detailed of a conversation.”
“So you’re just assuming you know what she wants.”
“Well…” This is why I try never to argue with my sister.
“Did she ask you for the hookup?”
“Yes.”
“And you went with it. You did exactly what she asked?”
“Yes, but—”
“So what’s the problem?” Daphne is like a verbal bulldozer. “Maybe it’s you who’s making this awkward.”
“She won’t talk to me, Daph.”
“Do you know why?”
“No. I don’t know. She didn’t, uh, hate the experience. But Kaitlyn made everything weird by freaking out and screaming at both of us. So Chastity and I never got the chance to figure out how to look each other in the eye again.”
“Kaitlyn is a very interesting person,” Daphne says.
“I used to think so, too.”
“You lose interest in everything, don’t you?” She finishes another box. “It’s a good thing the caramels are only a seasonal business.”
“Thank God we’re almost done here. I’m allowed to get sick of things at four in the morning, right?”
“I suppose.”
We lapse into silence for a minute. But when your twin sister says something mildly offensive, you can’t always let it go. “I didn’t get sick of Kaitlyn. She decided to hook up with another guy to make me jealous. And I hate games and drama, so I parachuted out of there. Learned a lesson.”
“What lesson? Not to date rich girls with daddy issues?”
“Not to date,” I correct her.
“But you have feelings for Chastity,” my sister says. It’s a statement, not a question.
“Yeah. Too many. That’s the whole problem—I like her too much to get her naked.”
My sister snorts. “And people say I’m the crazy one.”
“Do they say that?” I ask. “I thought you were the smart, accomplished one.”
“I wear many hats.”
We both laugh. This is probably the most fun I’ve had with my sister in a long time. Until she asks me one more question.
“What does Chastity think about your stance on dating?”
“I don’t know. Why?”
Daphne gives me a sideways glance. “Have you considered breaking your rule for Chastity?”
“No,” I say quickly. “Because that never ends well. If we break up, I lose a good friend. Not to mention all the people who will hate that idea. Leah and Isaac. Griffin. Mom.”
“So you won’t date her because you don’t want to disappoint her?”
“Yes,” I say. “That’s exactly why.”
She grabs another box and shakes her head. “I don’t know Dylan. It sounds like you already have.”
Well, fuck. That’s a depressing idea. “You always know what to say to a guy.”
“It’s my superpower,” she agrees.
Twenty-Seven
Dylan
I give Chastity the space she needs. Until Wednesday comes and goes with no call from her, I’m a very patient man.
If by “patient” you mean irritable, grumpy and generally hard to be around.
“It’s algebra night,” I complain to Rickie and Keith as we eat dinner together in the living room. “She didn’t call.”
“I noticed that,” Rickie says, shoving another bite of lentil curry into his mouth.
“You did? Why?”
Rickie shakes his head. “Because you’ve spent the week moping around the house, checking your phone every few minutes.”
“It’s making me crazy.” And I mean that in so many ways. I’m worried about Chastity. I’m worried about our friendship.
But at the same time, I can’t help remembering the heat of her kiss. Every time I close my eyes, I’m back in her bed, tasting her skin, hearing her moan.
Not only am I horny as fuck, but I feel like an asshole. That night turned into an experience she regrets, but my libido can’t leave it alone.
I just need to see her and talk to her and calm the fuck down, whether that means going back to the way things used to be, or explaining just how naked I want us to get so we can give it another try.
She’d never want that, though.
Would she?
“That’s it.” I stand up, grabbing my empty plate and stepping over Rickie’s feet. “I have to get out of here.”
“There’s people coming over,” Rickie says. “I’m making a rum punch. Chill out and have some drinks. You’ll feel better.”
“I won’t,” I admit. “I got some things I need to take care of.”
An hour later I’m cruising around campus on foot, a small gift bag in my hand, optimism in my heart.
But I can’t find Chastity. I risked running into Kaitlyn by stopping at the dorm, asking the person at the desk to buzz upstairs. No answer. Then I checked the coffee shop, where Rickie and I ran into her that one time with Ellie.
No dice.
So now it’s almost ten, and I’m running out of places to look.