Page 13 of Filthy Sweet

Fox sips his coffee. “Any luck meeting a guy?”

I deflate slightly at the reminder Fox sees me as Reggie’s little brother, the geek who needs help finding a date, and not as an actual adult he might consider for himself.

“No,” I admit. “But dancing was fun.”

“Yeah,” he agrees. “It was fun.”

I smile. Hearing that helps.

The park is filled with massive pine trees, all casting shadows over the hilly land. Fox heads straight for a bench on the edge, off away from the busier trail, where joggers and families pass.

He takes a seat at the bench and, when I join him, turns to me. “Listen,” he says, his voice rough but gentle. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

My heart thuds. “Is everything okay?”

Fox sighs. “Kind of.” He pulls his phone out. “There’s a picture going around online. Just some people in the music industry here with too much fucking free time. Our publicity team is working to scrub it, but, well…” He trails off, then hands me the phone. “Here.”

I take it, and when I see the picture, I yelp. “Oh my fuck!”

“Shit,” Fox says. “Owen, man. I am so, so sorry this happened.”

The photo shows me and Fox on the street outside my brother’s place at the disastrous moment of my arrival. He’s handing me the dildo, a casual, cool smile on his face, and I’m kind of frozen mid-gesture, down on one knee.

My face is half-turned and twisted enough that I’m almost not recognizable. Except I know it’s me, and other people who know me will know it’s me, and fuck!

I hand him the phone back quickly. “It’s online?”

“It’s minor. People have probably already forgotten about it. But I thought you should know.”

I take my glasses off, trying to process through the hangover. My cheeks are hot, and I wish I could hide my face against Fox’s chest, make the world disappear, but that would just embarrass me more.

“Hey,” Fox offers, consoling. “It’s okay. I’m the one everyone is going to recognize. And like I said, lingerie is hot. There’s nothing for you to be ashamed of.”

Despite sinking into horror, I can’t help but laugh. “It’s not even my stuff. I’m not into any of that.”

“Really?”

I shake my head. “I wasn’t lying. It really is my friend’s box. We moved together, and she left it in my car by mistake.”

Although, the way he keeps trying to reassure me lingerie is hot, maybe Fox is into that? I don’t know if he would wear it or want someone else to wear it or what, but my brain latches onto the idea of Fox and lingerie, and just like that, I’m turned on and semi-hard again.

Turned on, but also totally turned around, and I shake my head to try to orient myself.

“Huh.” Fox runs a hand through his hair. “Well, fuck, Owen.”

I sigh, trying to fake being cool about this. “I guess a picture is a picture. People will believe whatever they want.”

“It’ll blow over,” Fox assures me. “If I weren’t in the newspaper last week, no one would even care.” He sighs. “I can’t handle any more attention right now, so it pretty much has to blow over,” he adds quietly, more to himself.

I consider him and remember how crappy his life was in our hometown. It was like his last name was a curse. His family were known for drinking and stealing and causing trouble around town, and so people were down on Fox without even giving him a chance.

These scandals can’t be easy for him. I know he can just blow off stuff that would ruin me, but I see the strain in Fox’s expression, and I know he’s affected deep down.

“I’m sorry this is happening to you,” I say softly.

Fox sips his coffee. “I’ll live.”

“Sure, but it sucks.”

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