Raw

Tuli

I finished my bite before shooting Megan a look. She just shrugged and leaned in to whisper, “You wanted him to eat with us, so that’s what he’s doing. Don’t be a baby.”

I grumbled under my breath as Jayce placed his order, but I kept my complaints to myself. At least Megan was footing the bill.

Without thinking, I picked up my phone and dropped it into my shopping bag.

Jayce turned to me as I reached for another piece of sushi. “So, did you like the gift you got this morning?” he asked, a smile playing on his lips.

“I was…surprised,” I admitted after swallowing my bite.

“Just surprised?”

I nodded. “Didn’t expect you to go all out with the romantic gesture. It’s kind of weird.”

~You’re not going to change my mind that easily, Jayce Mitchell~, I thought to myself.

He frowned and scratched the back of his head.

“I’m sorry if the gesture made you uncomfortable. After what happened yesterday, I thought flowers would brighten your morning. I guess part of me was also trying to be romantic.”

Megan chimed in. “Well, Jayce, let’s be honest. Tuli has never had a boyfriend, so romance makes her uncomfortable.”

He blinked. If I had legs as long as Megan’s, I would have kicked her under the table. Instead, I settled for smacking her arm.

She shot me a glare and smacked me back. Megan never holds back when it comes to hitting.

“You’ve never been with anyone before?” Jayce echoed.

“Nope,” Megan answered for me, popping the ~p~ at the end of the word.

“I mean, it’s not a big deal,” he said quickly, turning to look at me, “just surprising.”

I felt my cheeks heat up. ~Can I just crawl into a hole now?~

Adam had shown me that kind of kindness before, but that was a long time ago. Even if he was still around, it wouldn’t matter. I was just a little sister to him.

I finished my sushi. “Well, would you look at the time. It’s almost one-thirty! Megan, maybe we should get going. I want to look at more accessories and maybe some new nail polish.”

Luckily, she was done with her sushi. She nodded.

“Before you go, can I ask you something?” Jayce asked.

I turned to him. “What’s up?”

“Can I take you out to dinner?” A sweet smile spread across his face.

~This guy really knows how to lay it on thick~, I thought. Something I’d better get used to, I suppose.

But I wasn’t sure if letting him take me out to dinner was a good idea. As if reading my thoughts, he said, “I mean, I want to cook dinner for you.”

Maybe I shouldn’t be so shy, but something about having dinner felt so intimate in a non-physical way.

On the other hand, the more adventurous part of me was all for it.

Something as private as dinner at his house could lead to some much-needed action.

“Well, Jayce, I’m not sure that’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

“It’s not a big deal,” Jayce said, chuckling.

I knew he was lying. His eyes gave him away. I gave him a small smile.

“Sorry. If it makes you feel any better, I’m still thinking about what we talked about. I did like the gifts.”

He smiled. “No need to apologize. It’s cool.”

I grabbed Megan’s hand and we left.

We stumbled upon the candy store as we were browsing. I was craving some chocolate-covered cookie dough bites, so I dragged Megan in.

“Oh no, no, no!” Megan protested, trying to pull me back. But my grip was stronger.

“Come on, Megan, I want some chocolate.”

“We can’t! The last time you had a candy stash, I ate half of it,” she confessed.

“Wait!” I gasped, my eyes going wide. “That was you? You told me a raccoon got into the apartment!”

“Whoops, totally forgot about that,” she stammered.

“And the part where I called animal control?” I snapped. “They yelled at me for wasting their time!”

“I’m sorry,” she sighed. “It wasn’t completely my fault. I was grabbing a piece, and then Daniel caught me, and he popped a bunch of pieces into his mouth before I could say anything.”

I grumbled. “Okay, now you officially can’t stop me from getting my candy. So shut up and accept the inevitable.”

By the look on her face, I could tell she still wanted to argue, but she kept her mouth shut anyway.

When I grabbed what I wanted—a huge box of chocolate-covered cookie dough bites and a blue raspberry lollipop—we headed to the cash register.

I was thrilled to rebuild my candy stash, especially with the addition of gummy snakes.

Soon enough, I needed to use the restroom. “Hey, I need to run to the bathroom, can you hold onto my bags?”

“Yeah, no problem.” Megan took them from me and I practically sprinted to the bathroom.

I finished up a few minutes later, washed my hands, and stepped outside to find Megan gone. In her place was Jayce, grinning at me as he held out my shopping bags.

I looked at him, confused. “Where’s Megan?”

Now it was Jayce’s turn to look confused. “She told me you asked her to go home. I thought you knew she was leaving. You texted me saying you changed your mind and would wait for me to pick you up by the candy store.”

I blinked for a moment. “Oh. My. God. I am going to strangle her when I get home!”

Jayce looked at me before he burst out laughing. “Oh, I get it. She texted me, didn’t she?”

“Yeah,” I let out a sigh. “That’s what happens when I leave my phone in my purse. And don’t bother to change my passcode.”

“Sorry, but your friend is a riot. And a genius,” he added, winking at me.

I rolled my eyes. “Sure. Can you just drive me home now?”

His face fell, just a bit. I guess he was hoping I’d change my mind. “Sure, let’s get you home.”

We hurried to his car, and he opened the passenger door for me, playing the gentleman.

In my current grumpy mood, it wasn’t surprising when I started craving something sweet. I dug out the lollipop I’d bought earlier, tore off the wrapper, and popped it into my mouth.

As Jayce drove us home, I went on a mini-mission to find my phone. When I finally did, I unlocked it and started furiously texting my roommate.

TULI

You are dead when I get home! D-E-A-D!!!

MEGAN

I’m staying at Daniel’s. Told him to keep the doors locked. So ha!

TULI

That won’t stop me from climbing through a window!

MEGAN

You’ll have to break one if you want to get in!

TULI

You know what will happen if J & I are in a room alone together!

MEGAN

So? We both know you need to get laid. I was surprised you didn’t fuck him the night he was trapped in your room ;)

TULI

you knew?!?!

MEGAN

I noticed him pulling into the parking lot in your car as Daniel and I were coming home. At first I thought it was a coincidence, but then I heard voices in your room.

MEGAN

I investigated after you two fell asleep. I just didn’t say anything. Didn’t want to cause more problems after you and Daniel fought.

TULI

It still would have been nice to know!

MEGAN

OMG the world is ending. Please, calm down. Now if you don’t mind, Daniel is going to give me a massage ;)

~Yuck!~

I switched off my phone and shoved it back into my pocket, crossing my arms.

“Everything alright?” Jayce asked.

I pulled the lollipop from my mouth, making a ~pop~ sound. “Oh, I’m just fine. Can’t wait to throttle my friend, that’s all.”

“Sounds about right,” he replied, smiling. But his eyes didn’t match his smile.

I took another lick of my lollipop. “Are ~you~ okay?”

“Just a bit distracted by your…candy.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, the way you’re sucking on that lollipop is kind of distracting.” He smirked.

~Well, well~. Given how fucking horny I’d been lately, I wasn’t surprised.

“Oh, you mean like this?” I asked, swirling my tongue around the lollipop.

“Uh. Yeah.”

“Hmm,” I murmured. I probably should have been more careful about distracting him while he was driving, but he seemed to have things under control.

So, I let my horny side take over.

I placed my hand on his thigh, dangerously close to his crotch, and squeezed. He let out a grunt, and I could see a bulge starting to form under his jeans.

“Are you trying to turn me on?”

“Depends,” I murmured, trying to sound seductive. “Is it working?”

“What do you think?”

“I’ve changed my mind, Jayce,” I purred, slowly licking my lollipop. “Let’s go back to your place.”

He looked at me, disbelief in his eyes. “Do you know what this means?”

“That we’re going to fuck each other’s brains out?” I asked, smirking.

“Exactly.”

“Can’t wait,” I replied, popping the lollipop back into my mouth.