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Cass (8:49 a.m.): Yes. One present. Fully unwrapped

He and Cass texted sporadically throughout the day, though Ash tried his best not to be distracted and to stay in the moment with Bri and the Wallers. They had breakfast at Geraldine’s, Shaina’s favorite diner in Seattle, and then they spent hours following Bri around every single inch of the aquarium. She sat in front of the octopus exhibit for nearly fifteen minutes without moving, just staring at the giant orangish mass of arms and suckers. By the time Bri finally agreed to leave, it was late afternoon, hours past when she would usually nap, and she was plenty grumpy and tired.

Shaina and her parents dropped Ash and Bri off at his apartment, and Bri was so tired that she fell asleep in his arms as he carried her from the living room to the bedroom. He got her settled in her crib, turned out the light, and shut the door most of the way. Then he pulled his phone back out of his pocket as he headed down the hall and to the living room.

Cass (4:35 p.m.): Dad got home early from work. He’s taking my mom out to dinner

Cass (4:35 p.m.): You free to talk?

Ash grinned as he collapsed onto his back on the couch. He tapped the screen to start the call and lifted the phone to his ear. Cass answered after just one ring.

“Hey.”

“Hey.”

Cass blew out a breath. “I’ve been wanting to hear your voice all day,” he admitted quietly. “My mom was teasing me every time I’d check my phone to see if you texted back.”

Ash laughed and then closed his eyes, his heart already racing in his chest. “We were out all day. Just got back a few minutes ago, and Bri’s napping.”

“Yikes.”

“Yeah, it’ll be a late night if she sleeps for long right now, but she was exhausted and grumpy.”

“Does it help to wake her up? Like only let her sleep for a little while?”

“Oh, no, no, no. Don’t ever do that. That’s worse,” Ash said right away.

Cass laughed. “Got it. Don’t wake the sleeping child.”

“Never.”

There was a short silence, and then Ash heard Cass shift a bit and let out a low grunt that meant nothing, he was sure, but that reminded him of all the sounds he’d heard over the phone the night before. Cass moaning his name, low and deep and with this roughness to his voice that sent a warm shiver up Ash’s spine. His cock stirred, and he sucked in a breath.

They shouldn’t right now. That type of messing around was for nighttime, when everyone was asleep and they weren’t going to be interrupted. Right?

Outside, the rain continued to fall, and the room darkened further. It was late afternoon, but the sun was already down. Bri was asleep. Cass’s parents weren’t home. There was no real reason not to let Cass start unwrapping his present now . . .

The thought sent another rush of heat through him, and Ash shook his head at himself and huffed a weak laugh.

“Mmm, what’s funny?”

Ash smiled. Then he closed his eyes again and, after a second of hesitation, gave himself permission to let go a little. “Mmm. Nothing, really,” he said. His hand drifted down his chest to his stomach with just enough pressure that he could feel it. “Just, you know, thinking about how many layers I have on.”

The tease must have hit, because he heard Cass exhale a sharp breath.

“Too many, I’m sure,” Cass said, almost sounding a little breathless.

“You’re probably right.”

Before Ash had even finished the sentence, his phone buzzed at him, and when he pulled it away from his ear, he laughed. The screen showed a request to switch to a video call. He tapped the button to accept and flashed Cass a silly grin when Cass’s face popped up on the screen.

“Eager, are we?”

“Don’t tell me you aren’t,” Cass countered.

His body reacted immediately to the playfulness in Cass’s tone, and he bit his lower lip and held Cass’s gaze for several long seconds, letting the twinge of arousal simmer back down. Cass seemed to be studying him, his expression soft but curious and, yes, quite eager.

He was eager too. Eager and apparently already excited at the thought of Cass seeing him “fully unwrapped.”