CHAPTER NINE

S age stared in the mirror. She’d wrapped a large white towel around herself after her shower and was contemplating whether to go to bed early or join her roommates in the living room to watch a movie.

Her living room.

One glance at her bed and she decided Netflix while she was cozy under the duvet sounded far more appealing.

But that wasn’t why she was staring at herself. Sage was wondering who she had become now. After last night. She let the towel fall to the floor and cupped her breasts. Her thumb flicked her nipples and her pussy twitched eagerly.

Lying to yourself was hard.

Sage wanted more of what she’d had last night. It was lucky she didn’t have Ari’s phone number, or she would’ve texted him.

God, she didn’t want to be that girl. The one who didn’t realize it was just a one-night thing and wouldn’t move on.

Because she wasn’t.

Neither Ari nor Oliver was the type of man she was looking for. Nothing about them matched her Life List .

Yet she craved their touch.

Truthfully, it was Ari who had been on her mind all day, not Oliver, but Sage knew she could not say no to either of them.

She felt different.

Perhaps last night had changed her. She felt more liberated, sexually free, and confident. Sage had decided she was going to ask Carl out next week. If he said no, then she’d go on Tinder or some dating app and start dating.

Two men.

Wow, she still couldn’t believe that had happened.

One day, she was going to tell Piper, who was far more adventurous than her, and couldn’t wait to see her response.

“Sage! Door!” Tony called.

What?

Sage pulled the towel back on and poked her head out the door.

“Who is it?” she asked, but it was too late. The visitor had pushed through the front door, passed Tony, and was making a beeline for her.

“What are you doing here, Piper?” Sage asked, glaring at her sister.

She knew exactly what Piper was doing here. Her nosy parker sister had come over to see who she was going out with. Unfortunately, that was a big fat no one . Sage couldn’t wait to hear her excuse.

“I need my blue earrings. You borrowed them, remember. I need them urgently so saved you the trouble of bringing them to me,” Piper replied.

Sage frowned and dropped a hip. “Seriously? I’ve had them for six months and you want them now? Tonight?”

Piper stared her up and down. “Thought you were going out? Out to the living room?”

Sage strode across the room and opened her jewelry box. Digging through, she found the blue earrings and stomped back over to her sister.

“Here,” she said, shoving them into Piper’s hands. “Now go. I have to get ready.”

Sage was grateful she hadn’t been curled up in bed with her trackpants and Netflix. It was one thing to lie, another to get caught. Not to mention it made her look like a complete loser. She could tell her sister what she’d been up to, but there was still a big divide between them.

Piper took the dangly blue gems and sat on the edge of the bed.

“Piper,” Sage sighed.

“Get dressed. I’ll just sit here and chat to you,” Piper said. “What are you going to wear? The black dress or the silver one with the low back? I love that one.”

Damn it.

Piper knew she was lying.

She’d always been impossible to lie to.

“I’m not getting dressed in front of you,” she said, although she’d done it thousands of times in her life.

“Ugh, Sage. Come on. When are you going to forgive me?”

Sage crossed her arms.

“I’m not having that conversation right now. Can you please leave so I can get ready? I said we can catch up next weekend.”

Piper’s shoulders sagged a little and she let out a little sigh. Sage had said she’d forgiven her, but they both knew they had only been words. Perhaps it was time to give her a second chance?

Maybe.

“Look, forget it,” Piper said, standing up.

“Wait.” Sage chewed her bottom lip. Maybe she could throw her an olive branch and tell the truth about tonight.

Piper raised a brow.

“I have a confession.”