Page 38 of Now Streaming

“Thanks. I’m keeping everything under wraps for now. I want to see what I can do on my own without getting DeathsHead involved.”

“Can you tell me about it?”

“Later, when we’re not in public. I’m here with Theo to mostly talk financial stuff in between his lunch break. But he gets a little hyper-focused when he’s cooking, so it may be a minute.”

“It’s incredible that he’s willing to help you with your dream.”

“Well, DeathsHead was an original investor in his restaurant, so you could say he owes me. But I actually just like working with him. He’s an ass, but he’s as big of a gamer as I am. And he’s smart, with great ideas. Although he still lords it over me how he wins at Mario Kart.”

“That’s because you suck at Mario Kart.” Theo once again dropped down into the chair, this time with a bottle of wine. He immediately poured for himself, then offered it to Min. She waved her hand.

“No, sorry. Tournament is today, and I have to be able to focus.”

“Oh, are you involved in that, too?”

“Min is one of the pros they brought in,” Hayden said, keeping vague about who she really was. She appreciated that he didn’t just spill her secret to his brother, even though she shouldn’t be surprised.

“Oh, do I know your stream?” Theo sipped his wine, idle curiosity as he stared at her, and Min paused, uncertain how to answer him… until his eyes widened. “Wait. You’re not…?”

He looked over at Hayden, who shook his head, trying to shut down whatever was going on in Theo’s head, but it was too late. Theo laughed, loud and booming and enough to make heads turn toward them. However quiet Hayden liked to be, Theo clearly lived loud and loved attention. He shook his head.

“You’re her. I can’t believe it. He’s with you. He brought you here.”

Hayden’s jaw clenched. “Things have… changed.”

“Amazing how fast things change when a beautiful woman is involved.” Theo laughed once more at Hayden’s discomfort, then leaned toward Min. “FlameThrower?”

She nodded, surprised. “I’ve never had someone recognize me out of outfit before.”

“I’ve seen a lot of your stream, Min. This guy loves to have you on when he’s visiting. Says you make some of the best gaming content.”

Min raised her eyebrows. “Is that so?”

Theo nodded, serious, and Hayden groaned, not meeting her eyes but not denying it. Theo continued to ignore him. “Tell me, Min. What’s the most embarrassing thing he’s ever done on a stream with you?”

Min thought about it. “One time we were competing and made a bet on who would win. He lost and had to sing theDuckTalestheme song at the top of his lungs. The chat loved it. It memed for weeks.”

Theo delighted chuckle filled the space before he leaned toward her. “Tell me you have fantasies about dating a chef.”

Min leaned toward him, her chin in the palm of her hand. “A sexy man who can cook? Say less.”

Hayden grunted, knocking his brother back in his seat and crossing his arms. “We’re supposed to be here for a meeting.”

“We were, and then you brought me a present.”

“She’s not a present. She’s an intelligent woman who’s not going to fall for your horrible personality.”

“She’d be the first.” Theo winked at her, fucking with his brother in a way that made her grin while Hayden muttered something about being an only child. Min couldn’t be sure, but she thought Hayden had moved his chair closer to hers. She was enjoying the hell out of this lunch.

Taking pity on Hayden, Theo began to talk shop as the first course came out, a salad with a distinct lack of strawberries that still managed to be the best salad Min had ever had in her life. She listened idly as Hayden and Theo went over the details of what was needed next for their game. While she didn’t get the full description, from what she heard it sounded like a huge endeavor, one that would take a large studio at least two years to produce and at least twice as long for an established indie studio. It was astonishing to think that Hayden had worked so hard for so long on this project and that no one knew about it. Yet another example of how much DeathsHead valued his privacy.

By the time she was finishing her main course, some sort of shrimp scampi that tasted like heaven on a plate, Min was ready for a food coma. She looked at Theo, a dreamy look in her eyes.

“You’re a genius.”

He took her hand, kissing the back of it. “You are officially my favorite customer.”

“Can you stop mauling Min for one minute?” Theo just laughed at his brother as Hayden threw him a disgruntled look, taking her hand out of Theo’s and tucking it into his lap where Theo couldn’t get it.

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