We went to the attendant when we were finished. He was around my age with bright highlighter pink hair and a pink lollipop that he switched between sucking and twirling between his fingers. His silver name tag said “Candy.” What a weird name. He smiled at us when he had a look at our cards on the computer.
“Add our tickets together,” Eddie said. “Ty can have mine, too.”
“Okay. You—” He pointed at me with his lollipop. “—have two hundred and twelve. That’ll get you....” He glanced at the shelves behind him, and the prizes were lackluster for the amount of tickets I had. I could get a teddy bear about the heightof my thumb, a lollipop that resembled Candy’s, or a small chocolate bar. “Yeah. That.”
“The teddy bear, please. That one.” I pointed at the little blue fellow with a yellow bowtie.
Candy passed him over with a wink. “Give ’im a good name, sweetheart.”
“Thanks.”
We left the arcade, and I stuck Mr. Sunshine into the top pocket of my shirt, then zipped my coat. “There you go, buddy.”
Eddie shook his head, a rumble of laughter leaving his chest. He glued himself to my side, arm around my shoulders again, as the cold wind and snow came down around us. He was about to lead me to the car when I saw another sign that caught my eye.
“Wait.” I grabbed his hand and yanked him farther down the street to a sex shop with a neon rainbow sign. An Adult’s Hobby curved across the middle in multicolored letters. “I think that place is new.”
He raised his eyebrows at me but didn’t argue when I pulled him through the door. The atmosphere was warm, and not just because of the heater. Everything felt homey, with sturdy wooden pieces of furniture that seemed handmade. Even the cashier’s counter was beautifully crafted with a personal touch. The music that hummed from the speakers was a blues song that it was hard not to rock with.
“Hey there.” A man who lookedexactlylike Candy, the arcade attendant, stepped out from a curtain behind the counter.
I froze in surprise. He didn’t have the pink hair or lollipop, but everything about him was identical to Candy, from the pouty pink lips to the soothing green eyes. His hair was brown, and while I loved Candy’s style, I imagined this was exactly what he looked like without all the. ..extra. We’d entered theTwilight Zone.
“Um, hi?” I glanced at Eddie, and he blinked, appearing as confused as me. “Didn’t we just see you at the arcade?”
The man stared at us for a moment before his mouth curled into a smirk. “That’s my twin, Candy.”
“Oh, thank God.” I laughed. “I thought I’d finally gone insane. Wait. You work a few doors from each other?”
The guy shrugged. “It just happened. I started here first, though. You can call me Toffee.”
I had questions, and by Eddie’s expression, he did, too, but I wasn’t here to ask a stranger all about his life. Instead, I perused the shop. They had a ton of interesting things, and I was intrigued. I’d never had the money to even think about sex toys, and I didn’t know where to start.
“There’s so much.” I shook my head, aware of Eddie right beside me, his warmth teasing my side and his arm still around my shoulders, as if he was guarding me. My protector.
“Want somewhere to start?” Toffee asked.
I nodded eagerly and was surprised when he pulled out a big cardboard box. We wandered back over to him. The front of the box said it wasAn Adventurous Tart’s Twelve Day Advent Calendar: For Him and Him.
“It’s half price because it’s already December twelfth, but it has all kinds of fun ideas. You open the slot for the day and get something tohelpyou play.” Toffee’s smirk widened. “And you could have one big, fun night.”
Exhilaration fired through my veins, heating up my blood until it was boiling. My dick waged war against my underwear and the zipper of my jeans, already fucking loving the idea of what games could come with it.
One look at Eddie’s flushed face and I knew he loved the idea, too.
“We’ll take it,” Eddie said, slapping his wallet on the counter.
“Oh, yes please!” I rubbed my hands together.
Toffee laughed.
16
EDDIE
We rushed from the cold windy night into the warmth of the house together, laughing and jostling as we went. Excitement put an extra bounce in my step. I was happy we’d scrubbed the hell out of the wooden floor earlier before we’d left for body disposal because I wouldn’t have wanted to stop to do it now. The heavy bag from the toy shop smacked against my leg. Anticipation swirled in my stomach, but a sharp pain on my thigh had me sucking in a breath as a corner of the advent calendar jabbed my leg.
“What do you think is in the advent calendar?” Tyler poked my side as we kicked off our boots. Next, we flung our coats on a stool near the door.
