Page 28 of Still Bruised
“Oh,”Cary murmured, his eyes widening a bit. “I see.” He paused a moment. “If you don’t want to come, that’s fine.”
Foster stood there a few seconds, mulling. He supposed he needed to do some more exploration if he was going to figure out what felt right. “No. I’ll go.”
“Alrighty then,” Cary said with a wicked grin before backing out.
Foster waved before he climbed the front steps to his childhood home. His mother opened the door the second he landed on the front porch.
“Was that the Archer boy?”
“Cary, yes,” Foster said before kissing his mom on the cheek and slipping past her. “He told me to tell you and Dad hi.”
“I always liked that kid. His mom is such a sweetheart—but his dad?” His mom shut the door, shaking her head. “I don’t know how she managed living under the same roof as him.”
“Well, she doesn’t have to anymore,” Foster said, a bit taken aback. His mother rarely said anything negative aboutanyone. He hadn’t known she hadn’t liked Ashley until after their divorce and only learned that news after an odd look she’d given had caused him to urge her to talk.
For her to say something without prodding, that could only mean one thing. Cary’s dad really must’ve been a massive dick. He’d heard rumors but Foster didn’t remember ever meeting the man, so he’d had no way to gauge the veracity of them.
“I don’t like to speak ill of people, nor do I wish them harm, but I’ll say that I did not mourn the passing of that man. I don’t think many did.” She sighed. “I’m glad you and Cary arebecoming better friends, though. You’ve seemed so lonely since you’ve been back.”
Foster chuckled. “I don’t need you worrying over who I’m making friends with. I’m not a kid anymore” He kissed his father on the head as he passed by. “Hey, Dad.”
“Hey, my not-kid kiddo. How was the interview?” his dad asked.
“I think it went well,” he fibbed. His parents were worried about him, and he didn’t want to add more anxiety when it wasn’t necessary. Yet anyway. His mother took the bag of food and headed for the kitchen. “Although, you might’ve been right about driving in.”
“I told you,”his father said, grinning happily to have been called right. “New York Mass Transit is no fun in the summer months. I knew you forgot how bad all those hot, sweaty bodies packed into metal cans can smell.”
“Yeah, yeah, but it was shorter to take the train—and I didn’t have the frustration of traffic. I kept reminding myself of those facts over and over while behind packed behind a man who either hadn’t worn deodorant or that deodorant had given up on him. He really liked lifting his arms over his head for some reason, too.” Foster snagged his burger and kissed his mother’s cheek. “I’m going to eat this while standing in a cold shower and call it an early night.”
“Oh,”his mother sighed. “I thought we’d pull out a board game and have some family time.”
Coming home had felt like he’d become a kid again in more ways than one. She kept suggesting ways to entertain him like he was some preteen kid stuck with nothing to do. He was aware she probably wanted to take advantage of the time he’d be there, buthe was too exhausted. The weekend was already taking up a lot of real estate in his mind, too. “Tomorrow night, hmm? I feel disgusting and just want to shower and chill tonight.”
She grinned and patted his cheek. “Tomorrow night then.”
By the time he got up the stairs to the apartment above the garage, mental pictures of an orgy were playing in his mind. Sure, he’d watched porn a few times over the years and had seen some group scenes along the way, but he’d watched them through the lens of an observer, not imagining he’d ever be an active participant.
Instead of a shower, he sat on the couch and opened his laptop to do a little research first. After viewing a few orgy scenes on Pornhub, his nerves even less settled. Sure, they were hot as fuck, but he couldn’t help but think he was getting in way over his head. He’d been with a handful of girls and one guy.
One guy.
No way was he ready to attend an orgy.
“Why the hell did I say yes?”
He had to go about things differently. He was an analyst and his job was research. Just like anything else, there was a culture to understand. There were rules and etiquette. He shoved the burger between his lips and typed a request in the search field. The first site that popped up looked as good a place to start as any.
Having Group Sex? Here’s the Orgy Etiquette You Need to Know
He chewed on his burger and clicked the link, ready for a little education.
5
Afew days later, Jude handed over a plain brown paper package wrapped in twine and smiled at Mrs. Westbrooke. “Your chuck roast, as requested. Anything else I can get you today?”
Mrs. Westbrooke’s expression shifted to confusion. “Chuck? I wanted a brisket.”
Jude froze for a moment, absolutely sure he’d heard her request a chuck.
