Page 66 of Dirty

“What’s that?”

I wasn’t about to tell him he had to live life shirtless, although it would have been fine with me. I didn’t have a problem, however, asking him for something a little less embarrassing.

“You’ve got to take off the vest from time-to-time,” I said.

“Okay.” He shrugged. “Can I get dressed now?”

I liked it that he was modest. “Yes,” I said. “You can.”

He pulled down his shirt, adjusted his hat, and then stepped to my side. “New rule for you, too.”

I envisioned showing him my tits, or some goofy rule about blowjobs as soon as he crossed the threshold of the door.

I leaned close enough to him to kiss him, and then paused. “What?”

He raised his finger toward my face, and I although I didn’t flinch, I held my breath and waited anxiously for him to touch me.

He brushed my hair away from my face, tucking it behind my right ear, and then reached toward the other side of my face. After carefully positioning the left side in the same fashion, he leaned back and studied me.

A smile of satisfaction quickly washed over him.

“There.” His eyes moved from one side of my face to the other, and then back. “Perfect.”

I exhaled, and then met his gaze. His blue eyes glistened. “I like you.”

His gaze fell to his feet. “I like you, too.”

“Do I still make you nervous?” I asked.

He looked up. “Yeah. A little. It’s not bad, though. Not as bad as it used to be.”

“I like that, too,” I said.

I inhaled a breath of courage, reached for the hem of my tee shirt, and pulled it over my head, no differently than he had done with his. After unbuckling my bra and dropping it at my feet, I stood mere feet from him, naked from the waist up.

I felt vulnerable and a little embarrassed, but I stood there nonetheless.

I wasn’t a prude, and in fact, was far from it. In the past, being naked in public wouldn’t have been beyond the realm of possibilities, but things had changed.

I had changed.

I wanted him to feel comfortable in my presence, and I needed to feel comfortable in his, too. I watched him as he slowly took me into his view, inch by inch.

He took a step back and studied me. He crossed his arms over his chest and inhaled a deep breath. His mouth twisted into a smirk. “Can you turn to the left a little?”

I did as he asked.

His eyes searched me from head to toe, and then focused on my naked torso. He pushed his hands into his pockets. A few seconds later, he exhaled.

“Thank you,” he said.

I reached for my bra. “For what?”

As I stood, he leaned toward me and kissed me lightly on the lips.

“Trusting me,” he said.

I put on my bra, and then pulled my shirt on. “Thank you.”