Page 14 of The Rules of Dating a Younger Man
“I’m guessing Kyra?”
“Nope. Alex.”
Colby looked surprised. “Really?”
“Yep.” Holden grinned. “So if you happen to spend time with her, make sure you put in a good word for our buddy.”
“Of course. I’ll tell her all about your volunteering.”
“Finally,” I said. “One friend who’s not a total douchebag.”
Colby smirked. “Like that time you volunteered at church when we were in eighth grade and snuck into the confessional to jerk off.”
My eyes widened. “I did not jerk off in a confessional. I went in there to wipe off the freaking Bengay on my dick because stupid-ass Owen told me it was hand cream, and then I went to take a piss and touched my dick. The minute I came out of the church bathroom, he jumped right in so I couldn’t get in there when it started burning. What the hell was I supposed to do? Whip my pants down on the altar?”
Owen patted my shoulder. “Still sticking with that Bengay story, huh?”
I dropped my head, shaking it. “You guys suck.”
The electrical contractor I’d hired arrived a minute later, so everyone went to work. One thing after another seemed to pop up, and before I knew it, it was mid-afternoon and I hadn’t even gone upstairs to check on Alex yet. I’d been looking forward to giving her the nail-gun lesson we’d talked about last night. So I grabbed the carrying case and headed to the second floor.
Alex, Holden, and a volunteer I thought might be named Joe were in the room at the top of the stairs. I heard them laughing as I approached. When I walked in, they looked at me and laughed harder.
“Crap,” I murmured. “This isn’t good.”
Alex tried to say something, but when she opened her mouth, she fell into a fit of hysterics. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she spoke. “Did you really stand up on your first day of preschool and announce, ‘I’m not allowed to play with myself in the tub anymore while my mom washes my hair. I have to wait until we’re done and I’m in my room all alone.’”
I shut my eyes. “I was three, and they made each of us get up and tell something about ourselves. It was the only thing that came to mind. My mother hadn’t told me it was something to keep private.”
Holden rolled on the floor—literally rolled on the floor—he was laughing so hard.
I shook my head. “Thanks a lot, buddy.”
Alex climbed to her feet. She put her hand on my chest, which took the sting out of my buddy’s betrayal ever so slightly. “Don’t worry. He also told us some really great things about you.”
I frowned. “Yeah, I bet.”
“How was your day?” she asked. “I came downstairs to grab a box of screws earlier, and you looked busy.”
“Yeah. But it’s been good. We have a lot started already.” I lifted the case in my hand. “I came up to give you a nail-gun lesson, like we talked about last night. Do you have a few minutes?”
“I do. Two of the guys just went to get boxes of the flooring we’re putting down. But if you’re busy, I can ask Holden to show me how to use it.”
Holden stood and smacked dust from his hands. “Actually, I’m handy. But Brayden is your go-to power-tool guy. He taught me everything I know.”
Of course he was completely full of shit, but I appreciated the bow out. Holden winked from behind Alex.
I nodded toward the door. “Why don’t we go down the hall to the primary bedroom? The beams are all exposed, and no one is working in there today. That way you can practice.”
“Okay!”
In the bedroom, I unpacked the cordless nail gun and gave her a quick tour.
“This is the safety tip. It won’t retract until you press down on whatever you’re going to nail.”
“Oh, alright. Great. That makes me feel better about using it.”
I showed her the jam-release latch, magazine, magazine-release button, and the trigger switch. It wasn’t really very difficult, but considering it was powerful and you could easily shoot a nail through your own hand, I understood her hesitation.