I kissed him. “You got there in the end. That’s what matters.” I paused. “You don’t have any regrets about any of this, do you?”
“Never,” he said, repeating my words back to me. “You’remyPrince Charming.”
Tramp chose that moment to jump on the bed and inspect us both for serious injuries. Laughing, we gave him some love, then Lady, too.
“I’ve got to get to work,” Hank said apologetically. “Want me to take these guys off your hands?”
“What about Bruno?”
“My brother was home with him, so he should be fine. I’ll swing by and get him on the way to work. Along with some new clothes, or Sammi will never let me live it down.”
“Does she, uh, know…about me?”
“Not yet.”
I nodded, suddenly feeling naked. I grabbed the sheet and dragged it over my lap. “Right. You could have hooked up with anyone.”
“But I didn’t.” He put a finger under my chin, lifting my eyes to meet his. “I went out with my boyfriend and stayed over, and that’s exactly what I’ll tell Sammi when we have a chance to catch up.”
“Really? You don’t feel weird about it?”
He stood up, totally nude and not the least bit bashful. But then why would he be, with a large, muscular, delicious body like his?
“It might be a little strange, the whole coming out thing, I guess. I don’t really know why I wasn’t into guys before, and I’m not sure how to explain it to myself, much less anyone else.”
“You don’t have to explain anything,” I said. “But if you ask me, you’re a touch demi.”
“Demi?”
“Demi-romantic,” I said. “It means you need a real connection to feel romantic attraction. That might be why your high school girlfriend and me are a little different from the other people you’ve been with.”
“Huh. I’ve never heard of that. I guess I’ve got some research to do.”
“You don’t have to know everything right now,” I said gently. “Just do what makes you comfortable. If you want to keep this a secret for a while?—”
“No,” he said quickly. “I don’t feel weird aboutyou.Or us. Or telling people we’re dating. I wouldn’t have taken you to the Dinner Bell if I wanted it to be a secret.”
Good point. That place was gossip central.
“Talking about that part is easy,” he said.
“Yeah? What will you say?”
He shrugged. “Easy. I’ll say I fell for my best friend.”
I threw off the sheet and moved into his arms, giving him a nice, long kiss. “You better go before I drag you back into bed.”
“Hmm. That’s not really encouraging me to go.”
We laughed quietly and kissed again, and then I forced myself to pull back.
“Get dressed before you’re late. I’ll pick the dogs up when I get off work.”
“Dinner tonight?” Hank asked as he grabbed his pants and pulled them on. “I can cook for you.”
“Okay, yeah. That sounds great.”
Once Hank and the dogs were out the door, I fell back into bed and slept another couple of hours before waking to the blaring of my alarm.
