Page 32 of Brush with Death
Cyril squirmed in his seat.“Not much.”
“Don’t bullshit me.”
Vale pressed his lips together so he wouldn’t laugh at Cyril’s offended expression.Eva knew her son.
“I’m not bullshitting you.You know I can’t work.”
“That doesn’t mean you’re nottryingto work.Come on.Be honest with me.”
Cyril squirmed in his seat and glanced at Vale.Vale pointedly looked away.Cyril was on his own when it came to his mother.Besides, Eva didn’t want to hear this from Vale.She wanted to hear it from Cyril.Vale thought she probably knew that Cyril had found a way to work, even though he was still healing.She was calling him out on that.
When Cyril smirked, Vale knew that he wouldn’t like what was about to come out of his boyfriend’s mouth.Cyril would do anything to distract his mother from the fact that he was working through an injury.Apparently, that included throwing Vale under the bus.
“We met a friend of Vale’s the other day, John.”
“Cyril,” Vale growled.
“What?He’s sweet and cute.I really think you should give him a chance.”Cyril turned to his mother.“John has been looking for work, so I mentioned that maybe Vale should hire him for his PI agency.”
“So you decided to open the agency?”Eva asked, turning to Vale.
She was smiling as if she was happy to hear that.She probably was.Vale wasn’t her son, but he was dating Cyril, and she wanted Cyril to be happy.By extension, that meant she also wanted Vale to be happy.
She didn’t know what Vale had done for a living before.He and Cyril had told her that he’d retired recently, that he didn’t have to worry about finding another job because he was comfortable when it came to money, but also that he didn’t want to stay at home the entire time.Vale had told her about the agency because he didn’t want her to think he was taking advantage of Cyril, but he hadn’t thought it would be brought up again.
He should’ve known better.At the very least, he knew Cyril.His boyfriend was squirrely when it came to telling his mother what he got up to.He didn’t want her to worry, so he’d never told her the dangerous things he’d been through recently.Vale understood why, but he wished Cyril wasn’t trying to distract his mother by using him.
He cleared his throat.“I haven’t decided anything yet,” he told Eva.“I’ve been talking to a friend who might want to open it with me, but he’s still working, which makes things a bit complicated.So far, everything’s still up in the air.”
“But you’ve already found your first employee.That should help, shouldn’t it?”
“I’m not sure I want to work with John.He can be unreliable.”Vale still didn’t like that John had taken the hit on his head.He hadn’t been the only one, but he was certainly the only one still hanging around.Vale didn’t know why John was still in town, and he didn’t care.He just wanted John to stay away from him.
He was pretty sure he wouldn’t get his wish.
“He’s young and needs guidance,” Cyril said.“I really think that the two of you would work well together.”
“Ithink I’d want to strangle him after five minutes.”Hell, probably less.These days, he wanted to strangle John as soon as he saw him.
“You’re being too hard on him.”
Vale was glad to be interrupted when they heard the skittering of tentacles on the floor.Eva lit up and turned in time to see Oscar coming into the kitchen.He made a beeline for her, raising his tentacles to be picked up.She did so without asking Cyril or Vale, who grimaced.Oscar may not have fur, but still.Was it necessary to have him at the dinner table?
Eva settled Oscar in her lap and stroked the top of his head.“There’s my good boy.Where were you?”
“The last time I saw him, he was snoozing in the clean laundry pile,” Cyril told her.
Vale groaned.“And you didn’t shoo him out?”
“It’s not like he’s going to get the clothes dirty.”
“He’s a pet, and I don’t want him sleeping on my underwear.”
Eva laughed.Vale did his best not to laugh, too, but in the end, he gave in.It didn’t really matter that Oscar had been sleeping on his laundry.Nothing beyond the smile on Cyril’s lips really mattered, and it was as bright as the sun.Vale would allow Oscar to sleep on his underwear every single day if that was what he wanted, as long as it made Cyril smile.
Chapter Eleven
––––––––
