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phone. We can go now.”
    “Can I use your bathroom first, please?”
    He let her go and she didn’t hesitate before walking quickly away from Jerry.
     
    * * * *
     
    “You want to tell me what the fuck that was about?” Ty snapped, his sights squarely set on his housemate.
    “Conversation.” Jerry shrugged, heading for the door, but Ty stood in his path. The two men squared up to each other, and this was a contest Ty wouldn’t back down from.
    “I told you to leave her alone.”
    Jerry let out a snort of laughter. “I give it a week before you’re bored with her and toss her my way. That or she’ll see your collection and freak.” He pushed past and grabbed a jacket. “I’m going out.” The door slammed as he left, rattling against its frame.
    Ty looked at his phone. The temptation to end things grew with each passing day, but had become more urgent since bringing Leah home. He put the phone in his back pocket.
    Rubbing his face, he walked to the front room, stopping when he got to the bottom of the stairs. Leah was stood at the top, arms folded across her chest and an expression on her face that told him she had heard every word. Or at least the important parts.
    The tension in the air was palpable. They stared at each other, silently daring the other to speak first.
    “Sorry about that.” It was Ty who spoke, not moving his eyes from hers. He took a deep breath through his nose, expanding his chest before blowing out in a long, slow exhale. “Shall we go?”
    “No,” she said, walking down the stairs. His body stiffened, ready for the blow of being rejected. Standing in front of him, she flattened her palms on his chest, taking in the hard muscle under her touch. She stood on her toes and took his bottom lip between her teeth. “I want to know what this collection of yours is.”

Chapter Twelve
     
     
     
    Ty let out a heavy breath, taking her hands in his, and led her upstairs and into his bedroom. He pointed at the bed, and she obeyed the silent order, sitting on the edge, partly regretting her decision to inquire into the collection. She hoped it was something silly like a stash of porn hidden in the bottom of his wardrobe. But what if he had a sex dungeon in a cellar she knew nothing about? What if he had weird fetishes? Her teeth grazed over her bottom lip as she contemplated the possibilities. What if… Memories of Kyle stung the backs of her eyes.
    Outside, the sun was beginning to set. Streetlights flickered into life. Orange spotlights hit the pavement, but didn’t make it into the house. The bedroom was shrouded in a soft glow from the two wall-mounted lights. The shadows fell over Ty’s face, and she couldn’t quite make out his expression as he turned his head.
    “Well?” she asked, beginning to feel uncomfortable.
    “I don’t usually do this so…soon into a relationship. Not with someone like you.”
    The corners of her lips twitched into a small smile at the word relationship, but she wondered what he meant, ‘like her’. He walked toward one of two wardrobes against the back wall. He took a small key from the top and unlocked the door, opening it for her to see.
    Leah pinched her lips together between her teeth to stop from giggling as she looked at the cupboard. The door was adorned with hooks, holding up canes, whips, paddles and some items she couldn’t name. She stood up and walked over to get a better look inside. Ty didn’t move, his fingers gripping the door. Leah glanced at him, one eyebrow raised and a smile stretching across her lips.
    Shelves had been put in and housed half of the products she would have expected to see in an adult shop. From handcuffs and blindfolds to gags, they all sat waiting to be used. There was also a line of yet more implements, still in their boxes. She picked one out—a pink silicon vibrator, the most innocent-looking toy in the collection. Leah put it back next to a pack of candles.
    “You’re not surprised?” he asked, closing