Chapter 56
Fifty-Six
Tweetie
Tedi’s at the door, and I’m kissing her goodbye when someone clears their throat behind her. Tedi and I look over, surprised, since when we looked in the hall, we didn’t see anyone.
“Can I go into my room now?” Conor asks.
I step aside, holding the door open, and he slips by me.
“Just so we’re clear, this was a one-time gift to you. Use Tedi’s room from now on.” He walks in. “Jesus, it smells like sex. If I get home and Eloise thinks I cheated, your ass is mine, Tweetie.”
“Good luck tonight,” Tedi whispers, both of us ignoring Conor’s bitching.
“You gonna wear that T-shirt?”
She laughs but nods. I lean in for another kiss, but a door opens down the hall, and she steps back. “Sounds like a great plan. Can’t wait to work on this angle. Good luck tonight, Conor and Tweetie.” She waves and walks away.
I wait in the doorway and hear her say hello to Simon, one of the Chipmunks.
I shut the door and rest my hand on it, lowering my head, still surprised and elated over everything going on in my life.
“So, you’re a taken man?” Conor asks.
I push off the door and walk over to my bag to pull out some clothes before I shower all over again. “Yeah, but we’re not telling anyone.”
He quirks an eyebrow.
I shrug. “Her job. We need to figure that out.”
“Well, you know I won’t tell anyone, but you better do a better job than what you just did now. Anyone could have seen you two.” Conor sits on the edge of his bed, toeing out of his shoes. “And if I play like shit, I’m gonna be upset.”
I walk toward the bathroom but stop. “Thanks. I really appreciate it. Giving up the room. It would’ve been a buzzkill if I was like ‘let’s go to your room.’”
“You’re lucky I’m a romantic at heart. And I like the dramatic flair.”
I laugh because he’s the one who stopped a wedding to win his girl.
Closing the door to the bathroom, I’m waiting for the water to heat up when I get a text message.
Thanks for a great time… Stud.
Who is this?
Oh, shit I thought this was the guy I just met in the elevator.
Not funny.
Neither was yours.
Touché.
This is for proof later.
She sends a picture of her wearing my shirt, but I can clearly see she’s not wearing a bra since her nipples are poking out.
If you win, I’ll wear only this tonight when you get to my hotel room.
Deal.
Now go shower, and you better not be late to your game.
Yes, Master.
I love you.
Not as much as I love you.
It’s probably a little sick how much we’ve been telling each other that, but I don’t give a shit. We’re making up for all the years we felt it but couldn’t tell each other.
I think about taking a picture of me in the mirror and sending it to her, but my thumb stops on the picture I took of Tedi’s tattoo earlier. Black lettering of my name rests along her ribcage, just beneath her breast. I kissed it and traced my thumb over it countless times today. The guilt still lingers, but I’ll make things right—eventually. I just wish there was a way to show the world she’s mine.
Then a notification pops up on my screen, and I know exactly what to do.
I upload the picture I took of her in black and white, and obscure it enough that no one will recognize her. This is the perfect way to tell the women slipping into my DMs that I’m off the market. My own quiet declaration to everyone following me that I’m in love with a woman who loves me so much, she inked my name onto her skin.
After I post, I set my phone on the bathroom counter and step into the shower, only thinking about having Tedi again tonight as the warm water sprays over my shoulders. A shoulder I wish still had her initials on it.