Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 71290 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71290 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
“That’s my second cousin, Brent,” Perry said. There was a young guy down in the courtyard who had set up an amplifier. He was shredding on the electric guitar next to it. “Sorry. He actually asks to be called Cursehound these days.”
“Cursehound?”
“Cursehound von Helheim, I think,” Perry said with a nod. “That’s the name he records his music under.”
Brent—or Cursehound—had shaggy, ink-black hair and was dressed full-on like Ozzy Osbourne.
“You’ve got a truly interesting family, Perry,” I said.
“Just wait ‘til you meet the rest of them. This is a family reunion, but for us, it might turn out to be more like a circus.”
“I’m game,” I said, stretching. I headed into the bathroom, tossing off my sweatpants and stripping nude. “Gonna take a shower really quick,” I called out to Perry.
“Okay,” he said. “Just let me grab my—oh—”
I turned to see Perry in the doorway, frozen. His eyes paused on my cock for a moment, as if he was so shocked to see it that he couldn’t turn away.
A thrill ran through me, making my cock jump just a little at being caught.
“Sorry—” he said quickly, “God. I didn’t know you’d already—”
“I don’t mind,” I said. “No worries. Really. You are my boyfriend, after all.”
He was looking down at the ground now. I stepped into the shower as quickly as I could, but it was more than a little difficult to get in with my fucked-up ankle. I finally pulled the curtain closed, hoping I hadn’t freaked him out too badly.
Christ. I really was starved for attention and affection. I had loved being seen like that, and it didn’t matter to me at all that he was a man.
“Wanna hop in and conserve some hot water?” I called out. It was meant to be a joke to break the tension, but as I said it, I realized I wasn’t joking at all. If he wanted to hop in with me, I would have been game.
He didn’t respond, and when I peeked around the edge of the shower curtain, I saw that he’d disappeared back into the room. I really wanted to jerk off, but it felt wrong to do it. So I just showered up, waited until my cock behaved, then hopped out.
I tossed a towel around my body and went back to the room. Perry was finishing a set of push ups, and he wouldn’t look my way.
“Promise I’m wearing a towel now,” I said.
He still seemed nervous, though. Bashful.
“Gonna take a shower myself,” he said. “And then let’s head downstairs.”
He walked past me, trying so hard not to make eye contact.
“Hey,” I finally said, reaching out to gently hold his wrist before he disappeared. He finally looked at me. “I’m sorry if that was awkward. We’re going to be in close quarters this week, and you need to let me know if I’m ever making you uncomfortable. My jokes, the things I do, any of it. Can you promise me you will tell me if I cross a line?”
He pulled in a long breath, his gaze softening. “I wasn’t uncomfortable, Rock.”
I lifted an eyebrow, letting him go.
“Fine, maybe a little bit,” he admitted. “But not in any… bad way. I’m just so used to being alone.”
I nodded once. “I understand.”
He rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t think you can understand. You’re constantly having hook-ups over at your house back in the city, aren’t you?”
I shrugged one shoulder. “I suppose so. But that’s clearly a different situation.”
“Right. True. Sure,” he said, unconvinced. He scrubbed his palms over his face. “Just because I’m not used to this doesn’t mean I’m not okay with it. Does that make sense?”
“So you liked it?”
He froze for a second.
“I’ve always been pretty proud of my dick,” I said, a little teasingly. His cheeks turned pink immediately.
“It’s a very nice one.”
I smiled softly. “See? Everything is fine. We can be real with each other. Honest with each other. It doesn’t have to be weird.”
“I think it’ll be weird no matter what.”
“Then I’m game,” I said. “Let’s be weird together.”
He puffed out a laugh. “You’re something else, Rock.”
“Okay. So I met Brent Cursehound. Emily. Babette. Nicholas and Allison, Kirk and Debra, and then Shawn. Is that all right?” I asked, trying to remember the names of everyone Perry had been introducing me to all morning.
“Mark and Debra, not Kirk,” Perry corrected. “But everything else you knocked out of the park.”
The courtyard had been buzzing for a few hours now. People milled around as the catered brunch began. People gathered under the canopies of the tall trees, clustered to chat in gazebos, and made their way around the looping stone pathways that covered the grounds.
It really was a big enough reunion that it felt more like an event. In my usual life, things like this wouldn’t have been too exciting to me. But after weeks of an injury, this was paradise. I didn’t feel like I was in a slow, boring small town anymore. I felt like I was in the hustle and bustle.