Vin straightens up, like he might stand.
“I don’t want to see you naked!” I say to Raff. “But thanks. Hey, speaking of naked, what happened with Lauro?”
He rolls his head to look at me. “Nothing. I mean, nothing romantic. He’s a cool guy. I like him.”
“His art is really elegant and pretty.”
“Just like him,” Raff says with a smile.
“Lauro is in your art class?” Vin asks from across the room, inscrutable.
“Yeah, that’s how I met him.”
“Why are you sitting all the way over there?” Raff asks him. “Quit being a grump and come join us.” When Vin stilldoesn’t move, Raff lifts his arms. “I need someone to cuddle me and make me feel alive.”
Raff rotates his arms over in my direction, he’s leaning in for the cuddle, and then Vin is there, squeezing in between us and wrapping an arm around his brother. “Alive yet?” he asks Raff with a couple rough, affectionate pats to the cheek. I set my tea aside just in time.
“Ah! Gah!” Raff tries to wrestle free from Vin’s grip but Vin gets him by the calf, charley-horsing him and making Raff scream.
Raff is the consummate little brother, shouting for Vin to stop but then poking him the second he does. They pinch and wrestle like kids and when they finally tire, I’m grinning. Raff squiggles down the couch, shoving Vin away from him with his feet. Which squishes Vin into me and me into the side of the couch. Vin quickly moves his arm up and out of the way. But that means he’s surrounding me now, his chest at my cheek and his arm basically around my shoulders.
Here’s the thing about Vin. Nudie mag shamings or not, he’s a very sexually vibrant man. Not to objectify him beyond belief but…he is kind of built for good sex. His body, yes, wide and sturdy and strong. But that’s not even what I mean.
He’s Mr. Take-Care-of-It. If you need the recycling taken out? He’s on it. The groceries purchased? He’s already at the store. Have you seen this man change a tire? It’sporn.And if you, like me, happen to be married to him, and if you, like me, happen to get horny on a Saturday morning, and if you, like me, happen to look at him in a certain way, then he drops the newspaper and picks you up and makes the neighbors regret moving to this building, you lucky bitch.
Not that that’s on the menu anymore. But I can feel his chest hair under his T-shirt and his deodorant is bringing meback to some very sweaty times and my memories are no one’s business but my own.
“Sorry,” he mutters, and tries to switch his weight.
Against my will, I tangle my fingers in his shirt, keeping him from moving away from me.
He doesn’t breathe. His eyes are painting lines on my face.
Does she want me against her?I can feel him thinking.Yes, you idiot,I feel like shouting back.
The lease bares its teeth at me from the fridge, hidden underneath the grocery list.
I use my grip on his shirt to rearrange my own weight, a little farther from him, and then unhand him.
Vin’s eyes are still reading me, even though my face is turned away now.
“You two are freaks of nature,” Raff observes from his end of the couch. “You’ve been married for eight years. How can the sexual tension still be this strong? Hey, let’s watch that Arnold Schwarzenegger movie where he’s a cop.”
“That’s the description of all Arnold Schwarzenegger movies,” Vin says, gruffly, finally taking his eyes off me.
“You two knock yourselves out,” I say. “I’m headed to bed.”
I’m in a lazily colorful blur of a dream when I hear my bedroom door open.
“Roz?” Vin whispers. “You awake?”
“Sort of,” I whisper back, rolling over with a groan.
“Can I come in?”
I push myself up to a sit and rub my eyes. “Yeah.”
He quietly closes the door behind him and comes to standat the edge of the bed, hands in the pockets of his sweats. “Raff is sleeping over.” He clears his throat. “He’s in the guest room.”
