Mine to Take (Southern Weddings #5)(27)

“It’s freshly squeezed,” Shelby gasps.

I laugh as I pass by my office and walk right into the conference room. “So coffee and orange juice?” I say, looking at the tray that is in the middle of the desk, which holds a pot of coffee and a pitcher of orange juice with four glasses beside it. There is also a tray of croissants next to it with fresh fruit. “Oh, look at this continental breakfast.” I pull out a chair and sit down, placing my purse to the side.

I grab a mug for the coffee and pour it, adding a splash of milk. “So?” Shelby looks over at me.

“So,” I say, “it was nice.” I try to sound optimistic.

“It was nice,” Presley repeats and then looks over at Clarabella, who just shrugs before talking.

“I’m just going to say I was right.” She looks at her sisters and back at me.

“Right about?” I ask, taking a sip of my coffee.

“I said that you didn’t sleep with him last night,” she finally says, and I gasp. “They said you would.”

“It was a first date!” I look at both Shelby and Presley who glare at Clarabella.

“That is not even how it went,” Presley corrects. “You said she wouldn’t be doing the walk of shame.”

“And I was right.” She points at me. “She didn’t even walk in here with a pep in her step. It was monotone, like her vagina.”

“Ummm.” I don’t know what to say. “One, I wasn’t going to sleep with him on the first date,” I declare and then they all look at me. “And two, do you think I would come to work wearing the same thing as the night before?” I roll my eyes, looking down at my black jeans I slid on this morning with a white turtleneck and a plaid jacket. “I would at least go home and change.”

“So did you have sex with him?” Shelby leans into the table, waiting for me to answer.

“No!” I shriek as they all look at me. “Okay, fine, it was a nice time. But…”

“Nothing good comes from a but,” Presley says, leaning back in her chair, “not one thing. I love you but you’re using your teeth too much.”

“I love you but,” Clarabella adds, “we can’t have sex all day, we have a baby now.”

I roll my lips trying not to laugh at them, but I can’t help it. I throw my head back and laugh while Shelby just shakes her head. “I can top that; I love you, but your mother is in the kitchen.”

“Ewwww.” Clarabella winces. “You were going to have sex with Mom in the kitchen of your house?”

“No.” Shelby shakes her head. “We were at Mom’s house.”

“Oh, for the love of God,” Clarabella says, “it better have been in your room.”

Shelby looks around the room. “You did not put your skanky ass on a communal area,” Presley throws out between clenched teeth.

Shelby gasps out loud. “One, I don’t have a skanky ass. He’s my husband.” She holds up her hand with her rings on it. “And two, what communal area? It’s Mom’s house.”

“The bathroom,” Clarabella says with a smirk. “Don’t feel bad, we did it there also.”

“I’m never using that bathroom again,” Presley vows, looking like she is going to throw up.

“We put a towel down,” Shelby says, looking over at Clarabella.

“We did not,” she informs us, and now Presley pretends to vomit.

“Can you guys not wait to get home?” Presley asks them. “Like, it’s Mom’s house, what the hell were you guys doing that got you all hot and bothered that you needed to jump his boner?”

“Luke came in and brought me my favorite food,” Clarabella clarifies.

“Ace was gone for two days, and when he came in, he gave me a look,” Shelby explains, and I have to say I don’t think I have ever lost my head about someone that just one look did it. Liar, my head yells. With Matthew, one look was all it took, and you were either down on your knees or pushed up to a hard surface, fuck, any surface. We did it in the closet of a restaurant once because he kissed my neck and told me I was fucking beautiful in my ear. “Anyway,” Shelby says, “how was he?”

“It was fine,” I repeat. “He was fine. It was just we didn’t really have much in common.”

“You don’t have to have anything in common to get the D,” Clarabella says and the other two agree with her.

“Ugh, fine,” I concede, throwing my hands up like waving the white flag. “It was dull. He was nice, but I swear to God, I think I would have had a better time watching paint dry.”

“What did you tell him?” Shelby asks and I literally bang my head on the table.

“Oh, you didn’t tell him,” Presley says softly, and I just shake my head.

“What was I supposed to say?” I ask them when I finally put my head up. “It’s not you, you are really a nice guy.” I look at them and they must know I’m not finished. “That’s the shittiest thing to say.”

“Not if it’s the truth,” Clarabella states and now we all glare at her. “Hey, I’m a fucking unicorn, so it’s never me, it’s them.”

“I don’t think you should give up that easily,” Shelby says, “maybe he was nervous.”