“We go in to see them soon, right?”
“Yeah. Ballistic says they look amazing, but that’s not really a surprise.”
I nod. I’ve been to Inked Armor once for the original consult on the team tattoo, just after the season ended. Since I started seeing Charlene, I’ve spent a lot more time hanging out with the other guys on my team who have girlfriends. It’s not something I usually do, considering my relationships with women haven’t ever been all that conventional. Until Charlene. And it’s still not exactly conventional.
Alex rolls his shoulder. I have a feeling he pushed it a little too hard today, despite my efforts to rein him in. He’s competitive, and he has a hard time with the idea that he might not be in top form by the time training camp starts.
“Can I ask you something?” he says.
“Yeah, man, shoot.” I’m stretched out on the sauna bench, head back, eyes closed.
“It’s about Charlene.”
I try not to flinch, or react in any way. Alex and I are tight, almost like brothers, but we don’t get into deep discussions about my relationship with Charlene. She’s his wife’s best friend, and giving him too many personal details when it comes to her is complicated. It’s not that I don’t trust him, because I do. But since he’s married, I figure whatever I tell him I’m also telling Violet. So I pretty much avoid the topic.
“Violet says she has her nipples pierced.”
I crack a lid. He’s not looking at me; he’s staring at the ceiling.
“What’s Violet doing looking at Charlene’s nipples?”
“So she does?”
“Yeah.” I have to work hard not to picture Charlene’s nipples in my head, or the conversation that led to her getting her nipples pierced. Or how fucking hot it is when she wears the delicate gold chain that connects them to each other, or the one that hooks to her belly ring. She looks so pretty and soft with her clothes on, but the second they come off and the lights are dimmed, she’s a whole different woman. I fucking love it. Most of the time.
“What’s that like?”
“What are Charlene’s nipples like?”
“Violet asked me how I felt about her getting her nipples pierced, and honestly, I have no fucking clue because it’s not something I’ve ever thought about. But apparently it’s something she’s considering, so I figure I should be informed by someone who knows the deal.”
I squeeze the back of my neck, working out how I want to word this. “Well, Charlene likes them because they make sensation much more intense.”
“So it’s good?”
“Yeah.”
“Like, orgasm good?”
“For Charlene, yeah.”
“And you like them?”
“I think they’re sexy on the right woman.” And Charlene is exactly the right woman. The two-month healing time was the best foreplay ever.
Alex nods thoughtfully and doesn’t ask any more questions. I don’t give him any more answers.
After four hours at the gym—half of it spent not working out—I make a stop at one of the stores where Charlene likes to shop, based on the purchases that appear on the credit card I gave her. She doesn’t abuse it, which is why she has it. She only uses it when I request that she get something new, or sexy.
I’m well aware that her salary and mine don’t come close to matching, so I don’t think it’s fair that she has to spend her own money on something I’m going to appreciate for only a few minutes before I peel it off her incredibly sexy, toned body.
I head straight for one of the salesladies and tell her exactly what I’m looking for. Apparently, dark purple is not popular this time of year, and the only thing they have has a floral print on it. Charlene prefers solid colors to prints, so I browse the store, looking for something I think would look good on her curvy, lithe frame. I end up buying two dresses, because I like them both equally, and I’m also partial to giving Charlene options.
My next stop is the lingerie store. I spend much more time there. Charlene and I have very different taste in her lingerie. Not that I mind the things she picks—they’re interesting. But I prefer slightly more refined options. I’m willing to compromise, sometimes. Not tonight, however.
I find exactly the right thing, and a few others she might like as well, and I have the saleslady take the tags off before she wraps them in tissue paper.
“Are you sure you don’t want to leave the tags? In case she needs a different size?”
“I’m positive I know exactly what size she wears.” I tap my credit card on the counter.
“Of course.” She gives me a conspiratorial wink.
I smile, but I don’t understand what the wink is about. I can’t imagine not being aware of what size the woman I get into bed with on a regular basis wears. I also don’t want Charlene to see the price tags on this stuff; otherwise she’s liable to think she needs to make it up to me in some way. We have enough of a power struggle as it is. I don’t need to make it worse with what’s supposed to be a gift.
The cashier rings it up to the tune of nine hundred dollars, which I’ll gladly pay, because Charlene in pretty things is a sight to behold.
I head home, shower again—because the ones at the gym don’t make me feel particularly clean—shave, and hit my closet. As I rifle through my clothes, I shoot Charlene a message asking about her day at the spa. She sends me a picture of her lavender-painted toe and fingernails.
Instead of messaging her again, I call. She answers on the second ring.
“Having fun with Violet?” I ask.
“So much. Thank you again for this.”
“No thanks necessary. What time do you think you’ll be home?”
“Violet’s just finishing her last treatment, so we’ll be leaving here in the next half hour.”
I check the time. It’s four thirty, which gives me and Charlene plenty of time.
“I assume you won’t be able to go shopping.”
“It’s unlikely. Is that going to be a problem?”
“I anticipated that might happen, so no, it’s not a problem.” I finger a dark gray tie with fine purple stripes and wait for her response.
“Oh. Okay.” As expected, she’s not pleased by this.
“I have a request, though, if you feel the timing is adequate.”
“Oh? What kind of request?” Excitement makes her voice waver.
“I went shopping for you.”
“Really?”
I wish I could see her expression right now. I’m not sure if her surprise is a good thing. “Really.”
“What did I do to deserve all this pampering?” she asks softly.
“You put up with me. Isn’t that enough?”
Charlene laughs. “Like it’s such a chore. So what’s the request?”
“I’d like to come by your place a little early so you have time to get dressed.”
“And you want me to model everything for you?”
“Mmm.”
“How would you like me to answer the door?”
I close my eyes and filter through all of the ways Charlene has answered her door in the past, in various states of undress. “Not naked would be preferable.”