Chapter 321: Lacking III

Chapter 321: Chapter 321: Lacking III

Julian stared at him for another moment.

Then he gave a low whistle.

"I did not expect that from Vivienne Beaumont."

Damian looked at him.

"What?"

"Christopher Archibald and you?"

Julian shook his head.

"She’s been seeing Christopher while having this arrangement with you?"

Damian said nothing.

"She does know you two are in the same year, same class, same department, right?"

"Yes."

Julian let out another quiet whistle.

"She’s completely outdoing me."

Damian frowned.

"What does that mean?"

"I mean, I thought I was bad."

Julian shook his head, almost impressed.

"She’s on another level."

Adrian gave him a look.

Julian shrugged.

"I’m just saying."

He looked back at Damian.

"But I have to give it to her."

A grin tugged at his mouth.

"Christopher Archibald and Damian Blackwood."

He shook his head.

"And she was Anthony Ashford’s fiancée."

Julian laughed under his breath.

"That’s a menace."

Damian gave him a flat look.

Julian sobered.

"Anyway..."

He leaned against the desk.

"I don’t know what she’s planning."

A pause.

"But what are you planning to do about her?"

Damian’s expression hardened.

"I don’t know."

Julian studied him.

"Don’t tell me you’re still planning to hang around."

Damian said nothing.

Julian raised an eyebrow.

"Because if you are..."

He shrugged.

"Well, I can’t exactly blame you."

Damian looked at him sharply.

Julian held up his hands, but he didn’t look particularly apologetic.

"Even I wouldn’t exactly mind being just the other man if I got to fuck Vivienne Beaumont."

Damian’s expression darkened.

Julian gave a short laugh, trying to lighten the mood.

"I’m just saying."

"Fuck off."

Julian laughed.

"I’m serious."

"That’s not helping."

"All right, all right."

Julian grinned, though his eyes remained on Damian.

"Besides, I don’t think I could keep up with Vivienne’s impossible standards anyway."

Damian rolled his eyes.

Julian’s smile faded.

"But seriously."

He looked at Damian.

"She chose to be with Christopher."

Damian didn’t answer.

"Not secretly. Not just some arrangement."

Julian gestured vaguely.

"She was walking around campus holding his hand."

Damian’s jaw tightened.

"Yeah."

"So..."

Julian paused.

"What are you actually going to do?"

Damian looked away.

He wasn’t going to tell them that he still wanted her.

Wasn’t going to tell them that part of him was hoping she’d come back.

Wasn’t going to admit that, if she asked him to continue seeing her, he didn’t know if he’d have the strength to say no.

That wasn’t something he was prepared to say out loud.

Julian watched him.

"Come on, mate."

He sighed.

"I know Christopher isn’t exactly some nobody."

Damian glanced at him.

"Student Council. Polo. Academics. Family. Women."

He shrugged.

"But you’re still Damian Blackwood."

Damian said nothing.

Julian nodded toward him.

"You’re not exactly short on anything either."

He paused.

"Hmm... except experience, maybe."

Julian laughed.

Damian frowned.

He knew that.

That was the problem.

He had been thinking about it for hours.

Julian noticed his expression.

"Oh, don’t tell me you’ve been thinking about that too."

Damian looked away.

"Maybe."

Julian let out a short laugh.

"Well, there you go."

"That isn’t exactly helpful."

"I didn’t say it was."

Damian leaned back against the headboard.

The thought had already been bothering him.

Christopher had dated before.

He knew what he was doing.

Damian had never had anyone before Vivienne.

And somehow, that suddenly felt like a disadvantage he couldn’t ignore.

Julian watched him for a moment.

"Maybe you could use a little more experience."

Damian gave him a flat look.

Julian shrugged.

"I’m just saying."

Damian didn’t answer.

Because, irritatingly, he’d already wondered the same thing.

Had he been good enough?

He had always assumed he was.

But how the hell was he supposed to know?

Vivienne was his first.

He had nothing to compare himself with.

Julian seemed to read the thought on his face.

"Fuck."

Damian looked at him.

"What?"

"You actually are thinking about it."

"I’m not discussing this with you."

Julian laughed.

"Come on."

He leaned forward.

"Maybe that’s the whole problem."

Damian frowned.

"What problem?"

"Maybe you’re lousy in bed."

Damian stared at him.

"Fuck off."

"I’m serious."

"You’re an idiot."

Julian held up his hands.

"Think about it. You and Vivienne were friends with benefits. Mostly physical. That was the arrangement."

Damian’s jaw tightened.

"So maybe," Julian continued, "she decided Christopher is better."

"She hasn’t been in bed with him yet."

Julian’s eyebrows went up.

"How do you know that?"

Damian looked at him.

"I just know."

"How?"

"I know."

Julian stared at him.

"Have you been monitoring her twenty-four hours a day?"

"No."

"Then how the hell do you know?"

Damian hesitated.

He knew he shouldn’t say it.

He knew it was none of Julian’s business.

But he couldn’t help himself.

"I was her first."

Julian blinked.

"That happened on Saturday."

Damian nodded.

Julian’s expression changed.

"Wait."

He pointed at Damian.

"How do you know you were actually her first?"

Damian frowned.

"What kind of question is that?"

"I’m just saying. Girls fake things."

Damian stared at him.

Then, against his better judgment, he said,

"Man, I’m not an idiot."

Julian waited.

Damian exhaled.

"I broke her hymen."

There was a beat.

Damian immediately looked away.

"Fuck."

He rubbed a hand over his face.

"I did not need to tell you that."

Julian was already grinning.

"So..."

Damian glanced back at him.

"You were her first."

"Yes."

"And now she’s with another guy."

Damian’s jaw tightened.

Julian nodded slowly.

"That’s rough, mate."

Then his grin widened.

"Also, doesn’t that mean she tried you once and immediately went looking for another guy?"

Damian narrowed his eyes.

"We’ve been doing this for four days."

Julian’s eyebrows rose.

He gave Damian a look.

"Four days."

Damian said nothing.

Julian laughed.

"Maybe you really are lousy in bed."

"Fuck off."

Julian laughed harder.

Damian grabbed a pillow and threw it at him.

Julian caught it against his chest.

"All right, all right."

He was still laughing.

"But seriously."

He shrugged.

"Maybe there’s another explanation."

Adrian, who had been quiet through most of it, finally spoke.

"Don’t wound his ego too much, Julian."

Julian glanced at him.

"I’m helping."

"You’re enjoying yourself."

"Those aren’t mutually exclusive."

Adrian shook his head.

Then he looked at Damian.

"Maybe Vivienne simply wants to try something different."

Julian raised an eyebrow.

"Different?"

"She had the situation with Anthony. Then she was with Damian."

Adrian shrugged.

"Perhaps she doesn’t know what she wants yet."

Julian nodded thoughtfully.

"So she’s sampling."

Damian immediately reached for the pillow again.

"Don’t."

Julian laughed.

"I didn’t say it."

"You were about to."

Adrian’s mouth twitched.

"I was going to say she may simply want to experience different things before deciding what she actually wants."

Damian threw the pillow at him.

Adrian caught it.

Julian burst out laughing.

"See? Even Adrian thinks you might be the trial run."

"Fuck both of you."

They laughed.

Damian leaned back, arms crossed.

"She’s not—"

He stopped.

Because he didn’t actually know how to finish that sentence.

He wasn’t going to defend Vivienne.

Not because he thought Julian was right.

He just couldn’t.

Because the truth was, maybe she really had wanted something different.

Maybe Anthony had broken her heart.

Maybe Damian had been the first person she turned to afterward.

Maybe she had liked what they had.

Maybe she had enjoyed the four days they’d spent together.

And maybe that still hadn’t been enough.

He hated that possibility.

Because then what did that make him?

A first.

A rebound.

A few days of excitement.

And then she moved on.

His stomach tightened.

What if they were right?

He looked away.

That thought was somehow worse than the jokes.

Julian watched him for a moment.

Then he sighed.

"Look, mate."

Damian glanced at him.

"You already knew she liked Christopher."

"I know."

"You knew that while you were with her."

"I know."

"And you still got attached."

Damian said nothing.

Julian leaned back.

"So don’t sit here trying to figure out why she chose him."

Damian frowned.

"Then what am I supposed to do?"

"Get some perspective."

Julian shrugged.

"Maybe get some experience."

Damian gave him a look.

"Here we go again."

"I’m serious this time."

Julian gestured toward him.

"You’ve only ever been with one woman. Maybe that’s what you’re missing."

Damian didn’t answer.

Julian continued.

"Go out. Talk to someone. Get some experience. Figure out what you’re actually good at."

Damian’s expression soured.

"And if you ever end up with Vivienne again..."

Julian grinned.

"Maybe she’ll notice you’ve improved."

Damian stared at him.

"Fuck off."

Julian laughed.

"I’m kidding."

He stood and stretched.

"Mostly."

Adrian shook his head.

"Don’t start doing things just to prove something to yourself."

Julian glanced at him.

"I said he should get out of the room. Not get in bed with the first woman he meets."

Adrian ignored him.

He looked at Damian.

"You’re upset because she chose someone else. That’s all."

Damian looked away.

"Maybe."

"So don’t make decisions because you’re angry."

A pause.

"But Julian does have a point."

Damian looked back at him.

Adrian continued calmly.

"There’s no reason for you to spend the entire day in here."

Julian nodded.

"Exactly."

"Get out," Adrian said. "Have lunch. Go to the party tonight. Talk to people. Whatever happens after that is up to you."

Damian stared at both of them.

"You two are unbelievable."

"Maybe," Julian said.

Then he grinned.

"But I’m starving."

He headed for the door.

"Come on, Damian. Let’s get lunch."

Damian sighed.

"Fine."

Julian opened the door.

Damian grabbed his jacket from the chair and followed them.

--

Tbc