Page 43 of How to Date a Younger Man
Happy chills run down my spine at the mention of the first time we met, before I knew he was Kristen’s brother, before I even knew his last name.
That was when he was just some kid who asked me on a date, a piece of man candy I’d only let myself fantasize about late at night when I needed help falling asleep. Little did I know then what he’d come to mean to me—let alone the fact that he’d one day be naked in my bed.
Out of nowhere, my stomach grumbles loud enough for him to hear, and his eyebrows shoot up to his hairline, his eyes crinkling in amusement.
“Wait right here,” he says, slipping out from under me and gently placing my head on a pillow.
“Where are you—”
But before I can finish my question, he’s halfway down the hall, and all I can do is watch his tight ass at work while he walks away.
I sit up, half-aware of the fact that I’m still naked, and decide to take the moment of solitude to run to the bathroom. Wiping off some mascara smudges under my eyes, I can hear him rummaging around in my kitchen, the sound of cabinets opening and closing serving as the countdown clock to fix myself up a bit before he gets back.
Quickly sitting down on the toilet to pee, I run my fingers through my hair to get the knots out without totally flattening the I just had three orgasms volume I’ve already got going on.
After flushing the toilet, I wash my hands and study my reflection in the large, floor-to-ceiling mirror in front of me. With any other guy, I’d be fixing my makeup or applying a little lip gloss, but right now, I like the woman staring back at me. Sure, her hair’s a little crazy and she’s slightly flushed, but she looks happy, alive. Nothing like the woman I was only a few days ago.
At the sound of Griffin’s footsteps in the hallway, I leave the bathroom and climb back into bed, propping myself up on my elbows and pulling my hair to one side. He walks in, his arms full of every box of snacks I have in this house—which, if I’m being honest, isn’t much. But just seeing the proud look on his face as he stands there, his tall, lean frame filling the doorway, is enough to rouse my appetite.
“I’ve hunted. I’ve gathered. And now I’ve returned,” he says, delicately placing his findings at the foot of the bed, which include a half-eaten bag of low-calorie kettle corn, two boxes of whole wheat and flaxseed crackers, and an unopened package of chocolate chip cookies I’d been saving for that time of the month.
“My hero,” I say, and honestly, I’m half-serious. My stomach growled earlier for a reason. Grabbing the kettle corn, I help myself to a handful.
“You have the worst snacks I’ve ever seen in my entire life,” he says, sitting next to me and examining the back of a box of crackers.
“I try not to keep too much snack food in the house,” I reply between handfuls of popcorn.
“I can see why.” His mouth twitches up into a smile as he gives me a sidelong glance, but I just swat at his arm with the back of my hand. “Don’t worry. I like a woman with an appetite.”
I roll my eyes, but on the inside, I’m sighing in relief. I haven’t thought about it before this moment, but I’ve totally let my guard down around him in a way I’ve never done before. Not only have I been completely butt naked around a man who spends at least six days a week at the gym, I’m now scarfing down snack food in front of him. Sure, I take care of myself, but I definitely don’t spend as much time on my body as he does. And honestly? This whole night has felt like the most natural thing in the world.
“So, are you going to share any of that, or should I just hunker down with these flaxseed crackers?”
I laugh, throwing a couple of pieces of popcorn at him, totally missing his mouth and hitting his chest and forehead instead.
“Oh, it’s on,” he says, lunging for the popcorn as I pull it away, starting a whole new game of cat and mouse.
It’s silly, but I can’t stop smiling. Laughing, the two of us wrestle over the popcorn and cookies and end up tangled up in each other’s limbs. We spend the rest of the night talking and eating and kissing and cuddling.
And if I’m being honest with myself, I can’t remember the last time a hookup was this fun.
14
* * *
LAYNE
After a long day at the office, and then a hot shower, I’m lying in bed at barely nine o’clock on a Tuesday night when my cell phone chimes from beside me.
