Page 68 of Jester

“I’m buying flowers for your sister.”

“Why?”

“I think she wants to feel like Betty Boop.”

Bomber frowns at the sales clerk who takes the hint and disappears into the back of the store.

“Or do you want her to be Betty Boop?”

“I never wanted to fuck your mom,” I reply, winning a glare from him. “I wanted her to treat me like she did her kids. I liked knowing women weren’t evil fucks like my mom. Betty Boop opened my eyes about some shit, but I never had a crush on her.”

Bomber settles down and nods. “Talon is scared of sex.”

“Yeah, I get that.”

“She wants me to get you to wait.”

“I get that, too.”

Crossing his arms, Bomber says, “I think you should promise to wait for a month to fuck. Take the pressure off. Then, you can fool around without her panicking. I figure you’ll be fucking by the end of the week.”

“And you’re okay with that?”

“People fuck, Jester. Even our moms and little sisters. It’s normal.”

“But not all those moms and little sisters fuck guys like me.”

Bomber looks around the store before moving toward the fridge filled with roses.

“I should get Pumpkin something while I’m here.”

“You’re like Papa Bear.”

Nodding, Bomber allows a little smile. “But I’m my own man. That’s why I see the thing with you and Talon differently. Papa Bear thinks Sister Sass will get scared and break your heart. Overlord figures you’ll scare Sister Sass and break her heart.”

“And what do you think?” I ask when he just inspects the roses.

Bomber glances at me and sighs. “Sister Sass has a big mouth. She’s tougher than most women, but she starts a lot of shit she can’t handle. I figure her having a man like you would keep her safer than letting her run loose on her own.”

“She could find someone else.”

“No, she’s got you in mind. Any other guy would be her second choice.”

“And your advice is for me to lie to her about waiting a month?”

“No, not lie. Youshouldbe able to wait a whole fucking month for a woman you claim to care about. We both know what she survived. It’s normal for Sister Sass to be scared. But she’s also giving herself these panic attacks. If she wasn’t expecting to be fucked, she’d be open to being fucked. That’s what she means by ‘wine and dine.’ She wants the fun stuff without the pressure.”

“What if we get to a month and we’re in the same place?”

“Never going to happen. Sister Sass has been lusting over you since she was a teenager. She wants the fun stuff. If you screw around without saying you want sex, I suspect you’ll be fucking soon. If you help Sister Sass from stressing herself out, she’ll stay out of her own way.”

I wasn’t expecting Bomber to give supportive advice. He and I weren’t any closer than Overlord and I ever were. Sure, I’d die and kill to protect them, but I mostly resented how good they had it growing up.

I no longer resent Bomber. He lost his boy, too. Though Connor got to live a lot longer than Lando did, he bled out in his dad’s arms. I hate how my boy died, but at least, I didn’t have to helplessly watch him fade away.

With Bomber being cool about Talon and me, I feel a little lost on what to do next. I stand dumbly while he hits the bell to get the guy back out. Bomber orders two dozen orange roses.

“Pumpkin loves the color orange,” he says when I stare at him.

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