Page 62 of For You, Sir

“Besides,” he said, sliding his hand from my knee to my inner thigh. “It’s super hot when you get all messy for me…”

Heat rose to my face. “Sheesh.” I pushed his hand away. “You perv.” But a reluctant smile pulled at the edges of my mouth.

Chapter 22 (Jun)

When we pulled into the coffee shop parking lot, Einar’s foot started tapping a rapid beat against the car’s floor. In all my self-pity, I had nearly forgotten Einar’s own anxiety over leaving the house. There was no sign of Ho-Sung’s beat-up Honda, and I was going to suggest we could just wait in the car until he showed, but Einar got out of the passenger side like he was in a hurry.

He came to my side of the car and held the door for me as I got out. “Hey, handsome,” he murmured. “Can I buy you a drink?”

“Sir…” My face got hot, and I glanced around in fear that Ho-Sung might show up out of nowhere. “He might see us.” I liked when Einar got flirty, but this trip was already nerve-wracking enough.

“Got it,” he said. He cleared his throat and straightened. “Then can I buy my badass butler a drink?”

The heat spread from my cheeks to my ears. No one had ever called mebadassbefore. Clearly, Einar used humor to cope with his nerves. “Okay,” I said. A moment later, I added, “Thanks.”

As we walked across the parking lot, Einar spoke in a low voice out of the side of his mouth. “My butler is foxy as hell, you see. But we’re strictly platonic. He’s very professional.”

I arched an eyebrow at him, annoyed but a little flattered, too.You’re going to behave, aren’t you?

Einar smirked at me. “That’s why I make sure to only have lustful thoughts about him on days that end with a ‘y’.”

“Einar!”

He chuckled as he pulled open the coffee shop door for me. I was startled to find Ho-Sung was already there when we stepped inside. “Give a moment,” I murmured to Einar, and headed across the room alone.

“Eyy, bro!” Ho-Sung flashed me his shameless, snaggle-toothed smile.

“Hi, Ho-Sung,” I said timidly, when we met in the middle of the room.

I was braced for him to throw his anger in my face like a fistful of sand, but he just slammed me into a tight hug and said, “Good to see you!”

I squeezed him back. This close, I could smell the traces of tobacco smoke clinging to his jacket, and the same prescription dandruff shampoo he’d been using since middle school. A hundred tiny reminders of our long history together.

I had avoided Ho-Sung because those little details reminded me of a childhood I preferred not to contemplate. But seeing him now, I quickly remembered what a light Ho-Sung had been during those dark times. Sharing his loot with me, whether comic books or cigarettes. Cracking jokes when the tension at home was unbearable.

I patted his back, then beckoned Einar over to us. “This is my brother, Ho-Sung,” I said. Etiquette dictated I should introduce my guest, but Einar wanted to remain anonymous, and Ho-Sung knew his name, anyway. “This is my boss,” I said, gesturing to Einar.

“Whoa,” Ho-Sung said. He drank in the sight of him, looking a little stunned. Starstruck, I guessed. “Thanks for coming.” It was unnerving seeing Ho-Sung and Einar in the same room, let alone interacting. My old life meeting the new.

“Good to meet you.” Einar slid his sunglasses to the top of his head, radiating charisma and sex appeal. He wore a celebrity’s megawatt smile—a smile for TV interviews and adoring fans. His shoulders and hips relaxed like it was something he did every day.

There was no trace of his previous nerves, as if the celebrity persona was a mask he could put on at any time. I hadn’t registered how authentic Einar was with me at home until I saw him acting “on.” It didn’t strike me as fake, but it didn’t seem strictly natural, either.

Ho-Sung ushered us to a table he’d already reserved, and we all took a seat. My brother unrolled a glossy movie poster that was worn at the edges and had pushpin holes in the corners. “Hey, would you mind signing this for me?”

I clapped a hand over my face in embarrassment. I’d told Ho-Sung that Einar wanted to keep a low profile. What part of “incognito” made Ho-Sung think that Einar would want to sign movie posters in public?

But Einar took it in stride, slapping at his pockets. “Sorry, I don’t have a pen.”

“Oh! I’ve got one.” Ho-Sung dug through his beat-up messenger bag and pulled out an acrylic graffiti marker, the kind he used to tag bus signs and park benches back in high school. God, I hoped he wasn’t still doing that.

Einar scrawled his autograph across the bottom—E Eriksento his fans, apparently. An odd flare of jealousy struck me that I’d never seen this form of his signature before, that Ho-Sung had been the one to draw it out of him.

“IsSunburnyour favorite?” Einar asked with a gracious smile.

“Hell yeah!” Ho-Sung enthused.

I looked closer at the movie poster—Santa Monica Sunburn. Apparently, my brother and I had similar tastes. Though, I suspected Ho-Sung liked it more for the lesbian sex scene rather than its artistic commentary on bodily autonomy.

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