Her roommates exchanged wide grins. “About time,” Lacey declared. “I keep telling you, celibacy isn’t healthy.”
“I’m not celibate. It’s just been a while since I met anyone I wanted to sleep with.”
May frowned. “Why didn’t you sleep with Mystery Man?”
Annoyance rose in her throat. “Because he said no! He stopped it before things got too hot.”
After a long pause, both women were laughing again.
“So he was perfectly cool with playing tonsil hockey in an alley but then refused to take it further?” May said.
“Pretty much.”
May looked even more bewildered. “But you, you, Skyler Thompson, wanted it to go further?”
Her friends were right. Casual hookups weren’t her style—hell, she didn’t even put out on the first date—and yet she couldn’t muster up a single regret about last night.
Gage Holt… Oh boy, everything about him turned her on. His smoldering gray eyes. That ruggedly handsome face. The dark stubble dotting his strong jaw. And his body…holy moly. He’d towered over her, every inch of him deliciously hard and rippled. Broad shoulders, muscular chest, long legs.
But she’d been attracted to more than his looks. It was also his…presence. When he’d trapped her against the wall with his massive body, the most incredible thrill had shot through her. She’d never been dominated like that before, and it embarrassed her to admit just how badly she’d liked it.
“I know, it’s totally unlike me,” she confessed.
Lacey snickered. “Big time.”
“But it was so…exciting.” She sighed. “These past couple months I started noticing how boring my life has become, and I just wanted to try something different, step out of my comfort zone, you know? And then my stranger came along and he was so…God, he was…” She couldn’t even come up with any more adjectives to describe how incredible the man was. “Honestly, in that moment? I would have gotten naked in a heartbeat. I would have done anything that man wanted.” The confession heated her cheeks, and she had to avert her eyes.
“Aw, she’s blushing,” Lacey teased. “It was that hot, huh?”
“Yes.” Skyler released a glum breath. “I think he was trying to do the ‘right thing’”—she used air quotes—“by stopping. He pretty much said I was a ‘good girl’”—air quotes again—“and that I’d end up regretting it if I did anything with him, which is pure and total bullshit.”
She punctuated the last word with more quotes, which made Lacey roll her eyes. “You have no idea how to use air quotes, babe.”
“And was he really that far off the mark?” May chimed in. “Face it, Sky. You are a good girl. And that’s not a bad thing. I mean, you’re nice, funny as hell, crazy-protective of the people you care about. You’re frickin’ awesome. But you’re not the one-night-stand type. He probably saved you a whole bunch of postcoital regrets by not doing you.”
“Just because I haven’t had a one-night stand before doesn’t mean I’m not the type for it. What if I try it and end up loving it? What if I discover I really like the whole wham-bam-thank-you-dude aspect of it?” Skyler suddenly stuck out her chin. “You know what? You guys have convinced me. I’m going back there tonight.”
May groaned. “That wasn’t what I was advising at all. I think it’s a good thing you didn’t sleep with the guy.”
“Actually…” Lacey grinned. “I’m with Sky on this. She never does anything fun. It’s always work and school, school and work. Be a little wild, babe. I fully support your decision to go out and bang your stranger.”
A laugh popped out. “Thank you. And you”—she turned to May—“I give you permission to say I told you so if it all blows up in my face.”
“Deal.” May scraped her chair back. “Okay, gals, it’s been fun, but I’ve gotta get ready for work.”
“Me too.” Lacey hopped off the stool, chugging the rest of her coffee on her way to the sink. “I’m doing a forty-eight-hour shift at the hospital, so you won’t see me for a couple days.”
Skyler glanced over in concern. “Try to squeeze in some sleep, will you? Last time you worked a shift that long, you were a zombie for weeks afterward.”
“Yes, Mom.”
A moment later, Skyler found herself alone in the kitchen. She didn’t mind it, though. Her arrangement with May and Lacey suited her just fine. They each did their own thing—Lacey had her residency at Boston General, May was finishing her art history master’s and did restorations at the museum, and Skyler was halfway through with her master’s in psychology. But despite their chaotic schedules, the friendship they’d formed during freshman year of college had remained strong.
As she went to grab another cup of coffee, her mind drifted back to Gage. The entire encounter had been exhilarating and terrifying, and she wanted to see him again, damn it. To hear his gruff voice tickling her ear, feel those big hands on her body.
Was she crazy to chase after a man she didn’t know? A man who hadn’t even told her his name?
Yeah, probably. But she didn’t care. She’d thought she’d known what arousal felt like. She’d thought she’d known what it was like to be attracted to someone.