Page 56 of The Freshman

“How’s the nose looking?”Nate asked.

Alfie snorted, rested the piece ofpaper on his clipboard, and added a nose to the picture of himself.He smiled as he forced the piece of paper back through the hatchand listened for Nate’s reaction.

Nate’s laugh made him shiver, not in ahorrible way, but a pleasant rush.

“You no longer have a nosethen, but a scrotum hanging between your eyes.”

Alfie rolled his eyes. “We can’t allbe gifted at art.”

“Aww, Freshman, you thinkI’m gifted.”

Alfie pursed his lips. “Did I saygifted? I meant average.”

“Harsh. You know I’m good,though it’s not the only thing I’m good at. I’m good at making menbeg.”

A shiver or arousal snaked up Alfie’sspine, followed by rush of bitter cold. He didn’t know whether Natemeant beg for sex or beg for their lives. Alfie bit his bottom lipand drew his eyebrows together. He stepped closer to the gap in thedoor until his lips were only a millimeter away from resting on themetal.

“About …before.”

Nate chuckled darkly and used hisseductive voice. “Do you wanna know if I got myself off? Theanswer’s a yes, several times, and a few times earlier. Justknowing you’re down there in the office drives mecrazy.”

“Drink lowersinhibitions.”

Nate tutted. “Oh please. You couldn’thave been that drunk if you were working your hand and yourmouth.”

“It can’t happen again.Won’t happen—”

“Can’t, won’t, but we bothknow it will.”

“But it shouldn’t,” Alfiegasped.

Nate snorted. “Yeah you got thatright. I shouldn’t have fallen for you, and you shouldn’t havefallen for me, but here we are, Freshman, and now I’ve got you, I’mnot letting you go.”

Alfie replayed Nate’s words in hishead over and over as he lay in bed. He expected a horrible emotionto rise to the surface—disgust, repulsion, shame, but Nate’spromise to not let him go only made him feel good. Dare he eventhink it, but it made him feel special. His whole life he had beenlumped into the category of unwanted, but Nate wantedhim.

The echo of Nate’s words warmed Alfieuntil his face blushed. It was embarrassment, but goodembarrassment. Someone cared about him. When he thought about whothat person was, he groaned and rubbed his palms harshly down hisface. Of course, the only man to want him was a triple murderer.Nate had told Alfie he wasn’t going to let him go, and it terrifiedAlfie when he realized he didn’t want Nate to.

Chapter Fourteen

Alfie’s days off were spent with hisphone on his chest, waiting for Nate’s call. There was more fantasysex, a beach where they frolicked under the hot sun and cleanedthemselves afterward in the gentle sea. A snow-covered cabin, whereNate laid him in front of a log fire, then pressed him into thefloorboards and made him gasp.

Nate’s commanding voice triggeredAlfie’s orgasm, and just the whispered word Freshman was enough toget him hard again.

In the post orgasm glow, Nate told himthe things they would do on their travels. Snorkeling in the clearsea, riding snowmobiles in the fresh snow. He talked of Alfie beingwrapped up inside, while he chopped logs in the cold. Talked of howhe would rub sun screen into Alfie’s skin as he dozed on thesand.

Nate’s voice calmed him after orgasm,and no doubt or shame had time to surface. He didn’t panic and hangup like the first time. He let the images Nate created seep intohis mind, closed his eyes, and smiled.

They didn’t just talk about sex. Natewould ask what Alfie was watching on TV, or about what music heliked, or clothes he wore outside of work. He asked about Alfiegrowing up in care and didn’t patronize or mock. When Alfie askedNate questions about his childhood, he shut down. Nate’s voice grewcolder, and he hung up the phone. He didn’t want to be known byAlfie, and it stung like a rejection.

There was a knock at the front door,and Alfie peeked through the curtains. Not the green delivery van,or the red pizza scooter. The man standing on the doorstep wasdressed in a black parka and well-fitted trousers. His hair wasperfectly tousled, and his lips were bunched in a pout. The mancradled a package to his chest, one that Alfie hadn’tbought.

Alfie opened the door and shot the mana smile. “Hi…”

“For you.”

Alfie took the package, frowning atthe clothing label. He wouldn’t even walk in the shop in case theylooked at his scruffy appearance and shooed him out. The man forceda cough and held his phone out for Alfie to sign.

Alfie took the gift into the livingroom and shredded the tough plastic. He lifted the charcoal coatand widened his eyes when he registered the weight. It was thick,and lined, and when he slipped it on it fit him perfectly. The goldbuttons on the cuff gleamed and the stitching was exact.

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