14 Rich
Once Kimber is home and settled in the following day, I go to the club. She said she has work later tonight, which I’m assuming means the store since she didn’t mention Sins.
Tyson grins when I walk in, and I notice his partner isn’t around. “Rich! I hear Vinny’s going to hire you for a new voyeur room. They want some new additions by Christmastime.”
Blinking, I match his pace as we walk into the main room. It’s a little busier than expected for a weekday afternoon. “Don’t they need you to build it?”
He shrugs. “The room’s already built - they just want to modify it. Emeric mentioned it earlier.”
I nod. Updating a room is the last thing on my mind right now after this past weekend, but it’s a good reason to speak to one of the owners. “Are they in? Jo, Vinny?”
“Jo’s upstairs somewhere,” he says, tucking his hands into his pockets. “She’s hyper-focused right now, so I’d ask her about the room later.”
“Christmas is only two months away.”
He grins again, winking. “There’s nottoomuch to modify.”
I catch his arm when he turns away, and he shoots me a curious look. “There’s a few attorneys who play here, aren’t there?”
Tyson blinks, looking thoroughly perplexed by the conversation shift. He reaches up and rubs the back of his head,raising an eyebrow. “Yeah, a couple. David and Myla, and there’s Addison but she kept talking to me about probate yesterday. What do you need?”
My tongue drags across my teeth, my mind screaming to stay out of it. “A defense attorney.”
“Oh.” Tyson wiggles his eyebrows, glancing around. I know who David is; he’s been a member forever. If I remember right, the girl Tyson mentioned is his partner, and I sold them a very custom, very lavish, choker set last year. I don’t know her very well though. “David then. Myla’s personal injuries or something.”
Nodding, I glance around. “Is he here?”
“They’re attorneys, dude,” Tyson says with a laugh. “Check back in a couple hours.”
“Great,” I say, my gaze shifting when the door to the office opens. I spot Jo’s trademark strawberry blond hair, and she’s moving at a breakneck pace across the room to speak with Callie. The two lean in towards each other, and my focus shifts. “By the way, go talk to Kimber sometime. She’s lonely.”
“You want me to swing by and talk to Kimber,” Tyson clarifies slowly, and I shoot him a look. “We’re buddies, but that sounds like girl talk. I’m good for gossip and punny jokes.”
I sigh. “Well, who does she hang out with here then? She’s been in her head too much lately.”
“Dude.” Tyson grins, crossing his arms. “Something going on with you two?”
I shrug. Kimber has more of a presence at S&S than I do. I have no idea if she wants it well known that she’s sleeping with the guy who stocks the store. After Jude interfered at the hot springs, I’d rather not invite in more unnecessary drama. Kim’s got enough going on. “Something.”
“That’s not an answer,” Tyson snorts, matching my pace as we cross the room. “Sounds like she needs a girlfriend. Someone that doesn’t work at that POS store.”
“She’s determined to keep working there,” I say. “She’s loyal to Bobby.”
“I thought Kim hated Bobby,” Tyson says, sounding confused.
“She’s… it’s complicated. He’s a pain but he’s also never treated her badly and the hours are reliable.”
Tyson stops me then, gripping my forearm as he gives me a weird look. “You suddenly know a lot about Kimber.”
“It’s not a bad thing,” I reply with a frown. “It’s nice getting to know her better.”
He wiggles his eyebrows, and I’m regretting asking him anything at all. Tyson’s the kind of person to flirt and joke and it takes a minute to get him to be serious about things. This is something I’m very serious about. “So those friends we were discussing…”
I wait, because Kimber never mentions friends. Not when we would joke during deliveries at the store, not during the time we’ve spent together over the last few weeks, not when she’s breaking down. Friends seem foreign to her, and it makes my heart tighten in my chest. I don’t know who she turns to when she feels alone.
I have a sneaking suspicion that it contributes to her bad coping skills. She doesn’t confide in many people because she doesn’t trust many people. I can’t just make people appear for her out of thin air, that won’t help. But if it’s people she already sort of knows, it might be less awkward and more natural for her to talk to them.
Tyson blows out a breath, letting go of my arm. “Never mind. I can already see it. I need to find Russell. He knows Laci a little better than I do, and I think this is her thing.”
