One Tiny Lie

“1. I’m brilliant 2. I’m charming 3. I’m hung like a thoroughbred 4. I’ve stopped all philandering 5. I’m highly skilled, as you’ve learned the other night. P.S. Stop staring at my hands. I know what you want me to with them.”

“Because you’re not a one-night girl, Irish.” (...) “You’re my forever girl.”

“The only thing I regret is that it ever ended. And I'm the one who's jealous. Insanely so.”

“Life has a funny way of creating it's own tests. It throws curve balls that make you do and think and feel things that are in direct conflict with what you had planned and don't allow you to operate in terms of black and white.”

“Because you're not a one-night girl, Irish.' Leaning in to place a kiss on my jawline, he whispers, 'You're my forever girl.”

“He’s five hundred for two hours!” Swinging her hand Ashton’s way, she adds, “Seven-fifty for him because he’s young. You should hear how he makes my sister scream!”

“Texts between Dr. Stayner & Livie(with a little help from Kacey)Dr. Stayner: Tell me you did one out-of-character thing last nightLivie: I drank enough Jell-O shots to fill a small pool, and then proceeded to break out every terrible dance move known to mankind. I am now the proud owner of a tattoo and if I didn’t have a video to prove otherwise, I’d believe I had it done in a back alley with hepatitis-laced needles. Satisfied?Dr. Stayner: That’s a good start. Did you talk to a guy?Kacey(answering for Livie): Not only did I talk to a guy but I’ve now seen two penises, including the one attached to the naked man in my room this morning when I woke up. I have pictures. Would you like to see one?Dr. Stayner: Glad you’re making friends. Talk to you on Saturday”

“I walk away. I walk away from the voices, the shouts, the disappointment.I walk away from my deceptions, my mistakes, my regrets. I walk away from all that I am supposed to be and all I cannot be. For all of it is a lie.”

“You walked up and practically ripped my toga off as you pulled me down, shouting, "Kiss me, I'm Irish!”

“If there's such thing as a virgin slut, I believe I fit the description.”

“It’s not funny, Kacey!” I hiss. “That guy forced himself on me!”She rolls her eyes but then, after a long pause, she sighs. “Yeah, you’re right.” Reaching over, she pinches the guy’s arm without hesitation. “Hey, buddy!”“You do that to her again and I’ll sneak into your room and rip your balls off while you sleep, capisce?” she warns with a pointed finger. Most times my sister’s threats involve the mutilation of testicles.”

“You said you wanted to forget everything. But...I don't want you to ever forget a thing that happened between us. Ever."The most gentle of smiles passes over Ashton's face. "Irish, if there's one thing I've never been able to forget, it's single second with you.”

“I’ve never had two sisters. . . . ” he begins with a suggestive arched brow.Oh. My. God.“And you never will. Not these two sisters, anyway.”He shrugs. “Not at the same time, maybe.”“Don’t worry. When my baby sister gets laid for the first time, it won’t be with you.”“Do you know what you just did?”“Painted a big virginal bull’s-eye on your back?” Kacey confirms with a scrunched-up face.”

“I’m sorry . . .” She shrugs, glancing back at him. “Gotta admit he’s hot, though, Livie. He looks like a Mediterranean underwear model. There’d be no coyote-ugly situation in the morning there.”

“I don't have all the pieces to fix this beautiful, trapped, broken man, but I do have one piece and it's mine to give. For one night, for all nights. For however long he wants it. Me. Completely.”

“I know I shouldn’t ask, but I do it anyway. “What you said in that note. Why?”He looks away for a moment and I watch his jaw clench. When he meets my eyes, there’s resignation there. “Because you’re not a one-night girl, Irish.” Leaning in to place a kiss on my jawline, he whispers, “You’re my forever girl.”

“Sometimes in life you make a decision and you find yourself questioning it. A lot. You don’t regret it, exactly. You know that you probably made the right choice and that you’re probably better off for it. But you do spend a lot of time wondering what the hell you were thinking.”

“Dr. Stayner once suggested that all people face a day in their life that defines who they are, that shapes who they will become, that sets them on their path. He said that one day will either guide or haunt them until they take their last breath.”

“Livie, I think you’re completely fucked up.”Chunks of cheesecake fly out of my mouth and splatter against the deck’s glass panel as I choke on my fork. My sister has a twisted sense of humor.”

“Livie: Connor where's your bathroom?Connor: there's one through that doorway, around the corner. First right.Grant: oh, I'd give that one hour. Ty was in there. It's not suitable for ladies. Or most humans.Ty: It's that damn chilli your mama made”

“Ohmigod,” I moan, clutching my stomach. I’m sure I’m going to be sick. I’m going to become an exhibitionist vomiter.My heart is back to beating—racing, actually—as a new level beyond mortification slams into me. I sounded just like the actress in that awful video of Ben’s that Kacey made me watch over the summer. Literally. I accidently walked in on those weirdos watching it one night. Kacey took that as an opportunity to pin me down on the couch while Trent, Dan, and Ben howled with laughter at my flaming cheeks and horrified shrieks.My sister is the Antichrist. This is all her fault. Hers and Stayner’s. And those stupid Jell-O shooters.”

“one mistake I will never regret for the rest of my life, it is Ashton Henley.”

“Connor asked that I make you like me,” Ashton casually says, easing his tight grip on my hips so that I’m not pressed directly against his erection, allowing me to breathe again. His mouth twists as if from something sour. “Since he really likes you.” Then he sighs, looking over my head, as he adds, “And I’m his best friend.” As if he’s reminding himself of that. Right, Connor. I swallow. The mention of Connor and his feelings for me while my hands are still flattened against his best friend’s chest, the one that I pawed repeatedly not even two weeks ago, fills me with guilt. “So?” Serious dark eyes lock on my face. “How do I do that, Irish? How do I make you like me?”

“Life has a funny way of creating its own tests. It throws curve balls that make you do and think and feel things that are in direct conflict with what you had planned and don't allow you to operate in terms of black and white.”

“And so I walk away. I walk away from the voices, the shouts, the disappointment. I walk away from my deceptions, my mistakes, my regrets. I walk away from all that I am supposed to be and all that I cannot be. For all of it is a lie.”

“Boys do suck the brains out of smart girls.”

“I’m giving you your freedom tonight, Ashton. So fucking take it.” I don’t regret a second of it. Not as he flips me onto my back. Not as he pushes into my body without hesitation. Not as I cry out with that moment of pain. And certainly not as he claims his freedom. And gives me a part of mine.”

“The only thing I regret is that it ever ended. And I’m the one who’s jealous. Insanely so.”

“Probably the same thing she always says: Go live and let yourself make mistakes.”

“Stunned” cannot adequately describe how I feel right now. I am bursting with emotion—a volcanic mixture of happiness and sadness and adoration—”