Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 91864 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 459(@200wpm)___ 367(@250wpm)___ 306(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91864 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 459(@200wpm)___ 367(@250wpm)___ 306(@300wpm)
“I’m sorry,” I blurted out. Not that I wanted him to feel like I was sorry for him, but considering what a great family I had, it did seem so cruel that someone as awesome as Ethan had suffered through such a different experience.
He shook his head. “Anyway, back to the dinner. There’s a large skillet in the cabinet on your bottom right. You mind grabbing it for me?”
We worked together, him guiding me through what he needed to prepare the dish before he put it in the oven. When we finished up, I asked, “You got a deck of cards, by any chance?”
“Why? You want to play some rummy?” he teased.
“You play poker? I figured we might be able to play some to pass the time.”
“I play a little. Five-Card Draw or Texas Hold ’Em, mainly.”
He fished through a drawer, grabbed a deck, and we sat at the kitchen table.
“My brother taught me how to play when I was little.” I smirked at the memories. “I lost a lot of Hot Wheels cars to this game.”
“It must’ve been nice to have been so close with your brother.”
He sounded sad. Like he didn’t have a lot of people he was close to growing up—something I experienced myself after I lost Brady.
“He was a cool guy, and I feel very lucky to have gotten to spend what time I was able to with him.” I did a shuffling trick before noting, “He taught me that, too.”
I was surprised I’d even said that much. I didn’t talk to guys about my brother, and I didn’t imagine Ethan was any different with his father. But there we were, sharing about the ones we’d loved…the ones we’d lost.
He must’ve noticed the way I was looking at him as I shuffled because he asked, “What?”
“So you really liked that earlier?” I asked, trying to shift the convo back to a more light-hearted subject.
“I’m sorry if it wasn’t obvious that I did.”
I laughed. “Oh, no. It sure as fuck was, but I mean, what was it like with that being your first time?”
“Feels like someone should have mentioned it to me sooner. Although even if someone had told me, I don’t think I would have believed them. I really didn’t consider it until I saw how much it turned you on.”
“If you liked how I reacted, you should have seen yourself. I thought I was going to shoot my load when I saw the way you sprayed all over yourself like that.”
As the words passed my lips, they surprised the fuck out of me, and I chuckled.
“What are you laughing about?” Ethan asked.
“I keep trying to pin you down.”
“Well, if you want to pin me down while you fuck me, I’m game for that.”
“That’s not what I meant, and you know it. I’m just in the business of knowing people…being fucking awesome at reading them. And I figured I could tell your type from the get-go, and then it’s like you have me questioning all the things I thought about you.”
“What did you think about me?”
“That this big-shot attitude you’ve got was a cover-up for some deep-seated insecurity…maybe even about your masculinity. I thought you might chicken out about me sticking my fingers inside you but then you were just loving the hell out of it. Even bought a fucking super-bottle of lube for the occasion.”
As I started dealing a hand, he said, “That was one size up from the smallest they had. How was I supposed to know how much we needed? Hell, considering what I’ve been seeing in the porn I’ve been watching, I figured—”
“Porn?”
“Yeah. I wanted to know what I was getting myself into. You think there’s something you can’t learn about on the internet?”
“Fair point.”
“I liked it, though,” he said. “A lot.”
“Fingering’s a lot of fun, though, especially when you have a guy who knows what he’s doing. And that’s not a complaint. That’s a compliment, not that you need it.”
“Yeah, the fingering’s fun for sure, but now you got me curious as fuck about getting my own turn.”
“Are you going to be a needy power bottom now?”
“I’m just not going to let you hog all the fun, that’s all. But you’re going to have a hard time keeping this cock out of that hole of yours.”
“Hard time. How fitting.”
“Yeah, it fits pretty good too.”
I resisted laughing that time. “This confidence of yours must come in handy at work.”
“I have to be confident in what I do. And there’s a reason I’m confident. I didn’t get here by mistake but through a lot of hard work. Paying my dues and studying and working on my craft. Everything I’ve built in my life, I built from nothing other than a desire to be the best—wanting to know my shit. And my experience and history show that I can deliver the goods.”