Page 22 of Perfect Matcha
Chapter Nine
Theo and Camdenwere fairly predictable creatures. They had routines Theo set his schedule by.
Drinks together at Bold Brew on Monday afternoons once Camden got off work. And dinner from Theo’s favorite Mexican food place and beer from Camden’s favorite brewery on Saturday evenings. By the end of the night, they often found themselves in the dive bar down the street from Theo’s apartment, playing shuffleboard or darts. Theo sucked at darts, so Camden seemed to make it a point to snag the shuffleboard table if it was available.
Theo could set his watch by these routines.
As seven rolled around on Saturday night and Camden had yet to show, Theo worried they’d upset their habits too much to recover from.
Maybe Camden felt uneasy coming over to Theo’s since it was the scene of the crime, so to speak. Maybe Camden needed a break from Theo after spending so much time on the phone with him that week.
It wasn’t like Camden to leave Theo hanging, though. They didn’t discuss their Saturday plans, unless one of them was sick of enchiladas and wanted Mario’s Pizza instead. The plans just happened. They were understood.
They usually happened at 6:45. It was now a quarter past seven.
Plus, Theo had found winter work gloves that used solar technology to keep the wearer’s fingers toasty. He’d seen a forecast indicating that temps were going to drop, and he wanted to give them to Camden before the cold snap.
Theo patrolled the entryway of his apartment, getting more and more agitated. If this was the result ofwhatever it was that Camden was helping him with, then he wanted no part of it. Yes, he was mildly addicted to Camden’s gruff voice in his ear and the careful fantasies Camden spun. But he also needed enchiladas, and Camden’s smile, andCamden.
A knock at his door nearly gave Theo a heart attack. He wrenched the door open too quickly, surely giving away the fact that he’d been standingright there. He caught Camden’s flinch of surprise.
“Oh, thank God. You came.” Theo took one of the food bags out of Camden’s arms.
“Of course.” Camden smiled the smile Theo loved most. It was almost a frown, his eyebrows down but his lips tipped up. “I took the Bug tonight so I don’t have to Uber home, but it was running behind. I should have texted. I’m sorry”
Theo should have realized Camden had taken the Laurelsburg bus system, affectionately nicknamed the Bug. It was sometimes slow, and Camden used it often. Theo wasn’t thinking logically at all.
Camden skirted around him and slipped into the kitchen to set the beers down. He seemed at home in Theo’s space, which helped Theo relax, the tension winding out of his spine.
Theo sidled up to him and unloaded the containers of food. They moved around each other seamlessly, a dance they did in his kitchen once a week.
But then Camden stopped dancing his part, his movements halting with one hand wrist deep in Theo’s silverware drawer.
Theo stilled too and followed Camden’s gaze. He was peering through the kitchen wall cutout that overlooked the dining table.
A dining table that had a basket of unopened sex toys on it.
“I should have put those away before you got here,” Theo said faintly. After all his angsting about the changes in their friendship, and he hadn’t even hidden the sex toys?
Camden unfroze and straightened. He turned to Theo with a laugh. “Why? I know what’s in that basket. I got it for you.”
“True. But … It’s private.”
Was it really private, though? So far, Camden had been there, metaphorically speaking, for every toy Theo had played with except for one failed attempt at using a cock ring yesterday afternoon.
Theo grabbed his food off the counter and started toward the living room. They always ate on the couch with the TV on in the background, which was why Theo hadn’t thought to clear his table—they wouldn’t be using it.
Camden followed him, his own food in his hands. They ate in silence for a few minutes, but Theo needed white noise, some kind of distraction. He reached for his TV remote to click it to a show he didn’t care about, like SportsCenter.
Camden’s rough, working-man hand stopped him, gripping his wrist lightly. The oddest shiver wavered through Theo, but he pushed it to the dark part of his mind with the sign over the door reading Ignore!
“Are you having fun with the toys I got you?” Camden asked. His brow was still furrowed with concern.
“I think you know I am,” Theo said wryly.
The most intriguing blush spread over Camden’s cheeks. Theo didn’t think he’d ever seen strong, steady Camden blush. Not as an adult, at least.
“I want to make sure you’re okay.”
