Chapter 23
Chapter twenty-three
Duncan
Is this an ass-less chaps situation?
I did not think this through.
Which to be fair isn’t what I’m known for.
I’m more of an impulsive, ‘fuck it’ kind of guy.
But, I need to brush my teeth.
Rhys and I enjoyed dinner out on the patio, I washed the dishes and made him dry and put everything away. We made out against the kitchen counter for a while and when Rhys whispered "come to bed" against the fragile skin under my ear, every hair on my very hairy body stood on end.
And now, we have to get ready for bed.
Together.
I take my flipper out at night. I brush it clean, put it in a little cleaning solution, and brush the rest of my teeth and settle in.
He’s going to see it. See me without my teeth.
I also have the problem of never having slept with someone before.
I’ve fucked, a lot, but I’ve never fallen asleep next to someone in the same bed. I’ve shared hotel rooms with my teammates, I’ve fallen asleep on planes, and buses, and on their sofas.
Maybe coming to Nashville was a huge mistake.
"Duncan? You alright?" Rhys asks as he steps into the bathroom. He’s already down to just his boxers and I know something is seriously wrong with me because my anxiety over my teeth and sleeping arrangements is blocking me from touching his firm body.
"Yep. Fine."
"Did you forget a toothbrush or something? I probably have an extra somewhere." Rhys starts to open drawers in his large and beautifully designed bathroom.
"No, I have it, but umm." Rhys stops searching and looks up at me. "Don’t laugh at me."
"I’d never." And dammit if his eyes don’t look anything but sincere.
I take longer than necessary to adjust my glasses and then I open my mouth but no words come out.
So instead I use my tongue to flip my front teeth out.
"The fuck?!" Rhys startles back.
Slowly I pull the retainer-like device out of my mouth with my pointer and thumb, pinky popped, and turn to the sink where I start to rinse it off.
Rhys swallows loudly. "Why are you holding your teeth?"
"In my last game of the season I got hit with a puck and my teef got knocked out. These are my, well, denturesth for lack of a better word. It’sh called a fwipper."
"Fwipper?"
I flatten my tongue and can feel my neck straining why I attempt to make an L sound without my front teeth.
Teef.
"Ah, flipper." Rhys nods woodenly while his eyes stay trained on my hands as I use my toothbrush to brush the device. "I’m equal parts curious and grossed out."
I shrug. "That’s fair."
"Can you, like, nevermind."
Rhys turns quickly and I watch him rush to start brushing his own teeth. "What?"
He just shakes his head.
I continue with my oral hygiene routine and try to catch his eye contact in the mirror but he’s avoiding me with an expert level of precision.
I don’t know if admitting this is my first sleep over with someone I’m fucking is going to get him back or send him running.
I spit and look at my teeth from the glass of water I dropped them in. Should I put them back in? My dentist said not to but we didn’t talk about the scenario where I’ve freaked out the man I’m sleeping with.
"I can put them back in if it makesh you more comfortabwe." I offer as Rhys starts to leave the bathroom.
But he turns to me and the look in his eyes is darker, lustier than before. "It’s fine."
"Rhysh?" I wince hearing the lisp in his name and slide the flipper back in quickly. He’s staring at my mouth and I know I’ve knocked myself down a few pegs on the irresistibly sexy scale but such is the life of a hockey player. And, since I’m downgrading myself, I might as well go for broke.
I inhale and stick my hands on my hips. "I’ve never slept with someone before." He reels back. "Sorry, I’m sorry. I am sharing way too much right now. I just, I don’t know what will happen next."
"What do you mean?"
"About what?"
"That you’ve never slept with someone before. What about all the one-night-stands you’ve told me about?"
"First of all, I haven’t shared any details, I don’t fuck and tell. But, I also don’t go to sleep with them afterwards.
"Oh."
"Yeah."
"So."
"This is different."
"Well," he glances over his shoulder toward the bedroom. "We, just, get in."
"Seems doable."
We share a nervous laugh and before I turn off the light I slide my teeth back into the glass of water. My eyes adjust to the darker room and I walk around to the far side of the bed. Rhys and I face each other with the mattress between us.
"Can you, like, umm," Rhys lifts a shoulder. "Do stuff without your teeth in?"
Now it’s my turn to be surprised. "I don’t know. I never ashked my dentist but that feelsh like a big mishtake on my part."
"Oh, that’s fine, we don’t have to."
"Do you want to?"
"I think I always want to." Rhys whispers. My chest flutters and my stomach hollows.
"Because I’m the hottesth guy you’ve ever had?" Purposefully I flex my biceps as I run my tongue along the bottom of my teeth, including the gap.
"Something like that." He rolls his eyes and I grin.
"C’mon Charming, let’sh get into bed and do hand shtuff. Better to be shafe than shorry."
***
"Fuck me, Charming." The taste on my tongue almost makes me break out in a sweat. "More."
Rhys chuckles as he slides another stack of pancakes onto my plate. "I’m glad you like them."
"Like them, no. This is more. I’m about to drop to one knee for these pancakes." I shovel another pancake into my mouth, whole. "Wril rou cock fer me in deh cee?"
"Duncan, didn’t your grandmother teach you not to talk with your mouth full?"
"Pirate." I remind him after I swallow. "But, my mother certainly tried."
A boy could seriously get used to this life. We went to bed and there was a lot of touching and caressing and stroking and then Rhys settled into my arms after we’d washed up again. I slept well, better than I thought I would.
"That’s right." Rhys sits next to me on a counter stool and I hook my foot into the leg and drag him closer. His hands fly out to steady himself and then he uses a knife and fork to slice off a bite of pancake. "Did you have a question?"
"Oh yeah, will you cook for me in D.C.?" I flutter my eyelashes at him like Betty fucking Boop.
"I can do some cooking." He agrees and I pump my fist with a hissed yes!
"What is the plan for today, Charming?" I ask as I reach for another slice of ham.
"I thought I’d show you around the ranch."
"This is a ranch?"
"Not a full working ranch anymore, but it was. I have a few horses and I’ve always wanted to get a few more animals but with all the travel I do it doesn’t seem fair to them."
"Who watches the horses while you’re away?"
"The owners of the neighboring property." He points his fork off to the left.
"And that property is like ten fucking miles away?" I laugh because I look out the wall of windows to the left and all I see are rolling hills and treelines.
"Not ten, but far enough."
"You really like your privacy huh?" I think about the wall of windows at my condo right in the center of Penn Quarter.
Rhys sighs. "I either like to be on stage performing or, yeah, alone."
"Except for when your sexy fuck buddy is in town."
"Yes, except for then." He finishes his breakfast and takes his plate to the sink. With his back to me he continues. "I write better alone."
"How’s the writing been going?" I ask him as I drag the last of the fluffy stack through the pool of syrup on my plate.
"Okay." He shrugs.
I slide up behind him and wrap my arms around his to rinse my plate. "Only okay?"
"I’ve written a few songs I’m not sure are going to work for this album." He says as he pulls the plate from my hand to load it in the dishwasher.
"Can’t you just save them to use later?"
"Yeah, I can. But it doesn’t help me write songs for this album."
"What’s this one supposed to be about?"
"Heartbreak."
"Ahhh yes, the ex. Well, can you write a song about how after you give me a ranch tour we’re going to erase any memories of him throughout the house?"
Rhys shakes his head as he laughs. "Maybe."
"I believe in us." I kiss his cheek playfully and step back. "So, is this an ass-less chaps situation or what?"
***
Thank everything worth thanking that it wasn’t an ass-less chaps situation. My ass is absolutely on fire right now.
We’ve been riding for a half an hour or so and about ten minutes ago I totally spaced out on everything Rhys has said while I try to understand why my butt is burning.
Rhys looks back at me over his shoulder and all the pain becomes worth it.
A boy could get used to this view.
He’s in a denim snap up shirt. My eyes drift down to where the sleeve is cuffed up. I fixated on that spot back in the stables when he was explaining something. I’ll neve know what he said. All I could focus on was how his strong ink covered fingers worked nimbly to get him ready to do something.
Me.
I’m the thing that needs doing.
His horse, Donkey, slows down and we come up next to him. "How you doing?"
Rhys’s voice somehow sounds deeper when it’s surrounded by nature. I clench my ass out of want and then whine in pain. "Is my butt supposed to hurt so much?"
"That’s what he said." Rhys delivers the line with a straight face and my cackle is so loud my horse spooks. "Whooah, easy Tiger." Rhys says as he digs his heels into Donkey’s side to catch up to us.
Yeah, my horse’s name is Tiger and I think it’s just so Rhys can say "Easy Tiger" all the time.
I respect the wordplay.
When we settle in next to each other again, Rhys reaches over and lays a hand on my thigh. "We’ll head back if you’re sore."
"I’m mostly worried about my sex-doing ability."
Rhys just rolls his eyes. What? I wasn’t going to say love-making.
Tiger follows Donkey back up to the stables. Rhys dismounts easily and I look like a fish fighting for it’s fucking life on shore as I lay on my stomach and slide down Tiger’s side.
"Do you want to hang out while I get them settled or head back up to the house?"
I feel like I smell more than faintly of horse ass. "Mind if I head back up and shower?"
"Not at all." He smiles and I stumble away on stiff fucking legs.
Horse riding really takes it out of you.
Smiling, hunky, cowboy-esc bedmates do too.