8
Liam
As we slid into my car, Ty glanced around the inside, saying, “Dude, this is fucking badass. I didn’t know you had a Tesla.”
His wide eyes and bright smile thrilled me.
I had been eager for his visit, far more so than I should have been, but it’d been a long time since I’d felt excitement—real excitement—about something. Ty had awakened something within me. The texts we’d exchanged about TV shows and brief recaps about our days were so life-giving. The hug before he got in the car had roused my desire, and it was showing in the bulge in my pants.
“All that time you were shutting your trap about shit, and you could have at least told me about this,” Ty went on.
“If I’d known you’d be this into my car, I would have mentioned it. I didn’t realize you were a big car enthusiast.”
“Eh, not really much of one, but these Tesla Xs are pretty badass. If I was rolling in money the way my dad is, I’d be riding in one of these instead of my Corolla.”
“By that time, Teslas won’t be a thing anymore, and you’ll be onto something else,” I assured him as I merged into the next lane toward the interstate. “So tell me what you’ve been up to.”
“Same old, same old. This past weekend I got to see Mom more than usual. Helped her at the community, which was nice too.”
From what Eric and Ty had told me, I knew Tricia worked with residents at an assisted-living community, but whether Ty realized it or not, I’d also picked up on the fact that he volunteered there pretty regularly. He claimed it was to spend time with her, though the more I got to know him, the more I suspected he was attempting to hide altruistic motives.
“Speaking of Tricia, how’s she doing?”
“Really good, actually. There’s this guy who works at the place, and they’ve been on a few dates.”
“And how do you feel about that?”
“I’ll keep you posted. If there’s an asshole to be found, Mom has a way of finding them.”
Something about the way he said it made me tense up. I knew people well enough to pick up on a clue like that, and I had to control myself enough to ask, “What do you mean by that?”
“Just guys who treated her like shit. Was what it was.” He said that last part quickly, as if trying to spit the words at the thought to chase it away. “I don’t mean to include Eric in that, by the way.”
“I assumed as much.”
His tension lingered, like a thick miasma, but by the silence that followed, it was evident that wasn’t something he cared to discuss, so I bit my tongue. I had plenty of experience reading people and unraveling their secrets so I knew I would get to the heart of it with time.
“Any big games with your friends recently?” I asked in hopes of steering the conversation to a more pleasant subject.
Ty’s expression returned to life as he started discussing their last flag-football scrimmage before we caught up about Jesse and Eric and what his buddies were up to. It was nice being able to have a conversation with him again.
* * *
“So curious whatyour place looks like. You got a TV in the guest bedroom?”
He hadn’t stopped talking from the airport to my unit, and I loved it.
As soon as he stepped into my condo, he continued, “It’s fine if you don’t, ’cause I brought my laptop and can stream something on there— Holy hell! Look at this place!”
Rolling his spinner suitcase behind him, he made his way through the short hall leading into my living area. A staircase on the other end spiraled up to the second story, where the bedrooms were located. Heading toward the windows on the opposite side of my unit, he glanced around, taking in the space.
“Jesus Christ, you think they have a job opening for that position you had before?”
I laughed. “It’s been filled.”
“Well, that guy will be out at your age, so depending on how old he is, he maybe has a decade in that job, and I can make sure I’m free then.” He looked over his shoulder and winked at me. He parked his bag beside the window and slid the balcony door open, stepping outside. I tailed behind him, meeting him at the rail, where he took in my view of the park.
He turned to me, leaning back against the rail as he folded his arms, stressing the bulky muscles in his biceps.
