Blasts From the Past

Chapter 10

“Schmidt!” Brian bellowed as he strode into Kinnetik bright and early Monday morning, Leda hot on his heels.

“Yes, Boss,” Ted answered obediently.

“It’s a go for the Lethal Bike test run. I want a bike to make the rounds of every mall within one hundred miles of the Pitts. And contact Drew; find out who handles the promos for the Ironmen. I want to see if we can get an endorsement. And ask Drew if he’d allow us to put a bike in front of his store sometime in the future.”

“Bri, do you want me to contact any biker bear clubs?” Ted had leaned in to ask Brian sotto voce.

“No, not yet, we get the results of the test market first. If they’re what I think they’ll be, we target the straight biker for the first leg of the campaign, then the LGBT community.”

“Okay, Bri, I’m on it,” Ted said ready to do his master’s bidding.

“And Schmidt, discretion is key for this one. We proceed carefully.”

“I am the soul of discretion,” Ted whispered conspiratorially. Brian arched his brow saying nothing. He simply gestured the man away with a flick of his hand.

“Brian, may I leave the bike in your alley for a while. I’m meeting Mel and Lindsay at the gallery.”

“Planning a threesome?” Brian snarked.

“In your dreams. I finally convinced them to allow me to take them to dinner. But I get the impression they don’t trust me.”

“It’s probably Lindsay who doesn’t trust you and Mel doesn’t trust Lindz.”

“Ooo, sounds like there’s a good story in there.”

“And I’ll tell it as I walk you over there. If they’re both going to be there, you can be my witness when Mel tries to kill me.”

“Sure, I’m game.”

“Schmidt!” Brian bellowed again.

“Yes, Boss,” Ted answered from across the main office.

“Discretion,” Brian warned. Teddy made a lock and key motion over his lips then placed his hand over his heart. Satisfied, Brian led Leda out of Kinnetik.

“Mr. Brian Kinney,” Brandon said as he nearly knocked Brian over on the street just outside of the old bathhouse.

“What do you want, Tierney?”

“Just a moment of your time,” Brandon stated as he looked Leda up and down, deciding he hated her already.

“Make an appointment,” Brian said curtly.

“I would if your secretary would take my calls. Apparently no one knows your schedule.”

“That’s because I don’t have one. Comes with owning the joint.”

“Five minutes, Brian. Just give me five minutes of your time. If you don’t like my proposal then we call it quits.”

“Five minutes, later today at three, and not here. Meet me at the diner. I’ll give you your five minutes and not a second more.”

“Deal,” Brandon said then walked away with a smile. He was sure that he had Brian just where he wanted him.

“Who was that sleazeball?” Leda asked.

“Just a nobody from my past wanting to be a somebody in my present,” Brian said as he took Leda’s elbow to lead her down Liberty toward the gallery.

 

*****
 

“Ms. Marcus, isn’t this so fantastic?” Jamie exclaimed as she watched one of the gallery assistants hang her latest creation. Jamie also had an eye on how Lindsay’s tailored suit fit the tall blond.

“Yeah, fantastic,” Mel murmured. “What am I doing here?” she whispered to herself.

“Waiting for me, I hope,” Leda said. She had come into the gallery with Brian but then headed straight for Mel. Brian made a detour toward Justin’s part of the gallery. He never tired of seeing his lover’s work.

Mel gave her former lover a warm kiss. The kiss did not go unnoticed by Lindsay or Jamie.

“A-hem,” Lindsay cleared her throat loudly. Mel and Leda separated. “How was your weekend, Leda?” Lindsay asked.

“An eye opener,” Leda responded. “How was yours?”

“Quiet,” Lindsay retorted. She and Mel were beginning to fall into their old habits. The dates they had promised to take together were falling by the wayside.

“Well, then maybe I can liven things up around here. I’d like to take you both out to dinner sometime this week.”

“I don’t know. I’m a little busy preparing for our September show. We’re featuring new artists, especially our local talent.” Lindsay smiled at Jamie.

“Do I rate an introduction to your local talent?” Leda asked flirtatiously. Lindsay took a big breath then made the introductions.

“Leda Thalberg, Jamie Cunningham. Jamie is an instructor at PIFA and will be one of our featured artists in our Emerging Artists show next month. Jamie, this is an old friend, Leda. Leda is visiting Pittsburgh on business.”

Jamie smiled brightly at the attractive woman. “What type of business are you in?” Jamie asked innocently.

“My own, I’m Lethal Motorcycles. And I might just have to take up the arts, given the right incentive," Leda murmured.

“Lethal Bikes! I have one of your smaller models. I ride whenever I can,” Jamie said enthusiastically. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Jamie extended her hand to shake Leda’s.

The older woman clasped Jamie’s hand firmly and held it a little longer than necessary. “Why don’t you show me your stuff,” Leda purred like one of her bikes.

Jamie nodded as she showed Leda to her little part of the gallery. Lindsay and Melanie stood dumbstruck as the two women strolled away.

“Now, there’s a picture. The two of you, silent and with your mouths hanging open,” Brian snarked as he joined Lindsay and Mel.

“Asshole!” they said in unison.

“Now that I have your attention, let’s go discuss our son,” Brian said as he snaked his arms around the mothers of his son and led them to Lindsay’s office.

 

*****
 

“Daddy, is Leda gone forever?” Bree asked. They were packing their suitcases to get ready for their trip to Penn State.

“Forever? I don’t know, sweetheart.”

“I kind of got used to her being around,” Bree said as she placed her favorite pink shorts outfit in the suitcase.

“You like her.”

“Sort of.”

“Do you miss having other girls around here?”

“Sometimes,” Bree admitted. “Michelle and Cindy aren’t here very often and Auntie Molly is busy with Taylor and Taylor was supposed to be a girl.”

Justin chuckled. “But it’s all right that Taylor’s a boy now that he’s here.”

“I guess so,” Bree sighed. “He is pretty cute.”

“Come sit here beside me,” Justin said deciding that a little talk with his brilliant daughter might be in order.

“Is something wrong, Daddy?” Bree asked as she down beside her father on the edge of her bed.

“Nothing’s wrong if you’re all right.”

“I’m okay.”

“I want you to be better than okay, sweetheart. I want you to be happy. You know you can talk to Dada or me about anything?”

“Yeah.”

“But as you grow up, there’s going to be girl stuff that you may want to talk to a girl about.”

“Like what?” Bree asked with a frown. She wasn’t sure what her Daddy was getting at.

“You’re going to have changes to your body,” Justin said trying to keep his voice level.

“Like what?”

“Well, Auntie Molly has breasts, and as you grow up, you’re going to get breasts too.”

“Gross!”

Justin laughed in spite of his best intentions. “Believe me, sweetheart, you’ll be looking for those breasts to pop out in a few years.”

“I will? Why?”

“Um … you may find that you get interested in boys.”

“Boys? Like Patrick?”

“Yeah, like Patrick, or other boys.”

“But what does that have to do with breasts?” Bree asked innocently.

“Boys like breasts?”

“Do you like breasts, Daddy?”

“Not particularly, but then your Dada and I are gay. We’ve explained that to you.”

“Yeah. If you don’t like breasts then I don’t want them,” Bree declared.

“I don’t think you’re going to have a choice, baby girl.”

Bree frowned and then sighed. “Okay, if I have to.”

Justin chuckled. He pulled Bree into a hug. “It’s still a few years away, but the point I wanted to make is that when these things start happening to you, you can still talk to Dada and me.”

“Even about … breasts?”

“Even about breasts,” Justin said gently cradling Bree against his chest. “But you can also talk to Auntie Rachel or Auntie Molly or Lindsay and Melanie or JR. There are lots of girls around for you to talk to, just so you know.”

“Okay, Daddy, I’ll remember.”

“Good girl! Now let’s decide on the rest of what you’re going to pack for Penn State.”

 

*****
 

“Comic store,” Michael said answering the phone.

“Hey, Michael, it’s Hank.”

“Hi, Hank, how was the trip to Philadelphia?”

“I’m still here.”

“Oh? Is that a good or bad thing?”

“I think it’s good,” Hank laughed.

“Okay. So what can I do for you?”

“I’m going to be back in Pittsburgh in a few days.”

“Yeah?”

“Could we get together, maybe for dinner? There are some things I’d like to discuss with you.”

“Really? Sure, yeah, I guess we could.”

“Great.”

“Um … shouldn’t you be talking to David about whatever these things are?” Michael asked not wanting to step on anyone’s toes, especially his former lover’s.

“You know what I told you about Dad. I want to talk this over with you,” Hank stated.

“Okay, if you’re sure.”

“I’m sure.”

“I’ll call you when I get back to Pittsburgh. Maybe we can have dinner some time after that.”

“That sounds fine,” Michael replied. “Hank, you know I’ll help in any way I can, but you have to make your own decisions.”

“That’s exactly what I’m doing.”

“Then I’ll see you when you get back,” Michael said before he cut the connection. He looked around the comic shop, wondering how he had ever become confidant to his ex-lover’s son. He had never expected such a thing. Nobody much consulted him or asked his opinion. They always went to Brian or Ted for advice. Michael felt kind of proud that Hank had chosen him.

 

*****
 

Emmett was pouring coffee and getting a popover ready for his husband at Emmett’s Place. The weekend had gone by in a blur. The wedding that he had returned for had gone off without a hitch, and everyone seemed extremely pleased with the results.

Because of the demands of the wedding, Emmett had been exhausted, and he and Drew had spent most of the day in bed on Sunday. Now it was back to a normal work week, and no more vacation in New York City.

“Here you go, Sweetie,” Emmett said handing Drew the coffee and popover.

The door of Emmett’s Place opened and closed and the two men turned to see who had come in. They both blanched.

“Hey,” Dijon grinned at Emmett and then Drew. He was towing his small piece of luggage as was his companion. They were both in uniform.

“Wh…What are you doing here?” Emmett blurted out.

“Thought we might grab a bite to eat before we head to the airport,” Dijon replied with a smile.

“How…How did you find me?” Emmett asked clearing his throat.

“We were on Liberty and I saw your sign. I figured there couldn’t be too many Emmett’s around,” Dijon explained, “so we popped in to see if you were here.”

“I guess you found me,” Emmett said with a toss of his head. “But why are you here?”

“This is Marty by the way.” Everyone nodded in acknowledgement. “I’m here for food, and I’d also like to thank you,” Dijon said.

“Thank me … for what?” Emmett asked incredulously.

“Could we get something to eat and a coffee,” Marty said. “We have to be at the airport in a little over an hour.”

“Sure,” Emmett said looking this new man up and down. He wondered what had happened over the weekend. “Sit in my booth and I’ll bring some food over.”

Drew ushered the two men to Emmett’s booth, where he sat down and had a sip of his coffee. “Emmett makes the absolute best popovers you’ll ever taste,” Drew said taking a bite of his. He thought he should at least try to make conversation with the two men.

“Thank you, sweetie,” Emmett said as he placed a tray full of mugs of coffee and a basket of muffins and popovers in front of them. “Drew’s my best salesman,” Emmett added. They smiled at each other.

“Thanks for servicing me.” Dijon couldn’t resist saying his infamous line as he took a bite of a popover. “These are … unbelievably good.”

“Told ya,” Drew laughed.

“I served you. I didn’t service you,” Emmett said indignantly, annoyed at Dijon’s choice of words.

“You’re both very lucky,” Dijon said seriously stirring his coffee. “I want to apologize for coming onto you both in the plane.”

“You do?” Emmett asked as he drank some of his own coffee.

“I … I haven’t ever found anyone that I wanted to settle down with. I’ve spent all these years looking for love in all the wrong places.” Dijon looked fondly at Marty while he said that.

Marty smiled gently back at him. “Until this weekend,” he said.

“Until this weekend,” Dijon agreed.

“You mean, you two…?” Emmett asked, gesturing between the two men.

Dijon nodded. “After I saw you guys together I was jealous, and bummed that neither of you took me up on my offer.”

“Really?” Drew asked.

“Yes, really. I’ve been feeling out of sorts lately, and Marty made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. I finally decided to take him up on it. It may be one of the best decisions that I ever made.”

Drew and Emmett could see the affection between the two men as Marty squeezed Dijon’s hand.

“We’re going to give this together thing a shot,” Marty said.

“Well, that’s great news,” Emmett said. “I hope it works out for you both.”

“Me too,” Dijon said softly. “I think it’s time. And thanks to you two for inspiring it.”

“I always wanted to be someone’s inspiration,” Emmett chuckled.

“Then consider that wish fulfilled,” Dijon replied.

“We should get going,” Marty said finishing his coffee.

“Yeah,” Dijon agreed, “but I’ll definitely be back for more of those popovers.”

“They’ll be ready and waiting,” Emmett said as the two men left the shop. “Do you fucking believe that?”

“I feel like I’m in the Twilight Zone.”

“I wonder how Dijon will feel if it doesn’t work out with Marty.”

“He’ll be out there servicing people on all his flights,” Drew commented.

“Yeah, then let’s hope this relationship does work out for him.”

“Definitely,” Drew agreed as he kissed Emmett and headed out.
 

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