Page 88 of His Stepdad Wears Leather

“I ultimately walked away from my mother,” Jereme said. “We moved here, to get away from the noise of our past. We got a fresh start.”

“But what if that hadn’t been possible?” Noah asked.

The entire table turned to face him, and his face heated.

“Meaning you can’t run, Noah?” Jereme asked. “I have no idea what we would’ve done if we couldn’t have had our fresh start. It would’ve been tremendously harder. I’m not sure we could’ve made it—but every relationship is different. You don’t know unless you try.” He turned to Noah’s mother. “I second theevery boy should have a daddy in their lives at least oncesuggestion, just so you’re aware.”

“We’re clearly here to assist with a family issue,” Harry said before turning to face Noah. “Why don’t you tell us about your beau?”

Noah’s face burned hot. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Oh, come on, sweetie,” Harry said, reaching over to pat his hand. “Your mom went out of her way to call in the cavalry. You might as well take advantage of ourvastyears of experience.”

Noah eyed his mother who only smiled weakly his way.

She was obviously trying to wrap her mind around his attraction to Brody. It was more than he could ever have expected of her. And he loved her dearly for it, regardless if he found a way back to Brody or not.

I love you, she mouthed before looking away, tears shining in her eyes.

He had to fight his own before sharing a scant bit of information about Brody to his very, very interested audience. Noah decided he’d avoid the specific details—or the fact that Brody was technically his stepfather. “So, I ran away from my father’s home a few weeks ago and showed up here on a Greyhound. I hadn’t spoken to my mother in over a decade and had no idea if she’d take me in. As I walked from the stop, I passed this gay bar along the way.”

“Oooh… was itthe Village? That’s near here, right?” Jereme asked. “Ilovethat place.”

“It was,” Noah said with a grin. “A guy had gotten off at the same stop as I had—and he’d aggressively come on to me. Then followed me in a car with a bunch of other guys. So, I used the fake ID I should not have and entered the Village to protect myself from becoming a statistic. I ended up meeting an older guy there that night.”

“Ohhhhh, tell us more,” Jereme said, leaning on his elbow and resting his chin on his palm. “Every sordid detail.”

Noah laughed before giving a much-edited version of “How Noah Met Brody.”

13

For the third night in a row, Brody sat at one of his own tables, drinking a scotch. Alone. Several of the regulars had tried to join him over the past few nights—but he’d chased them off with his foul mood. By that night, they all seemed to understand they needed to give him a wide berth.

It was Sinful Saturday—which honestly wasn’t any different than any other night of the week. Branding at its weakest. His clientele typically came clad in whatever they wanted to show off for the night. It was the weekend, so some folks went all out.

Even though he wasn’t participating in the night’s fun, he still wore his favorite chaps over a pair of leather briefs—along with his leather harness and boots. A pair of leather gloves graced his hands—which was out of sorts for him. They covered the bloody knuckles he’d gotten after punching a brick wall in frustration days before.

He barely heard the music. He barely saw the people around him. All he could see was Noah packing his bag and leaving the apartment days before… all he could sense was how empty the place now seemed.

Hadn’t he said Noah had to go? He needed distance and clarity?

Brody hated every second of it.

How he could’ve gotten so twisted in so little time, he didn’t understand. All he did comprehend was he felt lost without Noah to protect.

The DJ for the night paused the music to make some announcement to the crowd.

“Man, you arebadfor business,” Lex said near his ear before taking a seat beside him. He eyed Brody before leaning over again. “You should carry your sorry ass upstairs. No one wants to see you like this.”

“Like what?” Brody yelled.

“Miserable.”

Brody rolled his eyes.

Lex leaned in again. “It was for the best that he left, right?”

Brody shrugged. “Maybe.”

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