Lie of My Life

5 The Ad

The next day was Monday and I had so many meetings that I hardly stepped away from my desk once. I had to miss lunch with Emma and cancel a trip to the construction site with Carter and Aaron. By the time evening rolled around, I was exhausted as I made my way up the stairs toward my apartment. I entered to find my apartment full. All four guys occupied my couch and chairs and Emma sat at the table, typing away on her laptop. She looked up when I entered and closed it.

"You look exhausted," she told me.

"Oh, thank you," I answered sarcastically.

"Do you want us to leave? I can kick them out."

I smiled. "Not a chance."

Then I walked to the living room and sat in a chair, grabbing a beer and setting my phone on the coffee table. Emma came over too, settling in on the floor, back against my legs. We watched the game for a while and I lost myself in it, forgetting my exhaustion while I cheered on the Grizzlies with the guys. After a while my phone buzzed on the table and I sighed. Emma grabbed it and handed it to me.

"You answer it," I told her jokingly. "I'm done for the day."

She laughed and unlocked my screen. Instantly, her eyes got wide and she gasped. Her cheeks even reddened.

"What?" I asked and she threw the phone into my lap. "What are you- oh."

I covered my own mouth with a hand. It was a text from Elijah and attached was an image of his...

"Why is your friend sending me this?" I snapped, thrusting the phone into Wesley's face. His eyes met the screen and then he looked away in disgust.

"Oh, come on man. Don't show me that!" he whined and I pulled the phone away, locking it so that the screen was black but we had already drawn the attention of the others.

"What is it?" Aaron asked in interest.

"That guy Wes works with sent Ava a picture of his penis," Emma told them in disbelief. Their mouths all fell open in shock.

"What?" Carter asked. "An unsolicited dick pic? Who does that?"

"You haven't done that?" Aaron asked, genuinely surprised.

"What? You think I would do that? I would never send a picture like that to a girl. I mean, unless she asked."

"Who would ask?" Shane asked and I couldn't help it. Emma and I both laughed at that. He smiled over at Emma at the sound and she blushed for an entirely different reason.

"You really have never sent a girl a picture like that?" Aaron asked Carter, unwilling to let it go. Carter frowned at him and became suddenly very serious.

"I would never disrespect a woman like that."

Aaron nodded, still surprised but seemingly impressed with this new insight into one of his oldest friends.

"Why is he sending me this?" I asked, drawing the conversation back to the issue at hand. "I mean, he was such a gentleman last night. Almost too much so."

"That's it then," Wesley said. "That's why he's doing this. He was attracted to you but maybe he doesn't want a relationship with you so he's sending you this to see if you would be interested in something strictly physical."

"Oh is that what this is saying, Wes?" I asked again, flashing him the picture one more time.

"Ugh! Stop it!"

"How am I supposed to respond to this? What does he want?"

"He wants you to reciprocate," Emma explained then. "You know, he wants... you to send a picture back."