Page 55 of Riverside Reverie

“I don’t mind at all,” Theo said, his eyes practically smouldering as they held my gaze. “I’ve got a spacious and rather comfortable bed.”

Desmond hid a smile behind his beer, shaking his head slightly, and Jasmine smiled with delight. “It’s settled then. Lux can crash with you tonight.”

“I—” I started, then stopped. I wasn’t opposed to this idea, in fact it gave me an opportunity to spend more time alone with Theo, exploring his body the way I wanted to. It was embarrassing that everyone else knew we were hooking up. Not that I was ashamed of it, I wasn’t used to so many people knowing my business.

“Yeah, I guess that’s okay.”

18

TO BE HELD

Lux

Theo waited for me in the living room while I had a quick pee and then grabbed my bag from Jasmine’s room.

“Enjoy your night,” she said, wriggling her eyebrows at me.

“We will, I guess,” I said, trying to hide a smile.

Jasmine blew me a kiss before disappearing into her ensuite bathroom.

I could hear him talking to Talia while he waited. When I emerged with my bag, Talia sent me a knowing grin and waved goodbye, disappearing down the hall to her own room.

I found it slightly amusing how everyone kept trying to push us together. I would have found it irritating if I wasn’t so attracted to Theo. If he weren’t so easy to be around. Instead, I was thankful Jasmine and Talia—and Desmond, in his own way—were giving me the push I clearly needed.

He stole a peek at me as we walked over to his side of the duplex. It was exactly as Jasmine had described: a masculine, opposite version to her side—soon to be our side. Giddiness welled up inside me at the thought. Theo took my hand, leading me through the main part of the house.

My stomach was a little twisted with nerves over the idea of going home and dealing with that situation, but the fact that I had an escape plan made me feel like I could handle it.

I didn’t think my parents would be thrilled with my decision to move without even having a job lined up, but I had a huge chunk of savings from the inheritance my grandmother left me when she passed. I didn’t really want to dip into it, but I would if I had to. I could keep looking and applying for jobs in Sudbury. I knew I’d find something, even if it was temporary.

Even if I ended up serving tables at Burger Bar with Jasmine, the respite of being far away from my sister’s antics would make it all worthwhile. People had moved to new cities and countries even with less of a plan.

Desmond had already retired to his room for the night, so we were quiet as we moved through the house, still holding hands. Theo opened the door to his room and flicked on the light, leading me inside with a cheeky grin.

The moment the door closed, Theo moved toward me, his hands framing my head before his lips descended. He kissed me deeply and passionately, igniting flames of desire up my spine. I dropped my bag, letting it fall to the ground behind me, returning his kiss with as much enthusiasm.

He pulled away long enough to speak, his green eyes sparkling. “I’ve been wanting to do that all night.” His thumb traced along my cheekbone.

“Good, because I’ve wanted you to do that all night,” I smiled, standing on my tiptoes and kissing him again.

I could feel him getting excited, his thick length hardening against my lower abdomen. He let out a low curse, pulling away again with a rueful grin. “I need to shower first, but then we’re doing this. Make yourself comfortable, I’ll be a few minutes.”

Laughing quietly, I stepped aside so he could leave. Theo glanced at me over his shoulder, biting his bottom lip like the last thing he wanted to do was leave me. He shook his head, pulling the door closed behind him.

I could hear the pipes as he turned on the shower. With nothing else to do, I glanced around Theo’s bedroom, taking it all in.

The walls were painted a light grey. His furniture all matched and was a beautiful, dark walnut finish. His dresser was on one side of the room, a television on top of it. His desk was on the other side beneath the window, and other than the laptop and a stack of papers piled beside it, it was otherwise organized and clean.

He also had a small bookshelf the same height as his desk that was full of books, and there was a paperback on one of the end tables beside his bed with a bookmark in it. Theo was a reader. That knowledge made me swoon internally.

His king-size bed really did look comfortable, especially after the last few days of sleeping on the ground. His bedding was a masculine pattern of dark grey and black. His bed was made, and the room had a fresh and clean scent to it. Heck, I couldn’t even see a speck of dust along the furniture.

It was the opposite to Scott’s messy, disgusting room. I used to hate hanging out in Scott’s room. It smelt like unwashed gym socks and stale pizza. He never washed his sheets, not unless his mom came up to do it for him. Any surface in his room was guaranteed to be sticky, either from spilt drinks or God knows what else.

I shivered in disgust at the memory, then listened. Hearing that the shower was still on, I walked over to the end of Theo’s bed and sat down. It was so soft, like sitting on a cloud. I let myself fall back on it, and a waft of freshly laundered sheets welcomed me.

It was official: Theo was my dream guy. Organized, clean, motivated, kind. The list was endless, and it seemed like at every turn, he was checking off another trait I hadn’t realized I desperately wanted in a partner. The fact that he was outdoorsy and adventurous wasn’t something I’d previously considered needing, but now…I couldn’t imagine going back to dating a guy who only wanted to hang out in his basement playing video games.

---