After breakfast and his call to Hawk (about which he told me, “The team is on it, I’m with my girl for our Saturday” which was way sweet), we’d gone to the house. I’d showed him the progress and we’d wandered around, discussing my ideas and how they were evolving now that the demo was done.

We’d then gone for Mexican at El Tejado with my laptop that we grabbed from my house. There, we pored over the plans I’d created on some software I’d bought. We also went over the budget, which I’d drafted a year ago.

The plumber was going to be less. The electrician was an unknown since the quote I had was a year old. The subflooring was a hit to the budget, though I’d factored unknowns in by adding some financial wiggle room, but it sucked I was running up against something like that so soon.

I had an idea of what the flooring would cost now.

I needed to quote out cabinetry.

I also needed to spend some time locking down other things, like lighting, mirrors, sinks, toilets, tubs, etc.

The issue now was, with the subflooring purchased and being delivered on Tuesday, and the funds set aside for the plumber, more for the electrician (if they came in close to the old quote), after that, because I had a budget, but had not been adding to the account that was supposed to cover it like I’d thought I would due to Ang’s antics, I was very close to running out of money.

Until I could save up some more, outside putting in the subflooring, maybe skimming the walls (and I was looking forward to trying my hand at that), doing some painting, putting in some skirting boards and outfitting what I could at this juncture that I’d already bought, the project was going to come to a screeching halt.

I didn’t think about that then. It would make me mad at Angelica again, and myself for allowing her to con me.

I thought about how Boone and I decided to take the next day off from house and work and just do whatever we wanted for a lazy Sunday.

I also thought about how much I was looking forward to that.

And I thought about how Boone had notched it up for dinner, making me chicken gyros that were so good, they might have earned him my everlasting devotion (if that wasn’t already happening, which, in case you missed it, was).

Which brought me to now and the fact I’d allowed my mind to wander, but my body was very in the moment, and that moment included my body catching up with my mind to share how Boone was touching me.

Tender.

Sweet.

Even…

Reverential.

I focused on him, liked how cute he looked with his hair tousled, the meditative expression on his face, and whispered, “Boone.”

His eyes were watching his hand’s movements, but at my call, they came to me.

“Hey,” I said.

“Hey,” he replied.

“You’re very cute with messy hair,” I told him, and he grinned.

“You’re very hot with sex hair,” he told me, and I grinned.

“Well, you can take as rote that even when you’re cute, you’re hot,” I replied.

He kept grinning but did it leaning in to brush his lips against mine.

When he pulled back, I took a deep breath.

Then I said, “Maybe this is too soon, and if it is for you, I’ll preface this by saying, I’m down with that. I get it. A lot has happened, but we’re still new. But I also think it’s good for you to know where I am and have it out there that I’d also be down with you being my official boyfriend, and obviously as this goes hand in hand, me being your official girlfriend.”

His eyes narrowed slightly when he asked, “What?”

At his reaction, my heart skipped a beat with alarm, but I kept my voice level when I promised (maybe, at this juncture, lying a little bit, because I thought he actually was my official boyfriend and he was only going to confirm), “Totally down if that isn’t where you’re at, but just to say—”

“Ryn,” he cut me off, but said no more

Um…

Fortunately, he then said more.

“Babe, in your kitchen over a big cookie I committed to you. We’re exclusive.”

“I know that, but that was our first date. And exclusive could mean anything. Just seeing each other. Fuck buddies.”

“We’re not just seeing each other, and we absolutely are not just fuck buddies.”

This was not firm.

It was concrete.

And that meant he was my official boyfriend.

Excellent.

I smiled at him and said, “Awesome.”

For a second, he said nothing, not his mouth, not his face.

Then he said, “From your question, and just because you need to get it, this also needs to be out there.”

Okay.

Maybe not awesome.

“I need to get what?” I asked cautiously.

“I explained what me being your Dom and your man meant yesterday.”

“Yeah,” I confirmed.

“But you’ve never had a Dom who was your man, so just to say, you’re mine, but also, I’m yours. You with me?”

Oh, I was with him all right.

With him enough to turn and curl into his body.

“Yeah,” I said softly.

His face gentled.

And his tone was soft too, when he said, “But I’m also me.”

“You are that,” I agreed.

His lips quirked and his hand slid to my hip, his fingers curling in before he said, “Sex is important to me, Ryn.”

“It is to me too,” I pointed out what I thought was obvious.

“I know, baby, what I’m saying is…” He trailed off and then the gentle left his expression and I got concerned because he looked…not right.

“Boone,” I called, pressing a hand against his chest.

“Okay, I’ll get if you’re not down with this, and I’ve touched on it, but we’re here, and in truth, I’d like to avoid it, just see where we got to naturally, and tackle it only if it becomes an issue. But that isn’t right or fair for you. So I have to put it out there.”

Uh-oh.

I wasn’t liking this.

“Put what out there?” I prompted when he didn’t continue.

“I need it a lot, Ryn, and I also need a woman in my life that can keep up with me,” he said.

“You’re a guy, and that tends to be how guys are,” I told him. “But just to say, I’ve got a pretty strong libido too.”

He shook his head. “It’s not me being a guy. It’s my therapy. It’s not an addiction. It’s a choice. I like how I am, but more, I’ve found a way that works for me to keep shit at bay that is never really going to go away.”

Okay.

We’d hit the meat of the matter.

Before I could say anything, he went on.

“It’s important, with the situation with your brother, that you get that. It isn’t uncontrolled. I could shift. I could get into bodybuilding or something like that. But I don’t want to. I like how I am, and it works for me.”

“Okay,” I said.

“And straight up, it’s how I am. I didn’t get it until my early twenties, which is good, because when I got it, it helped me work through some things. But it started early for me. We had a teacher in high school. Mrs. Steiner. Chemistry. She was hot. All the guys talked about jacking off, thinking about her. But I never told the guys I jacked off thinking about fucking her tied down to a chemistry bench.”