Page 53 of Take Her from You

Her eyes lit, and she ran off to put on her shoes.

Nerves swarmed inside me, but I was determined. It wasn’t late. With any luck, he’d be there to receive our tiny gift. If not, we could leave them for him. Seeing him was a bonus, but all that mattered was he knew we cared.

We trundled over, dusk gathering and the bright lights of the hangar a welcome sight. I held Tobi’s hand, clutching the wrapped plate of cookies in the other, and we made our way through the hangar.

There were still people working, the place as noisy and busy as in the day. One of the bodyguard crew perched in the open door of a helicopter. He shot us a curious look, but we continued on, winding our way through to the bunkhouse.

At the door, I swallowed, shaking. “Want to knock?” I said.

Dutifully, Tobi tapped on the metal.

Laughter came from inside. A pretty, feminine giggle with an interesting tone. A male voice followed it. Valentine’s?

Then a moan that was decidedly sexual.

My mouth fell open, my stomach compressing tight. I stared, replaying the sound for my brain to confirm what I’d heard.

Valentine was in there with someone else. Someone female and very happy.

I took a step backwards, horror and disappointment rushing through me. It gutted me.

He didn’t owe me anything, and he’d done so much for us. There was no reason for the stabbing jealousy that cut through me at the image of him with another woman. He had every right to take someone to his bed. Every right under the sun to find a beautiful, pliant fuck buddy who could handle one-night stands without things getting messy in her head.

Good for her.

Good for both of them.

I was sure they’d build up a steam together on that same teal-coloured sofa.

My unwanted emotions welled up, and abruptly, I turned, marching Tobi away. If they answered the knock and saw us standing there, that would be far, far worse than the crushing turmoil I felt now.

In the rec room, I deposited the plate of cookies on the countertop, peeling back the foil to show they were fair game to anyone who came in.

“Aren’t we leaving them for Valentine?” Tobi asked on our return to the car.

“He’ll get his cookies.” I forced a smile back.

No pun had been intended, but this time, the joke was on me.

Alone in my bed, despondent and more than a little miserable, I paged through a conversation underway in my girl chat group. Daisy had confirmed drinks on Saturday night, and every single woman had responded with a resounding yes.

It eased some small part of my moping.

Then the conversation took an interesting turn.

Viola: The kit turned up today, and I got Leo to do the honours this afternoon.

My mind boggled. A couple of days ago, Viola had shared a link to a product she’d found. A kit to make your own dildo modelled on your partner’s…package.

Isobel: Don’t be coy there, Vi. We need details.

Viola: A blow-by-blow play? Buckle up. The guy has to get hard, then hold that erection while the mould sets around him. You have to mix up the setting gel first, so timing is important.

Isobel: How big is the mould? Does he have to lie over it?

Casey: Like stick his dick in a bucket? My mind is working overtime.

Viola: You’re both hilarious. It’s a tube. He just sat on the bed and held it there.

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