex life will be over."
I burst out laughing. That was the funniest thing I'd ever heard—my sex life. My sex life in the last five years had consisted of two men. That was it. One who never made me orgasm, and one who kissed like a lizard and had never gotten past third base. So if it was my sex life she was truly worried about, I hated to tell her it was already non-existent.
"What's so funny?"
"My sex life, that is what is funny. It's been so long since I've had sex, I'm pretty sure I almost forget how to do it."
"Well, girl, you better figure it out fast because you have picked the one man in this city who hasn't forgotten how to. You'll be in good hands," she said, raising her eyebrows. "Very, very good hands. Now relax. Come on, let’s go over there and look some more, but you are getting these." She closed my hand around the black bra and panties and smiled at me, pulling me with her.
I ended up walking out of Forever His with a bag full of lingerie I'd probably never wear, a much lighter pocketbook, but a very happy Jenna. The rest of the afternoon was spent shopping for food, flowers, and candles. Once I had everything that had been on my list, we headed back to my condo.
Jenna stopped the car outside of my condo and put the car into park. "So you're good? You have everything you need?"
"I think so," I said, grabbing the two bags that sat at my feet. "Can you pop the trunk so I can grab the rest of the bags?"
"Sure thing. Remember, if you need me, call."
I nodded, hugged my best friend, and then climbed out of her car, grabbing the rest of my bags. I smiled and waved and watched as she pulled away from the curb.
It was almost eleven by the time I finally sat down on the couch with my glass of wine. I had spent the rest of the afternoon making sure that everything had been washed, dried, and put away. I even had the new sheets washed, and they were already on the bed. Jenna was right, they were wonderful, I’d thought as I ran my hands over the high thread count sheets.
I flipped the TV on, pulled the blanket off the back of the couch and over my legs, and sipped on my wine. Tomorrow, Chase would be here, and hopefully by this time, we would be deep in one another. I just prayed that I was truly ready for this…and that I wasn't making a huge mistake.
10
Chase
Istared down at the mess of papers in front of me and let out a deep sigh. I had been going over and over them, and I was still unsure if this was how I should proceed. I ran my hands through my already disheveled hair and took a sip of my first cup of coffee of the morning. I flipped on the stereo, and light jazz poured through the speakers. I took another sip of coffee and looked back down at the mess of words that sat in front of me. What would she think when it was time for me to present this agreement to her? Was she going to hate me? Would she be fine with it?
I grouped the papers together, straightened them, and then reread them for the thousandth time. What the fuck had I agreed to do? I thought to myself, and threw the documents down on the table. I sat back and ran my hand over my face.
I drank down the remainder of my coffee and glanced at the clock. I had to get moving if I was going to be on time. I had slept in this morning, like I normally did every Sunday. Today, though, I had brunch planned with my brothers, and I knew they would be waiting for me.
I grabbed the papers off the table, dropped my mug in the kitchen sink, and headed down to my bedroom. An hour later, I was showered, packed, and the kitchen was tidied, and I was on my way out the door to meet the boys for brunch before heading to Sophie's for the week.
I walked into Deb's Place and nodded to our usual waitress before walking into the dining area. Hunter sat over in the corner alone and waved once he saw me.
"Hey, man, where is everyone?" I asked, taking a seat across from him.
"Carter isn't back from his weekend ventures yet, and Mia's brother decided to extend his family’s visit. So, it's just us this morning. How you doing?"
Honestly, I felt as if I were going to be sick. The coffee I had this morning kept repeating on me, and my stomach hurt too much for food. I was nervous, afraid I was making a mistake, but I ignored all those feelings and smiled at my brother. "I'm great!"