CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Gabe woke up with an unfamiliar woman in his arms.
He was lying on his side, embracing her from the back, spooning her. One arm lay stretched out beneath her neck, the other draped over her. He slowly moved his hand, caressing a rounded belly. Oh. Karen. Right.
He blinked a few times, then something occurred to him. Quickly but carefully disentangling himself from her, he rolled over and grabbed his phone. Yep. Sure enough. One minute before the alarm was supposed to go off.
Quickly navigating it, he dismissed the alarm and settled back into place against Karen. He felt her stir a moment later.
“Gabe?” she murmured softly.
“Here,” he replied.
“...this feels so nice.”
“It really does.”
A moment of serenity passed. He could hear the others breathing. Chloe and Ellen. Not Holly, though. She was probably already awake.
“What time is it?” Karen asked.
“Ten.” He paused. “Crap.”
“What?”
“Did you need to be home by a specific time? I just realized we never actually discussed that during all of last night’s...activities.”
She chuckled softly. “No, it’s fine. I would have said something.
I took the week off. Just wrapped up a big presentation and I have the time off built up.
And I didn’t make any plans, either. So we’re good.
That being said, I would appreciate a ride home before noon.
I do have some things I wanted to do today for myself. ”
“I can absolutely do that,” Gabe replied.
“Thank you. Is it okay if I shower?”
“Yeah, definitely. Can I join you?”
“Yes.”
He disentangled himself once more and got up, then helped her to her feet. Ellen was on her side, facing away from them. Chloe was on her other side, on her back, a bit sprawled, mouth open, looking kind of ridiculous.
They took turns using the bathroom, then got into the shower together.
“Man, I feel really fucking good,” Karen murmured as she tilted her head back and wet her hair. “I haven’t gotten laid in forever. Not since my divorce.” She paused. “Did Liz mention that to you?”
“Yeah. I figured it wasn’t date night appropriate conversation,” he replied.
“A good assumption, and I appreciate it. There’s a lot to unpack but...
at the same time, it’s really simple. He was a sociopath.
He lied to me for a decade. He hid...a lot.
In truth, I know that I’m lucky to have gotten out as intact as I did.
Really, the most traumatic thing was asking myself how I missed it.
How I didn’t see it for a decade. And then realizing that I did see it, I was just ignoring it.
Pretending I didn’t see what I saw. Which, of course, he helped me along with without my realizing it.
” She sighed. “I’m in therapy and, honestly, I’m looking forward to just settling into motherhood.
” She paused, frowned a little. “I mean mostly.”
“I’m sorry that it happened to you,” Gabe replied.
She smiled, a little awkwardly. “Thank you. I haven’t really talked about it with anyone but my therapist. It feels kind of weird...but not in a bad way.”
“Well, if you want to catch a meal or go for a walk sometime and just talk about it, I...will try to be free.”
She chuckled. “Yeah, I imagine you’re pretty busy these days.”
“Yes. I very much am. Having to keep a calendar entirely to manage my relationships with amazing women was a suffering from success problem I truly never believed I’d have. And yet, here I am.”
“How do you do it? I mean, really?”
“Really? It’s hard to say. I’m still developing my system. Really, the only reasons that it’s actually working are: we all have each other, instead of they all have me, and everyone is reasonable. You know...mostly.”
She laughed. “Yeah, Krystal and Chloe, and Ellen, kind of seem like they have...big personalities.”
“Oh yes, they do. And they aren’t the only ones. But at the end of the day, they’re reasonable and willing to work with me, and each other. Here, turn around,” he said, grabbing some soap.
“All right.”
He began soaping her back. Karen shuddered and moaned softly. “That feels very nice.”
“That’s what I am about. Physically and emotionally.”
“You’re so strange,” she murmured after a moment. “I mean, in a good way. A great way, obviously. It’s just...a lot of men I’ve met just don’t really have the patience for the subtler things. Or just don’t care. I don’t suppose, as a man, you have any insight into that?”
“Well…” He thought about it for a moment as he soaped her back.
Once he was done, he began massaging her shoulders.
“This is what I’ve got: I’ve heard that men’s brains and women’s brains tend to work differently.
Men have more linear minds, women are able to think more abstractly.
Consequently, I think men tend to just focus on what they’re doing more.
“But also, consider how we’re raised. For a lot of stuff, guys get a pass from their parents.
Messy, dirty, loud, absentminded? That’s just how boys are.
Girls don’t really get that pass. More is expected of them.
The world is also more dangerous for them on average.
Consequently, women are forced to develop more emotional intelligence as a survival tactic.
Or, put it another way: in terms of emotional maturity/intelligence, more men graduate in third grade, whereas women are more prone to going on to high school. ”
“That’s roughly along the lines of what I find myself thinking,” Karen murmured. “You have strong hands. Strong fingers.”
“I’d have to, given all the exercise they get.”
She giggled. “I guess you do finger a lot of pussy.”
“A lot. Not that I’m complaining. My tongue is pretty strong, too.”
She turned around suddenly. “Yes, it is. That oral you gave me during round two was...above and beyond expectations. I’m not looking for a relationship, but if your wives are okay with it, I’m very fine with a hookup.
Provided you bring those fingers and that tongue.
Because it’s not like I’m going to be risking hooking up with anyone else for a long time, let alone a relationship. ”
“That sounds just fine to me.”
She laughed. “I’m sure it does. Good. Lick me like last night, and I will suck you like last night every time. I’ll even swallow. In fact…” She glanced down.
He had morning wood.
She grinned at him.
He groaned. “I really, REALLY want to take you up on that offer, but I can’t. It’s Chloe’s date day and, unless the plan explicitly calls for it, I only fuck whoever’s date day it is.”
“I admire your restraint,” she said. “Here, take the water. I imagine you’ve got to get ready.”
“I do, but we have time. I know Chloe. She’s like Krystal, she isn’t getting up before noon. She’s a night goblin.”
Karen laughed as they switched places and he began washing up. “That’s how I used to be in college, so I can sympathize.”
…
“Why do you keep looking at me?” Chloe murmured from the passenger seat.
Gabe flicked a glance at her again. They had just dropped Karen off and were now heading for breakfast. Well, lunch. Well...was breakfast based on time or whether or not it was the first meal? He supposed it didn’t really matter.
“You are so fucking hot right now,” he replied.
She smirked. And dear God, was she hot.
She’d gothed out hard for their date today.
She wore a black dress with a titanium skull emblazoned across the front, a black jacket draped over her shoulders, black leggings, fishnets down her arms, heavy mascara, black lipstick, black nail polish, and a black choker sporting her GABE’S GIRL tag.
The effect it combined to create was an aura of raw gothic sexuality and beauty.
“Where’s your purse?” he asked suddenly.
“I didn’t bring it,” she replied. “I have my phone and nothing else. You are my purse for the day.”
He sighed. “Great.”
She giggled. “Come on, would it really be a you-and-me date if I weren’t annoying you somehow?”
“I suppose not.”
“That being said...I do want this to be a collaborative effort. How bratty should I be? Light or hardcore?”
Gabe thought about it. That was an interesting question. “How about we start with...medium-low and see how that goes?”
“All right...you know, you cleaned up pretty fucking nice, too,” she murmured, staring at him.
He laughed softly. “That’s good, at least.”
Gabe just had on a pair of black jeans, his black sneakers, and a black button-down with blue flames crawling along the front and back.
Chloe had been the one to adjust his hair, putting some gel in it so it was that perfect ratio of messy-but-not-too-messy she, and most of the others, liked so much.
He’d been kind of surprised when he’d seen himself in the mirror.
It was weird how different he looked nowadays.
Good, but weird.
“So, I might have overheard that we’re doing something related to video games today,” she said after a moment.
He frowned, pulling into the parking lot of the hole-in-the-wall diner he knew she liked.
Once he parked, he looked at her. “I’m sorry!
I didn’t mean to, and I didn’t hear any specifics, just... thought I’d let you know.”
She had the tiniest smirk. He sighed. “Well, all that matters is that you don’t know what it is.”
“Yeah, but, you know, maybe you could shed some light? You insisted I have an energy drink, which seems odd.”
“You’ll want to be alert for this,” he replied. “Now, shut up and let’s eat breakfast. We’re on a timeline.”
“Oh, yes master,” she replied, rolling her eyes.
“You’re such a stupid fucking bitch, Chloe.”
She had been in the process of opening the door, but now she whipped around to face him, staring with an expression that was trying to express several different, conflicting emotions at once.
“You’re fucking in for it,” she growled.
He leaned in and quickly kissed her. “Am I now?”
“Oh you fucking-get out!” she snapped, throwing the door open and getting out.
Gabe laughed and got out as well.
Today was definitely going to be fun.