Page 15 of Saving You

Taking a breath, he shoved thoughts of his family away and hurried after Rex. The shop was a little boutique that had wedding dresses on one side and suits on the other. Oz had zero plans of ever getting married, considering the state of his dating life, and he didn’t have any friends close to walking down the aisle unless he was counting the single dad club…which he supposed he could.

He knew a couple of them were planning ceremonies, but no one had sent out save the dates.

Or he hadn’t gotten one if they had. Not that he’d made it easy for them to be his friend. And that was one of the things he was starting to wonder about. Was he making a mistake pushing everyone so far away to avoid getting hurt the way his parents hurt him?

His gaze scanned the room, and eventually, he found Rex standing beside a mannequin with what he was pretty sure was a new design. His small hands were petting over the lace, and the woman standing a few feet away was giving him a dubious stare.

She was obviously new.

“He won’t mess anything up,” Oz assured her.

She jumped and spun. “Oh. Uh…is he yours?”

That was always such an awkward question. He felt like a weirdo saying no because most people didn’t get what the fuck a Deaf mentor did. “I’m watching him,” he explained, then waved his hand to get Rex’s attention. When he turned, Oz signed, ‘This is a new employee.’

Rex’s eyes brightened, and he let the dress go, puffing up his chest. ‘I’m going to be a designer!’

The woman took a few steps back, and Oz fought off a bone-deep sigh. Why did it always come to this. Why did they always act like deaf was contagious?

“What’s wrong with him?”

“There’s nothing wrong with him. He’s Deaf,” he explained. “He’s telling you he wants to be a wedding dress designer.”

She cleared her throat. “I mean…that’s…should you encourage him if he can’t hear?”

“Because you need to hear to make dresses?” Oz asked, his voice tense.

She shrugged. “I mean, if he can’t speak with clients?—”

“Trust me, there are ways,” came another voice that Oz was pretty sure he knew. A second later, the tip of a white cane appeared, and after that, Bronx’s son stepped through the archway.

Rex adored Lucas, and he immediately hurtled himself at the young man, nearly toppling him over as Lucas fought to catchhim and not lose his footing. He laughed hard as he righted Rex and knelt down, offering both his hands out.

‘Do-do?’ Lucas signed.

Rex signed very carefully into Lucas’s palms. ‘Looking at dresses.’

‘Nice,’ Lucas answered him. He ruffled Rex’s hair. ‘Who’s with you?’

“That would be me. Oz,” he said aloud, then signed for Rex’s benefit.

Lucas straightened up as Rex bounced back to the lacy dress. “Oz?”

“Right here, man,” Oz told him, stepping toward Lucas’s outstretched hand.

When Lucas had his arm, he turned a little to face the room. “Now. Let’s talk aboutyourproblem,” he said, and Oz knew immediately he was talking to the saleswoman.

She stared at the two of them, unblinking. Clueless.

Oz snorted. “He’s talking to you.”

“Oh!” she said loudly, taking a step closer to him. “I’m sorry, sir.” She was nearly yelling, loud enough to make them both flinch. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Yeah, of course you’re one of those.” Lucas grimaced and turned his head toward Oz. “No one else is here, is there? This woman should not be around Rex.”

“No, but don’t worry. I’ll have Frey give Beth Ann a call.”

The saleswoman’s face paled. “I’m sorry, I’m confused. Why do you need to talk to the owner?”

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