Page 27 of Clean Finish

“It felt amazing.” I pasted on a smile to reassure him. It felt like my face was going to crack.

His shoulders slumped in visible relief, a huge grin stretching his mouth. “Shweet. And I could definitely feel my stamina already improving, bro. I bet soon I’ll be able to, like, hold off indefinitely. Just a few more lessons.”

My heart squeezed hard. Not in a pleasant way. I couldn’t back out now, no matter how much this was going to destroy me. It wasn’t fair. I’d already agreed, and he was so excited for these fucking “lessons.” He wanted this.

And if I could give Larkin something he wanted, I was fundamentally incapable of refusing him.

I nodded, the smile somehow still on my face. “We’ll practise more.”

“Noice.” He gave me another sweet grin, then glanced down at his lube-sticky hands and grimaced. “Mind if I wash my hands before taking off?”

“Of course not.” I trailed after him as he took off toward the kitchen. “Uh, you could… shower again if you wanted. Before you go.”

“Nah, it’s okay.” He chuckled, pumping soap into his palm at the sink. “I’ve already buttoned my shirt. At least the cum is on the inside, so my parents won’t see it.” His shoulders suddenly stiffened as he peeked over at me. “I’m just… saving up for my own place. That’s why I still, um, live at home.”

“I get it.” I leaned my hip on the island and crossed my arms. “I lived with my parents until I was twenty-five.”

“You did?” He turned to look at me as he dried his hands.

I nodded. “Werewolves tend to have a harder time moving away from their packs.”

“Oh right, yeah. Of course.”

He set the dish towel down in a crumpled heap on the counter, then flushed and picked it up to fold it neatly and put it back where he’d found it, hanging over a cupboard handle. God, why did he have to be so fucking sweet?

“My mom and dad would be happy if I lived at home until I was, like, forty or something.” He rolled his eyes but smiled. “My parents are so laid-back, it’s ridiculous, dude.”

I smiled, eagerly soaking up these little scraps he was offering me. “Yeah?”

“Uh-huh. My mom runs that new age store in town—Seelie Secrets? And my dad owns a gardening company. Just spends all day surrounded by plants and stuff. He loves it.” He huffed and rolled his eyes again. “They’re, like, disgustingly in love still, even though they’ve been married for about a million years.”

“That’s nice. My parents are still crazy about each other too.” I rubbed my neck. “Werewolves, uh, tend to mate for life, most of the time.”

He nodded, then seemed to realise he was lingering, because he suddenly beelined for his tie and suit jacket still draped over the back of the couch. “Anyways… I wonder how drunk Holt and Taylor have gotten.”

“Guess we’ll find out in the morning.” I stayed put, watching him approach, my gut tightening with every step he took. But he just grabbed his keys off the island, then moved to the door to put on his shoes.

Chest heaving with a silent sigh, I followed. “So I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah.” He straightened and looked at me, throat bobbing once. “Um, I’ll probably get Holt a coffee on my way in. To try and stop him from being such a hungover d-bag. Do you want one?”

I gazed at him in silence, then nodded. “Sure. Thanks. A hot chocolate would be nice.”

“What if they mess it up again?” He gave me a wry smile.

I shrugged and opened the door. “Then I guess you’ll just have to drink it.”

His eyes brightened. He reached over and lightly punched my shoulder. “I guess if I have to,” he postured, like I didn’t already know that he would prefer the hot chocolate. “It’s the least I can do, right?”

I smiled tightly and didn’t answer. He didn’t owe me anything. Not even pretending to do me a favour by drinking the hot chocolate I was only asking for so I could give it to him.

“Okay, well—” He fidgeted and took a step over the threshold. “—night.”

“You’ll be okay getting home from here?”

“Uh-huh.” He held up his phone. “Got this if I get lost. But I’ll be fine.”

I frowned a little. “Just text me if you do get lost.”