“Nah, I’m here because I can’t say no to Peyton.”
That pulls another laugh from me and I feel my chest squeezing when he gives me that soft smile.
“I assume we’re heading toJohnny’s?”
I nod. “Yep. My home away from home.”
“You and your brother always work together?”
“Yeah, we’ve been working at the bar since we were teenagers in some capacity or other. My parents own it, so…”
He raises an eyebrow. “Is there anything in this town that your parents don’t own?”
I chuckle. “A few things. My brother is gay, and when he came out they wanted to make sure he was safe and that he and other queer people in town had a place where they belonged, so they opened their own queer bar and had official underage nights where they didn’t sell alcohol, but the younger queer crowd could come and hang out and dance. They still do it once a week and it’s a big hit. That was aftertaking him to the pride parade every year and putting rainbow magnets on their cars, and a ginormous flag in their street facing window. They still make a rainbow cake for him every year on his ‘coming out aversary.’” I put the words in finger quotes, picturing the look on Tommy’s face when our parents “surprise” him with it every year. There’s the eye roll, and the groan as Mom and Dad stare at him with wide smiles on their faces, and he reluctantly lets us all inside to celebrate. Sweet Pierre always blushes furiously when they tell him how happy they are that their baby boy found someone so wonderful. And even though my brother acts like he hates it, I’m pretty sure he’d be disappointed if we ever stopped.
“Your parents sound pretty great,” Bentley says.
“Yeah, they’re characters, but I love them to bits.”
There’s a moment of silence and I take it to appreciate the car. It really is a beauty. Leather interior, bench seats, a tan dashboard and door panels, a cassette player which I honestly don’t know if I’ve ever seen before in real life, and crank windows.
“Nice car,” I tell him, and he grins again.
“Thanks, it’s fromSupernatural.”
“Oh, yeah? Wow, you must really like that show.”
“I’m mildly obsessed,” he admits, his cheeks pinkening again as he bites his bottom lip. “Peyton and I grew up on it.”
“Oh, cool. We still on for watching next week? You’ve got me all hyped up now.”
He nods. “But don’t forget Marble. You don’t bring her, you don’t get to eat.”
God, he makes me laugh more than anyone I’ve ever been around, and he’s so easy to talk to. How is it that we’ve only known each other a few days? The best part is it feels like he’s already coming out of his shell with me. There’s nodoubt he’s shy and introverted, but I can see more and more of his humor and his kind heart every time we’re together.
“Here we are,” he says, pulling up toJohnny’sand putting the car in park.
“Thanks again, man,” I tell him, climbing out. “You saved my ass. See you later.” I shut the door and wave and he drives off.
I brace myself for my brother’s wrath as I enter our family’s establishment and make my way towards the bar. Tommy is behind it, and I do a double take when I see him serving drinks with a megawatt smile on his face. I don’t think I’ve seen my brother smile unless it has something to do with Pierre. And when he’s at work he’s all business. His pretty little twink of a husband is nowhere in sight.
I blink when he turns to me and his smile gets even bigger. What the actual fuck?
“Alex, glad you could make it,” he says, slapping me on the shoulder.
“Excuse me?” I say.
“What?” he asks, as he mixes a drink.
“Who are you and what have you done with my brother?”
“What do you mean?”
“Uh, you’re supposed to be chewing me out for being almost a half an hour late.”
He laughs. Fucking laughs. Okay, what episode of the fuckingTwilight Zoneam I in?
“Are you okay?” I ask, genuinely concerned. “Should I call Pierre? Maybe you’re having a stroke?”
