Page 69 of Truth or Dare

yep. See ya at 9. Trenta black double sugar Americano pls & thx.

There was an attachment. I opened it and it was an ogling googly-eyed happy face.

What the fuck was a guy like Zack doing with teenage girl emoticons on his phone? The guy was like a 35-year-old John Wayne, not a tween girl. I shook my head, smiling to myself thinking that my concerns about Zack judging me were obviously not a concern, not that it mattered all that much, but still. The ex-wife comment was my way of telling him I was serious about her without getting gushy. I got up and joined my angel in the bathtub.

Dare and I had a bubble bath, and he was affectionate but quiet. He was definitely preoccupied. When he first came in, he caught me shaving my legs and I stopped when he got in the tub.

“I’ve not gone this long without a wax in a long time,” I explained, a little embarrassed and glad he hadn’t come in a minute earlier when I’d been shaving my hoo-ha.

His eyes got broody at that for a second and then he shook it off. “Up the road from here my cuz has a hair salon.

She does that shit. I’ll hook you up.”

I smiled at him. “That’d be great.”

“I’ll take you this weekend, unless you can’t wait that

long?”

“That’ll be fine. Thank you.”

He caught me by my hips and moved me against him. I leaned against his chest.

The bath was nice. Seeing and leaning against Dare’s naked wet muscled body was more than nice. When we were drying off he asked me what I wanted for dinner and I followed him, in his / now my pajamas, as I’d pretty much claimed them as my favorite articles of clothing, out to the kitchen where he pulled a bunch of menus from a drawer.

He threw the Chinese food and Thai food menus to the side and then leafed through a few others.

“I could do Chinese,” I told him, guessing that’s what he wanted but that he didn’t want to subject me to any Asian food.

“You sure?”

I nodded. “Like absolutely junky stuff. Like egg rolls and chicken balls with sweet and sour sauce and rice that’s fried with soya sauce and scrambled eggs in it. And while you hook me up for waxing maybe you can hook me up with a membership to your gym? I’m sure I’ve put on five pounds already since being here.”

He smiled pretty big and adorably and then grabbed my ass. “Let’s get a lil’ more junk in your trunk first, my baby.” I nearly swooned on the spot. Then he kissed me quick on the mouth, grabbed a menu from the pile, and then grabbed his phone and as he dialed it he said, “There’s a baseball game on tonight.”

I smiled. “Good.”

“Got an errand so I’ll be a few hours and I’ll pick up the food on my way back. Can you queue up the game for us?”

I nodded and left him to order the food. I made the bed and picked our recently strewn clothes up from the four corners of the big bedroom and then put his TV on the channel for the baseball game. I waited for him on the bed.

I nodded off but woke up to him leaning over me, kissing my neck.

“Mm,” I leaned into his lips. “You smell like Chinese food.” He had a small, shimmery silver gift bag with white handles in his hand. Purple tissue paper corners peeked out. He put it on the bedside table beside me.

I smiled, asking, “What’s that?” and then my heart started beating really loud.

“Presents,” he said softly.

I felt my heartrate pick up even more and my chest felt cold deep inside. I hadn’t been given a present in a long while, not since…since…I broke out in a cold sweat and started to tremble. Hard. I couldn’t take my eyes off the bag.

I heard him, sounding hollow and far away.

“Baby?”

I started to tremble harder. He pulled the blankets back and then got in and pulled me over and then under the covers against him. “You sick? You upset? What?”

“I…” I couldn’t form words. All I could see in my head was Jason. Jason’s face, his dark hair, his blue eyes, his big smile, and he was holding a gift bag the same as the one Dare had. I tried to curl into a ball. I couldn’t get myself together. I was hyperventilating.

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