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“Um… just… maybe don’t touch that box.” Larkin’s face turned an even darker shade of blue as Seb pursed his lips, fighting back a smile. “Just… for no reason. Bugs,” he then blurted. “I think there are bugs in there.”

I stared at him blankly for a long moment, then looked at the box again.

That stain was cum, wasn’t it?

Without saying a word, I shifted my leg and slowly pushed the stained box further away from me with my foot. The sound of it scraping over the floor filled the small room.

“Anyways.” Larkin hurriedly grabbed Seb’s hand again and tugged him toward the door. “Later, Rafe!”

“Later,” I muttered back, wondering, not for the first time, if it was too late for me to quit.

Chapter Twenty-One

Egg

Dan

This was getting goddamn ridiculous.

By Wednesday evening, I still hadn’t managed to talk to Rafe. He hadn’t answered the door last night, he’d jumped in his car and sped off when I went outside this morning, I had no idea where he’d been all day at work and now I could see that his friend—the tall, skinny one—was over at his place, the familiar car parked behind Rafe’s in the driveway.

For the tenth time since getting home, I crept over to the living room window and held my head just past the frame so I could peek out. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting to catch a glimpse of, but once again it was nothing. Rafe’s living room curtains were shut.

Huffing, I stomped back over to the couch and sat down, dropping my head into my lap. Staring with unseeing eyes at the TV, I wondered whether I should just go over anyway. Hammer on the door until he had no choice but to answer. I could be as rude as Rafe was if I wanted to be.

I’d just never tell my momma.

But no. I didn’t think interrupting his evening with his friend would make Rafe more willing to speak to me. He’d just double down and get even more annoyed.

I didn’t even know why he was annoyed, and it was frustrating the hell out of me.

It had become a matter of principle at this point. Rafe was going to talk to me. I was going to get him to like me. At least as much as he’d liked me the other day, while his tongue had been in my mouth and his hard dick had been throbbing against mine.

I was charming as shit, damn it. Everyone liked me. Except maybe Crossbody, but he didn’t like anyone.

Growing even more restless, I shoved up from the couch and stalked into the kitchen. Staying close to the wall, I held my head out until I could peek through the window. The blinds in Rafe’s kitchen were closed.

This was bullshit. He couldn’t ignore me forever.

Frowning, I tucked my head under my arm and yanked open my fridge to grab a beer. Maybe I’d go and sit on my deck to unwind. Maybe Rafe’s back door would be open and I’d be able to hear them talking. They’d been talking about me on the phone the other day. I’d heard his friend call me Big Dick Dan.

I pouted as I stepped out onto the deck, lip curling when I glanced at the fence now obstructing my view of Rafe’s yard.

Apparently my big dick wasn’t good enough for a repeat. Apparently my big dick wasn’t impressive enough for Rafe to acknowledge me, even after he’d had his hand all over it.

Maybe it’s too big, I thought, which made me feel a little better. Intimidating, even.

From what I’d seen over the last three years, he hadn’t dated a guy in a while. I’d only ever noticed women spending the night at his place, hence my assuming all this time that he was straight. Maybe he was just a little nervous about getting back in the saddle, so to speak.

Setting my beer bottle down, I grabbed my head and stepped quietly off the deck. Padding over the grass, I stopped in front of my fence, then slowly lifted my head high until I could peek over the top.

They weren’t sitting on the back deck. I couldn’t see anyone in the kitchen either at first, until movement through the small window on the door caught my eye. I eagerly shuffled closer to the fence, hissing out a, “Fuck,” when my knee banged into it and my nose bashed against the top of the panel.

When the person inside looked over at the sound, I realised it was the friend, not Rafe. He stepped towards the door, squinting as he peered out into the dark. I yanked my head back down, grunting in pain when my nostrils scraped over the panel, and hurriedly backed away.

Stomping back up the steps, I threw myself into my chair and shoved my head onto my neck so I could drink my beer. I sipped it slowly and moodily, straining my ears for any tiny sound from next door.

Eventually, I wandered back inside when I started to get cold. I had just stepped into the living room, weirdly irritated and not sure what to do with myself, when I finally heard sounds outside.