Free The Proposition by Katie Ashley Page B

middle of reading
her appointments for the day, her phone buzzed in her purse. She
grabbed it out and scrolled through her texts. Seeing one from
Aidan caused her heart to leap into her throat.
    Sorry I didn’t say good-bye. You looked too
peaceful to wake up. Looking forward to Wednesday---A
    Emma couldn’t fight the goofy grin from
filling her cheeks. He wasn’t such a huge asshole after all. He
actually cared enough to send her a text to check on her.
    Quickly, her fingers flew over her keyboard. Thanks. I did sleep well last night…well, after everything. I’m
looking forward to Wednesday too.
    Casey came in the door with a steaming mug of
coffee and passed it over to Emma.
    As Emma blew little waves over the dark
liquid, Casey’s lips turned downwards into a pout. “Em, I really am
hurt you didn’t call me on the way home this morning. I mean, I’ve
been dying all night and morning to hear from you! I drove Nate
practically crazy last night wondering about how you were
doing.”
    Emma shot out of her chair, sloshing coffee
onto the floor. “You seriously told Nate about mine and Aidan’s
hookup?”
    Casey rolled her yes. “Of course I did. Don’t
you think he’d wonder what was up when you turned up pregnant out
of the blue?”
    “I guess you have a point.”
    “I think by the end of the night, he was just
as antsy to hear from you as well. I think his concern was more
about making sure you were okay, and that Aidan hadn’t tied you up
to subject you to some kinky shit or something.”
    Sweeping her hand to her hip, Emma gave Casey
an exasperated look. “And what did you expect? Me to text you a
blow by blow account of what was happening?”
    “That would have been interesting. I’m not
sure how moans and groans translate in text speak.”
    “You’re impossible,” Emma muttered, gulping
down some coffee. The warm liquid burned a welcoming caffeine trail
down her throat and to her stomach.
    “So how was it?”
    A flashback of the previous night’s events
flickered through Emma’s mind like an X-rated movie, and she
couldn’t help blushing. “Amazing.”
    “So it was everything you thought it would be
with him?”
    Emma nodded. “And more.”
    Relishing every detail, Casey leaned forward
so far in her chair that she almost face-planted to the floor. “So
how many times did you come?”
    “Casey!” Emma cried.
    “Oh come on, Em! With Nate’s crazy interning
hours, I have to live vicariously through you,” Casey argued.
    Warmth flooded into Emma’s cheeks. “Okay,
fine then. Four…No wait five. There was the time in the shower,
too.”
    Casey’s dark eyes widened, and she clapped
her hands gleefully. “Em, that’s fanfuckingtastic!!”
    “Only you would clap for orgasms!”
    “I can’t help it! I’m just so happy for
you.”
    A dreamy sigh escaped Emma’s lips and then
she told Casey some of the details that weren’t so mortifying. When
she got to the part about Aidan staying the night, Casey’s eyebrows
furrowed. “What’s wrong? Didn’t you think that was sweet?” Emma
asked.
    “Yeah, it is but…”
    Emma twisted her hands frantically. “Would
you just spit it out?”
    “I just want you to be careful, Em. You’ve
slept with him once, and you’re already starting to invest too much
emotionally.”
    “I am not!” Emma protested.
    “Yes, you are. You wigged out when he tried
to leave last night, and you’re already giddy about him texting you
this morning. I just don’t want to see you get hurt, okay?”
    Emma let her head fall back against the
chair’s headrest and sighed. “You’re right. I am feeling too much.”
She blew a strand of hair out of her face and gazed over at Casey.
“Why does everything have to be so damn hard on me? Women
everywhere can drop their panties and have mindless sex, but no,
not me. I have to get emotionally invested in a douchenozzle who is
only willing to knock me up for his own pleasure!”
    Casey laughed. “Don’t be so hard