Page 28 of Whiskey Neat

“Truth.”

Salem hands me the cloth and I toss it across the room into the clothes hamper. He sprawls back, raising his arms above his head, and I indulge in the sight. Salem is beautiful, but with an edge to that beauty. The details are perfect—soft, curved, delicate—but somehow, combined into the package that is Salem, there’s an underlying sharpness to his looks. I like it.

Reaching out, I draw circles on his stomach with my index finger. He turns his pretty eyes to me, and I see the struggle reflected in them. He’s somewhere between vulnerable and defensive. What’s his story?

“Are we talking or just waiting for your cock to reload?”

I shake my head, rolling onto my side. “So snarky.”

“That’s me, Mr. Stoic.”

“I’m not stoic.” I tickle his side and he shivers slightly. “I have emotions.”

Salem raises an eyebrow. “That so? Reserved for best friends only?”

“Pretty much.” I roll slightly to kiss his arm. “Takes a while for me to warm up.”

“I can relate.”

“Yeah? What’s your backstory?”

Salem tenses, visibly blanching.

“We don’t have to talk if you don’t want to. We can keep it all on the surface if that’s easier.”

“No, it’s okay. I guess I’m a little embarrassed by my epic rise and fall.”

“I’ll tell you about mine if you tell me about yours.”

Salem smiles slightly. “Deal.” After dragging his hand through his hair, he rolls onto his side to face me as well. “I have a love-hate relationship with this town. Mostly hate. I was raised here and never quite blended in. School was fucking awful. I was picked on every day.”

“For what?”

“Everything. Too small, skinny, quiet, then weird, and finally gay. I couldn’t wait to get the fuck out of here once I graduated high school. I took off for New Onyx, got a decent job, and busted my ass to work my way up.”

“Doing what?”

“Insurance. I wasn’t selling it though. I worked in the corporate office.” His gaze drifts to the ceiling for a moment before returning to me. “My plan worked for a long time. I made it to senior department manager and was making great money. I had a nice apartment, a car, and was basically living the life. No one cares about being different in the city.”

“True.”

“A few months ago we started hearing rumors that our company was going to be bought out by a bigger competitor. It turned out the rumors were true, and once the sale went through, they laid off everyone in a management position and thirty percent of the staff.”

“Damn.”

“Yeah. Unfortunately I had shit for savings and the severance packages weren’t that impressive after they took taxes out. I thought I’d find another job easily, but four hundred people flooded the same job market all at once.”

I nod in understanding.

“I was offered two positions that were entry level and paid way less than I was used to. I couldn’t do it. I blew through my savings and finally had to face the facts. I came back home to collect my thoughts and figure out my next steps.” He blows out a breath. “That’s how I ended up back in Willow Bay living in the basement of my childhood home.”

“Hey, at least your folks let you stay with them.”

“I’m grateful, I really am. They aren’t bad people. I thought my dad would give me shit because he wasn’t a fan of my plans to ditch college and move to an expensive city, but he’s been supportive.”

“That’s good.”

“What about your folks? Are they good people?”

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