“I should probably go,” he says, running his hands up my arms and holding me at my elbows. I yawn again. Damn it, I really didn’t want him to leave but he couldn’t stay. No fucking way. No sleepovers. “What are you doing tomorrow?”
I lick my dry lips and place my hands on his chest. “Juls and I are having a girls day. We’re going to the spa to get massages and facials and talk about boys.” He smirks at me and I give it right back to him. “I feel like I haven’t had her all to myself since she met Ian, which I totally get. She’s crazy about him.”
His hands grip my hips. “I’m sure the feelings mutual. He talks about her constantly and I give him all kinds of shit for it.” I smile at his admission. Definitely telling Juls that tomorrow. After a brief moment, his face scrunches and he runs his hand through his hair quickly, looking a bit unsure of himself. “Uh, when you get massages, is it a girl that does it?”
I roll my eyes. “And you call me the pervert?”
“What? Oh, no that’s not what I meant. Pervert.” He snorts and I shrug. Yup, that’s me. “I mean, is a guy going to be giving it to you because I don’t think I’m okay with that.”
Wait, what? I answer honestly. “Actually I have no idea. Juls booked them weeks ago. But, why does it matter? It’s a massage, it’s not sexual.”
“It just does. If you want a guy to massage you, I’ll give you a massage. I’d prefer it if it was a girl and not for the perverted reasons your mind is thinking.”
I step back and stare at him. Seriously? “Okay well, I just don’t understand why this bothers you.” If this is just casual, then it shouldn’t. Right?
He throws his hands up and looks exacerbated. “You’re right. Never mind, it doesn’t bother me. I should go.” He leans in quickly and kisses me on my temple before turning for the stairs.
“Reese.” He looks over at me, stopping on the stairs. My head is full with things I want to say to him. I want to ask him to be honest with me, to tell me exactly why it bothers him to have a man massage me. I want to ask him if this was becoming more for him than how it started out. But I don’t. I don’t ask him anything. “Goodnight.”
He smiles slightly and continues walking away. “Goodnight, love.” I watch him disappear down the stairs and hear the door close shut behind him as I’m left to ponder what just happened.
Ten
I woke up feeling just as confused as I did before I passed out last night. Plus on top of that fun emotion, I was also completely exhausted after the shitty night’s sleep I got. His words played on repeat in my mind¸ seeping into my dreams and leaving me full of questions. Questions I wanted desperately to have answered by him but didn’t have the guts to ask. I didn’t get it. Why would having a massage from a man bother him? Massages weren’t sexual at all in that setting. I’m sure they could be if Reese was to give me one, and the thought of that gave me chills, but at the spa I was currently driving to with Juls? No fucking way.
I’ve had men give me massages before and I enjoyed them a bit more than women because they were stronger and their hands were bigger. I liked my muscles to be worked deeply and not with little dainty woman hands. But never, not ever have I once felt anything during a massage from a man other than pure relaxation. Christ, most of the time I passed out and had to be woken up, drool sticking to my face and looking like a hot mess.
I grunt as I look out the window. I’m tense and anxious and I need to fucking relax.
“You’re awfully quiet, sweets. Not looking forward to our day of beauty?” Juls asks after giving me my alone time to contemplate what the hell happened last night. Not that it helped any.
I sigh heavily. “Something strange happened last night with Reese and I’m not really sure what to make of it.” I turn my attention to her. “Do you know if my massage is booked with a man or a woman?”
She laughs a bit. “Uh oh. Did someone voice his opinion of not wanting another man touching you?”
“Sort of? I don’t know. He said he’d prefer if it was a woman and when I asked him why it mattered so much because it wasn’t like I was getting a happy ending out of it, he said that it didn’t matter and then he left.” I rest my head back and rack my brain. “I just don’t get why he cares if this is just sex between us.”
She makes a sound of amusement before answering. “You, my lovely best friend, are an idiot.”
“What? Why?” The car slows as she pulls into the parking lot of Tranquility Day Spa and my stomach tightens. Fuck. Did I really want to go through with this if it was booked with a guy and I couldn’t switch it? Did I even want a massage anymore?