I met Thomas back in the living room. He’d stayed behind to take a call while I looked around, and he glanced up from his phone with expectant eyes.
“Well? What did you think?” he asked.
“I’ll take it.”
“Great. Let’s get back to the office and I’ll give you the paperwork you need to sign.”
“Let’s do it.”
The next half hour was filled with Thomas going over the lease, explaining their policies about pets, parking, and other regulations. Since I was on the second floor, I wouldn’t be allowed a grill, but that didn’t bother me since I didn’t even own one, and if I wanted to pay extra, I could lease a covered space. He pointed out the codes to get into the laundry facility and small weight room off the pool. Then I signed and initialed so many lines and boxes that my hand started to cramp.
But when he handed me the keys, I felt secure in my decision, and I couldn’t wait to get moved and settled in. I didn’t hesitate when I gave him my card information to make the payment. Even though I knew it’d suck to see my bank account dwindle down again, it was for a good reason, and I’d saved up before, so I knew I could do it again.
My elation was short-lived, though, when my phone rang the second I got back into my car. One look at the display had me groaning, but I knew I needed to answer. I’d avoided her calls long enough.
“Hi, Mom,” I said when the call connected.
“Hi, Mom?’ That’s really all you have to say to me? You’ve been back home for months and haven’t come by once. I’m actually surprised you took this call.”
I closed my eyes and leaned my head against the seat. I didn’t have time for a lecture. I had a lease to break, and then I needed to get to work packing up my meager belongings and figure out how I was going to move. “I’ve been busy getting settled, plus I’ve been working a lot.”
“Surely your job gives you time off. What’s really going on? Is this because of Jennifer? Your father and I adored her, but if being with her doesn’t make you happy, then we support whatever you decide.”
“Do you mean that?”
I had avoided my parents partly because I wasn’t sure how to tell them I was seeing a man. They were very open-minded, but they were extremely close to Jennifer, so I was worried about what their reactions would be. My feelings for Stellan ran deeper than magma, but I didn’t want to disappoint my family.
“Of course, I mean that. You’re my son, and I only want you to be happy.”
“No matter who I’m seeing?” I hedged and pressed my thumb and finger into my eyes, pressing so hard I saw spots behind my closed lids. I tried to tell myself the tears that sprung to my eyes were from the pain I caused them and not from worry.
“Are you seeing someone new? Well, that’s wonderful. What’s her name? Do I know her? What does she do?”
My panic increased at the barrage of questions she fired at me. I gripped my phone so tightly my hand ached, but I couldn’t loosen my hold. Not when dread settled like a rock in my stomach and a lump formed in my throat so big that it was difficult to breathe. Or maybe that was from the anxiety squeezing my lungs.
I cleared my throat a few times, trying to clear the lump so I could speak.
“Are you getting sick?” my mother asked, her concern causing the tears to course down my cheeks.
“No,” I managed to choke out. “No, I’m not getting sick. And no, you don’t know who I’m seeing. His name is Stellan, and he plays saxophone in a very popular jazz band and works as a mechanic at Baker’s.”
There. I’d done it. I’d just come out to my mother, and there was no going back now. All I could do was wait and pray that she didn’t hate me.
Her silence was deafening, and I pulled my phone away and pried my fingers from my eyes to check the connection. She was still there, so maybe she was trying to process the information I’d just given her. And when I put the phone back to my ear, I couldn’t help but say something.
“Mom? Are you still there?”
“I am. I just needed a minute, and I have so many questions to ask you, but they need to be done in person.”
“I understand.”
“Are you free Sunday?”
I nodded, then remembered she couldn’t see me. “I am.”
“Good. Come over so we can talk and bring that young man with you so your father and I can meet him.”
“R-really? You want to meet him?”
“Foster Andrew Morgan, you are my son. All I want is for you to be happy, and I don’t care if that happiness comes in the form of a man or a woman, just as long as they treat you well. And if they do that, then who am I to judge what body parts they have?”
“What about Dad?”
“Don’t you worry about him. He’ll agree with everything I just said to you. And if your young man repairs cars and plays in a jazz band, they’ll have plenty to talk about.”
A deep, relieved sigh ran through me as fresh tears started to pour. “I love you, Mom.”
“I love you, too. No more hiding from me.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Good. I’ll see you both on Sunday.”
She hung up the phone before I could say anything else, and I found myself staring out my windshield in disbelief. That just happened. My parents knew about Stellan and were okay with it. On top of that, the ink on my new lease probably wasn’t even dry yet. I couldn’t wait to tell Stellan about everything that had happened and invite him over to my parents’ on Sunday. And tonight, when I saw him playing at his gig, would be the perfect time.
Fucking traffic and bad time management. I was late getting to the bar to watch The Messengers play. I was putting my foot to the floor and breaking way too many traffic laws to get there when I couldn’t afford the expense of a speeding ticket. But I wanted to be there—since he called me his good luck charm—and I hated missing any of their set.
By the time I arrived, the parking lot was full, so I had to drive halfway down the block and park in the first space I could find. I practically ran to the bar, and after pausing long enough to show my ID, get my hand stamped, and pay the cover, I was finally able to get inside. If the parking lot was filled, the bar was positively jam-packed, and the seductive music of Stellan’s saxophone was the first thing that hit me.
Hearing that sensual sound had my body shivering and my cock thickening, and I had to take a few deep breaths to calm myself before I could make my way toward the bar. I just hoped there was an empty stool so I could sit and watch him in action. Watching his body move in tune with the music was only a reminder of how he moved when he was sliding in and out of me, and after spending a night away from him, I wanted to make up for that lost time.
As luck would have it, there was on empty stool left, but it was as far away from the stage was possible. I didn’t care though. With the right position, I could easily look across the bar and watch the band. Stellan was so wrapped up in his music, with his eyes closed and his head thrown back as he held a particularly long note, that he didn’t even notice my arrival. I placed an order for an Amaretto Sour but kept my focus on my man. I loved watching him play and hearing the soft sounds of Baylor’s drumstick reminded me of how the cool bristles felt against my skin. My body shivered involuntarily, and I had to take a long drink from my glass to pull myself together.