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Forty-Four

Nate had intended to eat dinner while he checked the responses to the video. Half an hour later, the noodles were cold and he’d barely touched them.

There were a lot of comments.

That was good, probably. People were watching. People were sharing. Whatever else happened, more people would see Leo’s face than Nate could have reached by carrying the painting around town.

He should have been pleased about that. He was pleased about that. He just wished he could stop checking how many people had unsubscribed.

“Go back,” Leo said as Nate scrolled down again. “I hadn’t finished reading.”

“Sorry.” Nate moved back up and angled the laptop toward him. “That one?”

“No, the one about the painting.”

Someone wanted to know whether it was for sale.

“Oh. No,” Nate said.

“Good. Tell them that.”

Nate typed a quick reply while Leo supervised. Then they moved on to someone who wanted to know whether the whole video was a joke. Several people had tried to answer that question, and none of them agreed.

Leo seemed prepared to take offense at all of them, but a comment farther down distracted him.

@lindam: shared this with my parents. probably a long shot but you never know.

“That could help,” he said. “Couldn’t it?”

“Yeah, it could.”

Nate thanked her. It wasn’t much, but it was a start, and Leo stayed close to his shoulder as he continued through the responses.

A few people said hello to Leo. Someone apologized for calling him GhostyMcGhostface, which Leo accepted with a satisfied nod. Someone else suggested Nate open a window before the paint fumes did any more damage.

Well. He’d expected that sort of thing.

He was reaching for his fork when another comment caught his attention.

@SamR71: Used to enjoy the actual restoration work. Guess that wasn’t getting enough clicks. Not sticking around for this scam.

Nate left the fork where it was.

A scam?

He read the comment again, feeling his face grow hot. He’d been prepared to be called a liar, but a scammer?

That was fucking annoying.

Seven people had liked the comment too, which made it worse. He didn’t know any of those people. He shouldn’t care what they thought. Unfortunately, knowing that didn’t make him care any less.

“What scam?” Leo demanded beside him. “You’re not asking them for money.”

“He thinks I’m making you up for the views.”

“Well, you’re not. Tell him.”

Nate clicked Reply. He wasn’t offering readings. He wasn’t selling anything. He could explain that much, at least.