Flynn shook his head.He seemed to be fascinated by my reaction.
“And have you...y’know...since...”We’d gone, somehow, from saying the quiet part out loud, to my not being able to string a sentence together.
Another head-shake.
He was unfathomable, and I made no attempt to hide my confusion.
“Is it so hard to believe?”
Part of me thought about pointing out the pun, which I figured he’d made inadvertently, but it didn’t seem the time.“I jerked off when I got back to the hotel last night,” I blurted out instead.
His laugh was delighted.“You never did have a filter.”
I shrugged.Part of me was mortified at myself, borderline-furious for allowing my guard to slip so thoroughly.Yet that was butting up against the weird duality of the conversation, of this whole weekend.Flynn being so familiar, and yet a stranger with it.Someone from home, from my past, only the fact that he’d left meant he wasn’t tainted with the small-town thinking that was simultaneously so reassuring and galling.It made him so much easier to talk to.
“How did you and William meet?”I asked, when those thoughts got too overwhelming.
“Friend of a friend,” Flynn said.The sudden topic swing didn’t seem to shock him.“About eight months ago, maybe.”
“Is he your first boyfriend?”The curiosity was real, now; it wasn’t just some diversion conjured by my nerves.
Flynn shook his head.“No.There’ve been a few.”
“But nothing serious,” I pushed.
“Define serious?”
I made a face.“You’re asking the guy who’s never had a boyfriend?”
“You can understand the theory, even if you haven’t put it into practice yet.”
I figured he’d understand the glare was me acceding, albeit grudgingly.“Planning for the future together.Longer term than just a few months ahead.Being in love.”
“Heavyweight stuff,” Flynn teased.
“Like I said,” I told him, shrugging, “I’m the novice, here.”
“Okay,” he agreed, “an easier question...do you want dessert?”
I groaned, rubbing my stomach.“Theoretically, yes.In practice, absolutely not.”
“Such self control, such restraint,” he said, gesturing to the waiter for the check.
“High praise, coming from you.”
He side-eyed me, knowingly.“I walked into that one, didn’t I.”
I was saved having to think of a smart response by the waiter putting the bill down.
Flynn reached for it; I put my hand on top of his.
“I ate, like, three times as much as you did,” I reminded him.“This is my treat.”
“You bought the coffee,” he pointed out.
I snorted.“I’m not sure the math adds up, there.Anyway, shortly after that generosity I was an absolute asshole to you.”
Carefully, with the hand that wasn’t trapped, he lifted mine and set it to the side.Pulled the bill across.“How about you say you’ll come visit again, and you can pay that time?”
