“No, Mel. It’s okay,” Olivia breathed. “I didn’t want to have to deal with this tonight,” she explained.

Olivia had met Simon while she was working at the wellness center. He worked construction for one of the companies that had been hired to design and construct a new studio room. He asked Olivia out for a drink the first day he was there. And every day for the next month. On the day that the studio room construction was finished, he asked one last time. Olivia reluctantly agreed.

“Why not?” Bridget asked, sounding surprised. “I thought you guys were dating.”

“Miss Olivia doesn’t date, remember? She has sex with guys while remaining hopelessly unattached,” Kiera explained, laughing as she eyed Olivia.

“Kiera!” Olivia shouted, playfully smacking her friend. “You make it sound like I’m a whore!”

“Oh, you’re not a whore. Far from it. You just refuse to be in a relationship. With anyone.”

Olivia glared at Kiera who knew her reasons for never getting involved with the opposite sex. “I don’t refuse anything. I just find relationships to be full of disappointment. Life is disappointing enough without the stress of a relationship.”

“So, what’s the deal with Simon now?” Melanie asked, trying to lighten the mood at the table.

“The sex has gotten to be way too boring. The first few times it was good, probably because I was drunk. But now, well, let’s just say, it does nothing for me. I haven’t come once. And the other night, he wanted to stay over.” Her face cringed at the thought of waking up next to Simon. Or anyone, for that matter.

“What’s the problem with that?” Melanie asked. Olivia had a great deal of affection for her friend. Melanie was younger than the rest of the girls, having just turned twenty-one a few months previously. She was tall, tan, and blonde - a college guys wet dream. Her personality was perfect for her job; she worked at the front desk of the wellness center. She was a total sweetheart and one of Olivia’s favorite employees, but sometimes she was naive.

“Oh, you don’t know Libby’s rules,” Kiera laughed.

“You have rules?” Bridget asked, trying to hide her shock. She had been working at the center with Olivia for the past month as a personal trainer and they had gotten to know each other fairly well, but the subject of Olivia’s sexual habits never came up before.

“Well, I don’t do the relationship thing,” Olivia explained. “But before I just get in the sack with anyone, I lay down the law. No sleeping over. I get my own space. I hang out with my friends. I have no desire to meet their friends. If they happen to meet mine, so be it. We only sleep with each other and we’re honest when we want to move on. I’m really just looking for someone to get me off a few times a week and that’s it. I don’t do relationships, like I said.”

“God, I wish I could be like that,” Melanie said with a dreamy look on her face.

“No you don’t, Mel,” Olivia replied quickly. She knew it wasn’t the healthiest form of relationship. She just hated getting too close to anyone. Once you did, they disappointed you one way or another. Or they would leave you and you’re stuck picking up the pieces of your shattered heart. So, don’t get close, and you don’t ever have to deal with the heartache, so Olivia thought.

“Fuck, I need a drink now. You’re too depressing,” Kiera laughed, looking for a server, scowling when there were none in sight.

“I’ll go grab a few drinks. What do you want?” Olivia asked, getting up from the table.

“The usual.”

“Okay. I’ll be right back. Anyone else need another drink?”

Melanie and Bridget shook their heads and she headed to the bar to get some drinks. There were quite a few people surrounding the bar, so she got in line to wait her turn to order when suddenly she felt two hands on her waist.

“Hey beautiful,” someone whispered into Olivia’s ear from behind. She turned around and saw Simon standing in back of her.

“Oh hi,” she replied coolly, exhibiting no enthusiasm for him. She turned back around, not wanting to miss her opportunity to place her much needed drink order.

“I like this top,” he said as he dragged a finger down the middle of her open back. “It’s hot.” She visibly cringed at the contact, but Simon failed to notice. “So’s the skirt,” he said, taking in her short black mini skirt. “You’ve got killer legs.”

“Thank you, Simon,” she replied over her shoulder. He was a good enough looking guy, his blond hair kept messy in a sexy kind of way that Olivia liked when they first started “seeing” each other. Although he was only a few inches taller than Olivia, she didn’t seem to mind. In a city like Boston, it was difficult to find guys over six feet tall.

Olivia sighed when Simon didn’t take the hint that she was not in the mood to talk. It was obvious he was drunk and Olivia assumed he had gone to the Sox game earlier, as he was in full Red Sox fandom gear and his breath reeked of cheap beer and hot dogs. Simon was a life-long Boston resident, complete with a thick Boston accent. Olivia didn’t think the accent would bother her when they first got together, but it had become difficult to find him attractive in the sack when he kept saying “harder, harder” in that Boston accent. Maybe that’s why she never came.

Olivia remained silent for several minutes, her irritation growing, while Simon caressed her back. She hated public displays of affection, but she let him touch her. It’s the least I could do because he knows I won’t let him stick his tongue down my throat in public, Olivia thought. Relationships were all about give and take, she had learned - even her fucked up version of relationships. He slipped his hands in through the side of her shirt and slowly made his way up to her breasts.

“Simon, no!” she shouted, turning her head around and elbowing him in the stomach.

“Oh, come on, baby,” he breathed onto Olivia’s neck as he pulled her toward him, her back to his front. She could feel the erection in his jeans. “I haven’t seen you since Monday. It’s killing me. Let’s get out of here.”

“I just got here.” Olivia pushed Simon away, ridding herself of his grasp. “I want to have a few drinks with the girls. I’ll find you in a little bit. I’m going to order my drinks now if you’re done groping me in public, you sicko,” she sneered.