Page 20 of Tempting the Tender Guy: Imperfect Heroes

Mack turns the TV on and we go with a rerun of a sitcom we both enjoy. I notice the closed captioning is on. “That’s weird. It’s not a foreign language show.”

“I can never figure out how to turn it off.”

Laughing, I look at him, rather pleased that there’s something he can’t do that I can help him with. “Hand me the remote and I’ll take it off for you.”

“Nah, I don’t mind. Plus it’s good for watching K-dramas.”

My mouth drops. “I love those!”

Once that’s been discovered, we quickly change over to watch one.

After finishing off our food, we move onto the couch and I snuggle up next to Mack’s big body, loving how perfectly we fit together. “I really like this,” I comment while running my hand along his wide chest.

He smiles. “Me too.”

“I know you didn’t want to rush things, and we kinda did yesterday.”

“Kinda?” he chuckles, the vibrations moving through me where I’m pressed to him.

Playfully, I tickle his ribs. “You know what I mean. It’s nice spending time with you and getting to know you better.” I blow out a breath. “I have a confession. I’ve liked you for a long time, but you never seemed interested.”

Dark brows dip in puzzlement. “I’ve always liked you, too. You think I give discounts to everyone?” His brows lift and hegrins. “Everyone and their friends,” he teases, reminding me of how often I’ve brought Yvonne along with me to get a tattoo too.

I squirm in guilt thinking about that. “I never realized that was your way of showing your interest. Or the phone number.” Then I brighten. “And to think we were perfect matches all along and it took the matchmakers setting us up for us to get together.”

“Life can be crazy like that,” Mack says softly, his hand angling my face up for a kiss.

Pulling back, he licks his lips. “Do you want to go back to the bedroom? You know, since we’re taking this slow?”

I shove at his chest and laugh. “Slow and steady, that’s us.”

Mack grabs our plates to dump into the kitchen sink since he doesn’t trust Charlie not to make a mess if we leave them here. When he returns, we head upstairs, except he takes me into the bathroom instead of his bedroom.

Rummaging around under his dual vanity, he produces a toothbrush still in its packaging and hands it to me. It makes me wonder how many overnight guests he has.

He gets to work brushing his teeth and I push myself up on the vanity between the two sinks and casually swing my legs. “Got any tampons?”

Continuing to brush with the water running, he ignores that. When he turns the water off, he gives me a smile. I lean forward and use a finger to wipe away the smear of white toothpaste in the corner of his mouth.

“Do you have people over frequently?” I’m not jealous. He had a life before me just like I did. But I need to make certain we’re on the same page here when it comes to dating and relationships.

His lips dip down in a fast frown. “I’m not really into parties.”

I shake my head. “No, I mean people who spend the night.”

Mack shrugs and hands me the toothpaste in a clear hint that I ignore. “My parents visit now and then. Normally, I go and visit them on the holidays.”

Either he’s being deliberately dense or he really isn’t getting what I’m asking.

“No, Mack. People over who sleep in your bed. Women.”

Light dawns in his eyes and he lets out a deep chuckle. “Not in a long time.”

CHAPTER ELEVEN

MACK

“Good.”

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