15. Chapter Fifteen

“Good morning, boys, you’re up bright and early.” Up early? I didn’t sleep, not even after an orgasm which usually helped. I was nervous as fuck. Under the table, Reagan gripped my knee to keep my leg from bouncing. “Is everything all right, Josh?”

“He’s fine, Mom. We wanted to talk to you about something.”

She poured herself a cup of coffee and took a seat. “Okay boys, spill it.”

Reagan took a deep, steadying breath. He was the epitome of calm while I was on the verge of hurling. What if she rejected me? “Josh and I have reached a point in our relationship and we’re ready to take the next step and live together.” Becky’s face fell though she quickly righted it.

“I knew this day would come. I’ve loved having you here, Reagan, but I’m happy you found your soul mate.”

“Mom, we want to know if Josh can move in here with us.” She perked up and I finally breathed a sigh of relief.

“On one condition.”

Uh oh, here it comes.

“Name it.”

“Glad to hear you speak up, Josh. I’d like to build a tiny house in the back yard for me. We could still cook together in the big kitchen, so I’d just need a little sink, mini fridge, that sort of thing. But I’d like to have my own private space. Nothing against you boys but it would be nice.”

“Seriously?” Did I hear her right? No conflict with me, just wants a little space for herself. And we’d still get to eat together. Count me in. “Consider it done.” Oh shit, was I supposed to reply for both of us?

“See, you worried for nothing.” Freaking Reagan, always right but I had to admit, it was one of the many things I loved about him.

“You boys are gone more than you’re home and with the rockstar hitting the road,” Becky winked at me, “I’ll still be the only one here. Reagan, I put the house in your name when I paid it off so it’s yours to do with as you please. Maybe you boys can combine a couple of the bedrooms and make yourself a nice master suite. After my little casita is done first, of course.”

“Of course, Mom. I need to find a contractor for a couple of things at the bar. I’ll ask about residential work, too. We’ll need to have plans drawn up and pull permits for the tiny house, but from what I’ve read the city has approved many of those.”

Stunned. Shocked. Afraid to speak for fear of fucking it all up.

Don’t speak to me. Don’t speak to me. Don’t speak to me or I’ll…

“Sweetheart, are you all right?” That’s all it took. Those four simple words from Reagan and I turned into a giant crybaby. What the fuck was wrong with me? Hard ass Josh had been flushed down the toilet and replaced with a pussified one. Having Reagan and Becky both wrap their arms around me only intensified the tears.

“All right, son.” Becky had no idea the effect that word had on me. “You want to tell us what that was all about?”

Where did I begin?

“You guys hardly know me yet you’re so nice. You’ve invited me to live in your home, feed me. I’m just not used to it, and I keep waiting for the inevitable you’re worthless, get the hell out to come.” That was the highlight reel of a long list but I’d shared enough.

“Oh, honey,” Becky squeezed my hand. “My boy is in love with you, and he’s never given his heart before. Reagan trusts you, and so do I. And unless you do something to lose that trust, it will always be there. You’re important to my boy which makes you important to me.”

Never in my life had I met anyone as genuine as Becky and Reagan. Truly selfless humans and up until my path crossed theirs, I’d all but given up on humanity. Hell, I’d nearly given up on life itself then everything changed with what I’d already determined would be my final audition.

Was it possible the gods finally gave this battered and beaten pessimist of a man a break? It sure would be nice to know that bastard that fathered me was wrong and that I could be loved.

“So,” Reagan waited until I lifted my head and our gazes met. “You in? Ready to be a part of the Mills Family?”

“More than you know.”

Reagan cupped my face. “I love you, Josh, and I’m here for you however you need me to be.”

“We both are,” Becky added.

“I love you, too.” Reagan kissed me in front of his mother with zero resilience or fear of how she’d react.

Family.

I finally had one of my own.

“Now, who’s cooking breakfast?” Becky asked and broke the spell with her silliness.

“That’s our cue, Rockstar.”

Seems I had a new nickname and I had to admit, it felt pretty fucking awesome to hear. “Show me what to do. I can learn.”

“And learn you will, my young Padawan.” I loved how Reagan had the ability to pull me out of a funk with something as simple as a reference from one of my favorite movies. Together we managed not to burn the scrambled eggs, thanks to Reagan. I was on toast duty. The bacon was a perfect mix of crispy and soft. Again, no thanks to me, but I did help plate the food. Then as a family, we sat down to breakfast. So many firsts for me this morning so I decided to restart and consider today the first day of the rest of my life. No more meh, just another day for me mentality. I planned to make the most of every day from here on out with Reagan by my side.

After breakfast, Becky went into the office to start her workday while we cleaned up. “Um, when do you want me to start bringing my stuff over?”

Reagan reached into his pocket, pulled out a key and handed it to me. “How’s tonight sound? If you’ve got nothing going on you can do it while I’m working, or we can do it together when I get off?”

I knew Reagan didn’t want me staying at the apartment anymore. While I wasn’t totally bothered with being there, hell, I’d lived in worse places as a kid, I was ready to start our new life. “Together.”

“Together it is then. See you at the bar later?”

“Yup.” With a tender kiss goodbye, we were off to start our days.

I stopped off on the way home and bought boxes and tape. Only a handful of items in the kitchen were mine, then I had my clothes, cords, pedals. A few oddball items and once they were packed and the boxes stacked in the living room, I started the cleaning process. I’d shot off an email to the landlord to let him know I was out at the end of the month. With the music playing and occasional air guitar moments, I lost track of time. It was when my stomach growled, I finally glanced at my phone and saw the time and a text from Reagan.

Reagan: Want me to bring food with me after work?

Me: Nah, I’ll be up in a few.

Reagan: Sweet, see you then.

I loaded up as much in my car as would fit in case the looky-loos that saw me bring the boxes in decided to poke around. Plus, it would be faster to load the rest in Reagan’s car when we got back and got the fuck out of here. A shower could wait. Food first and to see my man. How quickly my life had changed for the better and I’d never been happier.

“Hey, handsome,” Reagan greeted me with a quick kiss. “Bar is hopping for a Monday.”

“No kidding.” Nearly every seat had an ass on it. “Where do you want me?”

He brought a stool around from behind the bar and set it next to the opening he popped in and out of. “Right here.” With another quick press of lips, he got back to work. Seconds later, I had a drink in front of me.

“You spoil me. Better watch it, I might get used to this.” I winked as I took a sip.

“I fully intend to spoil you, sweetheart.”

Filled to the fucking brim. Every inch of my body thrummed with the sweet sensation of what love was. Corny much? Hell yeah, and I intended to bask in every fucking moment of it.

But as I sat there eating it dawned on me how hard Reagan and his team worked. “Hey, man,” I stopped Daniel, “what can I do to help?” Never having held a real job, I wasn’t sure what I could do without fucking up, but I was more than willing to try.

“Come around the back of the bar. We need to get a handle on these glasses. I’ll show you what to do.” Simple enough, got it on the first try. Had I not, I’d have smacked myself upside the head.

“I don’t remember seeing your name when I ran payroll.” Reagan smacked my ass as he walked past. “What gives?”

I shrugged. “Wanted to help out. Felt bad you guys are working your ass off while I sat there.”

“You’re a paying customer.”

“I’m the boyfriend of the owner which to me implies…” My jaw dropped as two familiar bodyguards came in before Joey and Stoli did. “You guys slumming it?”

“Hey,” Reagan snapped a towel at me. “Boyfriend. Owner.” Joey and Stoli smiled at us, enjoying our playfulness. Their two guards, that was a different story as they worked to keep the growing crowd back.

“Wanted to see the place. Google stalked Reagan and landed here. Have a couple ideas for us to chat about if you can break away from dish duty.” Stoli, ever the smartass. A couple stools cleared at the bar, or maybe their guards cleared them. Made it easier for them to keep an eye on things with Joey and Stoli seated in a stationary area. Was this what I had to look forward to? Losing a portion of the freedom I’d only recently come to enjoy?

“Anything to drink?” Reagan asked, already pouring me a fresh one.

“I’ll have a beer. Whatever IPA you have on tap,” Stoli ordered.

“Same.”

“Anything for the guards?”

“Nah, they’re in Hulk smash mode right now so I don’t want to distract them.” Stoli was no petite femme which made those words twice as funny. Was he stacked with muscle like the guards? No, but he and Joey met them in height. I was a fucking munchkin beside them, and I stood around five-ten and Reagan only beat me by an inch.

“Wanna talk here or in private?”

“Private once,” Stoli paused and glanced around, “if the crowd dies down. What time do you close?”

“Midnight.” Reagan looked at his watch. “In like twenty minutes. Usually, the crowd is nearly gone by now but I’m guessing our guests of honor are the reason they’re still here.”

“Yeah, with fame your anonymity goes down the toilet. We’ll shoot the shit, drink our beer, and wait for the doors to close if that works for you?” Stoli took a drink. “Unless you lovebirds had plans.”

“Just moving some boxes I already packed.”

“Shacking up?” Stoli, so blunt and to the point, and even knowing that I still blushed.

“Something like that.” We talked while Reagan and his team funneled the mass of bodies out at closing time. Went over the schedule Sal and Jeremiah sent and as mentioned, we’d kick off a couple shows in Vegas after Christmas. Then down to Arizona, LA, and back up to Seattle. The month of December would be spent in a whirlwind of studio time and practice.

“You mentioned having a bunch of songs ready. Tomorrow I’m sure you’ll be unpacking and settling in so why don’t you and that fancy notebook of yours head over Wednesday around noon and we’ll run over them. If that’s okay with you? I know our beloved notebooks are the keys to our souls and I’ll understand if it’s too soon for that.” Stoli meant well but he was right, that’s a leash that’s hard to pull back on. But given the positive steps our relationship had taken I wasn’t about to be the cause of a setback.

“I’m good with that. Now that the bar’s empty, wanna tell me what your surprise visit was really for?”

Unspoken words passed between Joey and Stoli before Stoli spoke. “I was thinking maybe you and I could do an acoustic set here to drum up some business and blow up Chaotic’s social media.”

“That would fucking do it for sure.”

“You up for it, stud?” Stoli teased. “And is Reagan okay with that? Not gonna lie, we’ll handle the extra security, but you’ll probably need a dozen hands on deck staff wise at minimum.”

Reagan was all smiles. “Hell yeah, I’m good with it, just give me a couple of weeks’ notice if possible so I can make sure we’re not only fully stocked and loaded, but that hotel management is ready for the onslaught, too.”

“Deal. Meanwhile, Joey and I will get your man prepared to release his first album. I’m thinking maybe the week between Christmas and New Year for the show here.”

“That’s usually a light week for us, though these last few months have been insane. Pick a date and let me know and it’s yours.” Reagan was just as excited as we were. My heart pounded inside my chest. Stoli had my success, Chaotic’s success at the forefront of his mind. He could make all the decisions he wanted, and I’d happily follow. Stoli was far more in tune with this business than I was, and I had a hell of a lot to learn from him.

“In the meantime, Joey, Mickey, and I will get Chaotic through their studio time. Tour kicks off the first week of the new year so buckle up, boys, life as you know it will never be the same.” Stoli’s words, while laced with enthusiasm, held a cryptic undertone.

I knew without doubt my life would never be the same. I only hoped it didn’t become too much for Reagan and he tapped out.