Page 13

CHAPTER EIGHT

DAYTON

“I want you to imagine there’s a string from the ceiling to the base of your spine. It’s traveling from there, all the way up your neck, the back of your head, finally exiting at the tip of your nose. It’s pulling tight, keeping your body in a straight line.”

Most of my students were seated in chairs, but a few were on their feet, using them for assistance. And two people—one of which being Tameron—were beside the chair but using yoga blocks to balance themselves.

It was progress. Or he was just having a good day. He hadn’t said and it wasn’t my place to ask. He’d been taking my class long enough to know that if he wanted me to know something about how he was doing that day, it was his job to tell me.

But he was doing great. Mostly.

I walked behind him and wrapped my arm around his front, sliding my hand from his torso to his stomach. His abs jumped. Hard. “Just a bit deeper,” I said, urging him to turn his body farther into the pose so his spine was straight and his hips were aligned with the hand pointing up at the ceiling.

“Th-thanks,” he stammered.

I snatched my hands back quickly. Yes, I was indulging in being allowed to touch him, but I was doing my best not to make it dirty. I respected the practice and Tameron as a person. He was straight, so any small indulgences were for me alone, and they’d fade as soon as I met someone else.

The only problem was I’d been wallowing in my one-sided crush and hadn’t been looking.

That would change tonight. I’d finally decided it was time to go out for my bi-annual get fucked by a hot stranger in a questionable restroom tradition.

It wasn’t the best way to get my rocks off, but it was the quickest. And it tended to take the edge off my loneliness. If only for a little while.

Dax and Dahlia had been up my ass at the last family dinner about meeting someone. Dax had even snuck into my phone and downloaded some dating app for queer people—kind of like Grindr, but it catered to the whole queer population.

And after my argument with him about boundaries—one I knew he planned to fully ignore—I actually let myself do a little perusing. The first few profiles I’d seen were ones I would’ve swiped right on a couple of years back when I’d given online dating a try.

Profiles of men and women looking for a quick, no-strings good time.

Which was all fine and dandy, but I was getting a little tired of being alone.

I could easily live like this forever. It was a comfortable life.

I’d settled into my bachelorhood nicely and was a little less lonely now that I had Knives with me.

Not to mention Dax didn’t seem to be on the prowl after his last relationship ended, so it wasn’t like I was going to lose my roommate—or gain another one—anytime soon.

But there were a few who seemed more my type. People looking to settle down. People tired of trying to navigate the world of relationships without having someone draw them a map.

I’d checked the profile Dax had created for me, and it wasn’t…the worst. He’d leaned a little heavy on the fact that I was a firefighter—which always fascinated people until they found out that being a first responder wasn’t the glamorous job they showed on TV.

Once upon a time, my job had been a lot more rushing into burning buildings, lifting heavy objects, and administering life-saving emergency care until the ambulance showed up.

But now, it was paperwork, schedules, and administration.

It was mitigating arguments between my team when they got into petty fights about who took whose leftovers from the fridge and who stole the good pillows from the supply closet like they were a bunch of kindergarteners.

It was organizing charity events and dealing with neighborhood complaints about how loud the trucks were.

And yeah, there was still the opportunity to save kittens and do shirtless car washes and calendars once or twice a year when the need called for it.

But it was hard to deal with the disappointment on people’s faces, which is why I always waited to say what I did. And it was why I knew someone would accuse me of catfishing when I turned up as the opposite of what they expected.

So I’d said screw it and let the app sit on my phone without sending or responding to any of the messages.

Instead, I’d gotten out the iron Dahlia had given Dax and me for a housewarming gift and pressed my sexiest button-up for the club, then left it on the bed so I go to the gym before heading out to get my dick wet.

Or something close to that.

Just one orgasm was all I needed.

“Uh. You okay?”

I snapped back to reality, almost forgetting I was in the middle of class, standing half a foot away from Tameron, who had dropped out of the pose.

I swallowed heavily. “Sorry. That’s great, everyone.

Carefully come back up to center, stretch your arms to the sky, then let your hands rest in prayer over your heart. ”

I watched Tameron move fluidly out of the pose. He wobbled a bit but took the initiative and sat in the chair as his palms pressed together and hovered just above his heart center.

‘Good,’ I signed to him with some caution. I’d used signs a few times in class before, and Tameron had always gotten irritated when I did. I knew he didn’t like to be othered, but I also knew that in a room like this, it was easier for him to understand.

The music was low, but the room didn’t have the best acoustics.

‘Thanks,’ he signed back, surprising me.

I grinned as I headed back to the front of the room. “Let’s pause for water,” I signed the word water quickly. “Then we can begin our cool-down.”

Everyone looked relieved, and I tried not to take it personally as they all reached for their water bottles and the room filled with chatter.

I did my best to not be obvious when I watched Tameron as he stretched, then took a few long drinks from his metal bottle with the firefighter logo on the side.

Nash had obviously given it to him, but it sent a little thrill up my spine to see it.

A strange sort of possession that I had no right to feel. But I let myself anyway. It wasn’t going to go anywhere. He was straight, and my crush most definitely had a dead end.

“How’s Knives?”

My head whipped around to find Tameron a few feet away from me. I was getting dressed after rinsing off, my shirt halfway over my arms. “She’s wonderful, as usual. She has a new favorite sleeping spot.”

Tugging my shirt over my head, I let it drop halfway down my abs before reaching for my phone.

I felt like one of those ridiculous new dads always whipping out their phones to show baby photos.

But I couldn’t help it. She was adorable.

Swiping through my gallery, I found the one I’d planned to send him later that evening.

Knives had discovered she was exactly big enough to curl up on the end of the banister. It was a large square block of wood, and it wouldn’t be able to hold her for long, though I had a feeling she’d figure out a way to make it work.

Holding the phone out, I watched Tameron fight the urge to coo. He looked up with big Bambi eyes. “Okay. That’s too cute. If your station does a firefighters and kittens calendar next year, you’ll probably quadruple your budget.”

I laughed, pulling the phone back to look at her squishy little face. “I think you might be right. I may run that up the flagpole and see if I can get approval.”

Tameron looked pleased with himself as he headed to his locker. Only then did I realize he was in nothing more than a towel, and my face flushed as I turned away to give him privacy. I swore I could feel him peeking over at me a few times, but I tried to keep it casual as I packed my bag.

“So,” Tameron said. I glanced over to see him fully dressed and readjusting his hearing aids. He had bone-conductor ones that attached behind his ear with a magnet. “Big plans for tonight?”

I let out a soft laugh. Leave it to him to ask me that today of all days.

It wasn’t like I was ashamed of my plans, but I tried to be comfortable in public spaces like the gym.

Though Tameron did live in a house full of men who were not straight, so he was probably the safest heterosexual guy to hang around with.

“What?” Tameron pressed.

I took a breath, then lifted my hands to sign instead. ‘I’m going out to a club.’ I signed slowly, spelling club so he’d get it.

‘Club,’ he repeated on his fingers. It took him a second, and then his brows flew up. “Oh. Oh. Like a—” He gave the sign for dancing.

‘Yeah.’ I nodded my fist, then finally reached down and tugged on the hem of my shirt so it covered my stomach. Tameron jumped, and I worried suddenly that showing off my skin had made him uncomfortable. “It’s been a while,” I told him as I walked closer to the bench and sat next to my bag.

“So…a hookup kind of thing?”

“Yeah. Sorry if that’s TMI.”

“If it’s what?”

‘TMI,’ I fingerspelled.

At that, he rolled his eyes. “Do you know the house I live in? Nothing is sacred. Not shitting schedules, not showering schedules, and these days, not even fucking schedules. Plus, I lived in the barracks.”

I didn’t know much about the military. My family was generationally Deaf, so even during times of war, they were left behind.

Not that they minded. The Deaf community thrived during World War II.

They were some of the only able-bodied men who’d stayed back and their employment had skyrocketed… until the war ended.

And then it was back to second-class citizens again for far too many years.

But since the military had never been an option for us, I never thought twice about it. “Was that for boot camp?” I asked him.

He shrugged. “Yeah, then deployment. Trust me when I say there is no privacy, and the nights get long and lonely. I wouldn’t have minded being more deaf back then.”

I couldn’t help my laugh. It was the look on his face and the dry way he spoke. I knew nothing would ever happen between us, but I liked Tameron as a friend too. A lot. And I was feeling better now that he wasn’t so furious with me all the time.

His lips twitched into a little pleased half-grin. “So, do you have a date?”

I snorted and shook my head. “I am still tragically single. I was going to hook up. It’s not as easy these days with all the apps, but yeah. All on my lonesome—for part of the night, anyway.”

I reached for my shoes and began to tie them.

Tameron looked thoughtful as he watched. “If you want some company, I’ve been told I’m a pretty good wingman. Of course I haven’t tried since”—he tapped the back of his left ear—“but no one can hear for shit in clubs anyway, right?”

My face fell. “Oh. That’s a really sweet offer, but?—”

“Never mind,” he said in a sudden rush. “Bad idea. Forget it.” He turned away to face the lockers, so fixing this sudden problem was more complicated.

I stood, gently tapping his arm until he turned his face toward me. “I would love it if you came with me, but I’m not going to a regular club.”

His brows lifted and his cheeks pinked. “Is it like…a kink club, or?—”

“No!” Not that I hated those either, but it wasn’t my lifestyle, so I’d only ever gone with partners who were into it. And honestly, tonight, I just wanted a nice blowjob or a firm, strong hand on my dick. “No, I, uh…I was kind of in the mood to hook up with a man.”

“Okay,” he said slowly, tone confused.

“So the club’s going to be queer.”

He blinked, then rolled his eyes. “Dude. You think I care? I can wingman at a gay club.”

I was a little startled. “But once I find someone, there’s not exactly going to be a lot of prospects for you.”

He scoffed and turned to sit back on the bench to put his own shoes on. “Yeah, I haven’t really been in the mood for that, so it wasn’t on my mind. But it’s totally fine if you don’t want company. I mean, I doubt you need the help.” He gestured at my stomach and my insides went all hot.

I swallowed heavily. “You’d be surprised these days. And I’d love it if you came with me.”

Tameron brightened for a second, then his face fell. “Is this a pity invite?”

I sat beside him and lifted a brow. ‘Square-brain-you,’ I signed.

I wasn’t sure he understood the exact sign, but he definitely got the context because his face reddened and he looked like he was on the edge of picking a fight with me.

“You have to stop assuming everyone only wants you around for pity. I like you, Tameron. I enjoy your company, and I’d love a second set of eyes to make sure I don’t walk off with a total dud. ”

He bit his lip, glanced down, then looked up at me with his big, lovely eyes. “What does this mean?” He repeated the sign, and I laughed before standing and winking.

“Ask your teacher. Then use it on me when I deserve it. Text you later?”

Tameron’s face looked like he couldn’t decide how to feel before his shoulders sagged. But though his mouth wasn’t set in a smile, it was far more relaxed than it usually was with me. And that was definitely progress. “Sounds good. See you soon.”

I felt a thousand times lighter as I turned and left the gym.