Free Hot Water by Callie Sparks Page A

quickly change my tune. “Oh, yeah,” I say with a nonchalant shrug. “I partied with Caden Williams and Rhys Bradley last weekend.”
    They all look up from their phones. Jacinta says, “Seriously?”
    “Yeah. They’re . . . nice.” Cute? Nice? My powers of description know no bounds.
    “Nice like shit!” Jacinta cries. “Tell us more!”
    They all stare at me expectantly. Of course they’d want details. I’m quickly wishing I’d kept my big mouth shut. Hadn’t I told Mr. Williams, my boss, the big guy, that I’d keep it between us? Shit. “There’s not much to tell. We just shared a limo,” I backpedal, doing damage control.
    Jacinta grins wickedly. “Our little Miss Chase has a wild side, I see. But we’ll need more information than that. I can’t believe that you just rode around in a limo with those two, and that’s all.”
    They all seem rapt. Joely points out, “They call Caden Williams the Iceman because he never shows a ripple. Last year, when the market crashed, all the executives were running around like chickens with their heads cut off, and he didn’t seem fazed at all.”
    That sounds about right. Despite the obvious shock of seeing me, he hadn’t raised his voice, hadn’t created a scene. He was in complete control. Well, until my skirt fell . . . oh, God. That hadn’t really happened, had it? I shrug off the memory, which is making my face hotter than a fever. “It’s nothing really. It was a bunch of people, besides them. Can we please keep this quiet? I don’t like to gossip at work.”
    “That’s very noble of you. Whore,” Jacinta mutters, with a teasing wink.
    Dax says, “It wouldn’t be Monday if Jacinta wasn’t going around calling people she just met whores.”
    Jacinta ignores them, and leans over the table toward me. “I suppose we will just need to pry it out of you. I know. If you and I end up going to Vegas, I will get you drunk, and you will spill all.”
    Violet laughs. “Jacinta, she’s underage.”
    “Fuck that,” Jacinta sighs. “The girl has the face of an angel and a big rack.” She stares directly at my chest. “You’re eighteen? Fuck. I’m jealous. What are you? Triple D?”
    “Just a C,” I answer, feeling warm, wondering, do professional people talk about their bra size with people they just met? I slowly cross my arms over my chest.
    Still, she continues sizing me up like something at the grocer’s she’s planning on buying. At least she does not squeeze me like a cantaloupe. “Look at those eyes, too. Big as a baby’s. She looks so innocent.”
    Joely says, “That’s because she is innocent.”
    “Anyway. She’s stacked. The clubs will welcome her with open arms. Age is inconsequential.”
    Wait, what did she just say about me? Was that supposed to be a compliment? “Seriously,” I say, getting all red-faced. “There’s nothing to pry. Nothing happened.”
    Joely comes to the rescue. “Jace. She isn’t even nineteen. If she says she just shared a limo with him, that’s all that happened. You guys have evil, evil minds, and I won’t have you tainting our little Cicily.” She puts a protective arm around me, and I know the red has risen up to my ears, because they’re burning. If only they knew some of the things sweet little Cicily had been doing last weekend.
    They all start to nod, accepting Joely’s explanation. Then Jacinta mutters, “I don’t know. I was a slut when I was nineteen.”
    “Shocker,” Dax quips.
    Everyone, even Jacinta, laughs.
    I’m grateful when Charlotte changes the subject. “Have you ever been to Las Vegas?” she asks me.
    I’m too embarrassed to tell her that I’ve never really been anywhere outside of the tri-state area. “No. Have you?”
    She shakes her head, and we share a smile. I can already tell that I like her. She’s more reserved than the others, more . . . my speed.
    “I have. I’ve been to two bachelorette parties in Vegas. It is one big fucking party,” Jacinta sighs.