my soul for Lent last year and never got it back.” He winked, flashing a mischievous smile that made me tingle a bit.
Cole the Asshole was downright hotter than hell.
“Well, I appreciate you letting me borrow your muscles in any case,” I said.
He looked around at the decorations and lights I’d put up thus far. “Seriously, why do you bother with all this? It’s a lot of work. Why not just go visit lights somewhere else?”
“If everyone thought that way, there would be nothing in life to enjoy. Sometimes you have to be the change you want to see in the world.” I tried to disregard the emotions bubbling up, because deep down, I knew that wasn’t my only motivation. “Anyway…I have my reasons.”
Cole raised a brow. “You get off on the attention?”
“If attention means making other people happy, then yes, I get off on it.” I squinted. “And by the way, given that you’ve chosen not to participate in our block’s line of lights, don’t be surprised if you see kids crying when they pass your house because it’s such a disappointment. You’re going to stick out like a sore thumb, being the only dark house.”
“There’s only five houses on our little block, and I haven’t seen a light on in two of them in weeks.”
I pointed to each home as I spoke. “The Martins’ son will be here this weekend to put up their decorations. They winter in Florida, but their son still comes and sets up a simple display that works on a timer. The Ackermans hire a company to set up theirs, and old Mrs. Becker comes out and puts up her own lights even though she’s nearly eighty. It’s for charity, and it looks nice when the whole block is lit up around my display. You’re the only scrooge.”
“I’ll live with that guilt, but thanks for the warning.” He bent to reach into my backseat. “Anyway, let me get these out for you.” I watched as my neighbor slowly and carefully lifted the first heavy soldier out of the car. “Where do you want him?”
I pointed. “On the left side of my front door, please. The other can go right across on the opposite side.” I snorted. ‘They’re going to be standing guard.”
“Awesome,” he said. He deposited the soldier and returned to the car. “And to think I just installed a home security system. Had I known these things were going to be protecting the neighborhood, I wouldn’t have bothered.”
After he placed the second soldier in its rightful spot, I said, “Well, thank you for the help.”
He rolled his eyes. “Maybe Santa Claus will be nice to me this year.”
For some reason, I felt like I should offer him something to say thanks. “Would you…like to come in for a glass of wine?” What am I doing?
He scratched his chin, looking down at his shoes. “Actually, I can’t. I have a virtual meeting for work in a few minutes.”
“Or it could be that you don’t want to fraternize with the overly jolly neighbor.” I chuckled, feeling dumb for asking him to come over. “What exactly do you hate so much about Christmas lights anyway?”
“Well, for one, it invites unnecessary attention. There’s a lot to be said for peace on the home front. I want to be able to walk around in my underwear without having to worry about someone peering in my window.”
“Christmas has to stop because you don’t want to wear pants?”
“Well, I didn’t know what I was signing up for when I moved to Santa’s Village.”
That made me crack up. “Fair enough. Anyway, thank you for the help.”
“No problem.” He nodded and headed back across the street.
I watched as he walked away, enjoying the view of his mighty fine backside, and imagined him prancing around in his underwear to the tune of “Jingle Bell Rock” coming from my front lawn.
Cole
All men manscape, right?
It was time for my once-a-month trimming. So I stripped off my clothes and stood in front of the bathroom mirror, taking some time to appreciate the results of the hard work I’d been putting in at the gym.
As I turned on the razor, I thought about my crazy neighbor Josie. I might’ve given her shit, but she was pretty damn cute. Too bad she reminded me of someone I wanted to forget, and that made me uneasy around her.
Josie. Trimming her tree across the street, while I was over here trimming the hedges around my cock.
Laughing inwardly, I’d just started