Chapter 3 #2
“I’m in heaven!” Gideon laid his cheek on the top of the trunk and gently stroked it.
“Isn’t it gorgeous? I used to have one exactly like this in my ballet days.
They shuffled me between dance corps and living with different people.
Because of that, I needed to stuff all of my things in a single trunk. ”
“Are you getting it?”
Gideon straightened with a giggle. “I think so. I could clean it up a little and use it as a coffee table or an accent piece along with storage.” He started turning it around and even peeked inside, but there wasn’t a tag or sticker on it anywhere.
He was pretty much willing to pay any price for it, but it would be nice to know what they were asking.
“Open the lid. I’ll put my books inside and carry it to the register,” Ryder offered.
Gideon was bubbling over with excitement.
He found a trunk so much like his own and now he was going to bring it home.
The lid creaked slightly as he opened it all the way, and there was a faint odor of musty roses that teased his nose for a second, and then it was gone.
Ryder placed his many books inside and tested the handles before hefting it.
“Are you still looking?” Ryder inquired.
Gideon shoved to his feet and dusted his hands off against each other. “Nope. I’m good. What about you? Need more books?”
“I have plenty now,” Ryder said in a low voice as he turned toward the register.
Gideon snickered, twirling behind him. “I’m pretty sure there’s no such thing as plenty when describing books.”
Ryder stopped walking, wide eyes snapping to his face. “You like to read?”
He shrugged. “Here and there when I’m in the mood. Mostly manga right now, but I like a good dirty romance, too.”
Ryder smirked. He smirked at Gideon before he continued to the counter. The woman waiting for them stared at the trunk as if she were shocked to see the massive thing.
“How much is the trunk? We couldn’t find a price tag on it.”
The older woman with wispy brown hair that was falling from a messy bun frowned, her glasses slipping down her nose. “Really? That’s…odd. I can’t even remember seeing this on the floor, and I’m usually the one who handles all the new items and donations. I’ll have to get the manager.”
“I’ll be paying for this and the books inside.”
“O-okay,” the cashier stammered, darting toward the back.
Gideon punched Ryder in the arm the moment they were alone. “You don’t have to do that. This could be expensive,” he tacked on in a low whisper.
“It’s a thank-you gift. You’ve spent a lot of your time helping to get things for my place when you could have been relaxing in your own home.”
Heat rose in his cheeks, and Gideon leaned his head on the arm he’d just punched. “Aww, you don’t have to do that,” he repeated because his brain wasn’t working. “I’ve had a lot of fun shopping for your home, and you’re fun to shop with.”
Laughter erupted from Gideon at Ryder’s very skeptical look.
“Okay, you became more fun when I learned that you really don’t have an opinion about things and you trust me to make all the choices. You don’t get impatient with how long it takes to find something or complain that I take too much time to decide. You don’t try to rush things.”
Lines dug furrows across Ryder’s forehead, and he frowned. “Why would I rush you? This is time I’m getting to spend with you and no one else.”
Melt. Swoon. Sigh.
Gideon leaned more against him, wrapping both of his arms around Ryder’s. “Man, you gotta warn someone if you’re going to whip out romantic lines like that. A guy could faint right on the spot.”
“I’ll catch you. I’ll always catch you.”
Spending time together? Catching?
How in the world was he supposed to not fall for this man? Of course, Ryder couldn’t possibly mean it the way it sounded. But really, his mouth needed to come with a warning label.
Warning: things coming out could be hazardous to your heart.
Thankfully, the manager chose that moment to return with the cashier.
They both remarked on how they couldn’t recall when the item had arrived at the store.
The cashier worked on ringing up Ryder’s stack of books while the manager hemmed and hawed over the price, finally cooking up five hundred dollars, which was astounding for a thrift store.
Yet, it was hard to argue with it. The trunk was in spectacular condition. There was a little wear on it, but that only gave it some character. Gideon was sure if they’d found it in a regular store, they’d be asking at least three times that.
Ryder didn’t even blink. He handed over his bank card and paid despite Gideon’s protests. He appreciated a thank-you gift, but this felt too extravagant.
He followed the sexy vampire out of the store, but he had to wait on the sidewalk while Ryder carefully secured the trunk and wrapped it in a protective tarp before he returned to scoop up Gideon.
It was on the tip of his tongue to remind him he was wearing galoshes, but the words wouldn’t come out.
Please. He wasn’t stupid. Why would he miss out on a chance to be in Ryder’s arms? When was this likely to happen again?
The ride to their new home was far too short. Gideon unloaded the bags they’d tucked in the rear while Ryder carried the trunk to his place first to empty the books. He hefted the monster up to the second floor for Gideon.
With a nod, Ryder left. That was it. No hug or sweet dreams. No good-bye kiss. No, let’s do it all over again sometime but naked and in bed.
Okay, he hadn’t expected the last one, but it would have been nice.
Sighing, Gideon flopped onto his new overstuffed and comfortable green couch and pulled his phone out of his pocket to find a text from Ethan waiting for him.
Rather than texting, he called. If Ethan wasn’t busy locking lips—or other body parts—with his mate, he’d answer.
“Since you’re calling, I take it the night didn’t go as you’d hoped,” Ethan said as a greeting.
“We got shopping done, which wasn’t bad. I found an amazing trunk at the thrift store. He carried me from his truck. We—”
“He carried you? Why? Did you get hurt?” Ethan interrupted.
Gideon rolled his eyes. Why was everyone always assuming that he was going to get hurt? “It was romantic. The parking lot was all slushy and dirty. He didn’t want my feet to get dirty, so he carried me.”
“Yeah, okay. That’s romantic. I totally love it when Marcus carries me around,” Ethan quickly agreed. “So, and…you were in his arms…?”
“Nothing.”
“What?” Ethan shrieked. “How? How is that even possible?”
“We almost kissed, but someone shouted from a passing car and that pissed him off. Mood ruined.” Gideon groaned. “I thought once we got home I could spark the mood and at least get a good-night kiss, but he just dropped off the trunk and left. Practically ran from my place.”
“You’re playing too hard to get,” Ethan said flatly.
Gideon bolted upright, clenching his phone in his fist. “Too hard to get! Are you out of your mind? What do you want me to do? Show up on his doorstep naked with whipped cream and a cherry on my dick? Ask him if he’s feeling hungry?”
“It’s a start.”
“You’ve been reading romance novels again,” Gideon accused.
“So what? I’ve been helping Marcus transcribe and annotate old clan meeting notes into a digital format. My brain is tired, and it needs something happy. Romance has a happy ending. Plus, there are some good ideas in those books.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“I’m serious! Ryder is a natural caretaker with you. He needs an excuse to take care of you. What if the knob on your shower happened to break and you run to his place dripping wet in only a towel, begging for help and shivering from the cold air?”
Gideon chuckled. “You are an evil, evil vampire. I don’t know how Marcus manages you.”
“We manage each other quite well, thank you very much,” Ethan said primly. “I gotta run. You think about it.”
“I’m not doing the shower thing,” Gideon replied.
“Pfft. Coward. Call me when you’ve got a better idea.”
Ethan hung up, and Gideon glared at his phone. The problem was that Ethan’s idea wasn’t all that bad, and Gideon didn’t have a better one.