And somehow, Charlie’s flustered glances as he steps around Dante and unzips his jacket are exactly what I need so that suddenly the dish towels and the carpet and every other thing are once again someone else’s problem.
I lean in and kiss Charlie’s cheek. “It’s good to see you.”
He smiles shyly. “Thanks. It’s good to see you too.”
He’s holding a black gift bag at his side, and the way he’s glancing around the room says he might have even forgotten it’s there.
“Is that for me?” I ask.
“What? Oh.” He rummages into the bag. “No. I guess...I mean...maybe. I think it’s sort of for both of us.” As he speaks, he lifts out what I initially think is a tree branch and then a carving. It’s only when he pulls out the second item, about eight inches long and slightly curved, shaped like a string of little knobs or beads that I realize what he’s brought.
“Is that a wooden dildo?”
If Charlie’s face gets any pinker, I’m going to have to call the paramedics. “Vann makes them,” he says.
So this is a sexy hostess gift?
“I said you should bring some toys you like. If you don’t like toys, we don’t need them.”
Charlie flings himself down on my sofa, face in his dismayed hands. “That’s what Vann said.”
For a minute, I’m worried I’ve made a terrible mistake. I like a submissive partner, but whatever Charlie’s going through may need more than sex to fix. But then Dante hops up next to Charlie and licks his ear, and even Juniper emerges from where she’s been snoozing on my bed and curls up at his feet, and if my dogs like someone, he can’t be all bad. And the more freaked out Charlie is, the more gratifying it will be when he lights up under my hands and my words.
I sit next to him, gently pushing Dante back down to the floor.
Charlie gives me a thin smile. “I don’t suppose you have something to drink?”
“Water. Some orange juice. Maybe a can of club soda, but it’s in the cupboard and I’m out of ice.”
He wrinkles his nose. “Something harder, to take the edge off?”
And all I can think of is West’s haggard expression and unwashed hair. There’s a long way from what Charlie’s asking for and the hole West has had to dig himself out of, but especially with Charlie’s nervousness, I don’t want there to be any confusion when it comes to consent.
So, instead, I look him in the eye. “You don’t need that.”
Charlie clears his throat. “I don’t?”
“No,” I say, putting a hand on his knee. “You don’t.”
“But—”
I kiss him, and he resists for a second, his gears still turning, before he relaxes and his mouth opens slowly and his hand covers mine.
“Yeah,” I say as I pull back just far enough that I can see his expression. “You just need to trust me.”
He arches an eyebrow, and that one gesture gives me hope, because if he can laugh at himself, then we have a shot at coming out of this without any tears or breakdowns.
“Trust you to what?” he says.
“Tell me with what’s in the bag.”
His cheeks go pink, and he sighs dramatically. But he picks up the gift bag off the floor where Dante is nosing at it hopefully, and he shakes the contents out onto his lap.
The first thing he holds up is wishbone shaped. “Prostate massager.” He holds up a second and third. “Beaded dildo. Butt plug.” The fourth item has three nubs around a hollow center, and Charlie frowns as he turns it around. “This one might actually be a dog toy. I’m not sure.”
I leave that one alone, going for the prostate massager instead. The finish on it is shiny and smooth.
“Would you like to play with this?”
