I innocently held up my hands as I backed away. If there was one thing Julia couldn’t resist, it was a hot girl. She kept talking as I roamed among the shelves, explaining how we all knew each other. She and Lucas used to work together when this place was still a tire shop; she was the only coworker of his that he hadn’t completely hated. She’d been a student at Wickeston High, but a grade above the rest of us, although she ran in some of the same circles. We ended up at a lot of the same parties as a result, including the club I bartend for.

“I remember you from the cheerleading team!” Julia exclaimed, practically squealing in her excitement. “I always saw you at the football games. Girl, you were amazing. Like holy shit, I could never be that flexible.”

I got a quick glimpse of Jess’s face as I passed by and was pleased to see her smiling. Most of our friends weren’t people that Jess was familiar with, but they were people she could trust.

She needed people like that. People who weren’t going to tear her down behind her back, who didn’t make adhering to a strict mold one of the caveats of friendship. As much as it pissed me off, finding Jess abandoned in our garage by her so-called friends had made me sad more than anything. She clung to those people because they were familiar, not because they actually did anything for her life.

I used to try to make everyone I met into a friend, regardless of who they were or how they’d treated me. I’d convinced myself that enough kindness could turn anything around, but not everyone was — or deserved to be — a friend. Learning that lesson hadn’t been easy, but painfully necessary.

I smirked as I picked up a pair of nipple clamps and tucked them under my arm. Jason didn’t know exactly how Lucas was planning to thank him, and I was glad Julia was keeping Jess busy. I planned to have her arrive at our house with a whole box of goodies, like a doll that came with accessories. It tickled my humor to imagine not only Jason being surprised by Jess, but Jess being surprised by what exactly she was in for.

Jason had certain kinks he didn’t often get to indulge and I was eager to give him the opportunity. But I grabbed a few items for myself too; I wasn’t going to miss the chance to play when I finally had Jess all to myself.

“I think that’s everything,” I said, setting my basket down on the counter for Julia to ring up. I slid myself in front of it before Jess could get much of a look. “No peeking now. That would ruin the surprise.”