Thomas grinned at him, obviously knowing what Charlie was doing as well. “I’m in sports medicine. Work out of the same office as our boy Noah here. And this one”—he jabbed a thumb in Ethan’s direction—“is in family law.”
“Ethan may seem the strong, silent type here, but he’s a beast in the courtroom,” I added.
“What about you?” Ethan asked.
“I own a restaurant up in Detroit. That’s actually one of the reasons I’m down here for the entire weekend, scoping out some buildings today and looking into the possibility of expanding into downtown Toledo.”
“Not a bad plan,” Ethan said. “You can probably get some property cheaply. You may need to put money into the buildings, but there’s some really great, old architecture.”
“That’s what I’m hoping. I’d love to find something close enough to where the action is to help draw business.”
“That shouldn’t be too difficult,” Thomas stated. “There are plenty of empty buildings close to the arena and the stadium. Do you already have a realtor?”
“I do. In fact, I have to meet with her at noon.”
Thomas turned his attention toward me. “Are you going with him?”
Charlie answered for me. “We talked about it before we came down, actually. Yeah, he’s coming with me. Unless he’s changed his mind.”
Then he looked at me, hope in his eyes.
I felt something come alive deep in my chest, like this bright spark of happiness that hadn’t been there before. I chanced a glance at Charlie, and found him with a small smile. Maybe he was feeling and thinking the same things I was. Maybe he was looking for a way to spend as much time together as possible. But I also needed to give him an out, just in case he felt he needed it. “No,” I said. “I haven’t changed my mind. But I don’t want to intrude.”
Thomas’s gaze ping-ponged between Charlie and me before saying, “No, I think that’s a great idea. The realtor is only going to care about the commission they make from the sale. Noah, you can lead him away from the areas to stay away from.”
“But what about your room? And these guys?” Charlie asked, waving a hand at Thomas and Ethan. “I don’t want to take you away from them.”
I felt deflated. Was he looking for a reason to get rid of me? I wasn’t about to make it easy for him. I pulled my cell out of my back pocket. “They can still call me. If the hotel calls, I can easily come back and get it set up, then meet you somewhere.”
“Believe me,” Ethan started, “we spend a shit-ton of time with him. I’m sure we can spare him this afternoon. We can catch back up at the reunion tonight.”
“It’ll be hardship,” Thomas added. “But I’m sure we can manage without him.”
“Smart-ass,” I shot at him. Thomas only smiled.
Charlie grinned, but caught me looking at him and looked down at his plate. “As long as you’re sure.”
I reached for his leg under the table and gave it a gentle squeeze. “I’m sure.”
Ethan clapped. “Then it’s settled.”
We finished our breakfast in relative peace. My friends bombarded Charlie with enough questions that I was sure he felt as if he were being interrogated. But he gave as well as he got. By the end, I was sure he was as comfortable with them as I was, which was important to me. These guys had stuck to my side through everything. Their opinion mattered to me. I wasn’t sure what I would do if they didn’t get along with the person I was interested in.
And, wasn’t that something. In less than twenty-four hours, my interest in Charlie had grown. Sure, some of it was because our shared history. But even more so, I was finding I liked the man he had become and wanted to know as much about him as I could. I listened intently to every answer Charlie gave because it gave me more insight into who he was.
As the waiter cleared away the empty plates, Charlie sent a text to his realtor just to make sure they were still meeting up. Once she replied, he turned to me. I could tell he was nervous about meeting her but wasn’t sure what I could do for him. “I need to go back to the room for a minute to freshen up. Wait here for me.”
With that, he stood, laying some cash on the table for his meal. “I won’t be long,” he said.
I watched him walk away, wondering if there was something I should have done for him. Should I have offered to go with him? Or did he need the private time alone, maybe to collect himself? I turned back to Thomas and Ethan, and saw the concern mirrored on both of their faces that I felt.
“He okay?” Thomas was the first to speak.
“I think so. At least he was until he started texting the realtor. Maybe she said something that freaked him out.”
“Or maybe he’s just freaking out about finding a place,” Ethan added.
“That may be. I remember looking for my house and how stressful that was. I can’t imagine looking for a building for your business.”
“He seems to be doing well for himself.”
“That he does. I just hope he finds what he’s looking for. And, listen, I should be really pissed with you two right now.”
The looks they gave me were filled with mock innocence. “Whatever for?” Thomas asked.
“For putting Charlie through the wringer like you did. That was totally not cool.”
“Listen,” Thomas started. “I don’t think either of us meant any offense.”
“I don’t think you did either. But you have to understand, Charlie isn’t accustomed to your sense of humor. He didn’t know the two of you back then, and he certainly doesn’t know you now.”
They looked at each other before Ethan said, “We get it. We really do. But you have to understand, we’re only looking out for your best interests.”
“By being assholes to the first guy I’ve been interested in in years?”
“I know we were a bit harsh, and maybe a little crass.”
“Maybe?”
“Okay, more than a little. But maybe we laid it on thick so that we could see if he was really worthy of you.”
“Worthy of me? What the fuck does that even mean?”
“It means,” Thomas jumped in, “that you’ve been through the wringer. You need someone in your life that will be able to not only deal with their own shit, but also whatever may pop up in yours. Ethan and I have been with you through virtually everything, from what happened to Grace, to your father, to Nicholas. If he can’t handle the two of us, how the hell is he going to handle the rest?”
“So, you were testing him? That’s the lamest thing I’ve heard.”
“You could say that.”
“Kind of a shitty way to go about it.”
“You’re right. It was. And for that, I’m sorry.”
“So am I,” Ethan said.
“But the fact remains, we’re family, brothers in everything but blood.”
“That doesn’t give you the right to be jackasses, though, and pull high school level bullshit. You two are in your forties. Act like it.”
“We are sorry. And we’ll apologize to him the next time we see him.”
“If there’s a next time.”
“Oh, there will be. You didn’t see the way he looked at you.”
Ethan gasped. “You saw it too?”
Thomas nodded. “I did. He looked like one of those cartoon characters—”
“—with heart-shaped eyes,” Ethan finished.
“Exactly. And, Noah, you didn’t look much different.”
“You two really are assholes.”
“We tease because we love.”
“Love a little less.”
“Not possible.”
Cool November winds whipped through the buildings, causing me to shiver despite the hoodie I wore. Noah set a brisk pace, causing me to almost run to keep up. “We could have taken a Lyft,” I grumbled. “Are you sure you know where you’re going?”
Noah let out a little chuckle. “You don’t strike me as the type that has an aversion to a little exercise.”
�
�Exercise is one thing. But it’s fucking cold. Are you sure you know where you’re going?” I repeated. Patty, my real estate agent, had texted me some addresses, buildings she thought I would like. We had already looked at three, none of which fit what I wanted. I had a growing sense of unease with each building I vetoed. I knew what I was looking for. I was looking for a feeling, more than anything else. A sense that the space I walked into felt right. I’d had it when I found the location of the first restaurant. I had to believe I’d have the same feeling with this one as well.
He gave another chuckle but slowed his pace. Then he shocked the hell out of me by draping an arm over my shoulder and pulling me close. He side-eyed me cautiously, gauging my reaction. “Gotta keep you warm.”
The act seemed to be so…couplie, something you would see one lover do for another. But we definitely weren’t lovers. We were barely even friends. More like two people that used to know each other but were now strangers. It didn’t stop my head from spinning, though. I was caught off guard and wasn’t sure how I should react, torn between the idea of being close to him and the idea that maybe none of this meant a damn thing. He was simply being kind, taking care of someone that needed help. He’d been like that years ago, and it was nice to know that some things hadn’t changed.
I glanced around us, looking for any possible onlookers that may not appreciate seeing two guys being intimate. We weren’t fucking, obviously, but there were still people that didn’t appreciate public displays of affection between two guys, even in this day and age. But his body felt warm and solid pressed against mine, which made me almost not care. I fought the urge to press myself even closer, unsure what I enjoyed more, his heat or how solid his frame felt pressed against me. “How far is this place?”
“Not far. Only a couple of blocks.”
I strongly suspected that his idea of “not far” and mine were vastly different. To an athlete like he had been, a couple of blocks meant nothing. But to someone unaccustomed to physical exertion, I would swear he was trying to kill me. But I didn’t utter a peep. If I was being honest with myself, part of that was simply because I was enjoying being close to him. I didn’t want to break the connection we seemed to have forming.
“Um…listen,” Noah began. I could tell by the tone of his voice that whatever he was about to say was going to be difficult for him. “I want to apologize for the guys this morning. They had no right to give you as much grief as they did.”
I peered up at him and could see the concern in his eyes. I had simply chalked the experience up to friendly banter, but apparently it had more of an effect on him than it did on me. I wondered why. “It was no big deal, Noah.”
“No, it was. I told them as much after you left. I know they didn’t mean anything by it. They love giving people shit, especially me. But it was still uncalled for.”
“Are you saying you defended my honor against your two best friends?” I grinned at him.
He smiled back. “I guess you could say I did.”
“You have nothing to worry about. I’ve always known that the jock set had a…unique sense of humor. And, if I’m being honest, I actually found it endearing. You three are obviously close. I would imagine it was kind of like what being hazed would be like. Not gonna lie, I was embarrassed at first, but nothing that would make me walk away. They seem like good guys.”
“They are,” he answered wistfully. “We’ve been there for each other when it felt like the world was closing in. I honestly don’t know where I’d be without them.”
His last statement made me wonder what I didn’t know about him. Thirty years is a long time. A lot can happen, and not all of it good. The bond they shared was evident, even with all of the ribbing. While I kept it to myself, I felt a certain amount of jealousy. I hadn’t had any kind of relationship last nearly as long as the ones he had with those two guys.
Noah stopped abruptly. “We’re here.”
“Here” was a large, brick building with two sets of double doors at either end. Windows were spaced at seemingly consistent intervals, most boarded up at one end. Hanging over one of the doors was a rainbow pride flag and a sign that read The Tank. The other set of double doors had a lockbox hanging from one of the handles.
Noah leaned into me. “Does Patty know?”
I didn’t have to ask what he meant. “I honestly don’t know,” I answered. “I mean, she may have guessed, but we never discussed it. It’s not like there’s a questionnaire or anything.”
Patty appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. She was short, much shorter than my five foot nine, with short pixie hair and emerald green eyes. I’m not sure why I noticed her eyes when we first met, but they stuck out to me for some reason. She dropped her cigarette to the pavement and stomped it out. “So, what do you think?”
“So far it looks…plain. Like any other brick building.”
She gave me a knowing smile, hinting that she knew more than she was letting on. “Let’s go in, then.”
Noah and I took a step back, allowing her to work the keypad on the lockbox. She pulled a set of keys from inside and unlocked the doors to the building. Swinging one open, she said, “After you.”
Noah moved out of the way, allowing me to go in first. The interior of the building looked worse than the exterior. Dust and dirt everywhere. Broken glass and brick lay in piles, like someone had started to clean it up then simply stopped. The far back wall had the entrance to what I presumed to be the kitchen, but the doors had been removed and were lying stacked against the wall. To the right of the entrance was a long bar that stretched into the depths of the building. I approached the bar and ran my fingers across its length, feeling how intricately the edge had been etched. Someone had taken the time to make this piece unique, you could feel it in the grain of the wood.
Noah followed me silently as I looked around, hand on the back of my neck. The physical contact was comforting, centering, like he knew that I was stressed over the previous viewings. Which I was. I hadn’t been sure that I would find what I was looking for. I understood that anything I looked at would require work to whip into shape. That was simply the nature of what I was doing. Even when you’re buying a house, you’ll never find exactly what you’re looking for. But you can make it your own as long as the bones are there. The more I looked around the interior, the more I saw the bones and could visualize what I could do with it.
“What do you think?” Patty asked.
Despite the obvious state of disrepair, one word kept bouncing through my head. Home. It was the same feeling I had when I walked into the building that housed my restaurant in Detroit. I could see myself in this building, running my ass off to ensure that each customer was satisfied, and loving every minute of it.
“So far, all I see is a massive cleanup. Everything looks to be in good condition. I love the bar and the overall feel of the place. There’s something about the old architecture that’s appealing. Everything’s unique, one of a kind. Most buildings these days are built more for function, like boxes that serve a purpose. They don’t have any character. But these old buildings…” I trailed off, realizing I was babbling. I risked a glance behind me to see if Noah had caught on and I had embarrassed myself. From his soft smile, I could tell he had, but fully understood.
I wandered toward the back and into the kitchen. The appliances were outdated and would need to be replaced. In fact, the entire kitchen would probably need to be gutted and rebuilt from scratch. But from what I could see, most of the issues were aesthetic. Again, this would be more about making the space my own, using my own ideas, rather than using the ideas of whoever had owned the building before me.
Tucked into the far, back corner of the kitchen was another door. I turned to Patty and said, “That leads outside, I assume.”
Patty’s eyes took on a humorous appearance. “No. That’s the door to the loft upstairs. The entire second floor is the size of the first. It has a full setup: full kitchen, bathroom, and three bedrooms. You could
rent it out, if you wanted.”
I glanced at Noah.
Or I could move into it myself.
The thought was automatic. Would I actually consider moving back to Toledo after so many years away? Was the reason I even had the thought because I wanted to be closer to the new restaurant, or was it because of Noah? No, it couldn’t be because of him, could it? We had just reconnected after three decades apart.
Was it too soon to even consider restarting something with Noah? The chemistry was certainly there, if not different than it had been. At his core, he was still the same man he’d always been. But how much did I really know about him in the here and now?
Yet, I had to admit to myself that the idea had a certain appeal to it. There was a certain practicality to it. I could oversee the opening of the new location and still drive up to Detroit if I needed to. It was only an hour away, after all.
Patty produced the key ring and opened the second door, then she gestured for me to go in. Another set of stairs led me to the second floor. The living area was large, with a full kitchen that included a breakfast bar off to the right of the entrance. The appliances were an ugly yellow and would definitely have to go. But otherwise, it looked to be in good shape. At the back of the living room was a hall that led to one large bedroom on the left and two smaller ones on the right, with the bathroom at the end. The bathroom had one of those clawfoot bathtubs, which I absolutely adored.
The more I wandered the space, the more I wanted it for myself. It also meant that I wouldn’t need to find an apartment to rent or a house to buy. Living where you worked had some drawbacks, but the advantages far outweighed the problems.
And I’ll be closer to Noah.
I needed to figure out a way to keep my brain in check. These stray thoughts were going to be my undoing.
I was in the master bedroom, peering out a window that overlooked the street below, when I felt someone approach from behind. I didn’t have to turn to know who it was. I could sense him before he even spoke. “You seem to like this one.”
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