4. Chapter 4
Chapter 4
“So, how exactly did you end up living with Levi?” Ellie asks as she takes another sip of coffee.
“His sister is my best friend, we’ve been best friends since kindergarten. I spent more time at their house than I did with my own parents. His sister, Summer, and I are six years older than him, so he’s the younger brother I never had. I hadn’t seen most of them once when I moved to the East coast about three years ago with Lucas. But we always kept each other up to date on our lives through our Jones’ group chats, video calls, and none of us ever missed our weekly phone calls with Mrs. Jones. Since Levi moved to Calgary, we’ve been texting or calling at least once a week. He has been bugging me about coming to visit Calgary. When my divorce was finalized, I asked him if I could come for an extended visit, and he bought me a one-way plane ticket,” I explain between sips of coffee.
Laughing, Lacey says, “Levi is not known to be one that likes to live alone.”
“Wait, so he just let you move in with him?” Ellie asked.
Getting up to refill my coffee cup. “He bought me the plane ticket.”
Looking up, I see both of them giving me a weird look as I lean against the counter facing them. “What?”
“Your best friend’s younger brother bought you a cross-country plane ticket so you could move in with him?” Ellie finally answers.
“Yeah.”
“Did he have a crush on you growing up or something?” Lacey asks, laughing, but I can see a hint of something more than simple curiosity in her eyes.
“No, I told you we grew up together. We used to joke around that I was the sixth Jones kid,” I answer back, not understanding what they’re getting at.
“Honey, you don’t find it weird that your best friend’s younger brother paid for you to move in with him?”
“Not at all, we practically lived together when we were kids.” I can see where they’re coming from; I’ve heard all of this before. At first, people wondered if I’d end up with Lincoln who was a grade ahead of me in school, then it was Lawson, who was two years behind me in school. No one has ever thought of me and Levi though, the baby of the family, or me and Liam, the oldest. I have to say though, it does get old.
“So you’re telling me he doesn’t want to sleep with you?” Lacey bluntly asks. “Ellie here was beating around the bush, but that’s what we want to know.”
“Oh my god, no! Is that seriously what you think is going on? He’s six years younger than me! Practically a baby!” I say, laughing. “Oh my god! You girls are too funny.” Is that what people are going to think of me when they learn that I live with one of the Calgary Rockies hotshot young players? “Me and Levi? Are you nuts?”
“I think the lady protests too much!” Ellie exclaims with a wag of her eyebrows.
“Is that what you guys think? That I would move across the country to get laid by my best friend’s younger brother?” I ask with my own eyebrow raised.
“I’m sure you could use some hot sex,” Ellie offers behind her coffee mug.
“You’re right on that one. The girl should definitely be getting laid,” Lacey tacks on, then turns to me. “Even at twenty-three you can’t tell me that Levi isn’t someone who you know would rock your world, even for a night. I mean the guy drips sex,” she finishes with a matter-of-fact look.
Blushing, I answer with finality, “Not happening.”
“Then why are you blushing?”
“Truth? It has nothing to do with Levi. When I told Summer I was getting divorced, the first thing she said was ‘Finally, now go get laid.’ I can’t say she was totally off base with that, and the last thing on that list is Hot-Life-Changing-Sex,” I say, feeling my blush deepen and a sweat start to break out as I look away.
“What list?” Lacey asks.
“When I was packing to move, I found an old Bucket List Summer and I had made when we were about fifteen,” I quickly explain.
“I’ve always wanted to make a Bucket List! I wanna know everything that’s on that list! Who knew we had a little wild kitten on our hands!” Lacey shouts as she stands and shakes her ass.
“Damn girl! What else is on that list!” Ellie tags on.
“Trust me . . . the list is pretty mundane. Embarrassingly mundane . . .”
“Then let’s spice it up!” Ellie says.
“Show us and let us be the judge.”
Sensing that they aren’t going to give up, I go get the list I’ve been carrying around with me from my purse.
I come back to the kitchen table, and I see Ellie with a pen and paper, and before I can ask, she looks at me and says, “I like crossing things off a list, okay? Plus, we’re writing this list down, adding to it, and planning on how to cross some of them off. So start listing so I can get everything down.”
“All right, so remember we were fifteen when Summer and I wrote this up. Maybe I should explain these as I go through the list.” Handing them the list, I give them the same explanation I gave Levi a few days ago.
“Not a bad start; a little safe, but half of these are easy to do,” Lacey comments after looking over the list a few times.
“I’ve never been to a baseball game! I’ve always wanted to but have just never gone!” Ellie exclaims, pulling out her phone. “Let’s see what game we can easily get tickets to! Wait what’s the best team to go watch? Or should we pick a city we want to visit that has a baseball team? This is why I don’t plan these things! Too many options!” she continues with a sigh. She’s actually putting thought into this, not just trying to help me cross things off, but she‘s actually trying to make this fun and plan things out properly. I’m usually the one to plan things for other people, not the other way around. Again, I’m thrown by how foreign it feels to have someone want to do things for me.
“Didn’t Ian just buy a beach house in Florida?” Lacey asks, bringing me back to the conversation. “We could go catch a game down in Florida and have a beach vacay at the same time!”
“Ohhh yes, he did! Think JJ can convince him to let us use it?” Ellie asks.
“I’ve always wanted to go to Florida, so I’m okay with that, but who’s Ian?” I cut in.
“Another twenty-three-year-old sex on skates that plays hockey with my brother and Levi,” Lacey shares. “Stay away from that one though, he knows he’s sex on skates—never a good thing.”
“How many times do I have to tell you I am not dating or sleeping with a twenty-three-year-old in this lifetime. I’m basically thirty, that's just weird.”
“Too bad, because he’s definitely the type of guy that can help you cross off number eleven,” Ellie chimes in.
“God, yes! According to all the trashy tabloid websites, he is quite the giving lover and very well endowed, if you know what I mean,” Lacey adds with a waggle of her eyebrows.
“Moving on. Do you girls really think he’d let us borrow his beach house?” I say, changing topics.
“Of course! He and JJ are tight, plus you are living in his old room. He was Levi’s roommate for a couple of years,” Ellie states.
“Perfect! Lacey, since you love crossing things off, how about you add Beach Vacay as number twelve,” I say, winking at Lacey.
“Smart. I think Ian can actually help you cross quite a few things off your list,” she replies. “His parents own a cattle ranch and horses. It would be the perfect date really, an overnight horseback ride with a picnic supper, followed up with a night of hot, sweaty sex under the stars. What more can a woman ask for?” she ends with a sigh.
“Oh my God! Enough with this guy!” I say, laughing at the dreamy expression Lacey has on. “How come you don’t have some fun with him?” I ask with a raised eyebrow.
“He’s not my type. Plus, JJ would kill me if I dated or slept with one of his teammates.”
“That’s not true. He knows you’re a grown ass adult that can make her own decisions,” Ellie interjects with an eye roll. “But while we’re on the topic of men and sex, we really need to spice this thing up. I mean if you’ve never had a life-changing orgasm, I doubt you’ve had much spice in your life, Ellie cuts in as she concentrates on the list. “I’ve added a few things . . .”
Number 12: Girls Beach Vacay, obviously
Number 13: Sex outside
Number 14: Sex in a truck
Number 15: Sex in public
Number 16: Get a tattoo
“You want me to get a tattoo?” I turn to her, shocked.
“Yes. In the book I’m reading, the badass main female character got a tattoo while moving on from her shitty ex,” she says, looking at me with a straight face.
“The chances of me getting a tattoo are slim to none,” I tell her with my own straight face.
“We’ll see about that,” Lacey sasses. “Add skinny dipping in there.”
“Good idea. Number seventeen: Skinny Dipping.”
“Kiss in the rain,” Lacey adds.