Chapter Eight

CHAPTER EIGHT

Spencer

Was it strange that I didn’t want to leave Corbin? I was pretty sure it was, so I decided to pretend that nugget of truth didn’t exist. Instead, I went to see what they needed my help with. Luckily, it wasn’t a big deal and nothing major was wrong. We had an argument between two of the kids, and then a small water-leak disaster, which was the last fucking thing we needed.

As I dealt with finding more towels to help clean up, blocking off the bathroom, then hunting down my notebook with vendors, I couldn’t help sneaking in to take a peek at Corbin every few minutes.

He was standing toward the back wall with a plate of food. It didn’t look like he’d eaten a lot, but he was eating, so that was good. A couple of people went over and talked to him, Corbin saying something that made them laugh, which in turn made me smile, which I had no reason to do because I didn’t even fucking know what they’d said.

I couldn’t deny I’d had fun with him tonight. Corbin was a fun-loving guy, and it shouldn’t have surprised me that he was so willing to jump in and play a game of charades with the kids, but for whatever reason, it did. He’d been good with them, and I’d had a lot more fun than I’d expected. I was still trying to wrap my head around last night, then inviting him here today, and now the game. I didn’t know what to expect from Corbin Erickson, and apparently, I didn’t know what to expect of myself when it came to him either.

Once I put out all the fires, I returned to Corbin. He was talking with Jini, who ran the center’s library.

The first thing I noticed was he had two pieces of cold cuts on his plate, a few carrots and cucumbers, and some cantaloupe. Of course, I didn’t know how much he had before or if I should be paying attention to things like that. Corbin was an adult who knew how to take care of himself. He clearly wasn’t starving himself. He had too much tight, firm muscle for that. At the same time, he’d admitted to having struggles with food, something I didn’t have experience with.

“Hey, CB.” He winked at me. So clearly, we were going with the whole cuddle-buddy thing. I bit back a smile.

“CB?” Jini questioned.

“Don’t ask,” I replied with a chuckle.

“He pretends he doesn’t love it, but he does,” Corbin told her, then turned to me. “Anyway, Jini was telling me about the library and that while you have a lot of books, your romance section is lacking. I mentioned how Park likes to read queer romance novels. I’ll talk to him about doing a book drive. And I’m sure that if we talk about it on the podcast, we can get a lot of people on board.”

I…didn’t know what to say to that. There was no doubt in my mind that they could, and damn, it was an amazing offer. Sweet too.

“That’s…thank you, Corbin. It’s not easy around here to get the things we need.” Even being in a city like Santa Monica that had a lot of money.

He frowned. “We’ll have to see what we can do about that.”

Before I could respond, Tristan, Bailey, and a couple of the other boys ran over. “Spencer! Come and dance!”

A Beyoncé song had just come on and, well, how in the hell did you not dance when Beyoncé was playing? It should be against the law.

“I’ll be right back,” I told Corbin before heading over with the group.

I’d always loved to dance. It was something that surprised a lot of people. I was this bear-looking man who could get down and move like no one’s business.

I immediately started to move my body. The kids didn’t really dance with me and usually ended up watching in a circle around me, getting a kick out of seeing the thirtysomething big guy out there.

Like I usually did when I danced, I felt alive. Heart pounding, surges of adrenaline shooting through my body. My gaze caught Corbin’s, who was watching me with a huge smile on his face. He’d set his plate down, Jini standing beside him, and he had this amazed look on his face. Every time I spun or made jerky movements where I was going too fast to see his face, I could feel it, feel the hot burn of his stare and the joy he got out of watching me. Because he was surprised, or because it was fun? I didn’t know, but it felt good.

When the song ended, the kids tried to keep me out there, but I shook my head. “I can’t. I’m gonna go see my friend now.”

“Is he your boyfriend?” Bailey asked.

“He’s hot,” Tristan said.

“And a grown-ass man, which you’re not, so be appropriate, please.”

“Hey, I’m eighteen!” Tristan countered.

“Not happening,” I told him, though I knew he was only teasing. “And no, he’s not my boyfriend. We’re…friends,” I told Bailey, and we were, I realized. In twenty-four hours, Corbin and I had somehow become friends.

I made my way back to him, and noted that one of the pieces of turkey was gone, along with a few of the veggies.

“That was incredible. You can dance.”

“Big boys are flexible and can move too.” I winked at him.

“I didn’t mean… I wasn’t…”

“I know. I was giving you shit.”

“I sure as hell can’t move like that.”

“It’s a talent. And also, I took ballet and hip-hop classes as a kid.”

“Damn, CB. I’m impressed.”

The dancing went on, and Corbin hung out with me the whole time. I figured at some point he would get bored or leave so he could hook up with someone, but he didn’t. The party ended at eight, since it was a school night. We made sure all the kids were out of there safely by eight thirty, and then one of the employees said, “You can head out, Spencer. We’ll clean up.”

I was usually the last one out of there and the first to arrive, but after the bad night of sleep last night, and given that I had Corbin with me, I agreed.

“Did you drive?” I asked as we made our way outside.

“I took a car.”

“Mine is here. You can ride home with me.”

Corbin stopped on the sidewalk and looked at me, an expression on his pretty face I couldn’t read. He really was one of the most beautiful men I’d ever seen. I couldn’t imagine anyone telling him differently, or a person who looked like him ever having gotten made fun of. It just went to show that you never knew what someone had been through and shouldn’t make assumptions.

“What?” I finally asked.

“I liked this…tonight. Thank you for inviting me.”

An unexplained warmth filled my gut. “Thanks for coming. It was fun, and the kids liked you.”

“Everyone likes me.” He winked.

“Of course they do, superstar,” I teased as I led him to my car. “You didn’t eat much,” I risked.

He frowned. “Yes, I noticed, considering it’s me and I was there.”

“I’m not trying to be a dick. I think this is the kind of thing CBs do. Plus, I’m hungry. I didn’t eat much today either, so I was thinking we could grab some food before we head home.”

“Well…that depends.”

“On what?”

“First, on what we’re eating. Second, if you’re really hungry or just doing this out of some misplaced worry for me. I eat. I’m just more careful than most about how much and such, and yes, I know it’s not always completely healthy how I choose to do it.”

Before I could respond, my stomach let out a growl, making both of us laugh. “Well, I guess my stomach answered that question for you, but yes, I’m fucking famished. And we can eat whatever you want. I’m easy.”

We got to my car. I went to the driver’s side, and Corbin to the passenger. I looked at him over the top of it as he said, “Salads or wraps? Marcus has gotten me addicted.”

“I know the perfect place.”

He grinned. “Let’s do it, then.”

We went to a smoothie place I loved that was close to our apartment building. They had incredible salad options, wraps, and also flatbreads. I got a chicken pesto flatbread, and Corbin ordered a chicken Caesar salad with light dressing. When I also got a smoothie, he did too.

We took the food to go, and chatted all the way home and as we took the elevator up. When I went to my door, Corbin automatically went with me.

“I’m dead on my feet. Let’s eat on the couch.”

He nodded. I grabbed two bottles of water from the kitchen and joined him. We set the food out on the coffee table and then immediately dug in.

“Fuck, this is good,” Corbin said, chewing and swallowing before he added, “Also, I was serious about the book drive and any other way The Vers can help. I don’t know why I never thought of volunteering at the center or anything like that.”

“We can definitely use it. I appreciate that. There’s so much I’d love to be able to do.”

“Like what?”

“I’d love to expand the center, afford more programs, add more medical services. If we could do field trips with the kids, that would be great too.”

Corbin listened and asked questions as I rambled. I could tell he was serious in his interest and not just asking to be nice.

When his phone made a familiar noise, I cocked a playful brow at him. “One of your boyfriend prospects?” I asked, though it was clearly a hookup app.

“Maybe…or maybe someone who just wants to have sex with me.” He chuckled, then grabbed his phone. “Hmm. Nice hole.”

It was my turn to laugh. “You gonna go?” There was no reason why he shouldn’t. I would understand if he wanted to go get laid.

“Nah, I’m good here. Unless you’re trying to get rid of me.”

I should be. I would think I’d want to, but I didn’t. “Nope.” My food was gone now, and Corbin had eaten about three-quarters of his. After we tossed the trash and leftovers in the bag, I leaned back and put my feet up on the coffee table. “Have you considered trying other options than hookup apps if you’re really looking for a boyfriend?”

“Lots of people find partners there. Don’t knock it.”

“I’m not. It’s actually where I met DJ, my ex.”

“Interesting… Well, good to know. I actually signed up for a dating app too. I have a few messages.”

“Let’s check them out.”

Corbin took his shoes off and pulled his legs up, sitting cross-legged on my couch. “Okay…first, we have Johnson.”

“Pass,” I replied automatically.

“Why?”

“That’s not his real name. He’s talking about his dick.”

“Okay, Judgy McJudgerson. How do you know? I’m gonna click his message.” A second later he said, “Oh, dick pic. You were right.”

He went through a few names, telling me about the men or what they’d messaged. We laughed and joked and put some in a maybe category and some straight up no.

I couldn’t pretend I didn’t notice Corbin getting closer and closer to me. I had no doubt that if he just wanted to fuck me, he’d have no qualms about spitting it out. He was honest about shit like that, but I thought maybe the cuddle stuff was different for him. Last night went well, and he joked around and called me CB, but I had a feeling he wanted it today and didn’t know how to ask.

“Come here,” I told him, surprising myself. But what was the point in continuing to feel that way when it was obvious Corbin regularly made me act in ways I couldn’t explain? “Actually, I think I need a shower.”

“Why? I don’t give a shit about that. Hell, I’ll probably like it.”

When I held my arm out, putting it on the back of the couch, Corbin tucked himself right in. I lowered my hand to his shoulder, then his arm, massaging it and holding him close. He put a leg over one of mine, burrowed in deeper, to my chest, keeping his phone in his hand.

“Who’s the next guy?” I asked. Because what Corbin and I were doing wasn’t about being boyfriends or even having sex. It was about…companionship, about this man who was known as The Charmer, who could get anyone to fall in love with him and had a great group of friends, yet I thought he felt very alone. He needed someone outside The Vers guys, someone who just wanted to be his friend and who didn’t expect anything else from him. Who enjoyed his company not because he was sexy and charming, but because he was him.

“Hmm. This one doesn’t sound too bad. His name is Christopher. He’s thirty-five. He works in tech and loves the gym and working on his body.”

Well, I wasn’t sure that was the healthiest thing for Corbin, but for now I kept it to myself.

“He says he’s done the hookup thing all his life, never had a real relationship, and now he’s feeling like he’s missing out, so basically he’s me.”

“You should message him,” I said seriously.

“Maybe I will,” Corbin replied, but then closed the app. “I’m tired.”

He turned toward me, wrapping his arm around me, face in my neck, breathing me in.

My dick was definitely getting a little excited as blood began rushing toward my groin. “Do you want to stay?” I mean, we were cuddle buddies and all. Jesus Christ, I couldn’t believe I’d even thought that.

“If you insist,” he replied with a chuckle.

“I need to take a shower.”

“Me too. I’ll go home and take one and come back?”

“Perfect.”

This was…so fucking weird. What the hell were we doing?

Still, we got up, gathered the dinner trash, and threw it all away. I told Corbin I’d leave the door unlocked, and he headed next door to his apartment. The first thing I did in the shower was jerk off, hoping that would keep me from getting hard the second he was in my bed again.

I washed up, then tugged on a pair of boxer briefs, just as I heard the door open and him say, “You ready, CB?”

“Yep.” I made my way back into the living room. Corbin had on shorts and a tee, his hair wet like mine. He locked the door, and I turned off the lights, like we were a fucking couple or something. When we got to my room, he stripped down to his underwear while I did my best not to stare.

His body was so different from mine—hard where I was soft, six-pack abs while mine were beneath some pudge. His hip bones poked out a bit too much for my comfort, though.

“I brought my charger.” Corbin plugged his phone in and set it on the nightstand on the side of the bed where he would sleep. Each of us set our alarms, I hit the lights, and we climbed into bed together.

“I like the smell of your soap.” He nuzzled his face into my armpit, which was really fucking hot. If it were about sex, I’d expect him to stick his tongue out and lick it. “And I like the way you feel…soft and warm. Comfortable.”

“I like the way you feel too,” I admitted. What was the point in lying?

“Cuddle buddies are the best.”

I chuckled. “Shut up and go to bed, Corbin. We have to get up early for work.”

“Yes, CB,” he replied playfully, threw his leg over my body, and did just as I said.