Page 58 of Toren

“Just the ones I’m madly in love with.”

He answered that with a self-deprecating noise that Andrew ignored.

“I’m serious,” Andrew pressed. “You kind of really went into yourself there for a bit. Are you okay?”

“I promise I am.” Toren drew an X in the center of his chest. “Cross my heart. I just didn’t expect…I don’t know.”

“It’s different like that, different from being told what to do during sex, right?”

Different might have been the understatement of the year.

“Do you want to do that again ever?” Andrew asked, his stare tracking Toren’s hand as he raised the cigarette to his mouth and drew another inhale.

“Yes,” Toren said, because he did want to do it again, but he wanted to do it again in the privacy of their own home where there was no one to see him lose himself like that besides Andrew. “Tell me what it’s like for you, when I was like that.”

Andrew sipped his water, shrugging one shoulder toward his ear casually. “It was everything I didn’t know I wanted, but I don’t want you to think that means I’ll be missing out if it never happens again.”

Toren understood, because things had been perfect before, and he knew that wasn’t going to change just because of whatever had happened between them in the playroom.

“It felt a lot like a gift,” Andrew told him. “I’ve never…I’ve played that way sometimes, but it’s never been like that.”

“How did it make you feel?”

“Like your love was the only thing I’d ever need for the rest of my life.”

“Uhm…” A voice from behind drew both of their attention, and Toren turned to see who had joined them. It was a younger guy with dark hair and a sleeve of tattoos on one arm. He had the word STARDUST inked across his knuckles and he looked so familiar, but Toren was too much not himself to place the face. “Your name is Toren, right?”

“Yeah. And you are?”

“Sorry.” The man smiled, scrubbing a hand down his face. “I thought it was you, but I wasn’t sure. You looked familiar. I remembered you from the show.”

“The show?” Toren asked.

“The art show. Merrick’s show?”

“I was there,” he said carefully.

“We still don’t know who you are, sorry,” Andrew chimed in.

“God.” A furious blush took up on the stranger’s cheeks. “I’m Bryce Shannon. I’m Merrick’s brother.”

“Holden’s boyfriend,” Toren said, connecting the dots.

Andrew’s shoulders deflated, and Toren laughed under his breath, recognizing the jealous possession that had flared up on Bryce’s arrival.

“Sorry I didn’t recognize you.”

“It’s fine, really. There were a lot of people there, and Riggs was introducing you to everyone, and I like people, and it was a lot.” Bryce grimaced, stopped himself from talking.

“I’m Andrew, by the way,” Andrew introduced himself. “I’m not sure we met.”

“I don’t think so, but nice to meet you.” Bryce wiped his hands on a bar towel hanging out of his back pocket. “Anyway, I saw you guys earlier and thought I recognized you and just wanted to say hi. I’ve got to get back to work.”

“You work here?”

“I bartend.” Bryce gestured over his shoulder toward the inside of the club. “Uhm, Riggs is here with his boyfriend. Not sure if you said hi or not, but they’re at the bar too. I told him I thought I saw you. Wanted to run out and check.”

Andrew bit his lips between his teeth and groaned, nodding his understanding of what was about to happen.