“Yeah, of course. I get it.”
“Ellie, what does your new husband think about your haul?” Bella teases.
Ingrid looks at me. “Don’t we have good taste?”
I look between them, confused.
Ellie clears her throat. “The girls all picked out stuff for me. As a wedding gift,” she says.
“Oh.” I notice that Ellie’s cheeks are on fire as she makes a flustered noise. Her expression is tight and on edge. I can tell just how uncomfortable this is making her, to be put on the spot like this.
“Aren’t you going to show Camden your new toy collection?” Ingrid teases Ellie. Ellie smiles, but it looks forced.
I know Ingrid and Bella mean well, but since they don’t know Ellie all that well, they’re not picking up how she’s feeling in this moment.
I slide my arm around Ellie’s shoulder and flash an easy smile. “She’s gonna surprise me when we get home,” I say. “It’s more fun when you have to wait a little.”
The table whistles and chuckles.
Ellie looks up at me, a small, relieved smile playing on her lips. “Thank you,” she says softly.
I give her a small nod and tuck her hair behind her ear, trying to play it off like we’re a normal newlywed couple and not two friends who are trying to navigate this charged moment.
The night winds down, and everyone heads home. When Ellie and I walk inside the house, I carry the shopping bags of dresses to her bedroom and set them on the floor. When I come back into the main part of the house, she sets the big red bag of mystery sexy toys on the kitchen counter, then goes to let Gus out into the backyard to use the bathroom. He runs back inside after a minute, then flops on the floor.
I try not to look at the bag as I refill his water dish, then grab a glass of water for myself.
Ellie turns to me. “Thank you for letting me use your credit card to buy those dresses. And thanks for playing it so cool earlier when everyone was talking about…that.” She looks at the red bag.
“Sure thing.” I clear my throat as I look at the bag, then Ellie. The air between us suddenly feels thick.
I lean down to pet Gus, who’s lying on the floor, half-asleep, just to do something.
Ellie fiddles with the hem of her dress. “I’m tired. I should head to bed.”
She starts to walk off.
“Wait, don’t you want your stuff?” I nod at the red bag.
She blinks at it. “Right. Yeah. Thanks.”
She grabs it and heads to her room. I walk to my bedroom and wind down for the night. I’m about to hop in the shower when I remember that tomorrow is trash day. I head back into the kitchen, grab the trash, and haul it into the garage where the can is.
When I open it, I freeze. There’s the red bag from the sex shop.
What the hell?
Maybe Ellie just threw away the bag. But when I reach down and grab it, it’s heavy. I peer into the bag and see a bunch of unopened sex toys.
I stand there, confused as to why Ellie threw them away. Maybe she tossed it by mistake.
I take the bag out of the trash can and set it aside while I take out the garbage. And then I bring the bag inside and set it on the kitchen floor for her to grab when she wakes up.
Chapter 18
Camden
I’m brewing a pot of coffee in the kitchen when I hear Ellie’s soft footsteps behind me.
