Angels Camp - Chapter 1
Chapter One
It wasn't unusual to see Tommy Joe Ratliff sitting at a table in the far corner of the Gold Frog Cafe, at the intersection of Smith and Heights. Nor was it odd to see the blonde man with a book in his hands, cup of coffee directly in front of him to his right, cell phone to his left. What was unusual were the dark glasses that always stayed perched on his face, the extra large frames covering not only his eyes but a fair portion of his pale cheeks as well.
When people walked by, Tommy heard the faint whispers and offhanded remarks they made towards him, but being who he was, Tommy very easily ignored them.
So yes, being new in town had its disadvantages, one of them being how much people liked to talk. Tommy could already see, for lack of a better word, just how much the people in the small town of Angels Camp, California liked their gossip. For weeks now, Tommy had been the center of it. If it hadn't been for Tommy's sudden need for a change of scenery, and Cassidy's constant pestering that Angels Camp was just the place to get away to, Tommy wasn't sure where he would have ended up.
“Hi baby, you doing okay over here?” Cassidy Haley, best friend of Tommy Joe and one-half reason behind Tommy's uprooting to a new place, smiled down at the blonde man.
Placing the bookmark inside of his book, Tommy craned his neck up and smiled.
“I'm fine, Cass. Just like I was five minutes ago when you asked, and five minutes before that, and even five minutes before that.” Tommy teased.
Cassidy huffed.
“I'm just worried, baby, you know that.”
“I know, and I appreciate it more than you'll ever know but, let me breathe a little, okay?” Tommy asked, reaching out and grasping Cassidy's forearm.
Cassidy smiled at Tommy before leaning to press a quick kiss to his cheek.
“You finish your reading. I've got my work cut out for me with this new boy behind the counter. Cheeks he calls himself. Like, what the actual fuck?” Cassidy exclaimed, rolling his eyes and sighing.
Tommy chuckled and turned his attention back to his book, eager to see how it ended.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“So, what's his deal anyway? He your, ya know?” Brad Bell, or Cheeks as he wanted to be known as, asked. The wiggling eyebrows at Cassidy only made the older man seriously want to throttle him more.
“That isn't any of your business, Bradley,” Cassidy snapped, wiping down the counter in front of them.
“So, you are fucking him then?”
“Jesus fuck, no! You giant asshole! He's my friend, okay, my best friend.” Cassidy snapped, his eyes wide as he turned on Brad.
“Whoa, sorry. I didn't, Cassidy, I didn't mean anything by it.” Brad took an involuntary step back, his head bowed.
“Just, just don't talk shit about Tommy, okay? He's had the shit end of the deal lately and he's here for a fresh start.” Cassidy dropped the towel he was holding and slumped against the counter.
“A fresh start at what?”
Cassidy sighed as he turned to look at his friend.
“Life.”
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Tommy wasn't stupid. Nor was he deaf. Blind yes, which only made his hearing all the more attuned. Standing, he tucked his book under his arm, reached for his cell phone and turned in the direction of the front counter. He loved Cassidy, he did, but the older man sometimes needed to know when to just stop.
“Cass.” Tommy said, reaching out and grasping the counter in front of him. Luckily it had only taken him a week or so to memorize the layout of the small cafe. A few knocked knees, stubbed toes and bruised shins later, and Tommy could now make his way through the entire place without killing himself.
“Sorry sugar, Cass is in the back helping clean up a mess I made,” Tommy's head rose at the new voice.
“You're the new guy, right?” Tommy asked, tilting his head to the side.
“Not much newer than you are, pretty,” Brad chuckled. “But yes, I am. I'm Brad, by the way, but you can call me Cheeks.”
Tommy snorted.
“Why the fuck would I want to call you Cheeks?” The silence Tommy was met with worried him slightly.
“Oh, I like you!” Brad exclaimed and Tommy jumped when the other man, slightly smaller it seemed, literally wrapped himself around him in a fierce little hug.
“Bradley! What are you doing?” Cassidy's voice rang out loudly in the small cafe.
“I'm hugging my new friend, boss man.”
“Its okay, Cass. Brad was just...saying hello, I think.” Tommy said, smiling a little.
Cassidy groaned because this, this could only end in tears.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Adam Lambert, man of only twenty-nine, sighed. Times like this made him completely rethink the decisions he'd made in his life. The giant stack of papers in front of him only seemed to grow with each sigh, making the headache swell in Adam's head.
“Taking a break before your head actually does explode might be a good idea Adam.”
Turning around, Adam had to smile. His best friend of forever, Kris Allen, stood in the doorway of his office, pink frilly apron on over his clothes, a disapproving scowl on his face.
“I promise, baby, that if my head does actually explode, I won't make you clean up the mess, okay?” Adam said, smiling as he stood and moved past Kris.
“It's not funny, Adam!” Kris exclaimed, following the older man down the hall and into the kitchen. “You work too damn hard and you know it! When was the last time you went out, for a drink or a date or hell, even to eat? You need a break, is all I'm saying.” Kris finished, a cute little pout on his face.
Adam turned to face him, glass of water in his hand.
“You've only been here for a month, Kristopher, how do you know I never do any of that?” Adam asked, eyebrow arched in question.
“I've been your friend for years, Adam; I know when you aren't...living.” Kris said, sighing.
“Oh god, baby. I am living, okay? But right now I've got a bad case I'm working. I'd talk to you about it if I could. Just, this job isn't what I thought it would be. It's hard, time consuming, and Kris, it's heartbreaking.” Adam admitted.
Deciding to work with child protection sounded so much more glamorous when Adam was younger, when he was presumptuous enough to assume that what little he did could and would make a difference.
“You're killing yourself with this job, Adam.” Kris said, voice devoid of emotion.
“I'm-” Adam's eyes grew wide as he slammed the glass of water down beside of him. “Yesterday, I had to go into a home and take a child, a six year old little girl, from the only family she knew! The only life she knew! Because the one person who should have loved her, who should have cherished her and treasured every waking moment with her, was abusing her, Kristopher! She was six and he was-” Adam trailed off, suddenly sick to his stomach. “So no, I might not go out every god damned night and party like I used to, but I don't see how I can when the world is full of perverts like that one.” Adam turned and stalked off down the hall, slamming his office door.
Kris sighed. Maybe moving in with his best friend hadn't been the best idea he'd ever had.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Bad day at work, baby?” Kris asked his lover of three years as he crawled into bed.
“Actually,” Brad replied. “It was great.”
Kris smiled. Moving his boyfriend in with his best friend didn't exactly scream 'happy family' but so far, Adam and Brad had been getting along. If nothing else, maybe Brad's over-the-top self would open Adam up a little, help him to smile more, show him that yes, there was more to life than just his job.
Kris worried about his friend all the time. It was one of the main reasons he decided to move to Angels Camp, California. Being closer to Adam made Kris feel like he was home. Growing up in Arkansas, both he and Adam had felt trapped, out of place. And then Adam moved, a few years back, and Kris didn't, not at first anyway. It had been difficult, the separation from Adam, but in the end it only made the friendship stronger.
“And what did you do today?” Brad asked, hands working themselves under Kris' shirt.
“I-” Kris gasped, eyes rolling into the back of his head when Brad tweaked a nipple. “I showed the new guy around at work today.”
“Oh!” Brad gasped, sitting up in the bed, eyes wide. “You've got a new guy? What's his name? Is he single? Is he cute? Is he gay? What's his sign?” Rambly Brad was adorable.
“Yes. Cale. No. Maybe. I think so. And, how the fuck should I know?” Kris answered, still lying back in bed.
“Oh, you. You are no fun at all.” Brad pouted. “So, where's he from?”
“The next town over, I think. The garage he worked at closed down and luckily, I needed a new mechanic. I think Cale and I are going to be getting along just fine.” Kris said, smiling.
“Aww, my baby has a new friend!” Brad exclaimed, bouncing up and down on the bed.
“What are you, five?” Kris asked, laughing as he wrapped his arms around Brad and pulled him down on top of him. “So, I've got a new guy at work and so I think he's kinda cool. Doesn't mean anything.” Kris said, shrugging it off.
“Oh, I wish my boss were as cool as you are,” Brad said, sighing dramatically. “But alas, he hates me.”
Kris scowled.
“He doesn't hate you, baby. He just, doesn't know you?” Kris offered.
“Of course he doesn't know me, Krissifer! I've only just moved to town.” Brad pouted and Kris fought the urge to lean up and bite his lower lip.
“Don't pout, baby, you'll get frown lines.” Kris said, yawning as he spoke. “How about I come into work tomorrow on my break and meet this boss of yours? I think I should introduce myself anyway.”
“If you want to. And, okay, so Cass makes this blueberry danish cheesecake that is so going to make me fat but you have to try it!” Brad giggled, burying his face in Kris' neck.
“You'll never be fat.” Kris said, pulling Brad closer and holding him tight.
“Love you too, Krissifer.” Brad said before drifting off to sleep.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Tommy hated his life. It really was that simple. Being in a new apartment, in a new town, on a new street, he was trying to put together a new life, one that didn't include old boyfriends who intended to kill him.
First removing his glasses, Tommy carefully peeled off his hoodie and tee-shirt. The muscles in Tommy's body ached, like his injuries had only been inflicted yesterday. Flinching, he let his tired body ease down onto the sofa, the day’s events catching up with him.
Tommy had been in Angels Camp for nearly two months now, and while he knew with everything in him that a change in his life was a must, he felt like after everything, his life literally had no meaning anymore. What could an almost thirty year old man, recently blinded, have to offer anyone? As far as Tommy was concerned, nothing.
That was his story, or the beginning of it anyway. Being blind was new for Tommy, or mostly new now. He hadn't been born blind nor did he slowly lose his eyesight over the years due to a childhood illness. Instead, Tommy had his eyesight taken from him, stolen from him by the one person who was supposed to love him, the one person who should have loved him enough not to hurt him let alone endanger his life. For Tommy though, that hadn't been the case.
His partner, lover, the man Tommy thought he'd spend his life with, grow old and gray with, was the one to blame. The one who had taken everything from him and laughed in his face afterwards, claiming it was Tommy's own fault for being so damn stupid.
Tommy first met Drake Labry when he was twenty-three, Drake nearing twenty-seven. On his own for the first time in his life, Tommy had literally fallen into the arms of the first man who'd shown an interest.
An interior designer from upstate New York, Tommy was living the high life with Drake, or so he thought. The first few months of their relationship went like any new relationship did: the romance was there, the sex was hot, and Tommy was in love. He got to stay at home while Drake went to work at his office, leaving Tommy with the run of their loft apartment.
There were parties and clubs, openings of galleries, so many things that Tommy never in his life could have dreamed he'd ever be a part of. It was all thanks to Drake though, that he was a part of such a life and Tommy knew that.
It was incredible, as far as Tommy was concerned. Coming from a family who'd barely gotten by when he was a kid, living week to week on his father's paycheck, Tommy was pretty fucking sure that his life was perfect. For almost a year, Tommy was happy with Drake, and so in love he could hardly stand it. At twenty-three, Tommy had it all. Until it literally came crashing down around him.
Looking back now, Tommy knew he could kick his own ass for not leaving the very first time Drake hit him. But he was young and stupidly in love and Drake had seemed so sorry, promising that it would never happen again. Like an idiot, Tommy had believed him.
The second time Drake hit Tommy, it was over the stupidest thing. Dirty dishes in the sink. With the first hit, Tommy had nothing more than a small bruise on his cheek, this time however, Drake split his lip with the backhanded slap. When Tommy had tasted the blood in his mouth, he'd been stunned, shocked into silence as he wiped the back of his hand across his mouth, blood smearing. Drake had just sneered at him as he stomped out of the room.
After that, things only escalated. Drake's anger problems became more and more evident to Tommy and still, looking back on it now, years later, he wondered how he ever could have stuck around as long as he did. Things stayed that way for nearly three years; Tommy living in Drake's home, doing as he was told, cooking and cleaning, hoping he didn't upset or anger his lover.
They fought, like any normal couple did, but more often than not their fights ended in trips to the emergency room for Tommy. In three years, Tommy had suffered through a broken arm, fractured wrist, numerous broken ribs, a bruised collar bone, multiple black eyes and split lips, with the worst up until his final injury being a dislocated kneecap that hurt far worse than almost anything Tommy could ever remember feeling.
Their final fight, which had resulted in such severe head trauma that when Tommy had woken up he'd screamed bloody murder, begging and pleading for someone to turn on the lights, had taken place after a night out with friends. For once, Tommy had been having fun, enjoying himself even. It wasn't often he went out, by himself or with Drake and this time he'd managed to slip out of the apartment without the older man knowing.
That had been mistake number one. Number two came when he'd began drinking, not too much, but by the end of the night, Tommy had had three beers and two shots of tequila. Mistake number three was letting one of the cute boys at the club dance with him. Even with his thinking impaired, Tommy knew it was a bad idea because if Drake ever found out, the consequences wouldn't be pretty.
Entering the apartment well after two in the morning, Tommy had been as quiet as he could have been. It wouldn't have mattered anyway because the second he set foot through the door, the lights had flicked on and Tommy felt his stomach drop. With wide eyes, he'd looked up just in time to see Drake's fist come flying towards his face. Stumbling backwards, Tommy remembered catching himself on the door frame, trying to keep himself from falling to the floor.
There had been such hate, such malice in Drake's words as he shouted at Tommy, accusing him of cheating, of sleeping around and being unfaithful. Even as Tommy swore that none of those things were true, that he only loved Drake, the older man, who oddly enough wasn't that much bigger than Tommy, kept hitting him; blows to his face and some to his chest and stomach. It was the surprise of being pulled into the apartment that startled Tommy and caused him to trip and stumble into Drake. Unfortunately, that only seemed to anger his lover more. The next thing Tommy knew, Drake had him by his shirt collar, gripping it tightly as he swung him around and slammed him into the corner of the wall.
Darkness was all Tommy knew. It was all he'd known for years now, four years to be exact.
The lock of the front door clicking startled Tommy and quickly snapped him from his thoughts.
“Hey, baby.” Cassidy's soft voice called out.
“In here.” Tommy said, not moving from where he sat, eyes staring straight ahead.
Hanging his jacket up in the hall closet and dropping his keys by the door, Cassidy made his way into his apartment, the apartment he now shared with his best friend of forever, and his boyfriend of almost as long.
“Cale home yet?” Cassidy asked, slowly dropping down onto the sofa beside of Tommy.
“Yeah, he's-” Tommy answered, saying no more.
“Here, babe.” Cale Mills said as he came walking out of the back hall, a pair of sweat pants on and nothing else.
“For God's sake, Cale, put some damn clothes on.” Tommy snapped, his blank eyes never actually moving to look at the younger man.
“How did you...?” Cale asked, trailing off.
“I can practically hear Cass drooling from here. It’s sickening.”
“Tommy, I-”
“No, Cass. Not tonight. Take your boy and go somewhere else, because I'm not in the mood for another one of your talks, okay? It's been a long day and I'm just fucking tired.” Tommy sighed, letting his hair fall down into his face.
Reaching out, Cassidy gently placed his hand on Tommy's knee and squeezed.
“I just want you to be okay.”
Tommy scoffed.
“How am I ever going to be okay again, Cass? You tell me how I'm supposed to just be okay with all of this, with losing a part of me like I did, with being fucking blind, with staying with an abusive boyfriend of years, YEARS, Cass and letting him do this to me only to, to nearly lose my life again in a god damned car accident!” Tommy yelled, his chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath.
Cassidy pulled back, his eyes filled with tears as he looked up from Tommy to Cale. After everything, all the abuse, the blindness, it took Tommy being involved in a hit and run for the blonde man to finally see that he couldn't continue on like he was, living what he called a life.
“That's why we brought you here, baby. To help you, to let you heal. You needed a fresh start and I thought, we thought, that since this place has given us so much, I just, thought maybe it could help you too. But Tommy, baby, nothing is going to help you until you start helping yourself first.” Cassidy knew he sounded like a broken record but he was determined to keep on saying it until his friend believed him.
“I can't even fucking see to cross a street, Cassidy!” Tommy yelled, jerking his head around in his friends direction. “How am I supposed to help myself?” His blank, unmoving eyes staring straight at his friend.
Cassidy sighed. He honestly didn't have an answer for Tommy.
“I don't know yet, but we'll figure it out, okay?” Cassidy spoke softly, wanting only to calm Tommy down, not anger him any more than he already had.
Cale sighed, his hand resting softly on his lover's shoulder.
Tommy kept quiet if for no other reason than to keep from disappointing Cassidy. He was a lost cause and he knew it. If only the younger man would admit to it as well.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The best part of Adam's day was his lunch hour. It was the only hour in Adam's day when he seemed to be able to let his mind rest. Looking back on it now, Adam was sure that if he'd known what this job consisted of completely, he may not have perused it. Then Adam would look into the eyes of one of the kids he'd helped and all negative thoughts would flee his mind.
Today was different though. Today Adam was reaching out, trying to show that he was, in fact, living his life and that he could move past the desk in his office. As he stepped inside the Golden Frog Cafe, silently laughing at the name, Adam was almost overwhelmed by the delicious smell that hit him square in the face.
“Oh my god, as I live and breathe!” A high pitched shriek startled Adam. “Is that Adam Lambert I see, gracing me with his presence?”
Adam groaned, nearly toppling over as Brad jumped into his arms, legs around his waist, arms around his neck.
“Bradley! What are you...? Jesus Christ, you cannot just ambush customers like that!” Cassidy exclaimed, his eyes comically wide as he tried to pry Brad off of Adam.
“No, I-” Adam trailed off, laughing as he untangled himself from Brad's tightly wound limbs. “I know him, we kinda live together.” Adam explained.
Cassidy stopped, and taking a step back, cocked his head to the side.
“Oh, I'm sorry for you.” Turning, the cafe worker made his way back behind the counter.
Adam snorted.
“See,” Brad said. “He hates me.”
“Well, you aren't exactly everybody's cup of tea, now are you, darling?” Adam asked, his arm draped across Brad's shoulder.
“I'm a fucking awesome cup of tea!” Brad exclaimed.
“A sparkly one too.” A dry, sarcastic voice added and Adam felt his breath catch in his throat as he caught sight of the man who'd spoken. Blonde hair with faded streaks of black that normally would have had Adam scoffing and sending the poor man to the nearest salon, but instead had Adam wishing for nothing more than to be able to reach out and run his fingers through it.
“Thank you, baby,” Brad said, leaning down and placing a kiss on the strangers cheek. Adam smiled when his cheeks flushed a light shade of pink.
“Adam,” Brad said, a ridiculous smirk on his face. “This is Tommy. Tommy, Adam. Now, you boys play nice while I go make sure Cass doesn't hate me anymore than he did before.” Sighing dramatically, Brad turned and sauntered into the back room.
“Uh, hi,” Adam offered, not sure exactly what he's doing.
“Have a seat man,” Tommy said, a small chuckle in his voice as he pushed the chair opposite him out for Adam to sit in.
Doing as he was told, Adam sat, his hands nervously placed on the table in front of him. Of all the things he'd expected today, this was not one of them. Coming into the cafe to have lunch with Brad, sure. Meeting a gorgeous new stranger and sitting down with him to do whatever, no. Adam was fucked in this department because, as sad as it was, what Kris had said the night before was true. He'd spent so much time letting his job consume him that he didn't get out anymore. He didn't date or hang out with his friends. He just didn't do much of anything besides work.
“Dude, I can hear the wheels turning in your head.” Tommy said, a smirk pulling at the corners of his lips. “Chill. So, like our resident fairy said, I'm Tommy or Tommy Joe Ratliff actually, feel free to call me whichever, Tommy or Tommy Joe. If I hear the names TJ or Thomas uttered from your mouth, the consequences will be dire.” Tommy stopped and smirked, the black glasses on his face hiding the crinkles in the corners of his eyes. “So, you're Brad's roommate? How's that workin' out for ya?” Tommy asked, not sure why but needing to do something to get his mind off of the fact that he was seriously going to kill Brad later.
“Good. I mean, yeah. We've only been living together for-” Adam's eyes grew wide. “Oh, oh god no! Just, ew!”
“Fuck you, Lambert!” Brad's voice called from the back room.
“He's my best friend's boyfriend. They both live with me,” Adam quickly said, laughing.
Tommy nodded.
“So, are you uh, new in town?” Adam asked, knowing exactly how lame he sounded.
“I am.” Tommy said. “Moved to town a couple months ago. I don't exactly get out much though.”
“Yeah, I can definitely say the same,” Adam said, smiling.
“What are they doing?” Brad asked, trying to look over Cassidy's shoulder, and failing miserably.
“Talking.” The older man said.
“And?” Brad asked.
“And nothing, Bradley. They're just talking.”
“Fucking...gotta do everything...stupid idiots.” Brad muttered to himself as he turned back and tossed something into a large mixing bowl.
“What exactly are you doing?” Cassidy asked, turning and raising an eyebrow at the other man.
“Making the most fabulous cupcakes those bitches have ever seen!” Brad exclaimed, flour already covering his forehead.
Cassidy groaned, fearing for the safety of his kitchen.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Adam and Tommy both jumped, neither man having seen or heard Brad approaching their table.
“The best damn cupcakes you'll ever eat!” Brad exclaimed, flour in his hair and on his face, egg smeared down the front of his apron and something that looked like glitter covering almost every visible inch of his skin.
“What, what the fuck happened to you?” Adam asked, losing the battle and letting out a bark of laughter.
Brad stood, one hand on his hip, the other picking egg shells out of his hair, as he glared at Adam.
“We can't all be masters of the kitchen like my Krissifer, now shut the fuck up and eat my awesome ass cupcakes!” Turning, Brad stalked off to stand behind the counter, still watching them intently.
“I um, think maybe we should at least try them. If not, I think he might actually kill us.” Adam said, eyes moving from Brad to Tommy to the pink and purple sparkly cupcakes. That made Adam chuckle.
“What?” Tommy asked.
“That's what he's covered in, cupcake sparkles.” Adam sniggered.
Tommy just grinned but slowly and very carefully reached out for what he hoped would be a cupcake. Breathing a sigh of relief when he touched the sugary treat, Tommy lifted it to his mouth and took a small bite.
Adam watched in fascination as the other man bit into the cupcake, suddenly wondering how someone could take something so mundane as eating a cupcake and make it so hot. With a slight tremor in his hand, Adam grasped the pink cupcake, groaning as he did so, and brought it to his mouth. Taking a bite, he smiled. It was actually really good.
When his phone beeped, Adam nearly choked on the bit of cake still in his mouth. Swallowing painfully, he reached for his phone and pulled it out of his bag.
“Shit.” Adam cursed quietly, already fifteen minutes late for his meeting. “Tommy, I-I'm sorry but I've gotta go. I'm on my lunch break and sadly, it was over fifteen minutes ago.”
Tommy nodded, not sure what he was supposed to say.
“I um, I had a good time. Talking to you, I mean.” Adam said, nervously.
“Yeah, uh, me too.” Tommy said.
“Listen, I'll be back tomorrow. Same time and everything and maybe, maybe we could actually eat lunch together then? Instead of just cupcakes?” Adam asked, suddenly unsure of himself and hating it.
“S-sure, man. Lunch sounds good. I'm usually always here. I uh, live with Cass, he kinda runs the place.” Tommy said rather quickly, not sure what else to say.
“Oh.” Adam said, Tommy's words surprising him.
“No, dude, not like that. Cass is too fucking uptight for me.” Tommy said, smirking. “He's just my best friend, kinda like that Kris dude you mentioned. So really, lunch sounds awesome.”
Adam beamed.
“Great. So I'll, I'll see you tomorrow then.” Adam said in a hurry as he made his way quickly out of the small cafe.
“Yeah, see ya.” Tommy said, his voice suddenly cold. Removing his dark black glasses, Tommy rubbed at his tired eyes, silently cursing to himself.
“Well. Fuck.” Cassidy said, his eyes wide as he turned to look at Brad.
“This is good, right?” Brad asked tentatively.
“Honestly? I don't know.” Cassidy exhaled, sitting down harshly on a crate of canned blueberries.
Brad sighed and sat down beside of him.
“If it means anything, Adam is a great guy.” Brad offered, smiling a small, genuine smile.
“There are things about Tommy you don't know, Bradley,” Cassidy said softly. “Things I'm not sure he'll ever be able to talk about, not to me or anyone else for that matter.”
“Maybe,” Brad started. “Maybe Adam's just what Tommy needs. Adam is special. He helps people. It's kinda his job.” Brad said, completely serious for once.
“Maybe.” Cassidy sighed, his eyes closed, his head resting in his hands.
“Hey boss man, how about you take a break and let me run the front counter for a bit, okay? I'll yell if I need anything.” Brad said as he stood.
“Thanks.” Cassidy said, his voice muffled.
Brad shook his head. Things were about to get interesting.
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