Toby almost smiled. When he thought about what had just happened he realized it was funny. He yanked his arm away from Richie and folded both arms across his chest.
“You’re an idiot. You know that, don’t you?” He thought the way Richie’s nose jiggled when he laughed was kind of cute.
Richie forced himself to stop laughing. He took a quick breath and said, “I know I am. I’m a jerk sometimes. I’m sorry. Please don’t be mad at me.”
“I’m not mad,” Toby said. “I’m just tired. Now turn out the light so we can get some sleep. This has been a long day.” A few minutes after Richie switched off the light, Toby heard Richie sigh out loud. They’d both turned in opposite directions and they were on their sides. There was no window in the small bedroom and the room was almost completely black. The only light came from the doorway, with snow glistening against the street lights out in the living room window.
“Are you okay?” Toby asked.
“I guess.”
Toby adjusted his pillow. “I heard you sigh.”
“I was just thinking, is all.”
“About what?”
“I feel like I can be honest with you,” Richie said. “I had fun tonight. For some reason, I feel like I can trust you.” “You can.”
Richie sighed again. “This isn’t the first time I’ve been in a situation like this with a man like Brad.”
“It isn’t?” Toby felt a lump in his throat. He had a feeling there was a confession coming and he wasn’t sure he wanted to hear it. He realized he was more than attracted to Richie by then: he actually liked him more than he wanted to like him. When he’d fallen on top of him by accident and he’d felt Richie’s strong legs around his waist, he’d almost gone fully erect. It took all the strength he had not to turn over, climb on top of him, and start kissing him.
“I was involved with two married guys before Brad,” Richie said. “Both times it didn’t work out.”
“I see,” Toby said. But he really didn’t understand. If Richie had been involved with two married guys before and both times it hadn’t worked out well why on earth would he jump right back into the same situation with Brad Lindsay? “But Brad is different,” Richie said. “He told me he’s going to talk to his lawyer and see about divorcing his wife.” This was news to Toby. The last time he’d seen Brad in the office, he’d heard that Brad was planning a long cruise that winter with his wife. It was supposed to be a second honeymoon, a huge surprise Christmas present…along with a mink coat and diamond earrings. Toby thought about Brad’s lies, he clenched his fists beneath the covers, and said, “Do you really think Brad will leave his wife for you?
Does it really seem like a viable option?”
“This time I’m sure Brad is telling the truth,” Richie said.
“This time it’s different. You don’t know him like I do. He’s got this soft, sensitive side that most people don’t see.” Toby rolled his eyes and refrained from making a comment. The only side of Brad Lindsay Toby had ever seen was the vicious, competitive ad executive who kept trying to think of ways to get people to buy products they didn’t need and couldn’t afford. He’d seen the depraved, cheating side of Brad as well. If there was such a thing, Toby must have been daydreaming when the sweet, sensitive side of Brad appeared in public, because he’d never seen it. But he didn’t want to talk about Brad anymore. It was getting to difficult not to tell Richie the truth.
This really was none of his business. So Toby slumped down in the bed and changed the subject. “Did you really mean what you said before?”
Richie moved around and settled into a comfortable position. “About what?”
“You know, about little Toby.” He’d always been selfconscious about the size of his penis. He knew he wasn’t hung, but he didn’t think he was small either. He was normal.
Richie snorted. Then he laughed and said, “I really meant it. You have nothing to worry about in that department. And I’ll tell you another little secret, too.” “What’s that?”
“You’ve got one of the nicest rear ends I’ve seen in ages.”
Toby’s eyes opened wide. He’d been told he had a nice ass. But it was nice hearing it from a good looking guy like Richie. “Seriously?”
“I wouldn’t lie aboutass. Maybe other things; I’m no saint. But I’d never lie about ass.” Then Richie reached around and slapped Toby on the ass as hard as he could. Toby jumped; it was a loud crack. But he was laughing, too. “You’re an idiot. Get your hands off me and go to bed.”
Chapter Five
If Richie lived to be a hundred years old and he forgot most of what had happened during his lifetime, he doubted he would ever forget the night he spent with Toby MacFarlane during that November snowstorm. Though he had no way of knowing it at the time, it wasn’t just the most unusual experience he’d had with a man in bed, it was the most unusual experience he wouldeverhave with a man in bed.
After they joked around for a few minutes, Toby turned on his side and remained there for the rest of the night. He didn’t try to snuggle up against Richie; he didn’t try to brush into him by accident. Toby didn’t move from his spot more than a fraction of an inch the entire night. And when Richie accidentally moved his foot and it brushed up against Toby’s thigh, Toby moved closer to the edge of the bed, as far away from Richie as he could get without falling off, and never said a word. It was as if Toby was completely repulsed and wanted nothing to do with Richie, which is something that had never happened to Richie before. Most homosexual men would have been all over Richie if they’d been in the same bed.
In the morning, while Richie was still half asleep, Toby quietly climbed out of bed and went into the bathroom. Richie opened his eyes and squinted past the bright stream of sunlight that was coming from the living room window through the bedroom doorway. He noticed Toby’s erection; he couldn’t miss it. Toby’s boxer shorts had tented out and he didn’t try to conceal it because he thought Richie was still sleeping. Richie was hard, too. He was always hard in the morning…and Toby was, indeed, a nice looking guy with a great ass, which only made Richie harder. If Toby had made an advance, Richie would have turned him down because he was serious about his relationship with Brad Lindsay. But it wouldn’t have been easy to turn him down. Toby had a great ass and those nice full, round lips. But more than that, he was so sweet and polished and gentle. These were all qualities in men that made Richie drool, mostly because they were so out of his reach. It’s a good thing Toby just went into the bathroom and took a long, cold shower.