Page 38 of Serving Bunt

“Okay, nerd.” I could hear the smile in his voice now.

Okay, tesoro.

Fucking finally.

After months of awkward silence and stunted conversation, it felt like we were finally us again. The real us that used to text until the wee hours of the morning about nothing in particular.

I wanted to roll over, pull him close, and kiss him until neither of us could remember why we’d ever been angry.

But I couldn’t. I wouldn’t.

Not after everything he’d laid bare. Not when I was the one who’d broken his trust in the first place. Instead, I stayed on my side of the bed, Mo a warm, little barrier between us, and did my best to ignore the ache sitting low in my stomach.

The same one tenting my silk boxers.

No, my balls were in his court now . . . or however that saying went.

“For what it’s worth, I didn’t mean it,” he admitted after a while.

“Didn’t mean what?”

“I never thought your feelings for me were fake.”

I turned my head toward him, finding his eyes in the dim light filtering through the curtains.

I smiled. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

For a second, neither of us moved. Then, I felt it—a brief squeeze against my arm beneath the sheet. Warm, gentle. Reassuring.

And then, just as quickly, he pulled away.

Not quick enough, though. I was suddenly way too aware of the exact spot he’d touched.

Silence settled over us again, broken only by Mo’s tiny snores. Just when I thought Matty might’ve drifted off, he cleared his throat.

“Can I ask you one more thing?”

The question came so quietly, I almost missed it. Something in his voice made my stomach tighten.

“Sure,” I replied carefully.

A beat passed.

“Exactly how many pairs of silk boxers do you own?”

I turned so fast, the mattress squeaked.

Matty stared straight up at the ceiling, wearing the kind of perfectly innocent expression that told me he was absolutely full of shit.

“That’s what you want to talk about now?”

“I take it back,” he said. “I’ll settle for a rough estimate. More than ten?”

“Unbelievable.”

“Yup. Definitely more than ten.”