Page 121 of Not That Complicated

He bit my thumb lightly and smiled around it. “Dazzled?”

“Yes.” This was getting awkward. I pushed on. “And I definitely thought about your beautiful face and your flawless skin, and your curls and your abs—”

“A lot of thinking,” he murmured. His long body was relaxed now, all the tension having left it. He was still throwing off heat. I was still a chilled and sweating mess. I leaned into him gratefully.

“And wanking,” I said.

He choked out a laugh.

I nodded. “Like you wouldn’t believe. I almost chafed.”

“I am...flattered?”

“I imagine a lot of people get chafed over you.”

He grimaced. “Thanks.”

“No,” I patted his chest again. “No, no. That’s...I’m trying to say that obviously I was gross and objectifying you for a while there—”

“Are you sure this is the speech you planned?” he said, voice vibrating with amusement. His eyes gleamed down at me. “Is it a first draft? Did you read it back at any point? Give it a quick run through at all? Because so far—”

“Obviously I didn’t plan to ramble and insult you, it was all much more straightforward in my head. I may be freestyling. Shh. Let me get this out.”

He caught my wrist, dragged my hand down over his abs and pressed it into his erection. “Why don’t you?” he said.

I laughed, high and nervous. “Yes. But. I respond to beauty and aesthetics and shit because it’s kind of my jam. Graphic designer and all.” I pointed at my chest.

He slid a finger under my chin, tipped my face up to his and dropped a bright kiss on my surprised lips. “Artist,” he whispered.

“Eh—”

“Artist,” he said firmly. “Please continue with the worst wooing speech ever spoken. Where did we leave off? Right. A crowd of anonymous strangers wanking themselves sore over me.”

“I knew the second I said it that it wasn’t coming out right.” I planted both hands on his chest and pushed back. He let me go, but not far. “You have done nothing but be kind and thoughtful and take care of me. Whenever I needed you, there you were. You never asked anything of me. You never demanded anything of me. And I kept using you whenever you showed up and offered yourself and I feel awful about it.”

“I like taking care of you, Ray.”

“You are very selfless and giving.”

His lips twitched. “You’re the first person to say that to me.”

“Everyone else you’ve ever been with must be stupid, then,” I shot back.

“No,” he said, still thoughtful. “They just never saw me for me.”

“Like I said. Stupid.”

“Dazzled,” he said, and leaned back into his hands. His abdominal muscles tensed. “By all of this.”

“I want to be the one giving to you,” I said. “For once, please let me. Make your demands.”

“I don’t have any demands,” he said quietly.

“Adam—”

“I don’t have any demands,” he said, “because you’ve already given me everything I never thought I’d get from you.”

I cocked my head.

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