After showering to completion, Kroven said he was going to get dressed, mentioning that we needed to stop by his house so he could pack for D.C. I nodded along, trying to let go of hisearlier qualm. I didn’t want Kroven to feel like he couldn’t share anything with me, but I also didn’t want him to feel like he had to tell me. If it was important enough, or maybe if I would outright ask, he’d tell me. I trusted him, more that I had ever trusted anyone. Which scared the shit out of me, considering how little time we’d shared together.
I was occupied by brushing my teeth and attempting to shed my thoughts of confusing rejection when I heard a shriek from outside the bathroom. Concerned, I spit out the toothpaste from my mouth and wiped it on a nearby hand towel and ushered out of the bathroom with my towel still wrapped around my damp waist.
What I saw made me inwardly giggle but outwardly gasp. Thayer had opened up my door, seeing Kroven waiting for him in nothing but his underwear as he was cradled over his phone, not having a chance to get dressed yet so that Thayer wouldn’t see him sans clothes.
Kroven was covering his crotch, smiling awkwardly as Thayer continued to gape at me, looking from Kroven to me and back again in a dizzying somersault of head tilts.
I stepped forward, giving Kroven a nod as I passed him, his hands roaming the floor for his clothes. I lightly guided Thayer out of my room and shut the door behind me until we were both a little ways down the hallway. Thayer was wearing an astonished look on his face, clad in a worn Cher t-shirt and boxers.
“Dude, did youboneyour Orb last night?”
I rolled my eyes. “You know his name, Thayer, so use it.”
“Sorry,” He shook his head, a smile curving his lips in a twisted smirk. “Did you have sex with Kroven?”
“Yes,” I said with a forced breath, wondering why Thayer was making this a big deal. I’d brought guys home before, albeit not in quite a while. “I knew you wouldn’t be home until late, I’m sorry if—”
“Bas, you have nothing to be sorry for.” Thayer assured me, clapping a hand on my still-drying shoulder. “I’m happy for you. I just didn’t expect to open up your door and see that impressive piece he’s hiding between his legs is all.”
That got a laugh out of me and I nodded. “You haveno ideahow impressive.”
“Just text me next time so I know what I’m coming home to.” Thayer chuckled.
“Deal.” I nodded back with a grin.
“I was gonna see if you were up before I headed back to bed, but I see you’ve got other things to attend to.” His eyebrows wiggled up and down his forehead.
“Actually, I’m headed out of town with him. It might be for a few days.”
“Oh really?” Thayer leaned in. “Dick that good?”
I playfully shoved him forward, grasping at my towel to stay on as Thayer laughed. “He wants me to come help with the blood center situation. We’re meeting a representative in D.C.”
“Nice,” Thayer gestured to the rest of the apartment that was visible, namely the living room and kitchen. “I guess this is all me for the next couple of days.”
“I’ll text you when I know how long we’re staying. I’m sure you’ll find some way to amuse yourself.”
“Oh, don’t you worry about that. I will.” His wink let me know that he would be just fine in my absence and it made me feel a lot less guilty about having Kroven over without having given Thayer a proper heads up.
Kroven emerged from my bedroom, clad in his clothes from the day prior and full of evidence that they’d spent the night scattered on the floor. He gave Thayer a gesture with his hand, an informal greeting that made me light up like fireworks inside as Thayer smiled.
“Nice to officially meet you, Thayer.” He said with a head tilt. “I apologize for the way you were introduced to me this morning.”
“It’s all good.” Thankfully, Thayer didn’t decide to give him any shit in that moment. “It’s great to meet the Orb-I mean, the guy that’s been spending time with Bas.”
A laugh barreled out of Kroven then, a gesture of indifference forming as his hands waved him off. “You can call me an Orb. I don’t take offense. There’s much worse things I could be called by humans.”
Thayer stabbed a look in my direction. “See? He doesn’t care if I call him an Orb.”
While I rolled my eyes, Kroven let a hand stroke my stomach, tightening my faux anger and replacing it with liquid heat. I willed my dick not to do too much reacting since I still had my baby blue towel attached to my waist by sheer drive to not be naked in front of Thayer.
“Have you been defending my honor against the moniker, Sebastian?”
“Hey, he gets to call you Sebastian!?” Thayer interjected. “That’s not fair, you told me—”
“Sorry, Thayer, that’s the beauty of boyfriend privilege.”
The words slipped past my tongue before they had time to register in my self-made mental filter. Kroven and I had gone on an official date, one that ended in explosive intimacy, but we hadn’t defined things to the tee that we’d refer to each other openly asboyfriends, despite me mentioning the word before to him.
