Page 84 of Tongue-Tied

And damn, that gruff voice that made my skin tingle.

“You’re so beautiful like this, Aus.”

Dex is such a caring and giving person with so much light and love and passion, but he still doesn’t think he’s got enough of that inside him to offer to someone else.

My eyes open when I feel Dex’s fingers gently brushing the top of my hair. I sigh because it feels so good. “Whatcha doing?”

“Sorry if I woke you,” he whispers. “Your hair is like the shade of a copper penny but richer.”

“You make it sound so poetic. It’s red and fluffy, like the rest of me.”

“You obviously don’t see what others do.” His fingers drift down to my shoulders. “I like it all. Your freckles too.”

My heart is beating unsteadily. “It makes me look young, like a prepubescent teen.”

“So not true, you goofball.” He pecks my head. “You’re striking and hot and all man.”

“Cringe. Stop it.” My face flames, and I rub a hand over it. “I can’t take it.”

“Compliments are hard for you.” He snickers. “We need to work on that next.”

“Maybe,” I mutter. He’s right, but I’m not sure how much more pretending and practicing I can take. “How long have you been awake?”

He stifles a yawn. “Not long.”

My gut churns as I ask, “Everything okay?”

“Yeah. Just…’’ Dex swipes the sleep out of his eyes. “Been thinking about our night.”

I can’t exactly read him, but his tone is more reflective than regretful.

“Wanna talk about it?” I ask hesitantly. No chance I want to ruin this moment by rehashing things or bringing up the stuff he tries to play off about sex and relationships. But I also want him to let me in and tell me his every thought.

“Not sure if I can put it into words.” I can’t tell if he’s trying to skirt the question or if our night is just as hard for him to wrap his head around.

I shift to face him. “Try anyway?”

“I was thinking about us…and our friendship.” I hold my breath, waiting for the fallout. “All the times we’ve been there for each other. And then the stuff we’ve been doing lately. The dating and, um, sex…it’s just making my thoughts go haywire.”

“Me too.” I draw back. “It’s confusing, but not in a bad way.”

“Right,” he replies, and I blow out a breath. “It makes me think of things in a new way.”

My hand closes the distance to his wrist. “What do you mean?”

“You’ve been a constant in my life.” His voice is soft, tentative. “We spend all kinds of time together, and it never gets old or boring.”

“Gee, thanks,” I respond dryly, and he chuckles.

“Throw in the blowjobs, kissing, and sex, and I still want to hang around you instead of running away.”

I feel little electric shocks across the surface of my skin. “Thank you…for staying the night.” I knot our fingers together. “Maybe you’re discovering new stuff about yourself.”

“Suppose I am. For one, hanging around after sex with someone you like as a person isn’t that scary after all.”

“See?” My stomach warms. “Maybe our dates have rubbed off on you too.”

“Oh, they’ve definitely rubbed off,” he teases.

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