“Sports, movies, and food.”
She rolled her eyes at me.
“What?”
“Nothing, it’s just, you are such a boy, Brandon.”
“What?”
“Sports, movies, and food.” Salem mocked me in a deep tone. “There is so much more to life than those things.”
“Such as?”
She shook her hand that held a bunch of keychains by the metal rings.
“Hobbies?” Salem suggested.
“Ha! I’m not sure I can tell my long-lost dad that I’m into dark, demeaning things like being hit and tied up by older men. I think he’d find that super warped.”
“It’s not warped, Brandon.”
“It’s warped when you think about the place you and I were in,” I replied under my breath as I helped her untangle the mess she’d made of the keychains when she shook them at me. I looked at her when I heard her growl and sigh. Her eyes were closed, and her eyebrows narrowed into an angry slant.Shit. It was because I brought up Sebastian. “I’m sorry. It’s kind of hard to explain to a dad.”
“It’s not like he doesn’t know you’re into something kinky. After all, through Morgan is how all of this fell into place.”
“True.” I glanced out the windows and saw Chase coming toward the building. “Here he comes.”
Salem dropped her scowl for a glimpse.
“Okay, remember, just stay calm and try to be you. Think hobbies, but not the sadist and masochist games you and James play.” Salem offered her last-minute words of encouragement as Chase walked through the door.
“Hey, Chase!” I called out. He turned to the sound of his name and smiled when he saw me.
As he walked over to me, Salem mumbled, “Oh my God he looks like you!”
“You think?” I asked, genuinely curious.
I held the tangled keychains out to Salem to take, but she was mesmerized by looking at possibly the aged version of me.
“Chase, this is my friend, Salem. And, Salem, this is my dad, Chase,” I introduced as Salem took the keychains from my hands.
“Hello, it’s nice to meet you,” Chase said to her, and he offered his hand for her to shake.
Salem smiled and then stared at his outstretched hand for a moment. She usually didn’t touch a stranger unless it was on accident. And it was because of… everything.
“Hi,” she said as she dropped the keychains in my hand and slowly reached out to shake his hand. It was a brief handshake, but one that Salem obviously felt okay with making. She smiled broadly and kept looking at Chase and then me. “Sorry, I just… You guys look so much alike. Except Brandon needs to put on more weight,” she joked.
“Or I should lose some,” Chase teased back.
The three of us laughed for a moment and then Salem looked horrified that she might have made Chase feel like he was overweight.
“Oh my God, no! I didn’t mean you were heavy or overweight. You’re just—”
“More muscular than I am?” I suggested.
“Yes,” she replied, only to have quickly brought her hand up to her forehead. “No! I don’t mean you’re not muscular, because you are.” Salem smiled nervously at Chase. “He is. He’s very lean. Lean framed, I mean.” Then she was quick to add, “Not that I’ve seen him that way.” I shook my hands that were full keychains to help draw her attention back to me. She seemed flustered, but not really in a bad way. She quickly grabbed at the keychains and pulled them out of my palms. “You know, I’m just going to take these and go work on the display. It was nice to meet you, Chase.” Salem smiled and set the tangled mess on the shelf below the one she was going to add her display to.
“Did you make these?” Chase asked her.
