by HJ Welch
Robin’s entire body quivered at such a visceral image. If only it were true.
“No,” he spluttered. “Dair’s not like that. He’s not the possessive, jealous type. He wouldn’t be a dick about me doing something for work. Like I said, this is one hundred percent a professional thing. I wouldn’t be considering it for a second if I thought it really was a date.”
He meant that wholeheartedly. He had zero interest in being Mac’s boyfriend again. But if he was being honest, there was a part of him that wanted to prove to Mac that he’d made something of himself. Yeah, it was nice that Dair had been there pretending to be his gorgeous man. But Robin wasn’t so shallow as to just value himself on who he was dating. He wanted to show Mac he had succeeded incredibly well in his career.
Jay narrowed his eyes. “I’d still run it by Dair. If you’ve got nothing to hide, there’s no harm in telling him.”
“Sure. Of course I will.” Robin was getting annoyed by this conversation. Why wasn’t his brother believing him? “Not like it matters, anyway,” he grumbled after.
“Why not?” Jay scowled. “Look, all I’m saying is I know we’ve only just met, but I really like Dair. I don’t fucking like Mac, and I never have. Why would you risk things with Dair to prove a point to some asshole you left behind ten years ago?”
“Oh for goodness – it’s not real with Dair, okay! It’s fake.”
Jay stared at him. “What?”
Ava lifted her head. When her eyes finally focused on Robin, she glared. “What?”
Robin huffed and folded his arms. “Dair and I are just friends, okay? We live together with Pey, and when he heard about Mac and the whole reunion thing, he suggested pretending to be my boyfriend to keep Mac away in case he started any trouble. But there’s no trouble! Mac’s not dangerous. He’s obviously grown out of that shit, otherwise he wouldn’t have apologized. So there’s no reason for Dair to get jealous or worried. We’re not dating. He’s straight.”
Jay was looking at him like he’d just sprouted another head. Ava rubbed her eyes and scowled even harder.
“You lied to us?” she said.
“Only a little,” Robin squeaked. Damn it, he really wished he hadn’t said anything.
Jay shook his head. “He’s…no, he’s not straight, Rob. I don’t care if you guys are dancing around being official or whatever bullshit. But he’s crushing on you hard.”
Robin barked a laugh so hard it made his hungover head throb again. He winced and rubbed his hand against it. “Dude, no. Look, we are friends. We just stretched the truth a little in case Mac tried something. But it looks like that wasn’t necessary.”
“Mom likes him,” Ava growled.
Jay was nodding. “Yeah, if you concocted some sort of lie, whatever, not cool. Totally unnecessary, actually. But it’s also bullshit. I’ve seen you making goo-goo eyes his way-”
“I never said I didn’t like him,” Robin interrupted with a hiss. Embarrassed, he cradled his coffee mug for a second, regaining his composure. “But he’s totally straight, okay? I’m amazed you guys thought he could be my boyfriend. It would be impossible. But…look, I didn’t mean to hurt anyone. Please – please – can you just play along for the rest of the week? We’ll have a nice pretend breakup back in Seattle and no harm will be done.”
Jay and Ava glanced at each other. Ava grumbled something unintelligible and dropped her head back on her arms, hiding under a mountain of hair. But Jay pursed his lips and stared at Robin for several seconds.
“Fine. I’ll keep your little secret. But just because you guys aren’t really dating or whatever doesn’t mean I’m happy with you going to see Mac on your own.”
Robin huffed. He was slightly relieved his brother wasn’t going to let the cat out of the bag. That would be humiliating. But Robin was still irked by his suspicion of Mac.
“I will talk to Dair about it, I promise. But it’ll be fine, you’ll see. Mac’s changed.”
Jay hummed, but he didn’t say anything else on the matter.
11
DAIR
IT WASN’T Dair’s place to tell Robin this was a bad idea.
That being said, this was a bad idea.
He’d told Dair yesterday how Mac wanted to meet up to discuss some sort of computer issue for his work. Dair wasn’t sure precisely what Mac’s job was, other than being a salesman for some sort of home automation company. It could be a legitimate problem. But something was setting off Dair’s alarm bells all the same.
However, he wasn’t Robin’s actual boyfriend, obviously. If it were any of his other friends who were meeting up with a former abuser, though, he would still be wary. Just because Mac had said he’d changed didn’t mean he had.
Robin had made it very, very clear this wasn’t any kind of date, even going so far as to show Dair the message chain. Dair had assured him that wasn’t necessary – he wasn’t jealous, after all. He was just concerned. What did make him happier, however, was that Robin accepted Dair’s offer to drive him into town for the meetup.
“This is really kind of you,” Robin said as they got out of the truck, leaving Smudge inside for the time being.
Dair intended to walk Robin down the boardwalk to Sunny Side Up. As far as Mac was concerned, Dair was Robin’s boyfriend. The way Dair saw it, it wouldn’t be unreasonable for him to walk Robin to the door in order to remind Mac not to try anything funny. That was what he would have done if Malory had an unpleasant ex she needed to meet with for whatever reason.
Just as they got to the diner, Robin stopped and faced Dair. “Look. If it makes you feel any better. Mac was never an ass – I mean, he never lost control – never, uh…”
“Hit you,” Dair said as calmly as he could.
Robin cleared his throat. “Yeah. That. He never did it in public. So even if he was still like that – which I don’t really think he is – he wouldn’t try anything here.”
Dair narrowed his eyes and ground his teeth. “You don’t have to go inside,” he began.
But Robin smiled and touched his arm. “I’ve told you, it’s fine. It’ll give me closure. I want to see him and prove to myself that I did all right for myself these last ten years.”
Dair could have told him that and way more. Robin didn’t need Mac to give him approval. But Dair had never had an ex like that. So who knew? Maybe this was something Robin needed to do?
“Just…be careful anyway, all right?” Dair looked toward the magnificent lake and squinted against the sun. “I’ve got my phone on me and I think I’ll stay in town. So just call when you’re done and I’ll come collect you.”
“Oh, you don’t have to,” Robin said uncertainly. “I don’t want to be a burden.”
“You’re not,” Dair assured him sincerely as he looked back at him. “Besides, I’m your fella, remember? If I was really your boyfriend, I’d come pick you up. It’s my thing.” He winked, secretly pleased when Robin blushed.
“Okay, fine,” Robin relented, rolling his eyes. Then he looked through the window of the diner. “Mac’s watching,” he murmured, casting his eyes down.
Dair’s skin prickled. “All right,” he said practically. “Let’s remind him not to do anything stupid, then, shall we?”
If he couldn’t be there to physically sit between Mac and Robin, he’d leave Mac an image seared into his eyes. Let him know exactly who was on Robin’s side, should he do anything dumb like lose his temper.
Before he could second-guess himself, he touched his thumb to Robin’s chin, encouraging him to tilt his head up.
Then Dair leaned down and touched his lips to Robin’s.
It was an extremely chaste kiss. Nothing more than one mouth pressing lightly against another. But electricity shot up Dair’s spine. He tried not to jerk back in surprise and give the game away. Huh. It was the first kiss he’d had that wasn’t his ex in almost thirteen years. It was probably just his body reacting to the sensation on sensitive skin. Pure biology.
“Well, um, have fun,” he sa
id gruffly before Robin could pick up on his weirdness.
Robin blinked a couple of times, then nodded. “Oh, yeah, sure. I doubt ‘fun’ is the right word. But, yeah. Um, thank you.”
He scurried into the diner.
Dair caught Mac’s eye. He’d been watching them, naturally. But Mac smiled and gave him a salute-wave. Dair simply nodded at him, hoping it conveyed enough of a warning.
Behave yourself. Or there will be hell to pay.
There was nothing for Dair to do but walk away and leave them to it. He thought the hard part of this escapade would be trying to stop a civilian with no military training if a fight broke out. Not willingly leaving Robin with the very person Dair wanted to keep him away from.
He sighed. Without knowing how long he had to kill, he figured he’d better get a move on.
He had a plan.
While he’d been desperately trying to stay awake the previous evening, hungover and forced to watch a Pine Cove High production of Much Ado About Nothing, he’d had an idea. Unfortunately, it involved putting a considerable amount of strain on his credit card, but he’d made the decision Robin was worth it, so he wasn’t going to dwell on that anymore. Which was how he and Smudge ended up walking through the door of Turkish Delight for the second time in so many days.
There were a few customers currently being seen to by the barbers. But the guy they had spoken to before looked up from behind the desk. His dog, Pom, ran to greet Smudge excitedly. “Hello again,” he said in his soft voice. He crouched down without hesitation and fussed over Smudge as well as his own dog. Anyone who was kind to animals was okay in Dair’s book. “Can I help?”
“You don’t have room for a walk-in, do you?” Dair asked.
He felt a bit self-conscious – like a bull that had wandered accidentally into a china shop and was trying its best not to break anything. This place was way fancier than anywhere he’d gotten a haircut in his life. But that was why he was here.
The chairs were bright red leather and the walls naked white brick with bold, black decals of flowers painted on them. Each station had an enormous mirror hung at it with an ornate black frame, and black glass chandeliers hung from the ceiling. A local radio station was playing and Pom encouraged Smudge to help her chase tufts of hair around the wooden paneled floor. Spicy grooming products filled the air, and the lights were dimmed more than a usual salon, almost like a nightclub.
Dair was definitely out of his comfort zone. But that was okay.
If Mac was Robin’s type, Dair needed to sharpen up if he was going to do him proud at the big party on Saturday night. It was bad enough he’d been to the LGBT night and the play looking like a hillbilly. From now on, the people of Pine Cove would see Robin’s new boyfriend and hopefully be impressed.
“Absolutely,” the guy said. He stood up again and offered Dair both a hand and a warm smile. They shook. “I’m Taylan. This is my place. I’d be delighted to accommodate you.”
“Your place?” Dair asked as he allowed himself to be seated in a chair. The guy – Taylan – seemed kind of young to be a business owner. But then again, he was around Dair’s age, so early thirties. For people who hadn’t gone into the Marines, that gave them around fifteen years since high school to get their act together.
Taylan smiled as he stood behind Dair and looked at him in the mirror’s reflection. “My father opened Delight when he and my mother emigrated from Istanbul,” he explained while he played gently with Dair’s unruly hair. “Unfortunately, health issues forced him to retire early. But it was my joy to take over from him. I hope people think of Delight as a little escape from everyday life.”
“Like a sanctuary?” Dair suggested.
Taylan inclined his head. He was close to six foot, but he was slim, and his features were delicate and refined. Dair liked to think he was getting a reasonably good gaydar after living with Robin and Peyton, especially after his jaunt to the gay bar on Tuesday night. His military training had taught him how to read body language well. But he couldn’t make up his mind regarding Taylan.
“A sanctuary, exactly,” the barber agreed with a soft smile. “Modern life is so hectic. Everyone should get the chance to unwind and feel their best. So. Are you looking for just a shave, or may I please do something with your split ends?”
Dair laughed unabashedly. “Um, well, I’ve never even heard of a Turkish barber before, let alone been to one. What’s the difference?”
“It’s a very close shave with a hot towel relaxation, massage, and a couple of other quirks.” Taylan winked. “I promise, you’ll never have another shave like it.”
Dair nodded. “Let’s go for the full works, boss. I trust you. I’d like to look somewhat respectable again, if that’s possible.”
“Like a gentleman?” Taylan suggested.
Dair grinned. “Sure, why not. I’ve seen more impossible things in my time.”
Taylan rested a hand on Dair’s shoulder. “You undersell yourself. We’ll have you polished in no time. Now, just relax, and I shall work my magic.”
He held his hands up to wiggle his fingers. Pom barked, dancing around by their feet with her tail wagging. Smudge was looking at her like he’d found his first true love. Dair laughed.
To start, Taylan trimmed his scruff with an electric clipper so it was short enough for the proper shave. Dair watched in fascination as Taylan took care lathering up his fat round brush with shaving soap. Then he applied it to Dair’s face in a circular motion that already felt soothing.
“This is your first time having someone else do your shave?” Taylan asked.
Dair grunted. “You could say that.” His dad had taught him as a teenager, and then it just became something you did out of necessity. Not a luxury. Although when Taylan produced his straight razor, Dair couldn’t help but shift just fractionally in anticipation. He’d been in a couple of knife fights during his service, enough to leave him with the sensible impression that if someone came at him with a blade, he should stop them.
Taylan paused immediately, obviously sensing Dair’s hesitation. “I assure you, it’s perfectly safe.” He held the razor out for Dair to inspect. “The sheaths will protect you. I’ve been administering shaves since I was fifteen. But if you would prefer, we can wash everything off and simply stick with a haircut.”
Dair shook his head, the feeling of mild panic fading. He wouldn’t say he had PTSD from his time in the service, but every now and again something would catch him. He was fine, though.
“No, I’m good.” He smiled at Taylan. “Thanks, though. Let’s give it a go.”
After the first few scrapes to his neck, Dair was surprised how quickly he relaxed. Taylan flicked his wrist expertly as he removed both hair and shaving cream from Dair’s face. They were quiet as he worked, the radio playing softly in the background, leaving Dair to zone out into a sort of meditative state.
Until he heard his name called.
“Dair, baby! Fancy seeing you here!”
Dair cracked his eyes open to see Emery skip across the barbershop and drop into the empty chair beside him. He looked genuinely happy to see him, and Dair smiled as much as he could while someone had a blade to his throat.
“Hey, Emery. How’s it going?”
Today he was wearing full-length jeans, but his T-shirt was still a crop that read ‘Masc 4 Masc’ in extremely swirly letters surrounded by flowers. He pulled off an expensive-looking pair of sunglasses and bit the end of one of the arms as he grinned at Dair.
“Wonderful, thank you, darling. I approve of this.” He swirled his hand in front of Dair. “Taylan is a dream. You’re in safe hands.”
“Thank you, Emmerich,” said Taylan without looking away from his work. Now all the foam was gone, he wiped down Dair’s face and started buffering it with a hard block of some kind of white soap.
“So, where’s our lovely Robin?” Emery crossed one knee over the other and bounced his foot. “I hope you’re taking care of him?”
Da
ir sighed. He didn’t want to talk about Robin behind his back, but he couldn’t miss out on an opportunity to get an insight from someone who had known both him and his ex at school.
“He’s meeting Mac for coffee. Apparently, Mac needed some computer-related advice. Robin said he wanted to go, so…”
Emery huffed and flopped against the leather chair he was curled up in. “He always was a charmer. I was so fucking jealous of Robin when they first got together, you know?” He didn’t wait for Dair to answer. “Don’t get me wrong. Mac isn’t some brutish wife-beater. Not that I know of. It’s more that he likes to rough-house and doesn’t always think about who he’s with. But…” He rubbed his button nose and locked eyes with Dair. “When he and Robin were together, it was like everything was always Robin’s fault. I don’t know how to explain it better. Just a gut reaction, you know?”
Dair hummed in agreement. He wasn’t sure exactly what it was that put him on edge about Mac, but it was there, whatever it was.
“I don’t think too much can happen over coffee.” At least he hoped.
Emery nodded eagerly. “You’re a very understanding boyfriend, Alasdair. Do you like Alasdair, or should I call you just Dair?”
“Either’s fine,” said Dair with a shrug. Taylan appeared to be shaving him again, but this time against the grain. It felt kind of weird.
“Alasdair, I’m curious. Jay said you’ve never been with a guy before Robin. What’s that like, that moment of ‘ohhh’?” He placed a hand on his chest. “I’m pretty sure I flirted with the male OB-GYN that helped delivered me, so I never had to think about it much.”
“Oh, um.” As carefully as he could while Taylan finished up the second shave, Dair repeated the little story he and Robin had concocted about him being so clueless and not even realizing they were dating until they were literally on a date. That seemed to tickle Emery.
“So, would you say you’re bi or pan?” he asked Dair.
Dair blinked at him. “Uhh…”
Emery held up his hands, clearly going to explain. “Bi is attraction to all genders – male, female, nonbinary, all of that. Like, something you’re actively aware of. Pan is when you fall for someone and gender isn’t really a consideration. Like, you’re not really bothered what’s between their legs. You fall for them as a person.”
