I put my hands on her shoulders and gently pushed her off of me. “Emma, we need to talk.”

“I don’t think we do.” She smiled down at me. “I can think of something else I’d rather be doing with you.”

She reached down and began pushing up my shirt. Surprised, I let go of her. She fell back down onto me and started kissing me again. I groaned as her tongue teased my lips until I opened them. As soon as I did, her tongue slipped inside to caress mine. She ran her fingers across my stomach, causing me to jump.

She smiled as she sat up and started tugging on my shirt. “Take this off.”

I sat up and pulled my shirt over my head. She grabbed the bottom of her shirt and lifted it over her head as I threw mine aside. She tossed hers down onto the floor and reached behind her to unclasp her bra. As soon as she had it free, she slipped it off and threw it somewhere behind her.

“Shit,” I groaned as I stared up at her.

I leaned up and ran my tongue across her nipple. She arched her back to give me better access. I sucked one nipple into my mouth as I started tweaking her other with my fingers. I lifted her and laid her on the bed beside me before climbing on top of her.

“I’ve missed you so much,” I whispered.

“I missed you, too. Please, Jesse, it’s been so long. I can’t wait any longer. I need you inside me.”

Emma snapped her fingers in front of my face. “Earth to Jesse. Hello?”

I blinked. After I realized that I’d just imagined that, I wanted to beat my head against the wall.

“What?” I asked.

“You said you wanted to talk, so start talking. Where did you just go?”

“Nowhere. I was just thinking.”

“Okay…why are you here?” she asked.

“To talk.”

She rolled her eyes. “Are you being an ass on purpose? Or does it just come naturally?”

“Sorry, I wasn’t trying to be an ass. I came here to talk about what’s going on between Ally and me.”

Her eyes grew hard. “I really don’t need to know the details. I took sex education. I know how babies are made.”

“It’s not what you think—” I started.

But she held up her hand. “Look, we’re not together anymore. You don’t owe me an explanation. You can stick your you-know-what wherever you please. It’s not my concern anymore, and it hasn’t been for a long time.”

“So, I guess I should feel the same about Andy and you.”

Her eyes widened. I’d struck a nerve.

“You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“I got the gist of it. I have to admit, I never saw that one coming.” I knew I should shut up, but I couldn’t seem to get the message to my mouth. “At least you waited until I left to fuck him. I appreciate that.”

“Shut up, Jesse.”

“Why? It’s okay for you to fuck Andy, but you can’t talk about it? Come on, I thought we were having a nice conversation.”

“Fuck you!”

“You already did,” I shot back.

I instantly regretted my words as tears filled her eyes. I was the biggest asshole alive.

“I knew she’d tell you,” she whispered. “She would do anything to make you hate me. It was an accident. We never meant to have—”

“She didn’t tell me,” I cut her off. I didn’t need to know how it had happened. “She just confirmed what I suspected after I saw you two together the first time.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Come on, Emma, I’m not stupid. I knew you were together as soon as he hit me. It wasn’t that hard to figure out. How did you two end up together anyway? I have to admit I’m curious about that part. Did you guys do it just to get back at me after I left, and then you both realized that you actually liked each other? Or did you already know something was there before I even left? At least I know you well enough to know that you’d never cheat on me while we were together.”

I couldn’t understand why I kept saying every hurtful thing that I could think of. I knew I was hurting her, but I couldn’t seem to stop. I’d come here to make her feel better, and I’d done the exact opposite.

“What about you? Don’t tell me that the first time you slept with Ally, you got her pregnant. You know what they say—practice makes perfect.”

“I didn’t—” I stopped myself.

I’d already screwed up my chances of keeping Emma from hating me. After what I’d just said to her about Andy, nothing I told her would make her hate me any less. I wouldn’t give away Ally’s secret. I couldn’t. If I hadn’t fucked up royally five minutes ago, I might have. But now, there was nothing left to save here. I’d destroyed it all.

“I should go.”

“I think that is the best thing you’ve said since you walked in here,” Emma said as she stomped to the door and threw it open.

I walked by without looking at her. I had just ruined any chance of us even being friends.

“Jesse?”

I turned to look at her. “Yeah?”

“Stay the fuck away from me.”

I slammed the door in his face. There was a whole five seconds where I felt empowered before I slowly slid down the door and curled up on the floor. Tears ran down my cheeks as I thought about everything he’d just said to me.

He’d used every single thing he could think of to degrade me and make me feel like trash. He’d even used my friendship with Andy against me. Jesse thought Andy and I were together. I had no idea how Jesse had come to that conclusion, but if I had to guess, I would bet that Ally had something to do with it. He’d said she’d only confirmed what he’d guessed, so that meant that they’d talked about Andy and me being together. She’d probably told him that Andy and I had slept together, so he would think the worst of me. I’d tried to explain to Jesse that Andy and I weren’t together, but Jesse had refused to give me the chance. It was obvious that he had already made up his mind about Andy and me.

I knew I’d screwed up with Andy after Jesse left, but I couldn’t believe Jesse would think that I’d end up with his best friend.

Doesn’t Jesse realize that every time I look at Andy, I think of him?

Lucy and I had started to grow apart long before I left, and Andy had stepped in and filled her place without either of us realizing what was happening. He was like family to me despite what had happened, and I could never think of him that way. He’d never stopped his man-whore ways either, so I knew there was no chance that he felt that way about me either.

“You smell so good,” I panted.

“You taste good,” he muttered before running his tongue across my skin.

Goose bumps erupted across my skin as he continued to kiss and lick his way across my skin. He raised me up long enough to pull my shirt over my head before pushing me back down onto the couch. His hands skimmed across my stomach, causing my muscles to jump. His kisses felt like fire as he kissed between my breasts and down my stomach. I wiggled my hips, trying to feel his thickness against me.

He held my hips down as he kissed back up my body. His arms pushed underneath me, and he undid the clasp on my bra. A voice in the back of my head was screaming at me, telling me that this was a bad idea, but I pushed it away. I just wanted to feel his hands on me. I needed to feel wanted.

“We need to go to my room in case anyone comes home,” he whispered in my ear as my bra fell away.

He stood and picked me up. I wrapped my arms and legs around him as he carried me to his room. I ran my tongue along his jaw before sucking on his neck. If it bothered him, he didn’t complain.

He dropped me down onto his mattress and climbed back on top of me. He pulled his shirt off and threw it down beside the bed. I reached up and ran my hands across his chest. I leaned forward and kissed a trail across his chest. He shuddered as he pushed me back down and started kissing me again. He sat up and reached for my shorts. I lifted my hips, allowing him to slip them along with my underwear off. His shorts and his boxers came off next.