Page 109 of Hide and Keep

“A name. Did he come with one?”

“No. It’s… It’s yours. You get to choose.”

“Hm.” I get in.

Crue bends down and I lift my foot for him automatically. One, then the other, he removes my shoes.

“How’s your…”

Assuming he means day, I say, “Fine.”

“No, your, uh…”

“Exam? Fine.” Who cares? Look at this fluffball.

“No, your…vag.”

I finally pull my attention away from the bear. Crue’s staring back at me, no heat in his gaze, no disgust in his demeanor, he’s just…awaiting my answer…like he’s…concerned? “Oh…yeah.” That. I guess that wouldn’t make sense for him to ask about my day. Or schoolwork. Just my yeast imbalance. “Um…itchy and smelly.”According to Crue.

“Is that why you want to get Botox? To numb it?”

I almost laugh.

“No?”

“That’s why your friend gets Botox, right? To numb his…ass.”

“Did he tell you that?”

“Fuck no. I looked it up.”

Imagining the pictures he might’ve come across in his research, I almost lose it.

“Topher does that for anal, so he can take bigger dicks deeper.” I’m sure some people get it there for medical reasons, but for Topher, it’s purely elective.

Crue’s hold on my ankle tightens, not painfully, just noticeably. “Is that why you’re getting it?”

Now I laugh. I was never considering getting Botox, not for my fake yeast infection and not for sex.

“What do you think about Lyndon?”

My bodyguard double blinks.

“What’s a lyndon?”

“A name. For him.” I jiggle Lyndon.

He releases my ankle and says, “I don’t like it,” before closing the door on me and Not-Lyndon.

For the few seconds I’m alone, I bring the bear up to my nose. It smells like him.

My eyes close on tears I’d die of embarrassment if Crue saw.

Major Danger gave me a teddy bear.

Thank you, Universe. Thank you.

“What about Malin?” Ever asks, giving more consideration to the bear than I thought she would. Honestly, I assumed she’d just throw it away.

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