The Good Girl (Sample)

Chapter One

"Oh my god, Ramona, I can't believe Jack did that to you," Noreen, my best friend, said as we lay on her bed listening to music on a Saturday afternoon. "I mean, who the hell does he think he is?"

I shrugged my shoulders and rolled over onto my stomach to look through the stack of cassette tapes piled on the bed between us.

"Here, put this on," I said, handing Noreen a Mötley Crüe cassette.

As the music burst out of the speakers, I closed my eyes and pressed my face into the pillow. Noreen was right. Who the hell did Jack think he was?

"Well, at least you didn't have sex with him," Noreen said. "I mean, you didn't, did you?"

I picked up my head and looked at her. "Well, duh, of course not. When did I have the chance? I only ever saw him at the skating rink."

"How far did you go with him?"

"I let him feel my boobs under my shirt. He tried going under my bra, but I didn't let him. I didn't want him to think I was too easy, ya know?" Maybe I should have let him. That slut Allison probably screwed him already. I already knew of at least five guys she'd had sex with.

"Did you...touch it?" Noreen giggled.

"Only through his clothes." He had taken my wrist and pressed my hand against the fly of his jeans. I could feel the hard lump beneath and I had squeezed it. His reaction had been almost funny, the way his whole body had shuddered and the weird little moan that sounded like he had been punched in the gut. I had almost laughed. "Yeah, I think he came in his pants."

I was giggling now, too.

"So was it like...big?"

"How should I know? It's the only one I've ever touched."

"Remember that movie? The one I stole from my Uncle Mike? Was it like the guy in that?"

I thought back to the X-rated movie Noreen had stolen from her uncle's duffle bag while he had been staying with them last winter. That guy had been enormous. "God, no! Nothing like that!"

"Hmm." Noreen looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well, Jack was too young for you. Who dates a guy their own age anyway? I mean, you're almost fourteen years old. We need to find you a proper man."

The phone rang and Noreen picked it up.

"Yeah," she said, her typical greeting. "Oh, hello, Edward." Uh-oh, she was using her boyfriend's full name. "Damn right I'm mad! How could your dickhead friend do anything to hurt my beautiful, perfect, awesome, precious, wonderful best friend...Damn right I'm holding it against you. Birds of a feather and all...How should I know if you're cheating on me, Eddie? Maybe you have a giant slutty girlfriend on the side, too."

I could hear the faint, angry squawk of Eddie's voice as Noreen rolled her eyes and twirled the phone cord between her fingers. He suddenly became silent, and Noreen held the receiver from her ear and looked at it in disbelief for a moment and then slammed it down on the hook.

"Jerk hung up on me." She shook her head. "That's okay, we'll see who's kissing my ass when he wants a blow job later."

I had to admit I was jealous about how much farther she had gotten with Eddie than I had with Jack. They had been together a lot longer, though. Almost two months now. If she stayed with him much longer, she would certainly lose her virginity first.

"Well, I'm gonna go home and eat. It's five o'clock," I said, glancing at the clock. "I'll see ya tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? You're not coming skating with me tonight? I mean, what else is there to do in the shit hole town on a Saturday night?"