"You seem to be enjoying yourself," I mutter under my breath as I climb back down.
"What did you say?"
I squat and stack three frames on top of each other. "I said, when else would you like me to do it?"
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe when the shop is shut."
"Can't." I shrug. "I've got my hands full when the doors are locked."
Tek snickers, but it doesn't fill the hole.
Brooklyn sighs. "Could you please ask him to stop? At least until I'm gone."
"Carey—"
"Come on. It's gonna look shit with just two up there."
"Just quit the hammering… Please."
My nostrils flare, and I grit my teeth. "Fine," I force out, and catch the smug look on Brooklyn's face.
"Hey Brooke," I say harshly—not giving a flying fuck if she likes being called that—as I march back to the desk to grab the sketchbook. "D'you think this would be good for one of the bigger frames?"
Flipping through the remaining pages, I find the sketch of me, and hold it in front of her.
Her eyes squint as she double takes the features.
"I guess," she says, looking off to the side, but then she's straight back on Tek. "Hey, I could model for you."
"He only works from memory."
"Then imagine how much better they would be if the real thing was right in front of him."
"Who says it isn't?"
Brooklyn glances down at herself and Tek's hands on her thigh.
She bounces her free leg and looks back up at me. "I guess it already is."
I grip the sketchbook tight because of how badly I want to grab Tek's jaw, wrench up his chin, and suck his indifference right out of his body.
I step back because I don't trust myself.
When Tek re-inks, Brooklyn twists her hips, rolling onto her other leg and pushing her ass out. "Do ya think we should continue the design around to the back of my thigh?"
Tek looks, blinks a few times, but doesn't say anything.
She lifts the side of her bike shorts, hiking them further up her leg. "Or maybe up here instead?"
I step between him and her. "Hey, old man. I saw this in the shower this morning, d'you think it looks weird?" Raising my shirt, I watch Tek's eyes widen as I bare my stomach. There's nothing there, just the same mole by my left hip that's always been there.
"You…" He falters. "You have spent a lot of time in the sun."
"Think I should get it checked out?"
I watch Tek's tongue push into his cheek as he looks at me. Then I can tell he's rolling it around inside his mouth.
He wants my fingers.
