Shave & Shimmer

by Alex Carreras

  “That’s impossible. Tory Whitmore drama-less?” Asher tsked. “Never going to happen.”

  “Point taken, but let me make a stab at it for twenty-four hours at least.”

  The truth of the matter was, Tory couldn’t stand the rejection and humiliation of last night’s fiasco two times in a row. In the aftermath of the date, he thought of committing suicide by ramming a silver stake through his heart, so he didn’t have to face Ray ever again. That impulse thankfully fell out of favor when he finally passed out due to emotional exhaustion and too many cocktails. But when he closed his eyes all Tory saw was Ray’s face when he chucked him out.

  Asher walked up to his friend and gave him a hug. Tears threatened to spill, but Tory fought them back, refusing to give in to any more self-pity. He hugged Asher back thankful to have the caring vampire in his life.

  Whoosh.

  Caught unaware, the two friends turned and looked at the door. Jerrod stood dressed in black from head to toe, broad shoulders filling the doorway. “This could either be very good or very bad. Allow me to warrant a guess. I pick very bad.”

  Unfolding his arms from Tory, Asher replied, “Do you always have to be such a pessimist?”

  “Do you always have to be such an optimist?”

  “I hate it when you do that. Answer my question with a question. It’s annoying and downright aggravating.”

  “I guess I guessed correctly.” Jerrod walked behind the reception desk and took a seat. “Spill,” he directed.

  “I was rejected by Ray last night,” Tory began to explain. “I ended up at his place after drinks and dancing at Duets, and one thing led to another. . . Anyway, when we started to get down to business, he pulled the eject cord and asked me to leave. I was humiliated.”

  Jerrod twisted his mouth to the side and made a noise that was hard to decipher the meaning of. “That is humiliating,” he finally said.

  “Jerrod!” Asher chastised, shoving his hands on his hips. “How is that helpful?”

  “Oh, am I meant to be helpful?” Before Tory and Asher could form a plausible sentence, Jerrod continued. “If you remember correctly, I did say that this was a bad idea. As long as I’ve been alive—”

  “Which has been one helluva long time,” Asher mumbled under his breath.

  “—I have never attempted to play matchmaker. Historically, it always ends badly. For instance, look at Anne Boleyn. Poor girl lost her head.”

  Tory’s mouth fell open. “You knew Anne Boleyn?”

  “I certainly did.” Jerrod steepled his fingers, peering above them. “I went so far as to suggest that she join me in the immortal life, so she wouldn’t have to face the executioner, but the silly fool wouldn’t have it, and in the end, as we say, the rest is history.”

  “He’s fibbing,” Asher scoffed. “His left eye starts doings this tick thing when he starts telling tall tales.”

  “The point I’m trying to make is, do not get involved in affairs of the heart.” Jerrod stood and flipped the appointment book, beginning to peruse the night’s appointments. “And I did too know Anne. She could be ill-tempered at times, but she didn’t deserve to be beheaded. Such a pity.”

  “Ignore him,” Asher suggested. “Pretend like he isn’t here. You listen to me, tonight after work we will march across the street and demand an explanation.”

  The pages of the appointment book flipped loudly, but Jerrod remained silent.

  Anxiety and last night’s cocktails churned in Tory’s stomach. “Let’s just forget it. I want to put the entire thing behind me.”

  Asher’s nostrils flared, his regal chin held high. “I don’t,” he declared, incensed. “I intend on getting to the bottom of this. Ray owes you an explanation. Hell, he owes me one too because I was the one who endorsed him.”

  “I hate it when you get indignant. Your eyes get all squinty, and your lips disappear. Scary.”

  Jerrod chuckled and still said nothing.

  “Well, maybe it will scare the truth out of Ray.” With that, Tory and Jerrod watched as Asher stormed out the door and across the street to Killer Kuts.

  Jerrod sighed. “I hope it doesn’t take long because his first appointment is in five minutes.”

  * * * *

  “Where is he?” Asher swept his gaze over the barbershop. He sniffed the air like a dog tracking prey.

  Niko ran up, a look of alarm etched across his broad features. “What’s the matter?”

  “Where’s Ray?” Asher sniffed catching a scent. “I know he’s here.”

  Niko grabbed Asher by his shoulders. “He’s in the back with some of the other guys. I’m going to ask you again, what’s the matter?”

  “That scumbag of a vampire led my friend on and rejected him at a very inconvenient moment. Who does that? I’ll tell you who! An asshole.”

  “I don’t know what happened, but Ray is not an . . . asshole. He may not be perfect, but who is.”

  “He’s not, that’s for sure. Now let me go so I can rip him a new one.”

  “I have another suggestion.” Niko leveled his gaze. “Let’s not get involved.”

  Asher felt his jaw begin to pulse. “You’re beginning to sound a lot like Jerrod again.”

  “Please stop saying that.”

  “You should see Tory over there. His eyes are red. His skin is ghost white.”

  “He is a vampire.”

  Asher didn’t find that funny in the least. “I feel so badly for the little guy. And what really pisses me off is that I hooked those two up. My radar must be way off because I really read Ray wrong. I thought he was a stand-up guy.” Asher scoffed, beyond disgusted. “Brother was I wrong.”

  “I’m sure there’s a plausible explanation, but now is not the time to talk about it.”

  “I don’t agree,” Asher shot back. “Now is the perfect time.”

  “Okay, I see that you’re not going to give this up, but before I show you to your unsuspecting victim, I’m asking you to cool down first. I don’t ask for much, but I’m asking now.”

  Considering, Asher agreed. “Fine, but if I don’t like his explanation, I’m going to get my fangs out, and you know how ugly I can get when that happens.”

  “Yes, sweetie, you are one scary vampire.” Niko’s smile was sweet. “Now breathe deeply and tell me when you’re ready.”

  Asher did what was ordered, inhaling cleansing yoga breaths as he prayed for patience. “I’m good. Nice and calm. Now please take me to him.” Asher really wanted to say “son-of-a-bitch” instead of “him” but thought better of it. As Niko took Asher by the hand, Asher rehearsed a few opening lines that did not sound too confrontational. They passed through the main floor of the shop into a back room resembling a kitchen. A table that could seat six stood in the middle of the average-sized break room, metal folding chairs skirting the circumference. Asher spotted Ray before Ray saw Asher. It took all of Asher’s self-control not to pounce and throw the egomaniac against the wall . . . but he refrained.

  Ray turned and looked at Asher. Something flashed in the vampire’s dark eyes, and it wasn’t conceit or victory. “Hey,” he greeted in a quiet voice. “Let me guess why you’re here.”

  Niko spoke up as he let go of Asher’s hand. “I want you to know that I have no part in this. Ray, no matter what, we’re still good.”

  Asher growled.

  “Thanks, blood,” Ray responded. “That means a lot.”

  Crossing his arms over his chest, Asher began his interrogation. “For some reason, you’ve extinguished Tory’s light.”

  “I don’t follow you.”

  “Tory has this internal light that beams brightly, but today his wattage is nonexistent. I don’t like this in the least. It means he’s been hurt. Bad.” Asher inclined his head. “By you.”

  “I’m sorry if I was the one who did this.”

  “You are, and you should be. Do you care to explain yourself? And before you shoot back with some glib answer, I’d suggest you do otherwise, so
choose your words wisely.”

  “You are a fierce and loyal friend to Tory. He’s lucky.”

  Some of Asher’s anger fell away. “I’m the lucky one. Tory’s a special creature, but he’s also fragile. Whatever passed between you, could you please give him an explanation, and a truthful one?”

  Ray nodded. “I can do that. He deserves one. Last night I was in no condition to explain my erratic behavior.”

  “None of us were,” Asher agreed. “We consumed plenty. We should know better at our age.”

  “Boys will be boys,” Ray answered with a weak smile. “For what it’s worth, I had a good time.”

  “We did too. But it doesn’t have to end. I like you, still. Make this right for Tory and let’s move on from this. How does that sound?”

  “Sounds good.”

  “The sooner, the better,” Asher said. “How about tonight after work?”

  “I think I can do that.”

  “So, I’ll tell him that you’ll be at the door of Everlasting waiting for him?”

  “I’ll be there,” Ray returned. “I’ll set him right.”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  The entire night at work, Tory was a shambles. He colored a blonde client mahogany, almost shaved a woman who was growing out her short hair, and he’d practically waxed the left eyebrow off one of Jerrod’s best customers. If he kept this up, he would be suffering from more than a broken heart and bruised ego. He blamed Asher.

  Tory would’ve been happy to slink home in pre-dawn darkness to a heaping bowl of black cherry ice cream with an extra serving of synthetic blood drizzled on top, but no, now he had to hear the gory details of why Ray found him so repulsive that he felt compelled to kick him out of his loft while Tory had his dick out. As if that wasn’t humiliating enough, now he had to have a play-by-play of last night’s mortifying events.

  Tory knew Ray was outside waiting for him before he peeked out the window. There was enough static and friction in the air to create the storm of all storms. Tory was surprised that a rogue lightning bolt hadn’t shot down the street in a blast of blinding orange and gold.

  Collecting his man-purse and finger combing his spikes that could withstand a nuclear explosion, Tory squared his shoulders, pushed through the door and jogged down the few steps to where Ray was waiting before he could change his mind and run out the back emergency exit of Everlasting.

  “Hi,” Tory said, smiling tightly, trying his best to ignore Ray’s handsome face and musky scent.

  “Glad you decided to meet up.” Ray’s voice was silky smooth as usual.

  “Are you?” Tory couldn’t help himself.

  “What I did was wrong, but I was drunk, and you made me feel something I thought was long dead inside me.”

  Tory couldn’t be mad at that. “And what did I make you feel?” He shifted his bag’s strap higher onto his shoulder, counting the seconds before Ray answered his question.

  One.

  Two.

  Three.

  “Love . . . or the possibility of falling in love.”

  Tory’s heart leaped into his throat, and his thigh muscles felt like melting rubber. Did he hear him correctly? Tory thought. Love. He swallowed in an attempt to clear his Sahara dry throat. “I did that?”

  “Yes,” Ray replied. “You did that.”

  “You’re not feeding me a line of BS to make me feel better? Because if you are, please don’t. I’d rather have honesty above anything else.”

  “See it’s when you say things like that, you make me like you just that much more.”

  Tory looked around for the vehicle responsible for the sound of screeching brakes that rattled his molars, but there was no car or truck in sight. The unnerving sound was coming from his head. “W–w–what did you say?” Troy stuttered.

  “Bottom line is, you’re a good guy, one of the best. You’re the perfect package, smart, handsome, intrinsically kind. I don’t deserve you.”

  “You don’t have me.” Tory’s smile widened. “Yet.”

  Ray smiled, too. He placed his hands in his back jeans pocket and rocked on his boot heels. “Let’s say we go for a stroll on the beach. It’s almost a full moon and the water’s beautiful this time of night.”

  And so are you. “Sounds like a great suggestion . . . but how are we getting there? I didn’t drive tonight.”

  Ray extended his hand that could’ve been sculpted by Michelangelo himself. “I have a special talent.”

  Tory coughed. “I think I saw that talent last night.”

  “I have many talents,” Ray said. “Now take my hand and let me show you.”

  Tory slid his hand into Ray’s, allowing the man to do what he wanted.

  “Close your eyes,” Ray directed. “And take a deep breath.”

  Within seconds, fine granules of the softest sand replaced the hard concrete of the sidewalk outside Everlasting. The sound of lapping waves and the smell of salt water caused Tory to open his eyes. “It’s beautiful.”

  “Isn’t it?” Ray squeezed Tory’s hand. “This is my favorite place to come, but I’m usually alone. It’s one of the reasons I moved here. I love the water and the energy it creates. Makes me centered and happy.”

  “I don’t come here enough. The last time was when Everlasting and Killer Kuts banded together to fight off Alderman.” Tory gazed around. “It wasn’t far from here.”

  “Don’t worry about that creep, he’s long gone. But if he comes back, I’ll give the bastard my meanest one-two. I used to box in a past life.”

  “So that would explain your incredible body.”

  “What would explain yours?”

  “Running from old queens who like much younger guys and want to suck my blood.”

  Ray’s laugh rose above the waves.

  “I’m telling the truth,” Tory said. “Florida has a lot of retirees. You’ll see.”

  “You can’t fault them for trying.” Ray cocked his head to where the water met the shore. “Let’s walk.”

  Still holding hands, they walked to the water’s edge and headed south.

  After the hell of last night, Tory couldn’t believe he was in heaven tonight with the same man who put him through that hell in the first place. Tory couldn’t wait any longer to ask the question that had been burning a hole in his brain. “Can we talk about what happened at your place? I mean, I thought we were getting along.”

  Ray stopped and released his firm grip on Tory to toe off his boots, Tory doing the same. Job complete, they left their shoes on the sand to retrieve later and then started to walk again, but this time Ray didn’t offer his hand.

  “At Duets,” Ray began to explain, “I was having a great time. Best time I’ve had in longer than I care to admit.”

  “The same here but. . .”

  “But then I saw James, smelled him with us, and then I couldn’t go any further. I just couldn’t.”

  “A part of me can understand.”

  “How come I feel there is more to that statement.”

  “Because there is,” Tory said. “Another part of me felt used, discarded, and humiliated. Your reaction and inability to explain yourself at the time threw me over the edge. I’ve never felt so miserable.”

  “I know, and for what it’s worth, I’m sorry. I was overwhelmed, and the way I reacted was unforgivable, but I’m asking you to forgive me.”

  Considering, Tory reached out and took Ray’s hand. He looked up into the handsome vampire’s eyes. Moonlight reflected in them. “Last night I told myself that I wouldn’t accept any apology if you offered one.”

  “Are you still holding on to that?” Those eyes implored Tory.

  “No,” Tory answered. “What kind of being would I be if I didn’t? You’re in pain, and obviously still very much in love with James. I can’t fault you for that.” They started to walk. “He really must’ve been an incredible person.”

  “He was,” Ray replied. “He was my everything.”

  Tory’s heart ached. “H
ow did you meet?”

  “He was my employer. I worked his stables, when the District of Columbia had stables. It feels so long ago.”

  “Was he a white man?”

  Ray nodded. “Blond hair and blue eyes much like you. I believe I react strongly to you because of the features you share with James.”

  “It’s funny how we have a type.”

  “Am I your type?”

  Tory didn’t see that question coming. “I do like them tall, dark, and handsome, and you do fit the bill.”

  “I had nothing to do with it.” Ray shrugged his shoulders; a slow smile slid across his full lips. “Lucked out in the gene pool.”

  “Did James approach you, or you, him?”

  “Remember the time when we met. James perused me. He was rich, white, charming, educated, connected. I was none of those things. At the time, many well-to-do white men had black lovers, male and female. I’m positive I was not James’s first black lover. I never asked him though. Just assumed.”

  “Shame you couldn’t live your life out in the open like we can today.”

  Ray shrugged again. “Oh, I don’t know. It was fun to have our secrets. We didn’t have to share ourselves with anyone else. What we had was solely ours. Private. Intimate.”

  “That sounds wonderful.”

  “It was wonderful.” Ray paused and licked his bottom lip. Tory tasted the salty air on his own lips. “Even when I chose to become immortal, our love continued and thrived.”

  “Until . . .”

  “Obediah Monroe,” Ray answered. “He was the man responsible for giving James eternal life and then eternal death. Ironic, isn’t it.”

  “What happened exactly?”

  “Jealousy. Obsession.”

  “An age-old tale.”

  “Obediah couldn’t let James go so he killed him and made sure that he could never return. He loved James, but James had moved on with me.”

  “When a vampire devours another vampire’s heart, he or she can never resurrect.” Tory exhaled slowly, saddened by James’s fate and ultimately, Ray’s.”