Divine Vices Read Online Free PDF

running her
acrylic nailed fingertips down his shoulder to his sculpted bicep.
    “Nothing
that concerns you,” said Gwen.
    “Don’t
be rude in the presence of company. Very unbecoming of you,” Stacy said, giving
Jack her free hand. “Stacy MacArthur. And might I say, as student body vice
president and head varsity cheerleader, it is my duty to welcome all new
students to New Haven High, and I take my duties very seriously. So if there’s
anything, and I mean anything you need, I’m your go-to girl.”
    My
gag reflex was nearly tested as Jack smiled back all too pleasantly.
    “Aren’t
you an accommodating creature?”
    “Oh,
you have no idea,” she said, hooking her arm around his. “Please, let me
introduce you to some of our more-worthwhile classmates.”
    “I’ll
see you guys later,” Jack said to us without so much as a glance back in our
general direction.
    “That
was fun while it lasted,” I said after they were out of hearing distance,
turning my attention to fixing my ponytail.
    “Can
you believe her?” Gwen hissed, watching Stacy put her hands all too generously
on every part of Jack that she could. “Does she have any shame?”
    “No,
but that is that,” I said.
    “Why
didn’t you tell me you had already talked to him? You can tell he likes you,”
said Gwen. “And I couldn’t help but notice that you seemed to actually respond
to him the same.”
    “I’m
pretty sure he’s got his hands full right now, and if not, then it’s only a
matter of time before he does,” I replied, pointing to nearly every other girl
in the gym whose fullest attention was centered on Jack.
    “Come
on, he can do better than Stacy MacArthur. Go over there and teach her a
lesson,” said Gwen, pushing me forward.
    “Sorry,
but I really don’t feel like demeaning myself in the same way that Stacy has.
If getting a guy’s attention means having to publicly play doctor with him, I’m
gonna have to pass. I can do better than that.”
    “Good
for you,” said Ian. “It’s nice to see a girl with dignity around here.”
    Gwen
reached across me and slapped him in the shoulder. “Hey! What’s that supposed
to mean?”
    “You’re
kidding, right? Everyone here resorts to throwing themselves at whoever their
crush of the moment is with the slightest hope that their affections will be
reciprocated.”
    “ Reciprocated ?
Who talks like that?” cracked Gwen.
    “It’s
called a vocabulary. Maybe if you picked up a real dictionary instead of one
for text messaging acronyms, then maybe you could keep up,” Ian quipped.
    “Ha-ha,
why don’t you go tell that one to your girlfriend? Oh, wait, that’s right.
You’ve never had one,” Gwen countered.
    “Yeah,
and that’s called having standards. Pardon me for not having any interest in
being in a relationship with someone who's already been passed around through
half of the guys in our class.”
    “That’s
sexist!” snapped Gwen.
    “How?”
    “Because,
guys like you make women feel inferior. And that standard is complete horse
pucky! If a man has countless partners, he’s honored with the distinguished
label of ‘Casanova,’ but if a woman has even a quarter of those encounters,
she’s immediately deemed as an ‘Untouchable.’”
    “She’s
got a point,” I interjected.
    “Yeah,
and if I was in your position, I wouldn’t give Casanova a second thought,
either,” clarified Ian. “Sorry, but I don’t want to waste my time and
affections in a relationship that has a shorter shelf life than sushi.
Everybody’s in this fast-food nation mindset where they need immediate
satisfaction, and when things hit a rough patch or just become boring, they
simply pack up and move on in the hopes of finding something different that’s
more fulfilling and exciting.”
    “So
I’m not allowed to test out the waters to see what agrees with me and what
doesn’t?” asked Gwen, even more perturbed at his blatant offense aimed at
people like herself. “Sometimes