Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 75143 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 376(@200wpm)___ 301(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75143 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 376(@200wpm)___ 301(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
Good fucking grief.
“Now, let’s figure out where this went wrong so we can explain it to your tall friend when he’s taken a few deep breathes.” Since our new nana had things under control, I just headed down a random toy aisle and over to the electronics.
We didn’t need a new TV because we hardly watched the one we had, but they were big and shiny and were a good distraction for a couple of minutes until the pounding in my head started to recede. The headache hadn’t gotten noticeable until we’d hit the Monopoly is a big commitment level in the crazy, but by the time that I’d walked away, my head was vibrating.
I was starting to really understand why I’d never thought of trying to do shit with Joel on my own.
He was too confusing.
But that was what we had Tate for.
He was amazing and I was probably going to owe him an apology blow job later, but for the time being, I just took a few more deep breathes and worked the stress out of my shoulders before finding the courage to head back to the guys…and our new friend.
Yep, she was still there.
“That didn’t take long, dear.” She was smiling proudly as I came back. “I’m proud of you for communicating how stressed you were and using your safeword, and your partners are proud of you too, aren’t you?”
Her question had Joel and Tate both nodding in unison, and I wasn’t sure if I should be laughing or shaking my head.
“Thank you.” I decided on being polite, which made her happy and the guys smile. “I wasn’t sure if I made the right decision, but I’m feeling better now.”
“You did.” She looked like she wanted to reach out and pat my head, but she kept her hands to herself as she smiled even bigger. “You did a very good job of explaining what the problem was and you even told them where you were going so you didn’t worry them. You boys are doing a great job.”
Weirdest Target run ever.
“Thank you, ma’am.” Being polite got me another smile and more weird information from the old lady who looked like she could be a thousand.
“Now, your board game friend here should’ve explained the connection between the game and his relationship with people.” That was obvious, but I liked that she was concise, so I didn’t say anything stupid. “In his mind, something with a lot of pieces means that if there’s a separation down the line you have to worry about someone stealing a piece and making it unusable. Think taking puzzle pieces or your favorite Monopoly miniature.”
Oh.
“There’s also a connection between long-playing games and the amount of time and trust you’re investing in a person.” That explained some of his weird looks, so I just kept nodding as I wondered if we could take her home. “And the stress level that the game can induce versus where you’re at in a relationship.”
Joel was the new overthinker in the group.
“Evidently you’re a worrier and that’s made him unsure about what level of board game your relationship is at.” The woman paused and gave us all firm looks that time. “But if you’re submitting to someone and are trusting them enough to have a special relationship, that should mean they’re important enough to play any board game.”
Frowning, she shook her head. “Do not let someone spank you if you can’t trust them to board game with you.”
With that lecture complete, she nodded and reached out to pat my hand. “You’ll be fine. I’m still very proud of you for safewording, dear. Now, pick out some games and go have fun.”
Giving us a little wave that was completely at odds with the naughty grin on her face, she walked back over to her cart and started on her way again. She was mumbling something about being helpful and remembering duct tape as she headed off like she’d done her good deed for the day.
Target wasn’t supposed to be this exciting and I was pretty sure I was going to blame it on Joel.
Chapter 14
Tate
Weirdest fucking shopping trip ever…but finding a new translator for Joel had been helpful.
She’d just marched right up as Dean had wandered off to go look at TVs we’d never buy and had started asking Joel questions. He didn’t mind being the center of attention since he was talking about his favorite things, his parents’ weird relationship rules and us, so he’d chattered on for several minutes about everything he’d thought we’d already understood.
We hadn’t.
Dean looked slightly exhausted as the lady who hadn’t given her name finally left us to ourselves, but Joel was smiling and back to looking at the wall of games. “Which ones should we get?”
I was with Dean on the exhausted bit, but I liked how excited Joel had gotten. He was back to his perky self and it was much easier to handle. Part of me felt like ignoring the confusing relationship dynamics Joel associated with games and us, but a bigger part of me was trying to figure out what to say next.