Page 84 of Confessions of a Virgin on a Dating App
He had a patterned brick walkway leading to his porch, which I studied as I approached his front doorin the darkness. An overhead wall lantern flicked on, bathing the front porch in yellow light and making me jolt.
Devin had a smart doorbell with a camera, so he likely already knew I was there. Instead of ringing it, I gave a faint knock, aware of how late it was and not wanting to disturb the neighbors.
I heard faint footsteps from further back in the house, but I startled when a much smaller, definitely-not-human figure appeared in the side window.
Devin has a cat?
The fluffy brown tabby, who had a white belly and four white paws, opened its mouth and let out a quick trill of meows. I couldn’t tell if it was friendly, but I giggled as it raked its paws across the glass.
A metallic rattle shook the lock from inside the house, and the door swung open.
At first, my insides froze, fearing that I’d gone to the wrong residence and awoken a disgruntled neighbor. But even if I’d never seen him shirtless, with his impressive build and full tattoos on display, I knew that face smiling at me from the darkness.
I stepped forward, and Devin pulled me into a hug, closing the door behind me. We stood in silence for a few minutes, holding each other like we hadn’t been together in weeks. I slid my arms around his back, tracing the muscles of his shoulders and biceps with my fingertips. His bare skin against mine felt so good. Too good. I feared I’d be tempted to jump into bed with him without so much as a hello.
“I’m so happy you’re here.” His words finally broke the sweet stillness. I could tell by the warmth in his voice that he was just as relieved to see me as I was to see him.
He pulled me back from our embrace, running his fingers along my jawline. In the dim light of the foyer, I could see his familiar face, including the holes below hislips and in his ears where he’d taken his piercings out. He was shirtless and barefoot, only wearing a pair of black gym shorts, and for the first time, I could see the full extent of his tattoos.
In addition to hisC&Carm sleeve, which crested up his shoulder and ended just before his collarbone, he had a variety of random tattoos on his other arm, mostly of video game characters. He also had two on his chest, one on his stomach, and about half a dozen on his calves.
I pressed a hand to his chest, tracing my finger over the Critical Games logo just below his neck. I remembered the night he first showed it to me, almost two months earlier. I remembered how it made me wonder, shamefully at the time, what else was lurking underneath the black sweatshirts he always wore.
Now I had him. All of him.
“Want a quick tour?” Devin offered, sliding a hand around my waist.
I nodded. That was a good idea, as much as I would’ve rather focused on getting the rest of his clothes off.
The tabby slunk over from its spot by the window, letting out a funny-sounding meow and weaving between our legs as its chest rattled out a deep purr.
“You little bastard,” Devin teased, scooping the cat up with one hand. The tabby yelped out its displeasure as Devin flipped it onto its back, holding it like a baby and exposing its fluffy white belly.
That was when I noticed that on Devin’s wrist, nearly hidden by his tattoos, were old, scabbing claw marks.
“Who’s this?” I asked.
“This is Gideon.” Devin motioned for me to pet him. He had a wide head, with large, fluffy cheeks and vibrant yellow eyes. As unhappy as he was being held by Devin, he still purred when I scratchedhis ear.
“See? He already likes you better than me,” Devin laughed and plopped Gideon back on the ground. The cat shook himself off, sauntering away toward the kitchen with his long tail held high. “He’s ten, and he pretty much rules the house. He belonged to my cousin back when he used to live here, but he moved in with his fiancé a year ago and she’s allergic. So Giddy stayed with me. Mostly keeps to himself and just howls when he wants food.”
I giggled. “I never imagined you as a cat person.”
“I didn’t either,” Devin replied. “People sort of just dump pets on me.”
He motioned for me to follow him into the kitchen. It was larger than mine but also more dated, with dull cream countertops and brassy cabinet handles. It was cluttered, with a variety of appliances lining the shelves, but it was also remarkably clean. Not a single dish was left hanging out in the sink.
As we continued throughout the townhouse, I noticed most of Devin’s place was that way: incredibly cluttered, but also perfectly clean and organized. It was especially noticeable in the guest bedroom, which Devin referred to as the “storage room.” Shelves lined two of the four walls, each overflowing withCreatures & Crypts TCGboxes, miniatures, and board games. A treadmill and weight set were shoved in the far corner, and the walls were full of framed posters from both rock bands and video games.
“There’s so much stuff in here,” I commented as I paced past the shelves, studying the contents of each one. I noticed that all the boxes, regardless of size, had detailed labels. “You certainly stay organized.”
“Label maker,” Devin commented as I ran my fingers over one of the labels. He pulled the device off a table next to the treadmill. “I needed one for the shop. I loved itso much I bought one for my place too.”
I chuckled, coming to a stop at the end of the shelves. I was now less than a foot away from Devin, and I could feel the tension crackling off him. It jolted from my body to his like lightning between two conduits. Every moment of silence was a taunt, daring us to make the space between our bodies a lot smaller.
It tempted me, but just as I was about to lean into him, he asked if I wanted to see the master bedroom.
My stomach did a backflip as he took my hand and led me down the hall.
