neither Quinn nor Nate liked Matt. Nate told me that Lampert had picked on him from grade school on and that he’d been a consistently bad influence on Leo as long as they’d known him.
It seemed to me that he was repeating that trend with Gia. Although she constantly assured us that there was nothing serious between the two of them, her mood swung in a crazy arc depending on whether Matt was paying attention to her or off screwing another girl. I was willing to bet that they’d had a fight today, and Gia was drowning her sorrows in the bottle.
“I miiiiiiight’ve had a leeeetle something.” Giggling, she blinked at me upside down. “But don’ worry. Quinn and Zelda didn’t have any, so they’re my designated walkers. They made sure I didn’t get lost on the way over here.”
“Lucky for you,” I observed, raising my eyes to glance at Zelda, who stood across the room, leaning her back against Nate’s closet. She stared back at me, her poker face in place.
“We’re going to Scorpio, that new bar in town.” Gia wriggled to a sitting position. “It’s going to be so much fun. You’re coming with, right?”
“Uh, no.” I lifted my book. “I’ve got to study. My last final is on Monday.”
“Oh, Tuck.” She nudged my knee, clearly forgetting that I couldn’t feel it. “You’re no fun. You never go anywhere with us.” Scowling at me, Gia fumbled with the small purse she was carrying, poking around in its contents. “Aha!” Standing, she held up her hand, dropped her bag and began dancing. “I found it!” She showed a small silver tube to Quinn. “See? This is that lipstick I told you about, the one I bought in the city from that organic skin care place, ‘member?”
“Uh huh.” Quinn nodded. “Do you need help getting it on straight?”
“Nooooo . . .” Gia took the cap off the lipstick. “I just need a mirror.” She swayed precariously, making me wonder if she was going to make it to the bar tonight. I felt a headache lurking behind my eyes, and Gia’s voice wasn’t helping.
“Open my closet.” I pointed to the closed door. “I’ve got one on the inside of the door, but it’s low, so you’ll have to bend over.” The sooner they all left, the sooner I could get back to my reading.
The room fell silent as Gia concentrated on staring into my mirror, carefully applying the lipstick. I noted with a sort of clinical detachment that the silk of her dress stretched over her nicely rounded ass, which was sticking out as she bent to see her reflection.
“I can’t wear lipstick,” Quinn remarked with a laugh. “I’m always jealous of girls who can pull it off.”
“How come?” Nate cleared his throat, and I felt a rush of sympathy, knowing as I did that Quinn’s lips were probably a painful subject for him.
“Oh, I don’t know. It always ends up on my teeth, and I feel like I look stupid.” She shrugged.
“There’s a trick to it, you know.” From her spot by Nate’s closet, Zelda spoke up. “To make sure you don’t get lipstick on your teeth.”
“Oh, really?” Quinn rolled her eyes. “Do share, oh, makeup guru. You know I live to sit at your feet and listen to your wisdom.”
Zelda’s lips twitched. “It’s pretty simple, but you do need another person. A guy. You put on the lipstick, and then you go down on the guy.” Her voice was nearly a monotone.
Quinn’s face didn’t hide her shock. “You, um . . . what?”
“Blow jobs are the perfect way to make sure you don’t end up embarrassed later on.” Zelda flipped over one hand. “Like I said, the biggest issue is making sure you have a guy on hand who’ll let you suck his cock. But I’ve never met a guy who’d turn down a bj.” Her eyes met mine, and I had a sudden, sickening feeling. Had Zelda given me a blow job at some point? Was that what we’d done together?
Gia smacked her lips and closed the lipstick. “Okay, I’m all set now.” She made a kissing sound, grinning at us all. “Now . . . who’s going to volunteer to let me go down on him to make sure my lipstick doesn’t end up on my teeth?”
Nate made a noise that was halfway between a gasp and a groan, his face going red. I stared at the floor, frustration and irritation eating at me. I knew Gia