Before Tessa could respond, Naomi fired off another question. “Wait-was it last night? A drunken mistake?”

She immediately smacked a hand over her mouth. “No, wait! ‘Drunken mistake’ sounds so wrong! Let’s call it… ‘liquid courage’! Drunk words, sober thoughts, right?”

Tessa’s face turned scarlet as she mumbled, “No… It was this morning… after I sobered up.”

Naomi’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Oh my god! So you slept with him while fully sober?”

The way she stressed the word “slept” made Tessa want to disappear on the spot. After a moment of hesitation, she gave a reluctant nod.

Naomi grinned mischievously. “Damn, Tess! So… how was it?”

Tessa stiffened, completely at a loss for words. Before she could formulate an

answer, her phone rang.

It was a perfect escape.

Tessa exhaled softly and pulled out her phone. “I need to take this.”

She glanced at the caller ID.

It was Jasmine.

Without hesitation, Tessa answered.

“Ms. Yates, are you available to come over? I could really use your help with something.”

Tessa took a moment to steady herself. “What’s going on?”

Jasmine got straight to the point, quickly explaining the situation.

Tessa’s brows furrowed with concern. “Wait for me. I’ll be there in a minute.”

Ending the call, she grabbed her bag and stood up. “Something came up I need to go. We’ll meet another time.”

Naomi’s lips curled into a slight pout. “Is there really something going on? You’re not just setting an alarm and making a quick escape to avoid answering our questions, are you?”

Tessa sighed, holding up her phone to show the call log. “See? It’s legit.”

Naomi crossed her arms. “Alright, but next time, you’re telling us everything!”

“Deal.”

With that, Tessa rushed out the door.

Naomi scooted closer to Sienna, nudging her playfully. “So, Sienna, what do you think… it feels like?”

Sienna’s face turned red, and she stuttered, “I-I wouldn’t know… I’ve never dated anyone…”

“Oh, right.” Naomi patted her

shoulder, her face turning serious “You’re our perfect little angel. No

dating for you. Honestly, none of

those immature boys are good

enough for you.”

At that moment, a memory surfaced-one Naomi would rather forget.

Her own disastrous first love.

It happened in her freshman year of college.

He was a senior-handsome, charming, and popular.

With her beauty and wealthy background, Naomi had no lack of admirers. Yet, for

some reason, she found herself drawn to him.

Nonetheless, he was the one who had pursued her from the start.

At first, it was intoxicating. They

!

were inseparable, completely consumed by each other. Naomi spent her days clinging to him,. bombarding Tessa and Sienna with relentless displays of affection.

But the flashier the romance, the quicker it burned out.

Naomi learned that lesson the hard way.

She had been dating him for two months when his long-distance girlfriend suddenly appeared. It was only then that Naomi realized she had been played.

Furious, she and the other woman teamed up to expose the scumbag. His cheating scandal spread like wildfire, turning him into the most despised man on Rivertown University’s campus.

Quentin had even stormed into the university and beaten him to a pulp.

And if that wasn’t enough, he went a step further-using his family’s influence to ensure the scumbag was expelled for good.

Since then, Naomi had developed a deep aversion to relationships. Years had passed, but she had never once considered dating again.

The most intimate thing she had ever done with that bastard was kiss him— anything beyond that had never even crossed her mind.

She let out a long sigh. “At this rate… I might just stay single forever…”

…

Tessa rushed over as fast as she could.

When she arrived, she found Jasmine comforting a young girl crying uncontrollably.

“Ms. Yates, you’re finally here!” Jasmine’s eyes lit up the moment she saw her. “Please, help Anne-she’s been through a lot.”