Page 84 of Knight
KNIGHT
I finished wipingdown Fox’s station while Angela packed up her many,manysnacks to go home. The woman was a one-woman candy store. She’d occasionally sell us goodies like a vending machine throughout the day. I was partial to the Red Vines.
I chewed on the end of one, the rest of it trailing out of my mouth like a limp noodle, while I worked.
“Anyone got plans tonight?” Fox asked, shifting from foot to foot. “I’m feeling restless.”
“Uh-oh,” Angela said with a laugh. “That means you’re going to be a handful. I’m thinking I’ll just Netflix and chill.”
“Who’s the lucky partner?” Fox asked.
She waggled her fingers in the air. “Ain’t got no time for other people’s bullshit right now. It’ll just be me and my besties right here. They know what I like.”
Fox snorted. “Baby, I know what you like, too.”
She shifted from a finger waggle to a shooing motion. “But you’re not chill, sweetie. So go sell it to someone else.”
The steady hum of Cyrus’s tattoo gun underlaid thebanter zinging back and forth across the shop. It abruptly stopped.
“I’ve got a client in here,” Cyrus said. “Maybe keep it in your pants untilafterwe close.”
His client, Gerald, was a big bald road crew worker. His orange vest hung on a hook in Cyrus’s station, and he still wore his steel-toed boots.
He gave a deep, gravelly laugh. “Don’t worry about me none. It’s the most action I’ve gotten in weeks.” He shot a look at Angela. “I can be very chill, baby girl. Just let me know if you’re interested.”
Angela batted her eyelashes playfully. “Good to know, Gerald.”
The tattoo gun resumed its buzz, and Gerald hissed. “Warn a guy.”
Cyrus chuckled. “I thought you were chill.”
I headed over to Angela’s station, beginning the closedown process of wiping down surfaces and collecting tools to place in the autoclave overnight for disinfecting. Emory had taken off early today, so I didn’t need to worry about him.
She and Fox let themselves out, still playfully trash-talking. Maybe theywouldend up chilling together. It wouldn’t be the first time.
The doorbell chimed again, and I glanced over, expecting that one of them had forgotten something.
Flynn stepped through the door instead, catching me by surprise. I hadn’t seen him since the cookout before Aiden and I started…doing what we did best. We texted now and then, but Flynn had stopped grilling me about Aiden now that his brother had settled in a bit.
Small blessings and all.
I still felt like a shit friend for not telling him I was hooking up with his little brother. I couldn’t exactly confesswithout knowing how Aiden felt about it, though. I’d need to ask. I’d just been hesitant because things were finally so good.
Letting the outside world intrude on our intimate hookup bubble might just burst it.
“Hey,” Flynn said, grinning when I approached him.
“Hey. No more walk-ins tonight. Want me to book you an appointment?”
“Actually, yeah. I think I’m ready for Cyrus to expand on my chest piece.”
Cyrus’s tattoo gun went silent, and he turned on his stool. “About time, Flynn. I’ve been itching to work on that.”
Flynn looked almost bashful. “Well, uh, I’ve had a lot going on.” He lifted his wrist to display the chain of tiny letters spellingBaileyover and over. “Our little surprise jumped the line. But I’m ready now.”
Cyrus chuckled. “Fair. Just have Knight schedule you. I’ve got to finish up with Gerald.”
“Sure, no problem.”
