"Nothing," he said, shaking his head. "Look, I'm just saying... Remember what you told me all those years ago."
"Um, I told you many things, Oliver," I said, chuckling. "And we should get going. The girls are waiting on us."
"Just remember what you said."
"What?"
"You know." He looked at me. "Remember when she said those words to you."
I stared at him for a few seconds, and a throbbing ran through my head. I furrowed my brow and turned away from him. "Yeah, I know. And it's cool. We're just friends, Oliver. You don't have to worry."
I walked back into my bedroom and looked at the bag on my coffee table. The bag that contained the sexy undies I was going to give to Alice as a surprise gift. I grabbed the bag and threw it into the trash can. It was a mistake to keep giving her these. It was a mistake to cross the line. I didn't need to play with fire. I didn't want to put myself in an untenable situation. Alice was a beautiful, amazing woman, but I decided many years ago not to cross any emotional lines with her again. I knew I had to stick with it. I knew I couldn't take this any further.
Chapter10
Alice
"So my buddy and I, we go to the strip club in Vegas." Sam started laughing. "Sorry. I always do this. I always start laughing before I get to the punchline. My buddies absolutely hate it."
"It's fine," I said, smiling back at him. "Continue."
Sam was definitely a gorgeous man, but I was starting to realize that all he did was talk about himself. He hadn't really asked me any questions about myself, and I wasn't sure if that was because Rosalie was with us or because he just didn't care.
"So anyway," he said, taking a deep chug of his beer. "We go to the strip club. My buddy Tom, he's like, 'It's the best strip club in Vegas. Make sure you bring a lot of money.' So I'm like, 'Hey, I mean, I'm not really the strip club guy. I don't really need that. I don't really like that.' Plus, you don't know what those girls have, you know? STDs, am I right?" He made a face.
Rosalie started laughing. I looked at her, and she pressed her lips together.
"So anyway, we pull up outside, and I'm thinking to myself, 'This place looks mighty seedy,' but my buddy Tom is like, 'Dude, don't worry about it. You got your money?' And I have a grand on me. Thank God I didn't take more, but I was like, 'I'm not spending over a grand on strippers, no matter how hot they are.'" He took another sip of his beer.
I wondered if he thought that telling a story about a strip club was something I or any woman would want to hear. Now I was starting to understand why he was single, even though he was the most gorgeous man at the event this evening.
"So we walk into this musty club. It stinks like fishy pussy. You know what I mean?" He looks at me. "And there ain't nothing worse than fishy pussy."
"Um, okay." I looked at Rosalie and pinched her under the table.
"Ow," she said. I glared at her. She pressed her lips together.
Sam didn't even stop. "So anyway, I say to Tom, 'Why does this place smell so fishy?' And he's just like, 'Come on now. You've been around fishy pussy before.' And I'm just like, 'I guess.' Anyway, we see this one hot chick at the front. Blond hair, big boobs, at least double Ds." He holds his hands up like he's holding watermelons and squeezes. "And I'm thinking to myself, 'Hey, if they're all like this looker, then maybe, just maybe I can spend a grand here.' So she walks up to me, and she's like, 'Hey, big boy,' and I'm like, 'Hey, who told you?' And she's laughing, and she kind of slips her hands down and gives me a little tug and rub through my jeans." He winks at me. "Now, I'm not the guy who does that sort of thing at strip clubs. Like I said, I don't even go to strip clubs, but she was hot, so I said, 'Hey, why not?' Anyway, I give her a twenty, and we go further into the club."
He pauses. "Um, I hope I'm not turning you off with this conversation, am I? I don't want to make you jealous."
"It's fine," I said, offering him a weak smile.
"Okay, good. So we go in, and all I see are these old fat ugly broads. Like totally not the sort of women I want to get lap dances from. But Tom is like, 'Oh my gosh, this is so awesome.' And I'm like, 'Dude, what is awesome,' and he's like, 'There are so many different types of women here. We can get fricking lap dances from everyone.' And I was like, 'Dude, no, I thought you said this was like an A-plus strip club.' And he says, 'Come on, relax,' and I'm like..."
I could feel myself yawning as he continued. "Excuse me," I said as I stood and looked around, "I just need to use the restroom."
"Okay." He nods.
"I'll see you in a second, Rosalie."
"Okay," she said. "Do you want me to come with you?" she asked hopefully.
"No, you keep Sam company and listen to his story. I'm sure it's going to get even more exciting. He can tell you about all the fishy pussy that he got lap dances from." I gave Sam a sweet smile and hurried away. "Oh my gosh," I muttered under my breath, "I cannot believe this bullshit."
I made my way to the bathroom, and as I opened the door, I saw a cute blond girl staring in the mirror.
"Hey," she said.