22 Rich
Sex and sleep remedy some of the pain after court, and Kim doesn’t have a lot to say about it the rest of the night. David did his job, and she didn’t have to defend herself against anything. He was right; the judge didn’t see a reason to try this case when it was already deemed self defense.
One day bleeds into the next, and the time passes with a structured ease. I'm used to enjoying the days all alone. Having someone here during the holidays is nice, even if I don’t do anything for Thanksgiving coming up, and I already have a few ideas for Christmas next month. Kim’s still here, content in my bed, with her cat leaving hair everywhere. The stubborn little thing is starting to grow on me.
David told her the day after court that the protection order is in place. She wouldn’t have to worry about harassment if she went home. Anything that showed up she could file against them, and the Biggins’ would be the ones in trouble. It’s sad that his parents' pain turned to hatred for Kim, but she didn’t do anything wrong. She was a victim, and she saved herself in the end. I doubt they will ever look at it like that, though.
My phone buzzes, and I glance down to see a call from Jude. Today Kimber is off from her job at the sex shop, and I heard her muttering yesterday about some call with Callie. I guess Callie manages the waitresses for S&S now, and wants to offer her more hours if she’ll take them. She seemed indecisive about the whole thing.
We haven’t been back to Sins yet since playing on the roof. There was a lot going on, and when I asked, Kimber just shook her head. Kind of like Sins, I’ve been brushing off Jude for a few days.
Answering the call I put him on speaker phone so I can continue working on the molds. “Yeah?”
“Some people start with hello,” Jude says dryly. He grows silent after that.
“Hello.” I keep my voice even.
“There we go. And hello to you. How’s your girl doing?”
I frown down at the phone. I’ve messaged Jude here and there, and I took one delivery out by myself last week but he was unavailable. Now he’s calling me? “Are you looking for something?”
“Well, I am curious if you’ll be coming back for our next primal month in December,” he says with a chuckle. “I chatted with Vinny and he mentioned that you’re a member at his club now.”
I pause. Sometimes I forget that Jude and Vinny talk. And not just on a professional level; they’re friends. Close enough anyways that I guess they talked about me. “And?”
“I’ve never seen you apply to be a member of anything,” Jude says knowingly. “That’s why you usually come up here. Now you’ve taken on a membership at Sins?”
“It’s not a crime.”
“No,” he replies knowingly, “but I’m guessing it has to do with her.”
“Leave her out of it,” I sigh.
“It’s not a bad thing,” he says, and I go back to working. My sketch book is open on the desk behind me, and now that the molds are set I’ll be packing up the order I have for a store down in Santa Fe. I’ll be traveling this weekend, and since Kimber'sbeen a little stuck in her head the last few days I thought about bringing her with me. “I think Brynne’s good for you.”
“It’s so nice that you know her name,” I snarl. “Next time, clue me in if you know something about my date. And don’t fuck with Brynne’s head if we come back.”
“I didn’t mean to,” Jude says, and he sounds so sarcastic I almost throw the phone. “I just wanted to know that she would be a good person for you. I heard through the grapevine that there’s no case against her anymore.”
“Would you please stop digging?” I groan. “Kim’s a good person. And call her Kim when you see us. She doesn’t like to go by Brynne.”
“Whatever the lady wants,” he says knowingly. “So we’ll see you soon? For more than a drop-off this time. Before the snow hits I have a haul coming from out of state and I think you’ll like the additions.”
“What are you getting from out of state?”
“We’re expanding,” he says, and I’d almost say he sounds giddy if I didn’t know Jude. “We hired a contracting company for some new cabins, and I’ll be implementing a bigger indoor area. We’re thinking about adding a bridge to the other side of the property to offer more to customers.”
“That’s a lot of expansion,” I say, surprised.
“Mhmm. And I need a store. Not the stuff that’s in-room but a whole-ass place for people to shop. Custom and branded if I can.”
Smirking, I roll my eyes. “So you want more products?”
“Yes. A shit ton more. The expansion goes into next year so we have time, and I’m sure you’ll need to adjust your supply and demand. I know Sins is your primary buyer, but I don’t want anything they have that you’ve custom made for them. If possible we’d like our own stuff. We’re going to be implementingmore boudoir photography, and that means the participants get their own products. It’ll be for the room cards and the website.”
Glancing at the mess around me, I can’t imagine how I’ll handle doubling what I make for Jude. Right now it’s manageable, and more than a year gives me time to work with him and adjust my process, but he’s right. I’ve always worked alone. There are very few things I send out and it's only to accommodate bulk orders on select items. Bringing on more work like that would be very difficult.
The door opens, and I glance up to find Kim. She’s wearing my shirt and nothing else, the black fabric hanging loosely around her frame. There’s a mug in each hand, and she eyes the room curiously. She hasn’t actually come in to see my office with how busy we’ve been. She occasionally helps me move things out, but she hasn’t spent much time here.
