Chapter 7
Sam
No one ever would have mistaken me for a sweet or sentimental guy. I was a businessman. I had a job to do, employees to take care of, and a family to support. I’d definitely dated around and occasionally hooked up in the past, but I wasn’t the sort to go completely soft for a guy I was with.
Until Brian.
“You’re sure people aren’t going to comment about the two of us opening the café together?” Brian asked the Tuesday a few days after our first date as I unlocked the café’s front door in the early dawn light.
“I don’t think there’s anyone here to notice,” I said with a teasing smile over my shoulder for him as I pushed the door open.
Which would have been true, except Hannah came striding up the sidewalk, her backpack-style purse slung over one shoulder, and a grin that was far too wide for first thing in the morning on her face.
“Morning, guys,” she said, a twinkle in her eyes as she walked into the café behind us. “Did someone have a sleepover last night?”
Brian immediately went bright pink. “Um, I—”
“None of your business,” I told Hannah, one eyebrow arched.
Hannah just laughed and headed back behind the counter to her kitchen to start her baking for the day.
I shook my head and veered off toward the office. Brian followed me.
“Are we that obvious?” he asked in a whisper, craning his neck to look into the kitchen to see whether Hannah was still watching us.
“Define obvious,” I said as a way to admit that, yes, we were totally obvious.
“I’m just a little worried about what people will say if they know we’re sleeping together,” Brian continued to whisper as we made our way into the office.
I lifted the satchel of work I’d taken over to Brian’s house the night before from my shoulder and sat it on the desk, then turned to Brian.
“You want my honest opinion?” Brian nodded, so I went on, stepping toward him and resting one hand on the side of his face.
“I think people around here are probably happy for us.”
I leaned in to kiss Brian softly. If there was one thing I’d learned in the last few, new days of whatever relationship we were building, it was that my adorable, earnest sweetheart needed a lot of reassuring.
Whoever had done a number on him back in Pittsburgh would get a serious piece of my mind if I ever came face to face with them.
When I pulled away, Brian was smiling again. “Okay, if you say so,” he said, eyes bright as he looked up at me. “And for the record,” his grin turned downright impish, “I’m glad we’re sleeping together.”
I laughed. I couldn’t help it. Brian was just so sweet.
“Me, too, sweetheart,” I said, testing out the pet name aloud.
“Me, too.” I kissed him again, then stepped over to the desk.
“Have a good day out there,” I told him, not so much to dismiss him, but so that we could both get our days started.
“And a good games night tonight,” I added.
“I still think my format will kick your format’s ass in the end, but I can’t wait to see how things go tonight. ”
“Open games night is going to stomp all over your tournaments,” Brian laughed, back to himself as he headed for the counter.
I loved the banter. And truth be told, we’d actually gotten our day started in a much hotter, more intimate way than trading barbs across the café.
Since his roommate was working another night shift at the hospital, I’d stayed the night with Brian again.
It was the third time, including Saturday night, that we’d spent the night together.
Being able to tangle up with Brian before bed and then sleep with him in my arms all night was something I’d fantasized about for years.
It was its own kind of perfect to be able to fulfill those fantasies at last. And I didn’t feel half as guilty about it as I’d always assumed I would, which was an excellent sign.
Of course, my and Brian’s budding relationship absolutely had not gone unnoticed.
“There you are,” Gilbert said as he strode into the office half an hour later, just as the café was opening. “Another night spent out wandering the streets, eh?” he asked, smirking at me as he approached his desk.
“Very funny,” I told him, glad for the distraction from doing payroll. “You know where I was.”
“I do,” Gilbert said, “and good for you.”
“Thanks, I guess,” I said with a laugh.
“Diccon isn’t too pleased that you’re monopolizing his best friend’s time, though,” Gilbert went on.
My stomach knotted. I wasn’t sure if he was being serious or not. “Did he say that to you?”
Gilbert had taken a seat at his computer, but glanced over his shoulder at me. “Really? Do you think that’s the kind of thing we sit around talking about?”
I relaxed a little. “No. Although I would pay good money to see the two of you painting your nails and doing each other’s hair as you gossiped about who likes who and whether they’re planning on going to prom together.”
Gilbert snickered and faced his computer again.
“We’re all happy for you,” he said without looking at me.
“You and Brian were always going to get together. Anyone with eyes could see that. And in case you were wondering, you don’t have to stay away from the house just because you’re all lovey-dovey and might get disgusting with each other. ”
I laughed. “That’s not why we’ve been spending nights at Brian’s place. His roommate is a nurse who works nights, and it’s just, you know, easier to be there.”
Gilbert hummed, then went on with, “Yeah, because the walls at our house are only so thick. It’s bad enough that I have to listen to Diccon and Theo sometimes.
I really don’t need to hear—” His teasing was cut off by a loud sound, almost like something huge falling over, from the other side of the wall, where construction was taking place. “What the hell?”
Gilbert shot to his feet and headed for the office door. I got up and followed him, concerned enough about the sound to want to know what it was and how much of a headache it would cause.
We marched past a line of customers at the counter that should have been much longer for that time of day and out the front door.
Brian and Diccon both glanced up from their barista duties, Brian looking particularly worried.
I wished there was something I could do to let him know everything would be okay, but until I knew that myself, I couldn’t comfort him.
Outside, the morning was shaping up to be a nice but hot one.
There was already way too much humidity in the air, making it feel like my shirt would be sticking to my torso in no time if I stayed outside of the air conditioning.
I didn’t envy anyone who had to work outside on a construction project in the early-September heat, but as soon as I saw the partially collapsed wall near the back of the site, I wasn’t particularly inclined to be forgiving of whatever was going on.
“What the hell happened here?” Gilbert demanded, stepping around the barrier at the edge of the site to approach Jameson, who was in a huddle with a few of his workers. “We heard that crash inside the café.”
Jameson glanced up and over at Gilbert with a wary look. “You need to stay on the other side of the barrier,” he called out. “Can’t you read the sign?” He pointed to a small, plastic sign affixed to the fencing enclosing the site.
I hung back a little, but Gilbert ignored him. “Fuck the sign. Did you just knock down a wall? Are you planning to destroy the entire strip before you do anything constructive in here?”
“The wall was already marked for demolition,” Jameson explained, scowling at Gilbert with far more intensity than I would have been comfortable with if it was directed at me. “It was part of an older structure and would have been in the way.”
“And how do we know that you’re not going to bring the entire building down with that wall?” Gilbert demanded.
“Because I’m a professional?” Jameson said, crossing his arms and staring hard at Gilbert.
His gesture was stern enough, but it was underscored by another section of the wall being knocked down by a small bulldozer. The crash was even louder standing so close to it, and I flinched as rubble hit the ground and spread, then took a step back.
“Gil, we really shouldn’t be in here,” I called out to my brother.
“I’m not going to stand by and let my café be damaged,” Gilbert shouted, more at Jameson than me.
I was about to charge in, grab my brother’s arm, and drag him physically out of the construction site when Brian came dashing out of the café. “What was that noise?” he asked, marching straight past the barrier and into the site. “Is everything okay?”
“Get the hell out of here!” Jameson shouted at Brian, even as he grabbed Gilbert’s arm to march him back toward the sidewalk. “God, can’t you people read?”
Brian flinched like Jameson had punched him and wheeled back. “Sorry,” he mumbled, then dashed back into the café like hell was chasing him.
I signed in exasperation. “You didn’t have to be such a jerk about that,” I told Jameson.
“This is a hardhat zone,” Jameson said, unrelentingly stern. “It’s dangerous. I don’t want fools like you jacking up the price of my liability insurance because you can’t obey a simple sign.” That much was directed at Gilbert.
Gilbert yanked away from him and followed me back onto the sidewalk.
“You haven’t heard the end of this,” he said, pointing at Jameson.
“There has to be some sort of ordinance against all the noise and mess you’re causing.
So help me, if Common Grounds goes out of business because of you, you’ll never know another second of peace. ”
“Yeah, yeah,” Jameson said, turning away. “I’ve got work to do. See you at the ballpark.”
Gilbert just stood there and fumed at the guy for a second before turning and marching back into the café.