New Tricks Read online

  Brandon put his phone back in his pocket and went to find Thomas. He found him in the kitchen. The dishes had been put away, but there were no groceries and the refrigerator was empty. Thomas was just closing the door as he came in.

  “Can you run to the store?”

  Brandon nodded. “What do you want me to get?” He prepared to take notes, but Thomas looked at him as though he had two heads. “I can’t read your mind.”

  “Marjorie always takes care of it and….” Thomas paused as though he was surprised. “I never paid that much attention to what was in the house. I either ate what was there or went out and got something from around the corner.”

  “I can have some food delivered. Do you want pizza? I think one of the Chinese places will deliver.” Brandon pulled out his phone and ran a search for takeout in the area. “If you put together a list, I can pick things up for you. What would you like?”

  “Sushi,” Thomas offered.

  “All right.” Brandon found a place and brought up the menu. “Let me know what you want, and I’ll call in the order and get it.” Thomas dictated his order, and Brandon called it in, adding something for himself. “I’ll be right back.”

  He drove to the small strip center a few miles away and waited while they finished filling the order. In the meantime he messaged Marjorie about what Thomas liked to drink, and after getting the sushi, stopped at Starbucks for a latte and a macchiato and hurried back to the house.

  “Thomas, I got your lunch,” he called as he came back in, heading toward the kitchen. It seemed strange to just walk into someone else’s house. He found Thomas watching ESPN in the open family room and handed him his coffee. Apparently the rental had come with the cable connected. Brandon made a mental note to check with Marjorie about it.

  “You’re a lifesaver,” Thomas said, reaching for the coffee.

  Brandon brought his sushi on a plate and set it on the coffee table. Then he went into the kitchen and pulled a stool up to the counter.

  “What are you doing?” Thomas asked as he turned to him.

  “I didn’t want to bother you,” Brandon said.

  “Please join me if you like.” Thomas rolled his eyes.

  Brandon picked up his coffee and the package of sushi, brought it in, and sat in a chair. He carefully put his lunch on the coffee table. “Thanks.” He took a bite of California roll and sipped his drink after he swallowed. “Are you pleased with how things are?”

  “Yes.” Thomas ate and watched the tennis match on television. “You did a good job. Thank you.” He didn’t look away from the screen, so Brandon ate and let Thomas do what he wanted. This was his house, after all, but if he didn’t want to eat alone, then why ignore him once Brandon had sat down? It seemed kind of rude to him.

  The match continued, and Brandon finished eating, then threw away the trash. Once Thomas was done, he took care of his dishes and left him to watch his match. He called Marjorie and got a list of groceries, then made a quick run to the store so Thomas didn’t starve.

  “If there’s nothing else, I’ll go on home. You have my number, so call if you need anything.”

  Thomas’s phone rang and he answered it, nodding and waving to him. Brandon figured he was being dismissed and left the room. He closed the door before heading out to his car for the drive back to his grandma’s house. It looked like he’d made it through his first day without embarrassing himself.

  “HOW WAS your first day at work?” Grandma asked from where she stood at the stove when he got home.

  Brandon inhaled, smiling at the scent of his grandma’s chili. It was a perennial favorite. “Good. Though I didn’t imagine I’d be using my MBA to manage someone’s move into their rental house.” It wasn’t how he pictured his first job at all.

  Grandma tapped her spoon on the side of the pot and set it on the holder. “But did you help him?”

  Brandon nodded. “Yeah, I think so. I got his house set up, picked up some lunch, and got groceries for him. But then the calls started and he had that phone to his ear the rest of the day.” It was too bad. Thomas should be able to have a moment’s peace. Brandon pulled out one of the old kitchen chairs and sat down. His grandma put a plate with a couple of cookies on it in front of him, and he felt a wave of guilt. He hadn’t told her about the sneezing fit at the interview or the cookie casualties. If she asked, he’d say the plate got broken and leave it at that.

  “Then you need to do what you can to be there for him. That’s what he hired you for.” Grandma sat down as well, sighing softly.

  “You’re trying to do too much,” Brandon said gently. He’d been worried that she never seemed to stop and that she was looking as tired as Thomas.

  “I’m fine. I cook and bake. It isn’t like I’m a stevedore.” She patted his hand, and Brandon got up and made some decaf. It was what his grandma drank. Brandon thought the stuff tasted pretty vile, but he supposed if it was all he drank, he’d probably get used to it if he had nothing else to compare it to. “What are you doing tomorrow?”

  Brandon set a mug of coffee in front of her. “Don’t know. I’m still feeling my way around. I’ll go on over in the morning and see what he needs. Marjorie will probably have stuff for me to do.” Brandon picked up a cookie. “I’ll probably need to find someone to be the housekeeper for him.” He set down the cookie and wondered what Thomas liked to eat. Thomas had pretty much wolfed down the sushi. “I need to arrange some meals for Thomas.”

  “Talk to him and see if he’ll open up a little. I bet he’ll tell you the kind of thing he likes.”

  Brandon nodded. “Do you remember him from before he went away? I mowed his yard, but I don’t know much else. He was always busy even back then.”

  “He was an energetic one, that’s for sure. Always working and scraping. His mom and dad didn’t have much. After Thomas was old enough to be in school, Grace went to work in the office at the Crawford’s Department Store downtown until they closed. His dad worked at the mill outside town. They had the best life they could afford, but Grace always told me that she felt like she wasn’t doing enough for Thomas. That he always seemed to want more.”

  “I guess I can see that. He didn’t get to be a big success without having his eye on what he wanted.” Brandon had seen that in many of the case studies in school. People who were driven by some sort of internal need often succeeded.

  “He mowed lawns probably starting when he was twelve and did a good job, the same way you did.” She smiled at him. “Grace told me once that he was working too hard and had more work than he could do.” Grandma sipped from her mug. “I remember Thomas out working until the sun set some nights. Then he hired another kid to work for him. Thomas had some sort of arrangement.” She shook her head. “It wasn’t long before Thomas had a business and he was mowing most of the lawns in the area, with two or three boys working for him.”

  “Wow.” Brandon was impressed.

  “That lasted until Thomas went to college, I guess. I don’t know what he did when he was at school, but Grace said Thomas started a business there to help support himself.” Grandma shrugged. “After that, there was no turning back for him. He bought a house here a few years after college and was working in real estate, and then sold it when he moved to New York. I was surprised that he left the area, because of Grace and Harold, but he was always driven to want more than what we had here.” She patted the table softly, like that part of the conversation was over.

  Brandon told himself that his curiosity about Thomas, his wanting to know what made him tick, was so he could do his job better, but really he was a little nosey. Thomas fascinated him. “Are you glad he’s back?”

  She tapped the table nervously. “Grace is, and I’m happy for her.”

  Brandon noticed her lack of a smile and the doubt in her eyes.

  “I think… I don’t know. It will hurt Grace and Harold pretty badly if Thomas doesn’t like it here and moves away once again. They were so happy when he told them he was com
ing.” She finished her coffee and stood to return to the stove to stir her pot. “All you can do is your best.”

  “I know, Grandma,” Brandon said, finishing his cookies and putting his dishes in the dishwasher.

  He went to his room and logged on to his computer to check his email. Before he’d gotten the job with Thomas, he’d sent out so many résumés and job enquiries, it was probably pathetic. He’d trolled Monster and other job sites for days, trying to find leads. At least he had some money coming in, and he was even being paid pretty well.

  His phone rang, and he snatched it up. “Yes, Thomas,” he said when he saw his number. “What do you need?”

  “I have a list of items for you to get at the store…,” Thomas said, and Brandon made a note in his to-do list. “Could you go first thing in the morning?”

  “Of course. I’m assuming that you have laundry and things to be taken care of… and I wanted to ask, do you want me to help engage a housekeeper?”

  “That would be great.” Thomas sighed. “I have another call…. I’ll see you in the morning.” The call ended and Brandon stared at the phone.

  What the hell was that? There had been nothing in that call that Thomas couldn’t have waited until tomorrow morning to tell him. Maybe Thomas had been thinking of it and decided to call so he didn’t forget? After all, he was still getting those calls.

  HIS GRANDMA’S chili was amazing as usual, and Brandon was stuffed and a little bored. He thought of watching television, but that would mean sitting with his grandma while she watched her shows. Granted, hers weren’t bad or anything, but if he had to watch another rerun of The Big Bang Theory, his head was going to explode. Especially those early seasons that he’d seen eighteen times.

  His phone vibrated in his room, and he hurried to get it in case it was Thomas again. The screen flashed George Hansen. Brandon grinned and answered the call. “George,” he said brightly, “what’s up?”

  “Nothing. Just sitting here trying to figure out a way to get away from Maureen for a little while,” he whispered.

  “What’s wrong? Marital bliss over already?” Brandon had to tease him. It was too fun not to. Maureen and George were like give-you-a-toothache in love. Maureen was pregnant for the third time, and they were always doing shit as a family.

  “Nothing’s wrong. She’s home here with the kids, and I thought it’s been a long time since we did anything.” He lowered his voice even more. “It’s been a difficult pregnancy and I’m doing what I can to help, but there’s only so much I can take on for her. She’s in bed with Jason and Lacy, and my hands have cramped from rubbing her feet. So, do you want to go out for a drink? I could use one.”

  “You can’t leave Maureen like that!”

  “She’s got the kids in bed and told me to get out of the house because she can’t stand to see my face right now. So I’m going to take that as a sign of liberation for a few hours. I can meet you at Whitehall’s in a half hour if you’re up for it.”

  “Sure.” Brandon was already heading to his closet. “I’ll be there.”

  “Great. You’re saving my life, man.”

  “Okay, but you can’t drink much, because I’m not carrying you home and pouring your ass in bed like I did when we were roommates.” That had been a trip. George hadn’t been a huge drinker, but man, when he had, he’d really done it up right.

  “Duh. Maureen would kick my ass if I came home drunk. I think I just need a few kid-free hours. Thanks.”

  They ended the call, and Brandon changed his clothes into something he hadn’t spent the day working in. “I’m meeting George for a while,” he told his grandma, who was comfortable in her favorite chair and had her feet up. “I won’t be late.” He leaned down to hug her, then went out to his car and headed toward downtown.

  Whitehall’s was a western sort of place. Not a bar for the tourists, but a real kind of neighborhood bar that had been there for decades. There were pictures of horses and cowboys because they had been patrons at some point—not the horses, but their owners. The inside had been wood-paneled years ago, and now it was dark from decades of smoke, hands, and people. The place smelled of beer with a faint hint of lingering cigarette smoke. Brandon looked around and spotted George toward the wall at one of the long, worn tables with benches on each side.

  “Hey,” Brandon said as George stood. They hugged tightly and then sat back down. George already had a beer in front of him, and Brandon went to the bar and returned. “So what’s really going on?”

  George took a gulp of his beer. “Maureen is having a hard time with this one. The last two pregnancies she pretty much sailed right through. She was uncomfortable, but she just kept on going. This one has her tired all the time and in some pain. She isn’t sleeping at night and gets up to pee every five minutes. First she’s starved, and then she doesn’t want to eat and the scent of food makes her sick.” He set his mug down hard, banging it on the table.

  “Well. Not every pregnancy is easy. Maybe she was lucky with the last two and is paying for it with this one.” Not that he was any kind of expert. The closest he wanted to come to pregnancy and giving birth was holding the baby once they brought it home. “Jeez, man, you just got to be there for her.”

  “I know.” George looked around. “I just need a bit of time and things will be cool. Sometimes the worry and stress get to be a little much.” At least he wasn’t guzzling his beer and ordering another right away. That was a really good sign.

  “Would you guys like something to eat?” the waitress, Shirley, asked. “Oh, hey, Brandon.” She smiled at him. “How you been?”

  Brandon returned her greeting and stood so they could share a hug. “Not bad. It’s been a long time.” In high school Shirley had been a close friend and knew he was gay, though he never told her. Shirley had guessed, and she had been his fake girlfriend for a time. They’d even gone to prom together and had had a blast.

  She nodded when he stepped back. “How are your folks?” she asked, and Brandon shrugged. “That bad?”

  “Yeah. How long have you been working here?”

  “About six months.” She grinned and flashed a ring.

  “Congratulations!” Brandon said, giving her another hug.

  “Ashton Martin and I have been dating for a couple years now, and he asked me to marry him. I only work here a couple nights a week so I can help save for the wedding.” She bounced on her heels.

  “That’s awesome. Do you know George?” Brandon said, making a quick introduction. “His wife is expecting their third child and this is his night away, so he needs another beer and plenty of junk food.”

  Shirley rolled her eyes. “Ashton says he wants to have kids right away, but I told him we’d wait a little.” She grinned.

  “Smart woman,” George said, then held up his hands. “Don’t get me wrong. I love my wife and the kids, but if we had it to do over, we’d probably wait a little longer.”

  Brandon rolled his eyes. It was easy for him to say that, but Maureen was a devout Catholic, and not having kids meant George wasn’t going to be having sex. And somehow Brandon thought that wasn’t an option. Though after number three….

  He and George told Shirley what they wanted to eat.

  “I’ll put your orders in and bring another round.” She hurried away, and Brandon settled back in his seat, sipping from his glass.

  “She seems nice.”

  “I can’t believe you never met,” Brandon said as he looked around the bar to see who else was there. In a town like this, where he’d lived most of his life, there were always people he knew around.

  “Who’s the guy sitting uncomfortably at the bar? He looks like he stepped out of GQ and doesn’t have a clue here,” George said, tilting his head to the right.

  Brandon followed his gaze and stifled a gasp. “That’s my new boss.” Brandon wondered what Thomas was doing here. This didn’t seem like his kind of place, though he didn’t know of many fancy martini bars in town.

  �
��Boss?” George cocked his eyebrows upward.

  “His mom and my grandma know each other. Thomas just moved to town and needed an assistant. And since I can’t seem to get anyone to take a second look at me, I took the job. He’s a pretty nice guy, but is a little clueless about stuff.” Brandon leaned closer. “He doesn’t do his own shopping or even laundry.”

  George shrugged. “It’s not like there’s Safeway in New York City. I suppose he’s one of those works-all-the-time people?” He shook his head. “I can’t see doing that any more than I have to. I like what I do all right, but I like the time I spend at home so much more.” He took another drink and pulled out his phone. Brandon knew he was about to be shown a series of kid pictures. Grumble all he wanted, but George was a doting father.

  “Maybe that’s the difference between you and him. He has all the money he could possibly want, but no one else. And you have a family and are eternally broke.” Brandon watched as Thomas leaned on the bar with a beer, and stood. “I’m going to ask if he wants to join us.”

  “Good, maybe he’ll buy a round.”

  “George!” Brandon hissed. “That’s tacky.”

  George rolled his eyes. “I’m the broke father of three. Anyone buying the drinks is welcome, and let me tell you, pride went out the window a long time ago.” He set down his glass, and Brandon sighed as he made his way across the room to where Thomas sat.

  “Are you getting dinner?” Brandon asked.

  Thomas seemed startled, like he was surprised someone would talk to him. In the time since Brandon had seen him, no one other than the bartender had paid him any attention. “Brandon. Yeah. There was no food in the house, and I thought….” He shrugged.

  “My friend and I are right over there at that table. You’re welcome to join us instead of sitting alone.” Brandon stepped back, letting Thomas make up his own mind. “Did you order food?”

  “Yeah. A while ago. I think the kitchen must be a little backed up.” Thomas cradled his beer mug. “I’d like to join you if that’s really okay.”