Chapter 33
Chapter thirty-three
Duncan
How hard could it be?
"You’re not thrusting enough." I call out from the kitchen island. My phone is charging after it died from me filming, and re-watching, Rhys’s performance. There’s enough battery life now to confirm Remember You Started This hasn’t texted.
Where is he?
"I am too!" E.T. defends himself from where he’s standing with one foot on red and one on yellow on our TWISTA board. His action was to pantomime doin’ it until his next turn.
"Jo help me show E.T. a better move." Bryson says with a wiggle of his eyebrows as he jerks his hand back and forth vacuuming but it could easily look like something else.
"How about I show E.T. what I’d do." Jo says as she stands and spins the Twister board for her assignment. "Butt wiping."
She steps over to the board and squats and reaches between her legs.
"Huh." Bryson says.
"My turn." Harper claps and spins. "Ballerina!"
"She always gets that one." Aiden complains from where he’s swiveling his hips back and forth like he’s skiing down a mountain.
"What can I say, I'm lucky." Harper says with a quick kiss to his cheek before she starts twirling.
"Duncan, you’re up." Felix calls and I stand up, leaving my phone on the counter.
"How many more rounds?" I ask as I give the spinner a flick.
"Well at least until Rhys gets here." Bryson says. "Did you get an ETA yet?"
"Nah." I shrug as I step over and place one foot on blue and one on green before I start spinning my hand furiously in front of me.
"What is that?" Jo asks from her squat.
"Beat it!" E.T. calls out.
"Duncan?"
I look up from where I am pretending to beat the hell out of some eggs in a bowl to see Rhys in my kitchen. He’s changed from his dark jeans and cowboy boots to a hoodie of mine, a pair of sneakers, and those grey sweats I can’t help but drool over.
The rest of us are still in our dress clothes from the show. But, seeing him in his comfortable clothes makes me want to change too.
"Rhys!" I leave the board to grumbles from my friends. "C’mon in! We’re playing TWISTA and pizza is on the way."
I pull him into a hug and he hesitantly wraps his arms around me. He did that at the show too but I figured he was just surprised by it. But I haven’t held him, or been held by him, in two weeks and I need that connection.
"I have an overnight bag." He whispers in my ear before I let him go.
"Assumptive much?" I give him a wink as I pick up his bag from the floor and carry it down the hall. "I’ll put this in the back and you can get started on TWISTA!"
He swallows and waits for me to walk away. When I make it back to my bedroom I set his bag on top of the dresser and then pull out a pair of shorts and a dri-fit shirt to put on. I know the guys are going to complain but that’s a home ice advantage if I’ve ever heard one.
When I head back out into the hallway I see Aiden holding Harper’s coat for her to slide her arms into.
"Where are you going?" I ask as I round the corner and see everyone else getting ready to leave.
"We’re going to head out." Harper smiles sweetly and her eyes flick over to Rhys.
"But I have pizza on the way."
"I’ll wait for it downstairs." Felix says with a clap to my shoulder on his way past me to the elevator.
I turn and see Rhys sitting on my sofa with his hands clasped between his legs.
"What’s wrong?" I ask as I make my way over to him.
"Nothing." He says as he stands and brushes past me. His cologne has faded so all that's left when I inhale is him. It's soothing, and simple, and his scent blends with the oxygen in the room and warms my chest. "I'm just tired. I think I’ll head back to my place."
I blink away the urge to curl into him. "You're clearly upset about something."
"Like I said, I'm tired."
"Rhys."
"Duncan."
"Charming."
"Don't."
That pulls me up short. His tone cuts and instead of breaking the tension it seems to multiply it.
"Just–" He pulls a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry, I just can't believe you didn't warn me about the party tonight! A little heads up would have been nice."
"Warn you? What do you mean? I invited you over while my friends were waiting for me in the lobby. You saw us all together tonight. How was I supposed to know you'd be mad about it?"
"You're right, you wouldn't have a way to know. Just, next time, give me a heads up."
"Fine." My arms cross as I concede. But our argument doesn't feel finished. "What else?" I demand.
He sighs. "I showed up in sweats, Duncan."
"I changed when I saw you!" I throw my arms out wide indicating my comfy clothes.
"You’re right. It’s fine." He says fine like I did a moment ago when things were not fine at all.
Fuck, this is so frustrating.
"You know what, sorry I totally bungled blending the friends with the benefits part. I thought you’d appreciate hanging out with the group but," I turn on my smoulder "if you’re really just interested in having me all to yourself, I can’t argue with that."
Rhys looks away from me as he runs his hand through his hair. "Yes. You bungled it. We bungled it. I did too. Because I don't want to be your friend."
"Ouch."
"No, I want to be your boyfriend. I can't be just friends anymore. I like you Duncan, I miss you when you're on the road. Tonight I wanted you for myself. I wasn’t prepared to share you, share your attention, your joy, when all I wanted was to curl up in sweats and watch a movie with you."
My body turns as Rhys paces like a sunflower chasing the sun.
"You wanted to Hulu and Do You tonight?" I ask because he makes it almost too easy.
"Yeah." He huffs as he shakes his head.
"Oh."
"I had to be on all night." He twists the toe of his sneaker into the carpet.
"C'mon." I say as I slide a hand onto his waist. His body moves easily towards me and I turn so he can perch on the edge of the sofa.
Once he’s seated I drop to my knees in front of him. "Duncan, no, I want to talk."
I only stare up at him as my fingers begin to unlace his shoes.
The movement, the position, has me imagining what it would be like to have Rhys out on the ice with me for family skates. Hockey skates on his feet not fucking roller skates.
"What do you want to talk about?" I ask as I slide one shoe off and start on the other.
"Well, any response to me telling you I wanted to be your boyfriend?"
"Honestly?" I ask as I pause my fingers.
"Always."
"I think I’m into it. I mean, how hard could it be?" The words fall easily from my lips.
He doesn’t need to respond, he just smiles down at me as I place his second shoe next to the other.
I stand and, with his hand in mine, lead Rhys to my bedroom. Once inside I let go of his hand and start to undress.
"What are you doing?"
"We're going to bed." I tell him matter of factly.
"Duncan, I'm too tired to have sex tonight."
"Who said anything about sex?" I say as I slide my shorts down. "I like you too, and I might not have the first idea about how to be your boyfriend but I think I can start by cuddling you."
"You're going to cuddle me."
"Yeah and I call big spoon."
He smiles in a bashful way as he crosses to his bag on the dresser. He unpacks a dop kit and walks into the bathroom. I follow in just my boxers and he smiles at me as we get ready for bed.
It’s no longer weird for me to slide my teeth out in front of him.
We move naturally around each other. Words not needed when we hand each other a towel or a tissue.
It’s nice.
Really, nice.
He slides under the covers, I slide my glasses off and place them on the bedside table before I reach up and kill the lights.
We're washed in darkness.
"So, we are just going to admit we like each other and go to sleep?" He asks.
"I would be open to a little make out if you wanted but now that I'm a boyfriend I'm going to be the best boyfriend there ever was and I take that responsibility seriously. And you have said how tired you are at least twice in the last ten minutes so I want you to get some sleep."
Before he settles in he hovers above me and I reach up to cup the back of his neck. He lets me pull him down to my lips and our kiss is slow like we're melting into each other.
After one last desperate swipe of my tongue against his I pull back and pat his pillow.
Rhys's smile is blinding in the otherwise dark room and he lays down, rolls over, and scoots his ass back into my lap.
Immediately my cock wakes up, interested in what would normally happen next.
"I didn't think about what it would feel like to have your ass on my cock when I said no sex."
Rhys chuckles in my arms. "Ditto."
"But, we're still agreed?" The little tease rolls his hips back just an inch and I bite my lip hard to suppress my groan. "No sex right now, but lots and lots of sex in the future."
"Deal." His voice has thickened with drowsiness.
"Goodnight Rhys."
"Night Duncan."