Page 48 of Just A Little Magic

“That’s probably true, but I’d still like an answer.”

“It’s not like I was a complete virgin.”

What the fuck does that mean?

“I’m not asking for a body count. What I’m really asking is if you felt comfortable and supported. I don’t need a number because it’s none of my damn business. But making sureyou are okay with what we didis my business, and you’re still avoiding the question.”

“My experience with humans may not have been wholly accurate.”

“What? Like you’ve been with aliens? If you have, I need to know about any tentacle situations in nitty-gritty detail. Diagrams would be helpful.”

“Oh. Em. Gee. It’s not like I’ve never had something in my ass before.”

“Congrats on that. I hope that means you’re into it because I‘m definitely a fan. Ten out of ten would recommend.”

Owen’s snorted laugh brought me nowhere closer to an answer to my question.

“I was fine with what we did. I enjoyed it once I got used to it.”

“Used to it is an odd phrase to use.” I was a big guy, and my dick was a cut seven and a half inches and girthy. Perfectly respectable, but also not monster-cock porn-star level. “I can’t imagine it was that much different from anyone else’s.”

Owen looked out the window, thenlooked down and smoothed his hands over his thighs. The blazing blush crept back up his neck and heated his cheeks. “Indeed.”

“Indeed? Babe, what are you trying not to say?”

“I might have”—he took a breath—“exaggerated my experience with actual intercourse.”

“Owen, are you saying you’ve never had sex?”

“First of all, sex is widely defined and shouldn’t be reduced to simple penetration.”

“You’re right, and you’re trying to deflect.”

He rolled his eyes to look at the ceiling, “If you are referring to penetrative sex, not with another person.” His mouth was twisted into a scowl. “My entire life is a lie.”

I was reeling, but that was the last thing he needed to know. “Stop. It’s not a lie. Maybe not completely truthful, and I’m still unclear on why you felt the need to lie to me, but that doesn’t make your entire life a lie.”

I pulled his hands across the table and clasped them in mine. He was a bigger guy, but compared to me, he was small, and I liked it. Initially, he resisted holding my hands, but he relaxed after I rubbed my thumb across the back of his. “Had I known, I would have been more careful.”

“My social construct virginity doesn’t mean I’m made of glass.” He paused to dramatically roll his eyes. “I may have done some solo experimenting,” he admittedly grudgingly.

This entire conversation was killing me. My cock hardened behind my zipper, and I swallowed the groan that swelled in my throat. As a person who wasn’t living in the 1900s, I recognized the importance of sexual freedom, and I wasn’t any kind of virgin. Between men, women, and nonbinary partners, I’d had plenty of experiences of my own. But goddamn, the caveman part of me that knew I’d had a part of him no one else had experienced made me want to pound my chest and crow. It was dumb. It was foolish. It was stupid. And I liked it anyway.

“Thank you for telling me. If I had known, I would have done more checking in. I’m sorry that I didn’t.”

“Bear, stop. I wanted everything we did, and it was fine.” His earnest expression went a long way in reassuring me.

“Fine? I kinda sorta hoped it was better thanfine. Let me try again, and we can go for fucking fantastic.”

“Commendable copulation? Admirable amalgamation?” Owen laughed with abandon.

The dam had broken between us.Goddamn, I had missed him.

“Not sure that last one means what you think it means, babe.”

“It’s a euphemism. Close enough,” he said with a cheeky grin.

“I’ll allow it then,” I said with mock solemnity before ruining it with a wink.

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