Page 16 of Strike A Chord

“Amazing, isn’t it? Every color of the rainbow is represented as it rotates through them in a kaleidoscope of shades.” Ironic given how many found the rainbow to be offensive, yet its wonderful presence was found in everyday life. The rainbow was a sign of pride, strength, and happiness. Majestic and otherworldly, the rainbow shined in glory and grace. Some even believed wealth awaited at the end of it. Perception was mind boggling, but it was just that—perception, and the perceiver could twist damn near anything to suit their needs. Words, praise, books of lore. The human mind, so delicately evil and at times, unpure.

“Brr,” Josh shivered as the sun gave way to the moon and night fell around us. I hadn’t thought to bring jackets when we woke to such a beautiful morning.

“Come on, let’s head back before the park ranger boots us out.” Given the dark, I decided to drive back the way we came instead of continuing across the bridge, through Anacortes and around to I-5. We managed to get on the last ferry to Mukilteo for the night and were on our way home. The silence now wasn’t comfortable as it had been before. Something in Josh’s mind was heavy as he sat beside me, deep inside the confines of his mind.

“So, um, are you just dropping me off?” Disappointment and uncertainty were interlaced with his words as he finally managed to get them out.

“I have to be in early tomorrow. I ordered new shelving for the storage room, and it got delivered this morning.” Just at the mention of it the stress returned. I’d have to move everything out of the room in order to erect and install the shelving and then put everything back.

“Want some help?”

“As long as you don’t hurt those magic hands, I’d love some.” Funny how such a simple request and act of kindness turned a mood around.

“Thank you for everything. Honestly, this has been one of the best days of my life.” Josh further opening himself to me cemented his earlier words of trust. Had he not truly trusted me, he wouldn’t share like this. I watched him engage with others when he wasn’t aware I watched and never once was he this open with anyone but me. A gift I’d not take for granted nor abuse.

“Josh,” I took his hand in mine, “this isn’t over. It’s only the beginning.”

I kissed him goodnight and as soon as his apartment door shut behind him I drove home, fully expecting the interrogation committee of one to be waiting. Sure enough, when I walked in there she stood, all five feet of her, wearing a shit-eating smile. “I want all the details that don’t include anything naked.”

“Ha-ha,” I kissed her cheek. “And that is one of a million reasons why I love you.”

“I’ve got a fresh pot of coffee, let’s sit.”

My mother’s presence was a natural calmative for me, even at times when my stress level was off the charts. At those moments she’d say, grab a pen and paper and let’s weigh the pros and cons. At first, it frustrated me because I just wanted her to drop her words of wisdom to magically fix everything. But she didn’t play like that. Her goal was for me to learn from these experiences and work out the solutions for myself. Sure, she was there to offer guidance and support but ultimately these decisions were mine to make. I swore this woman was a saint, having dealt with me and my college-fueled mood swings over the years. I couldn’t imagine life without her and based upon her reaction to Josh, she was in full on mother hen mode where he was concerned. In my opinion, that was just what he needed. Well, that and a loving partner.

“I raised a good boy with a big heart,” Mom said as we hugged.

“Pfft, how could you not with as perfect as you are.”

“Are you getting cheeky with your momma?”

“Who me?” I innocently batted my lashes. “Never.”

“Smartass.”

“Duh.”

Chapter Seven

Josh

How stupid was it that I was excited for manual labor? Me. The king of laziness. I couldn’t remember the last thing I even assembled. Wait, had I ever used a tool that wasn’t music related? Maybe I better stick to moving boxes. “Yo, anyone home?” I hollered through the iron bars of the locked gate that led to the bar.

“Coming!” Reagan called out from the other side. As soon as I saw him, a stupid grin spread across my face. “Good morning, handsome.” He unlocked the gate and immediately pulled me in for a hug and kiss. “I’m so sorry, I meant to have the PDA discussion with you yesterday. I hope I didn’t overstep?”

“Overstep away, I’m good with it.” Reagan locked the gate behind us, took my hand and led me back to the storage room. “Wow, those are huge boxes.”

“Yes, I may have been a bit overzealous, but I wanted something sturdy. What we had was falling apart and we had to stop putting the cases of alcohol on them because they weren’t safe. These bad boys hold up to three hundred pounds of weight.” He was so proud of himself. It was too fucking cute.

“All right, put me to work.” We moved the items from storage out to the bar area then assembled the shelving units. Reagan was smart enough to not order anything with Swedish directions and for the most part, these units were the kind that locked into place and were easy to assemble. It helped that the directions weren’t written for engineers. Once we got the first one done, the other four took no time to complete.

“Let’s put the paper supplies on one unit then stack the alcohol by type. All the rum together, all the vodka, etcetera.” Reagan and I worked in tandem and were done by noon. “What time is practice?”

“Two. I only have to run home and grab my gear so I’m good time wise.”

“Great, follow me.” I followed him back to the massive industrial kitchen. The hotel crew that took care of breakfast prep and serving were just finishing up for the day. “Any dislikes? Allergies?”

“Not that I’m aware of.”

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