His expression softened. “Zach, I don’t know who told you that, but I really want to kick their ass.”
“My last girlfriend might give you a run for your money. She was mean when she was pissed.”
“Yeah, well, I can get pretty mean myself.” He stroked his chin thoughtfully. “Maybe I’ll sic Albert on her.”
“I’d pay money to see that,” I said with a chuckle. I sighed. “She was also homophobic. It was one of the reasons I broke up with her.”
Miguel shook his head. “She didn’t deserve you.”
“Thanks,” I said quietly. Hearing Miguel say those things about me did something to my heart. When I bothered to date, most times, it didn’t last long because I worked too much and got so dirty at work. I’d mostly given up after my last date called me white trash.
Miguel pointed at me. “That right there. What is that expression for? You’re breaking my heart.”
“It’s nothing,” I replied. “I was just thinking about the last woman I dated.” He crossed his arms and glared at me. I huffed a breath. “She said I was white trash because my hands looked dirty.”
Miguel dropped his head back and groaned. Then he threw up his hands. “That’s it. Any woman you date has to be run by me first.”
I laughed. “I might never get another one. I seem to be pretty bad at picking them.”
“I’m sure you’ll find someone,” he murmured as he turned back to my closet.
I set the shirt on my bed and got my jeans out of my dresser drawer. I took off my sweatpants and pulled on the jeans. After I zipped up my pants, I pulled off my sweatshirt and went to get my shirt. When I picked up my shirt, I noticed Miguel standing by my closet, staring at me. I looked down at myself. “Is everything okay? Do I have something on me?”
“No.” His voice sounded choked. He cleared his throat. “No. You’re fine. Very fine.” He pointed at my arm. “Nice dragon.”
I glanced down at the red dragon tattoo on my upper arm. “Yeah, I like it a lot. I’ve always had a thing for fantasy. I played D&D in high school. I haven’t played in a long time because I don’t know anyone with a game going.”
Miguel blinked. “I think I heard Liam talking about a D&D game he was in. I’ll ask him next time I see him.” He held up a pair of motorcycle boots. “How about these? They’d go well with what you’re wearing. Almost wearing.” He swallowed hard, and I noticed his cheeks were pink. “Shirt. You should probably put on your shirt.”
And then it hit me. Miguel liked what he saw. Warmth filled me. It felt nice to have Miguel think I was attractive. I froze for a second. What the hell was that about? I put on my shirt and buttoned it, leaving the top two undone.
I was about to button the cuffs, but Miguel stopped me. “Leave them unbuttoned and roll the sleeves up to just below your elbow.” He set my motorcycle boots down and helped me roll my sleeves neatly. He stepped back and looked me up and down. “Very nice. All the boys will want to come to your yard.”
I felt myself blush. “If you say so.” I picked up my boots and sat on the bed to put them on. “I forgot I had these,” I said. “A guy down the street gave them to me after I fixed his Harley for him.”
Miguel picked up his coat. “I didn’t know you fixed motorcycles.”
I finished tying my boots and went to the closet to get my leather jacket. “Yeah. I really like doing it. I took a course on how to fix the older model Harleys. I wanted to take the course to learn how to fix the late models, but I didn’t have the time or money. I taught myself a lot, but it’s not enough to get me hired at a Harley place.”
Miguel buttoned up his coat. “Maybe someday you’ll have the time and money to do it.”
I put on my jacket. “Maybe.” I spread my arms. “How do I look?”
“Perfect.”
CHAPTEREIGHT
MIGUEL
Zach Kelley was full of surprises. Given how uncertain he’d been about fitting in with my friends, he had them all eating out of the palm of his hand without even trying. I’d figured I would have to coax him out of his shell, but my roommate, Dwayne, took one look at him and homed right in. Dwanye’s boyfriend, Jason, knew Zach from high school, so it just got better from there. I was glad because I had invited Liam to come, but he was working some gig in New York with Marco.
Zach seemed fascinated by everything he saw. I knew he’d been to a gay bar before, but there was a big difference between a gay bar and a gay nightclub. He was clearly enjoying the drag show. He commented about how good a singer Albert was. I did have to tell him to address Albert as Darlene and use she/her pronouns when she was performing, even if she came over to talk to us. Zach just nodded and accepted it, no questions asked.
Dwanye sidled over to me and said in my ear, “You should ask that man to dance.”
“Who? Zach?”
“Of course,” Dwayne replied. “He is all sorts of delicious. If you don’t jump on that, someone else here will.”
