Aah, man. Aah, fuck.
This was…he shook his head. Feeling dazed and uncertain. Nobody had done anything like this for him since he’d been a kid.
There was a loud buzzing in his ears as she—lovely, sweet, big-hearted Vicki—placed the cake on her worktable, which had been hastily cleared of flowers. Josh and Linda led him to the table, where they urged him to blow out the candles and make a wish. The angry buzzing in his ears was receding, but he was still disconcerted by the unexpectedness of their actions. He wasn’t part of their team; they didn’t have to do this, and yet they all seemed so genuinely happy to be doing it.
Appreciated.
Liked.
Seen.
Valued.
…and included.
Chapter Fourteen
Ty’s lips stretched into a dazed smile as he blew out the candles. He was ridiculously pleased by their cheers when he extinguished them all on his first attempt.
He was grinning like an idiot now, and he laughed when Linda popped a wonky paper lei around his neck.
“I know it’s silly, but Jake and I made this for you yesterday, after Vicki messaged me about it being your birthday. Okay, I mostly made it, but Jake did the artwork.”
Ty’s grin stretched wider when he lifted the lei and squinted at the crazy crayon scribbles on all of the handcrafted paper flowers.
“This is great, Linda. Thank you.”
“Not to upstage Jake’s stellar artwork or anything…” Josh said with a wink. “But Yuko made you a card.”
He handed over a colorful card, with a superhero drawn on the cover. The guy was big and overly muscled and had a red T emblazoned on his bright blue top.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MISTER TYLER
LOVE
YUKO
Ty stupidly felt himself going misty-eyed. He’d met Yuko several times when Josh had brought her to the shop after school. She was a sweet, lonely little girl with few friends, who often helped Vicki and Linda with the flower arrangements but just as often sat and filled out the crossword with Ty. She was wicked smart and had definitely helped him more often than he cared to admit.
When she wasn’t playing miniature shop assistant, she would sit at Vicki’s desk—legs swinging—and draw or do her homework. She was a talented artist, as evidenced by the card.
“It’s great,” Ty said gruffly. “Please thank her from me. Tell her I love it.”
Josh nodded.
“Let’s have some of this lovely cake that Mama N whipped up at such short notice. We’ll be sure to save some for Yuko, Jake, Danny, and Mama N, okay?” Vicki said, meeting Ty’s eyes with a twinkling smile.
Ty’s own smile faltered as he contemplated how damned much this meant to him. He didn’t want this. He didn’t need it. But she’d done it and now he felt all of these…things that he would rather not feel.
Vicki started handing out slices. She laughed at something Linda said, while absently licking frosting from her thumb.
No feelings.
He had specifically mandated that there would be no feelings between them. Only sex. Yet here he stood, striving to navigate his way through these complex and bewildering emotions that he was unable to get a handle on.
She handed him a plastic plate and crooked her finger in a cute come-hither gesture, encouraging him to bend his neck to hear what she had to say. Instead of speaking, she placed a hand on his arm to steady herself, went onto her toes, and—as Linda had done earlier—planted a soft kiss on his cheek.
But unlike Linda’s kiss, this one lingered, and it altered the rhythm of his heart and the flow of his breath.
He felt her hand dip into his pocket, and she coaxed him down so that she could whisper in his ear.
“Consider this another birthday present. Kind of an IOU. Feel free to collect the next time you’re off duty.”
She stepped away with a final wicked grin and turned to chat with Linda and Josh. Ty’s hand slipped into his pocket, and his fingers immediately found the item she had placed there. It was soft, silky, edged with lace, and he instantly knew what it was. His eyes flew to her averted profile in shock.
He had a hard time controlling his breathing and keeping his body under control when his sluggish brain finally comprehended that if he had her panties in his pocket, it had to mean that she was currently naked under that pretty, wispy dress he liked so much.
And there wasn’t a damned thing he could do about it right now.
All Ty could do was grit his teeth and ignore the heavy ache in his groin as he fought to keep his erection at bay. He didn’t know how he managed it. He talked and laughed and interacted with Linda and Josh like a normal human being, while fighting the constant urge to stare at Vicki. It was fucking torture, and he hated his resulting edginess and frustration.