Modern Girl's Guide to One-Night Stands
Read Modern Girl's Guide to One-Night Stands Online
Authors: GINA DRAYER
Tags: #Modern Girl's Guide Series Book Two
From The Modern Girl’s Guide to One-Night Stands
The Modern Girl’s Guide
To
One-Night Stands
(a steamy, romantic comedy)
by
Gina Drayer
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From The Modern Girl’s Guide to One-Night Stands
RULES OF THE ONE-NIGHTER
An unadulterated night of passion with no strings attached can be a great way to spice up the single life without complications…as long as you stick to a few ground rules.
In this book, we’ve outlined a few things a Modern Girl should think about before jumping into a one-night stand. By following our simple rules, you can enjoy a guilt-free hookup without any of the messy complications of a relationship.
Chapter One
Modern Girl Tip #5: Don’t Be Ashamed; Ask For What You Want—Women have needs just like men. There’s no shame in wanting sex, so don’t be afraid to ask.
“I don’t understand why you’re upset, Julia,” Luke said, his head buried in his phone. “You know I have to stop by the office.”
“You just got home. I haven’t seen you in two months,” Julia said, rubbing her temples.
“Exactly. I’ve been gone for months, so a few more hours shouldn’t matter,” he said without looking up from his screen.
Julia hated that stupid phone. No, hate was too mild a word. She despised that phone. Luke had spent the entire ride from O’Hare Airport checking his email. Was it too much to ask her fiancé to spend fifteen minutes talking to her?
This wasn’t the homecoming she’d hoped for when Luke called last week, saying he would make it home before Christmas after all. She had everything planned, right down to the sexy lingerie from Agent Provocateur she’d picked up yesterday, that was now cutting into her hip. But leave it to him to put business first.
“It’s almost four. The office will be closing soon. It just seems like a waste,” she tried to reason. “I thought we could at least spend your first night home together before you went back to work.”
“I’ve been at the London office for months. There are things that need my attention here.” He set his phone down and picked up her hand, gently kissing the back of her knuckles. "I promise to be home before seven, and we can go out for a nice dinner.”
“And it can’t wait until tomorrow?” she asked, yanking her hand back.
Luke sighed and picked up his phone. “Honestly, Julia. This isn’t like you. We talked every night while I was gone. I don’t think few more hours will kill you."
It might not kill her, but it was sure pissing her off. Sure they talked, but it was like chatting with a coworker. Their schedules never synced. Their discussions were often brief and strictly informative. She couldn’t even entice him to indulge in a little cross-Atlantic phone sex.
These extended trips were putting a strain on their relationship. There was something off between them, and Julia knew they needed to reconnect.
Tearing her gaze from the passing city, she studied Luke while he was still engrossed in his email. Julia had always thought he was handsome, but ever since his promotion, he’d changed.
Today he was in his corporate executive guise, his hair styled fashionably without a strand out of place. He was clean-shaven and his suit was impeccable, even after the long flight from London.
The whole look made him seem distant and untouchable.
But Julia wanted to touch him.
She didn’t know what it was—the new job or the fact she’d accepted his proposal—but she felt like an afterthought these days. Why couldn’t he turn on that charm that had won her over?
Just a passionate kiss in the back of the limo would hold her over until he got home tonight. A subtle hint of desire. Anything. Julia really needed some physical contact.
Deciding to take matters into her own hands, she slid across the bench seat and traced a path up his leg with her fingernail. “I don’t know if I can wait until this weekend to have you all to myself,” she whispered in his ear, desperate to gain his attention. She had inched her hand up to his crotch and brushed his bulge for emphasis. “I’ve been awfully lonely without you to warm my bed.”
“Not here.” He shot a nervous look the driver, then removed her hand, frowning. “I’ll see if I can’t make it home early. When you move to London this summer, you won’t have to worry about being lonely. ”
“Move to London?” Julia shifted away so she could see his face. “What do you mean, move to London?”
“You said when the semester was over you’d join me in London,” he said, looking at her as if she was slow.
“Yes. Like, for a visit. I was planning to come over summer break. You know, to see the town.”
“When I accepted the promotion, it was for the London office. My office is going to be over there for at least the next two years. I told you about this.”
“No. You said it was a possibility, not a certainty. You said we were going to talk about it.”
Julia was panicked now. Their wedding wasn’t scheduled until August. Just over eight months away, and now he was springing this on her?
“We did talk about it.” Luke had gone from distracted to annoyed in record time. “You said you’d come to London this summer. I took you at your word.”
“That’s not what I meant and you know it. We always talked about living here after the wedding. I can’t leave Chicago." She looked out the window at the buildings passing by. This was her city. She couldn’t imagine living anyplace else. Looking back at Luke, she realized he seemed more put out than anything else, and that made her angry. “I have my job and I have to take care of my mom. We’re going to be married, Luke. You can’t make decisions like this without talking with me first.”
“Mr. Davis, we’re at your office,” the driver announced.
Luke was scowling now and he crossed his arms over his heavy wool jacket. “You’re overreacting. We’ve gone over this. You knew my job requires a lot of travel and as my wife there will be social obligations. Christ, Julia. Why are you pulling this on me now? I’m about to go into a meeting with the senior staff.” He leaned down and yanked up his briefcase from the floor. The lines creasing his brow deepened. "We’ll discuss this when I get home tonight.”
And then he left without saying another word. Julia sat in the back of the limo, stunned. Yes, they had talked about his travel and even the social aspects of his job when Luke had asked her to marry him. She’d even lightened her teaching load next year so she could travel with him, but they never talked about leaving the city.
After a full-fledged freak-out on the way back home, Julia realized she might have overreacted. He’d said two years. She could do that. He was an executive at an airline—surely she’d be able to fly back often and look in on her mom. If she kept a small apartment in town for longer visits, she might be able to swing it.
Luke was her future, after all. He was stable and dependable. Just the type of man she wanted to start a family with. Marriage meant compromise, and spending a few years in London wouldn’t be such a hardship. She’d fallen in love with the city last summer, when Luke first took the job with the airline.
She milled about the apartment, waiting for him to come home, but instead all she got was a hasty text.
Luke: Problems at the office. Can’t do dinner. Be home late.
She thought about calling it a night with a tub of ice cream and a sappy movie. Tomorrow would be soon enough to fix this problem. But as night descended, Julia grew anxious to continue their conversation. If he couldn’t come to her, she’d just have to go to him. After putting together a light dinner, she called the car service and headed back to his office.
The building was quiet. It was late, and everyone had already left for the day, so Julia used Luke’s spare passkey and made her way up to the eighteenth floor to Star Atlantic’s offices. Luke’s office was empty, but his jacket and tie were tossed over the back of the chair. She set the packed dinner she’d brought with her on his desk and headed back to the conference room where he liked to spread out.
As she approached the door, Julia could hear what sounded like moans. Thinking she’d caught some interns fooling around, she turned, not wanting to embarrass them or herself, but the sound of Luke’s name stopped her dead.