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If I hadn’t already been in love with him, this would’ve done it.
Chapter Thirteen
The Pool Party
Larkin
When Holt invited everyone to a pool party he was throwing the following Monday to welcome Taylor to Goliaths, I thought I would’ve been psyched. Getting to hang out with everyone and drink beer and see all the wrestlers wet and half-naked? Getting to meet Assmo Dickus—the Assmo Dickus, legendary incubus adult film star—because Susan had already said he’d be coming with her?
I should’ve been freaking ecstatic, but in reality, I was massively bummed, because it completely derailed mine and Seb’s plan for my next lesson.
I didn’t even really want to go, but I knew I had to—everyone else was going, and besides, I really liked Taylor and I wanted to celebrate him joining Goliaths. I was already stressing about it though, because a pool party meant getting in a pool. Which meant wearing swim trunks. Which meant everyone potentially seeing…
Maybe I could tell everyone I had plantar warts. Or, like, an infectious skin thing. No, wait, I didn’t want to use that excuse in front of Seb. It might make him rethink being my fuckletics instructor.
I told my little brother what was worrying me over breakfast on Sunday morning, and when I got home from work that night, I found a carrier bag waiting on my bed. He’d bought me a pair of long swim trunks that I could tighten around my waist slightly higher than I’d typically wear pants.
Stuff like this was why I loved my brother so freaking much. Even if he was a little twerp sometimes.
I was still super nervous on Monday morning, and I was definitely still pissed that mine and Seb’s next lesson had been delayed. The moment we’d all received the invite via text from Holt on Friday, I’d sent Seb a row of frowny face emojis.
About twenty seconds later, he’d replied with, Tuesday instead?
So, yeah, okay, it had only been pushed back by a day. But that was still twenty-four more hours. Twenty-four whole freaking hours that I had to wait to find out what Seb had planned for our next lesson, to feel his hands on me again and see his eyes go that dark maple syrup colour from arousal.
I drove myself to Holt’s, because I wasn’t going to drink today. I didn’t want to be all shaky and hungover for my lesson with Seb tomorrow. There weren’t many cars on the drive when I got there, which meant a lot of the wrestlers had probably carpooled or shared cabs and planned on letting loose in the boss man’s nice pool and fancy backyard.
I was wearing my swim trunks under my sweats, but I still planned on avoiding getting in the pool if I could. I’d just chill on a lounger or something. Maybe I could hang out with Seb. I doubted he’d want to mess around in the pool with the wrestlers.
About ten seconds after I knocked on the front door, it opened to reveal Taylor in a pair of tropical print swimming trunks, a Tasselled Tussler T-shirt, flipflops and a Dullahan Dan cowboy hat. I grinned at him. He was a cute little human dork.
He smiled back brightly, his skin looking slightly tanned and freckles sprinkled over his nose. He must’ve spent a lot of time in the pool during his week off. He looked relaxed and happy, an iced coffee clasped in one hand.
“Hi, Larkin!” He stepped aside to let me in. “How are you?”
“Hey, T-bone. I’m great. How’s your week off been?” I nodded at his iced coffee with a smirk as I walked inside. “Any booze in that?”
He chuckled, closing the door and allowing me to shift out of my human skin, wings emerging from the slits at the back of my T-shirt.
“No. I’m taking it easy today. Don’t want to be hungover on my first day tomorrow.”
“Aw, yeah, it’s gonna be dope having you there.”
We made our way through the house, and I waved at Holt standing behind the small bar in the living area mixing up a jug of margaritas. He was wearing a big floppy sun hat, his usual fifties-style shades and a sheer, flowy robe-type thing with wide sleeves. Holt insisted he wasn’t a diva, but he totally was.
“Yo, boss man.”
“Hi, Lark. Want a drink?”
“Nah, I’m okay, thanks. I’m driving.” I glanced out through the open French doors to the patio. Heidi and Val were out there, as well as—oh god—Frank and Beans, who were already screaming in the pool. Biff had taken charge of the grill, and Gabe was standing beside him sipping a beer and sneaking his fingers under the apron covering the gargoyle’s chest. It said ‘Kiss the Cock’ with an arrow pointing down at his groin.
My gut clenched with nerves. I craned my neck, trying to spot the hot tub tucked in the corner of the deck. I could just about see the arm of someone sitting in there, but Taylor’s voice made me jerk my head back.
“How about an iced coffee?” he asked. I barely managed to stop my nose from wrinkling. “Or a soda?”
“Soda would be shweet. Thanks.” As Taylor hurried over to the minifridge behind the bar, I casually asked, “So who’s already here?”
“Frank and Beans turned up an hour early,” Holt muttered, pouring himself a margarita and immediately gulping down half of it. “Thankfully they just dove straight into the pool and haven’t got out since.”
