Page 31 of Unraveling with You

“Oh?” Remington leans back in his chair.

He looks so cool and casual, relaxing back so fluidly that his long arms seem to stretch on forever - still able to softly hold my hand. The butterflies in my belly flutter even lower. I have to cross my legs to relieve the aching desire between them.

But Remington happily sighs. “Listen, I find you so endearing, sexy, and sweet. You might not think you’re capable of being supportive verbally, but you do a lot for me without needing words. You help me feel safe just by being yourself.”

I lean in until I’m pressed against the table. “So do you, truly. That’s why I’m so curious about you. Like about what you want in life or don’t, and what you enjoy, a-and also about—” I check over both shoulders before softening my voice. “About how you feel about where you work and— And what your interests are there.”

He studies me for a while, leaving me to fidget in silence. “Am I hearing right that you’d like to go to the club with me?”

I shrink. “I don’t know. I think so, but it’s new for me, so I don’t know what I’ll actually feel. But I’ve also been curious for a long time. Like, since Gabby and I started talking about it - and that was a few years ago.”

Remington’s half-up grin appears. “Have you been talking to Gabby more about the club then?”

My heart flips. “Yes, but— But my worries are the same as always, and they’re not about you. I don’t know if I’d like being around a lot of people for these types of things, but– um– privately might be okay, maybe–”

Leaning forward, Remington stops me before my rising shoulders hit my ears, his gentle touch brushing my arm. “Hey, hey, it’s okay. There’s no rush to share anything intimate right away. You don’t have to tell me anything unless you want to — and also feel ready.”

His words should relieve me, but I drop my focus to our empty plates, a sense of defeat dropping like a bowling ball in my gut.

But Remington’s voice deepens. “Although, if you were already interested in what Gabby and I are into and feel ready to just take a peek, maybe I can show you around soon.”

I gasp, jolting upright. His gaze flickers over me, so I grip my napkin for support.

He dropped his offer as if it were a casual invitation, but I know it’s not. If Remington trusts me to visit Club X with him, that’s opening yet another heavy door between us that I’ve been craving to look behind.

“Y-yes, I– I’d like– I’dloveto.”

Remington settles back into his chair with a bright laugh. “You really are so sweet. How about next Tuesday night, when there’s not as much of a crowd?”

I smile. “Oh. Thank you. Yes.”

“Of course. But just to be perfectly open with you, it’s a personal rule of mine to keep things vanilla until we’ve discussed formal consent in detail.”

My chest loosens. “Okay, yes, I like that. And I expected it. I’ve researched this a lot.”

Remington’s eyebrows raise. “Oh, yeah?”

“Yeah. Before we met, but also lately. Just in case we– um– dated, and you wanted to do anything like this with me and were okay with me wanting to keep it private.”

He grins wider with my every word. “Now Ireallycan’t wait to talk about this more with you on Tuesday.”

“Can we have a discussion about formal consent there?” I blurt out.

Remington looks just as surprised as I am for asking such a tremendous question to rocket our path forward.

But Remington melts into a heavy-lidded smile, drawing warmth into my lower belly. “You’re that interested in playing with me?”

I nod. “B-but if you’re not, or it’s too early, I understand.”

He shuts his eyes before leaning forward with a groan. “Oh, no, sweet girl. I can just feel that pull between us, and I’m still worried I’ll want to go too quickly for you. If you hadn’t suggested it first, I’d keep questioning myself if you wanted to go this far, maybe ever.”

“I do,” I whisper. “Is this not normal?”

He brings my hand to his lips. The soft kiss he plants on my bruised wrist steals my breath. “No, not for me. I almost never play with anyone. Only two people in my adult life.”

I suck in a tight breath. My racing heartbeat throbs in my groin. “T-thank you.”

“Thankyou, Lilibeth. This is kind of a big deal for me.”

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