I’m adrift in the kind of pleasure that starts in the mind and spreads through the body.
It’s only when I come around that I realize the floor is wet under my feet.
26
NASH
I set my alarm early the morning after Kyla’s date with Carl. I want to get into work before my brothers so that I can talk to him about what happened.
Will he share everything with me?
Carl is a private person about sex, but this situation is different. We’re linked together through the game and our discussion about what could happen after.
Carl’s night with Kyla feels like a pivotal moment, especially since he threw his paper into the bowl as a late addition. How did Kyla feel when she picked out his name? Was it a shock? Was she worried or excited?
The plan for him to go back on his word was a risky one, but he was willing to take it.
Now, as I get started on readying my booth and dealing with some of the outstanding admin from the day before, I wait to hear if the risk has paid off.
The distinctive thud of Carl’s feet follows the ringing of the bell over the door. I duck my head out of my booth, and he notices my presence immediately.
“You’re early,” he says. “For a moment, I worried that we’d been broken into.”
“How did it go?” I ask, not giving any more time over to pleasantries. There are six other men and Kyla due to arrive for work imminently and I need to get this conversation done.
Carl nods, but the seriousness of his expression doesn’t match his eyes. Did something bad happen? I know Carl can be controlling and that he likes to spank his women. Could Kyla not take the pain?
“It was good,” he says. “Really good.”
“So why do you look like your dog just died?”
“It was intense, for both of us. I made sure she got home safe, but after the sex, she was really quiet?”
“Did she enjoy herself?”
Carl nods, his nostrils flaring at whatever memory he’s thinking about.
“Are you sure?”
“She squirted all over the floor,” he says. “It was the sexiest fucking thing that’s ever happened to me.”
“She squirted?”
“Yeah, you know. I don’t think it’s happened to her before. She was mortified until I threw her on the bed and fucked the living daylights out of her.”
“Wow…that does sound intense.”
“She needs some time to recover,” Carl says in a tone that sounds like an order.
“That’ll be up to her, boss,” I say. “You know the rules of the game. Kyla controls the timeframe. Kyla controls it all.”
“Except what happened last night,” he says.
I watch him retreat to the back of the shop with a shake of my head. Maybe it was wrong for him to put his name in at this stage. We could have waiting until the end. And me removing my date…was that fair to Kyla? Is keeping my date until the end fair? She only has Noah and Dex to pick now. Whichever one of them she picks last, she’s going to realize that I’m the one who’s pulled out. Is she going to be upset? And then when my date appears in the bowl the next day, will she be happy or just want this whole game to be over? It’s impossible to predict.
I’m beginning to question if she’ll even go through with my date. Maybe by then she’ll be too overwhelmed to contemplate it.
The rest of the boys drift into the shop over the next hour. Dex and Lex look tired, and I initially imagine that they were out partying and maybe found some girls to take home. But when I ask what kept them up so late, they blame starting a new Netflix series. Hardly the rock-and-roll life we used to live.
Kole and Kase have more energy, arriving freshly showered from the gym. And my own two brothers? Well, they arrive with a huge box of donuts and tray of coffees for us all. I could kiss them, if I didn’t find them so annoying.
Kyla is the last to arrive, blushing the moment she steps foot in the shop. The sex memories are really stacking up. Only me, Dex and Noah are uncharted territory for her.
Noah grabs a coffee and a donut and approaches her at reception.
“A sweet treat for sweet Kyla,” he says.
“What’s the bitter coffee for then?” she grimaces.
“Me!” he says, with a grin. “Sweet and bitter go together so well, and you only have two more dates to pick. Fifty-fifty it’ll be me. Are you choosing today?”
“No pressure,” I call across the shop firmly. “You know that, Noah. It’s up to Kyla when she picks. Kyla, don’t mind my brother. He never could wait his turn.”
She puts up her hand palm facing Noah and then me. “Seriously, dudes. No bickering today. My mind is scrambled as it is.” Her attention focusses on Noah, who has now taken a step back to give her some space.