Page 159 of Seeing Grayscale

Gray’s first day was yesterday, and he was so exhausted he went back to Perry’s house and crashed. I’m sure he’ll be equally as tired today, but I’m hoping he’ll let me take him out. At the very least, see him for a few hours. I drum my fingers on my desk while staring off. He’s definitely busy, so that’s why I haven’t received a reply yet.

Just when I’m about to send another text, begging instead of asking, Alex finally shows up.

He asked if he could come in late, to which I, of course, said yes.

My assistant is…disheveled. His tie is crooked, and his usually perfect hair sticks up like fingers have been raking through it. And as he limp-walks deeper into my office, I catch an unusual smell on him. Salty. Like the ocean.

“What’s that smell?” I ask, fanning my nose.

He blushes and bristles. “I’ve…been forced into a new hobby.”

That has my attention, distracting me from begging my boyfriend to let me see him. “Forced? Aren’t hobbies voluntary?”

“You wouldthink,” he says, exasperated, and falls into one of the chairs. “I never asked for this. And I’mdistraught.”

I stare at my assistant. “What happened?”

“My neighbors moved out. And they left a fish tank. Outside. In the snow. WITH FISH IN IT!” His hands fly to his hair, and he yanks on it dramatically.

“The scandal.” I clutch my chest.

“So naturally, I was forced into action. Not only are the fishcannibals, but they’re in puke green water. And it smells like a rotten corpse. I’ve been trying to do damage control and clean it, but no one told me you can’t putwateron fish. Turns out, you needfancywater withspecial salt. So they are all dying, and the man at the store refused to help me. He said, and I quote, ‘do a water change and install a heater’. Google is unhelpful. I don’t even know what anitrate is!”

I laugh. I laugh fuckinghard.“You were forced into this, you say?”

“Forced! Who leaves a tank full of mutant fish in the snow? Fish you can’t just put water in a bowl for? I had a goldfish when I was six. It lived until college. My mom took care of it, but still! She didn’t put fancy salt in that bowl. He was happy as a clam.”

I cover my mouth, watching my assistantfall apart.

“I’m going to need a week off, some Xanax, and a marine biologist to save these fish.” And he drops his head to my desk, narrowly missing his glasses.

Shaking my head, I grab my phone, and all his drama is forgotten.

Sweetheart: Sure. What’s the plan, birthday boy?

I pull up outside Gray’s work just as he exits the warehouse. I hurry to get out of my car to grab the door for him. He’s wearing a low-slung pair of jeans, dark brown work boots, and a long-sleeved yellow shirt. Sweat clings to the tips of his bleach-blonde hair, and he looks a little dirty. I wet my lips, blatantly checking him out.

He sees me mentally stripping him and blushes.

“Happy birthday.”

“Thank you,” I nearly growl, grabbing his hips and kissing him hard.

He laughs against my mouth, squirms in my hold, and shoves at my chest. “I’m dirty.”

“Don’t care.” I kiss him again, peppering his lips and cheeks until he laughs again. I’ll never get tired of hearing it. “I missed you.”

“Well, you have me for the entire weekend.”

Our arrangement will kill me, but I understand why it has to be this way at least for a while. Gray is thriving. And I can tell he feels more confident with this sense of independence. Only he can tell me when he will be ready to take the next step, so for now, I’ll take what he gives me.

“How did the fish fiasco go?” he asks once we return to the car.

“I guess we’ll find out after the week. I thought Alex was joking, but he really is taking a week off. That tank must be a cesspool.”

Gray snorts. “I’m sure he’ll figure it out. He’s a very resourceful guy.”

“That he is,” I agree and take his hand, pulling it over the middle console and into my lap. “Are you sure it’s okay? To go back there?”

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