Page 19 of 10 Ways to Accidentally Fall in Love

I nod, marking that down.

“What’s next?” he asks.

I look up at him with a grin. “Balls. How do you like them?”

Joey covers his face. Ithinkhe’s laughing, considering the shake of his shoulders, but on the off chance he’s crying instead, I push a few more napkins his way. When he drops his hands, there’s a smile on his face, and I breathe a sigh of relief.

“Christ, Brad. I’m really curious about the organization of this list. Uh…if we’re talking about my own, I prefer to shave if I’m, you know, sexually active. If we’re talking about my partner, it honestly doesn’t matter to me what their manscaping habits are.”

I nod. That tracks with what I know of Joey. He’s pretty down to earth and easygoing. It doesn’t surprise me that he’s not picky about whether or not his guys have bush, nor does it surprise me that he keeps his own balls in trimmed condition. He’s tidy like that.

“I shave,” I inform him, in case he’s curious.

“I’m well aware,” he mumbles.

I nod, lost in thought. “In my experience, people seem to prefer having hairless balls in their mouth more. And since I like my balls being in mouths, it only makes sense to stay smooth. Better chances that way, you know?”

“Oh God,” he whispers.

“Do you have a physical type?” I ask next, checking my list.

He blows out a breath, sitting back in his seat as our waitress arrives with my hash browns. I thank her again and dig in. I pause when I realize Joey is watching me.

“Baby frites?” I offer, pointing at my plate.

He shakes his head, biting his lip before saying, “I’m good.”

“All right, man. So? Type?”

He blinks, eyes running slowly over me. “Good smile. Because it means he’s nice. I like the roughness of stubble on my skin and someone who’s sturdy enough where I don’t have to be too gentle. Lately… I’ve had a thing for the color green.”

I nod, writing those things down.Smiley. Masculine. Green eyes.

“Anything else?” I ask.

“The inside is more important to me,” he says. “I want someone like… Well, someone like you.”

“Dude,” I say slowly, setting down my fork. “That’s a super-nice compliment. Thank you.”

Joey swallows, looking a little uncertain, so I reach across the table to give his arm a reassuring squeeze.

“We’ve totally got this, Joey-roo. I’m gonna find you the most wonderful guy. Just you wait and see.”

He nods, letting out a soft huff of laughter when I flip to the next set of questions in my notepad. “How many pages do you have?”

“Six, I think? You have time?”

“Yeah,” he says, a small smile on his face. “I have time.”

“Awesome. Let’s talk kinks.”

Joey’s chuckle is warm, like melted milk chocolate. It makes me feel warm, too, and my resolve to find Joey’s person strengthens.

Maybe we met for a reason. Maybethisis what I’m supposed to do for my new friend. It’s not like it’s a hardship. Iwantto help Joey. It feels like a step in the right direction on this winding trail called life.

I flip to a familiar page in my notebook and jot that down.

Step two in Brad’s Guide to Finding Himself and Falling in Love:

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