Page 20 of Nuts

“What? Girls like you don’t take dumps?”

“We do, we just don’t talk about it.”

“He’ll be back in a minute. He’s talking to Harry.”

My eyes shot to him. “He’s coming back?”

“Said he’d be back in a minute.”

Crap.

There was little I could do. Him seeing me in my uniform shirt didn’t mean our relationship as friends was destined to deteriorate. I simply needed to accept any remarks he made as being nothing more than playful banter.

I scanned the sales floor, and eventually saw him and Harry talking by one of the motorcycles on display.

Seeing him in his driveway was one thing. Having him at my place of employment was clearly another.

I looked at Blane and managed a nervous smile. “We’re friends.”

His nose wrinkled. “You and that dude?”

“Yeah.”

“He looks mean as fuck.”

“He is.”

“And, you’re friends with him?”

“Yeah.” I looked at Percy and then at Blane. “You know, we were talking the other day about product branding tattoos. He’s a big believer that anyone who has beer logos or other random crap tattooed on their bodies is a sellout.”

It was a lie, and although I wasn’t a liar, I decided it was okay for me to tease a little bit. Blane’s attitude, offhand comments, and lingering stares into my shirt each time I bent over made it okay.

“Seriously?”

I nodded toward his ridiculous tattoo. “He didn’t see that when he came up here, did he?”

It was a fifty-fifty shot, but I decided to take it.

He swallowed hard. “I don’t think so.”

“You’d know it if he did. One thing he’s not is bashful.” I glanced toward the sales floor. “Oh look, here he comes.”

“I’m uhhm. I’ve got to…I need to go take a dump. I’ll be back in a minute,” he stammered.

“Sounds good.”

With his mouth twisted into a smirk, Percy sauntered toward me. I hoped Harry had said something funny, and that it wasn’t me or my dumb shirt that he was grinning about.

I stood nervously, wishing there was something I could do about my appearance, but knowing fidgeting would only make matters worse.

“How’s it going?”

His eyes scanned the rack of parts above me. “Good.”

I doubted there was anything on display that would interest him. Most of the packaged chrome accessories were things he either already had, or that he definitely wouldn’t use.

An awkward silence followed.