And how soon could I find out?
I wipedmy damp palms against my jeans and stared at Avery’s front door. I could do this. Iwantedto do this. I’d spent the last hour debating whether I should come over or if it was too soon after last night and I was crossing some invisible line I wasn’t aware of, but in the end it had come down to two things. One, my afternoon was free. Gracie was at her grandparents’ and I wasn't working, and who knew when that might happen again?
And two, I really wanted to suck Avery’s dick.
I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about it all morning. I’d thought about it while I did a load of laundry, and while I’d done a grocery run, and especially while I’d been on my knees cleaning the bathroom. And in the end I’d decided to go for it.
Avery had said “next time,” so it wasn’t like I was offering out of the blue. Still, butterflies danced and twirled in my stomach, just like every time I came over and asked him to rock my world. I took a deep breath and knocked, my chest tight.
The door swung open a minute later and Avery stood there.
“Hey,” I said before I could lose my nerve. “I was thinking if you’re not busy, I could suck your dick.”
Avery made a strangled noise. “Wilder! It’s so good to see you!” he said, a little too brightly—and why did his smile look like a grimace? “Come in! You can meet my brother!”
It was then that I noticed the strange car in his driveway, tucked up along the side of the house and out of sight. “Oh,” I said, my stomach tying itself into sudden panicked knots. “Sorry, I didn’t realize you had company.”
I was also pretty sure he hadn’tmentionedexpecting company—but then, why would he? It wasn’t like his personal life was any of my business. I was the one who was out of place here, rolling up on his doorstep and expecting him to be available, and worstof all, blurting out that thing about wanting to suck his dick. The hell was wrong with me?
But before I could fuck off out of there and pretend it had never happened, a man appeared behind Avery. He was older and taller than Avery, and he had a neatly trimmed beard, but the family resemblance was obvious. I gave him a tight smile.
“Dallas drove down to surprise me. Isn’t thatgreat?” Avery said, still wearing an unhinged grin. He turned to his brother and said, “Dallas, I’d like you to meet my neighbor, Wilder. His daughter is in my class.”
Dallas’s face did something complicated before his expression smoothed out and he said, “Pleased to meet you… Wilder, is it?”
“Yessir,” I said, shuffling awkwardly while praying he hadn’t heard what I’d said earlier—or if he had, he’d assumed I was kidding.
Ha ha. So funny.
Dallas gave me a reassuring smile that was the echo of Avery’s and said, “Don’t call me sir, Wilder. I already feel old enough standing next to this little shit.” He slung an arm over Avery’s shoulder, hard enough that Avery stumbled forward a step, and the pair of them grinned at each other.
I relaxed some. Dallas had the same confident, relaxed air about him as his brother did, the one that instantly put me at ease, and most importantly, nobody had mentioned my dick-sucking comment, so I guessed I was in the clear.
“Come in,” Avery said, stepping aside. I hesitated. It would look weird if I didn’t go inside now that I’d come over, but what reason could I give for turning up on his doorstep unannounced?
In the end I followed him inside, and we went and sat in the living room. I was aware that I had to sell this as just Avery’s neighbor doing neighborly things. I shifted uncomfortably in my seat and willed myself not to think about Avery’s dick.
It was harder than it sounded. The not-thinking part, not Avery’s dick—although I doubted that was hard right now either,what with his brother sitting five feet away and watching us avidly.
I blurted out the first thing I could think of. “I wanted to invite you over next Saturday. We’re firing up the grill for the twins’ birthday since they’ve never had a party.”
Avery’s brow creased. I hadn’t told him the whole story of how the guys had ended up living with us, but he’d obviously picked up enough to know they’d been through some shit in their formative years. Plus he had a soft spot for Cash.
He leaned forward in his seat, eyes bright. “I’m in. And if this is their first proper birthday, I feel like we should decorate. I can get some balloons and stuff, and?—”
I held up a hand, biting back a smile at his enthusiasm. “Calm down, Crafty McPaperfold. I’m talking a few beers, maybe some steaks, and a cake. They don’t need some bullshit paper chains.”
Avery looked so offended I almost laughed out loud. “I don’t make bullshit paper chains! I know some tricks with bunting that would blow your mind!”
Hearing him say “blow” had me remembering last night all over again, and I had to bite back a smile and duck my head so Dallas wouldn’t see me blushing and think I had some weird bunting kink.
There was an awkward silence until Avery cleared his throat and said, “Anyway, it’s good of you to ask me. Can I bring anything?”
I glanced up at Avery. “Maybe your potato salad?”
Avery nodded. “Of course. Do you need my help with anything else?”
“Nah, Danny and Miller have it under control.”
