Chapter Fourteen
By the time they had gone into town and Ares had found a place to park, Marty was bubbling with excitement. Just before they got out of the car, Ares had clicked his fingers and handed him a card. “This is a credit card. It has an unlimited balance and a special chip in it that means it can only be used by you. You can buy whatever you like with it.”
“I don’t need much,” Marty said, taking the card and looking at both sides of it. It was a shiny jet black, and just had a number on it and a symbol that looked a lot like his mating mark. “I simply thought having a scooter and a phone would be fun.”
“We won’t buy the phone from town,” Ares explained. “I will click you up one of those because if you want to keep track of me, you have to be on the Zeus network.”
Apparently, Ares’ father owned the computer network that all the gods were on. Considering Ares said none of the other gods liked him, Marty didn’t think he’d be making any friends in the godly community any time soon. But the idea of having a phone on a super-secret godly network did make him feel like a bit of a super-hero.
They wandered along the street. Marty was trying to remember where he’d seen the store when suddenly he saw it, like a vision just waiting for him to arrive. Right there in front of a big plate glass window was the gorgeous green scooter.
“It’s still there. Look. That one,” he said, wanting to dance and clap his hands with excitement. He didn’t because he didn’t want to embarrass Ares, but it was a close thing. “That’s exactly the one I wanted.”
Ares didn’t look as excited as Marty was. “Marty, that doesn’t look like a very safe mode of transport. Do you know how fast they go?”
“I’ve got no idea,” Marty said happily. “That’s part of the excitement, isn’t it? Just think, I’ll be able to race it down the driveway at the house.”
Sighing, Ares said, “Let’s go and have a closer look. I need to have a chat with the salesman first and find out how fast this thing is supposed to go and if it has basic things like brakes.”
Marty didn’t care, he was so excited. The last time he’d seen the scooter, he had been in his threadbare clothes and didn’t even dare walk into the store. Now, he was dressed in his lovely clean clothes, all brand new, all courtesy of his lovely mate. His jacket was warm and comfortable, and his jeans actually fit. He had a lovely pair of boots on instead of the worn-out sneakers that he was used to wearing. He felt warm and cherished, and above all, he felt like the sort of person that could walk into a shop and say, “I want to buy that scooter.”
He couldn’t do that immediately, he decided, as he followed Ares inside the shop. Ares wanted to show that he was being protective, so Marty would let him talk to whoever he needed to so he could be reassured about how fast it would go, and all the safety features, and everything else.
Marty didn’t care. It was green. Not just any green, but a beautiful, bright lime green, and Marty had dreamed of that scooter so many times when he lived in his camp or had been walking the streets.
He loitered by the stand where the scooter was sitting, just in case Ares got it into his head that maybe he’d want another one, like a sensible black one or a pale gray or something equally responsible looking. Marty wanted the green one. So, he loitered by it, looking at it, wandering around the stand, making out that he was a regular browsing customer, who was secretly excited about how soon he could have a go on it.
One of the other salesmen, not the one talking to Ares, because that would’ve been rude, but one of the other ones, came up and stood beside him. He was young, taller than Marty by about a foot, and had tight clothes and a mop of white-blond hair. “You look like you’re having a lot of fun with your sugar daddy.”
Marty looked up. “Do you mean Ares? He’s not my sugar daddy. He and I are not related.”
“Ooooh.” The man arched a perfectly shaped eyebrow. “So, he’s not your sugar daddy. Well damn, he can be my daddy then. That could be a lot of fun.”
“Your daddy?”
“He sure looks like the type of man who could handle being my daddy.”
Marty wondered if there was something wrong with his ears. Did I hear that right? But the man had specifically said Ares could be his daddy. Ares, who had said only the night before that he did have a lot of children, but that no one was likely to pop in and call him daddy. And yet, just the very next day, Marty was standing with a man who said Ares could be his daddy. Marty wasn’t sure about the sugar reference, but then Ares was rather sweet.
“Hey, Ares,” he yelled across the shop. “Ares, babe. I found one of your children. This guy says that you’re his sugar daddy.”
“I said I wanted to be,” the young blond said quickly as Ares came striding over, his face looking like thunder. “I wanted him to be my sugar daddy, not that he was.”
“That is no child of mine,” Ares said to Marty, who was looking between them, really confused.
“He used the word daddy.” Marty couldn’t work it out. “I heard him distinctly use the word daddy, and you said yesterday that none of your kids call you daddy because they’re all too old. Is this one you forgot about? What’s a sugar daddy?”
“A sugar daddy?” Ares said as his face cleared. Marty nodded. “Hmm. That’s a different situation altogether.” He fixed his renewed glare on the young man. “I am not Marty’s sugar daddy, I’m his husband. Piss off.”
The young man scuttled away, and Ares put his arm around Marty’s shoulder, right there in the store. “We’ll talk about sugar daddies later,” he said. “But if anyone calls me that again or refers to you as a sugar baby, just tell them we’re married, and it’s none of their business. Now, about the scooter. The salesperson told me that this thing can go thirty miles an hour, which means if you’re going to ride it, you’re going to need a helmet and pads for your elbows and your knees. They will help keep you safe if you fall off.”
Marty looked at his knees and elbows. “Are you sure I need all that stuff?” he whispered. “I know I’m skinny, but I’m durable and that all sounds very expensive.”
“If you want the scooter, then you’re having the helmet and the elbow pads and the knee pads,” Ares said firmly. “It would make me feel better about you riding that thing.”
Aww, he’s caring about me. Marty felt a shiver of excitement run right down his spine. “That sounds wonderful. Thank you so much. Can we take this one now?” Marty was ready to wheel it out of the shop.
“They’ve got one in a box, it requires minimal assembly, apparently.”
“Oh.” Marty looked at his treasured beauty. “Are you sure? I really wanted this one.”
“I promise you, the one in the box is the same color and the same style. We just have to tighten a few bolts. They put them in the boxes because it makes them easier to put in the trunk of the car.”
Okay, that made sense, and in truth, that wasn’t something Marty had even considered. All he cared about in that moment was owning the scooter. But when he went up to the counter with Ares, ready to hand over his card, Ares handed over his instead. Marty tucked his one in his pocket, determined not to lose it.
“Did you want this delivered, sir?” the salesman asked.
“Nope. We’ve got it, thanks.” Ares handed Marty a bag that had a helmet and some funny foam bits in it before picking up a large, long box and slinging it on his shoulder.
“If you need any further help, sir, please come back anytime, or you have my number. It’s on the receipt.”
Ares just waved as they stalked out of the store, although he reserved an extra glare for the younger salesman who had been talking about daddies. “Sugar daddy,” he snarled. “I should’ve fucking known. How dare that guy call me a sugar daddy.”
“Well, you are sweet,” Marty said with a big grin. “You did buy me a scooter.”
Ares groaned. “I should have also bought a lifetime supply of bandages, too, apparently. Do you know how unsafe these things are?”
“Not yet, but I’ll guess we’ll find out together.”
“An entire truckload of bandages.” Ares sighed. “I’m sure we’re going to need them before the day’s over.”
Marty really wasn’t worried about that, either, if it was Ares wrapping them around his body. That could be fun as well.