Free Love Far Away (A Spicy Contemporary Romance) by Leslie Cooper

to have a good time tonight,” Megan
declared.
    “Remember,” added Ashley, “no planning! Tonight we’re going
to go with the flow. Right, Julia?”
    “That’s right,” I said, hoping I wasn’t going to be getting
in over my head.
    Our food arrived soon, and the duck confit I’d ordered was
heavenly. We’d ordered a bottle of wine for our table and it flowed freely- the
waiter had to bring out a fresh bottle more than once. I lost count after the
third bottle appeared at the table.
    I thought I was stuffed full, but when Becca ordered a crème
brûlée, I just had to have one too. “This is heavenly,” I said, closing my eyes
as I took a bite. “I can almost feel my pants not fitting tomorrow.”
    “Who cares,” said Becca. “It’s worth it!”
    “Better than sex?” teased Ashley.
    “I think so,” I said.
    “Bradley obviously hasn’t been doing very well, then,” she
said. “Just you wait, Jules. We’ll find you someone you wouldn’t dream of
comparing to dessert.”
    I rolled my eyes and took another bite of crème brûlée,
Ashley’s comment had stuck in my head and I couldn’t help think about what she
had said. Bradley and I had been together since high school. He’d been my
first, and my only. I’d always felt satisfied when we had sex. I’d never
thought that I was missing out on anything when my friends talked about some of
the different guys they had dated. But Ashley’s comment made me start to
wonder- had I been missing out? Was sex with Bradley in reality just average?
Could it be better? I used to be horrified at the prospect of being with
another man. But to my surprise, for the first time, I felt somewhat curious
about being intimate with someone else. Would he feel different? Would he try
different things?
    We finished our meal just before midnight and paid the bill-
rather, Bradley paid our bill- and then set out in search of a place to dance
the rest of the night away. The concierge at our hotel had directed us to an
area with lots of fashionable restaurants and nightclubs, but we’d arrived in a
taxi so I had no idea where we were in relation to our hotel. At any rate, we
turned a corner down a narrow street and saw crowds of people lining up to get
in various clubs. The thumping bass was so strong that if I put my hand on my
chest I was sure I could feel my heart vibrate.
    “Is this where we’re going?” asked Becca nervously. “I’m not
sure if I’m cool enough to get in to a place like this.”
    “Just show some cleavage and we’ll get in anywhere,” Ashley
advised her.
    “Which place do you want to go to?” asked Megan, looking
around. “It looks like there’s a line everywhere.”
    We stood in the middle of the street while fashionable clubbers
hurried around us in both directions. I felt like it was the first day of high
school again- had I dressed okay? Would the other kids laugh at my outfit?
    “Julia should choose a place,” said Ashley. “That place down
there with the strobe lights looks cool, but it has the longest line. Or Club
Techno, that one looks cool too.” She pointed to the lineup nearest to us. “But
I think Julia should pick. It’s her night, after all.”
    I took a deep breath and looked up and down the street.
Across the street, one of the lineups seemed to feature fewer teenagers and
more people our age. Maybe that would be more comfortable for us- after all, I
wasn’t even sure if I liked techno music.
    But that wasn’t what this trip was about, I reminded myself.
It was about pushing my boundaries and doing things differently. Creating new
experiences. Who knew, maybe I’d end up liking techno music. “Club Strobe
Lights,” I said, pointing down the street at the longest line. “If the line is
the longest, then I think that means it’s the best place.”
    Ashley cheered, and the four of us linked arms as we walked
down to get in line behind the velvet rope.
    We waited for about fifteen minutes before we reached the
front