Home > Kian's Focus (Brigs Ferry Bay #2)(9)

Kian's Focus (Brigs Ferry Bay #2)(9)
Author: Misty Walker

“Definitely. He’s a planner. You should see our staff meetings. It’s ridiculous.” The first real smile I’ve seen since I got here creeps across her lips. She likes Kian too.

“Maybe I shouldn’t go. You probably need help with the kids anyway.”

“Oh, no. You’re not canceling on my boss last-minute. You made your bed.”

“Uncle Archer doesn’t make his bed. It’s always messy,” Lou comments.

I ruffle his hair. “It was a figure of speech.”

“I no wanna make my bed.” Emmy pouts.

“Everyone will be making their bed. Even Uncle Archer.” Sara pins me with a glare, like I better not argue.

“Your mom’s right. We all need to do our part to keep this house looking nice.” I kiss both kids on the head. “I’ll see you guys later, okay?”

“Okay,” they chirp in unison.

I leave out the door and decide to walk to Kian’s condo instead of drive. Sara lives in a housing development on the southwest side of town next to the elementary school, but nothing in Brigs Ferry Bay is far away, so it’s barely four blocks to the waterfront condos he told me he lives in. Which is also right next to the fishing pier, so I know I won’t get lost.

The morning air is cool and I wish I’d grabbed a hoodie, but I know by afternoon the sun will warm things up enough for me. After working in Alaska for so many years, I don’t tend to chill easily. Ten minutes later, I’m taking the stairs up to the second level and then finding unit two-ten.

I hear music on the other side of the door, but even louder than that is Kian’s singing voice. He’s listening to some pop song I’ve heard on the radio, but don’t know the title. I chuckle and listen for a few seconds before beating my knuckles on the paint chipped door. This place could use some updating.

The music stops abruptly, the door flies open, and Kian appears. He’s wearing a wool knit sweater with leather elbow patches, tan slacks that are cuffed at the ankles, and shiny brown shoes with a square toe and no socks. He has way too much style for such a sleepy town, but I like it.

“Good morning. Come on in,” he greets me with a huge smile.

“Nice place.” I walk into a large open floor plan I wasn’t expecting for such an older complex. The walls are a pale teal textured wallpaper and the floors are done in gray, wide planked wood. His furniture is tufted light gray leather with a modern white coffee table, and a large white bookcase. The kitchen looks brand-new and is clean. Really clean. I doubt you could find a stray coffee ground anywhere in there.

“Thanks. I just remodeled. It seems like there’s a ton of developers just itching to knock down all the old buildings around here and change them into tourist attractions. I figured if I updated this place, I’d have a leg to stand on if they try to buy out this building.”

“Is that a possibility?”

“I don’t know. With the new B&B, there’s been talk that Dante will want to expand into other developments around town.”

“Dante?”

“You probably haven’t met him. He dresses in thousand-dollar suits and walks around like he has a stick up his ass. Or maybe it’s my ex-boyfriend’s dick that’s up his ass. Whatever. Same thing,” he mumbles.

“You hate him because he’s with your ex?” Suddenly, I don’t like either of these men. Dante, out of solidarity and Jax, because what kind of guy wouldn’t want Kian? He’s cute and kind. He helped my sister out with a job when she needed it. I’ll always be grateful to him for that.

“No. I hate him because he wants to change things around here. The fact that he’s dating Jax is just the cherry on top.”

“That sucks.” I don’t know what else to say. That was too much information.

“It’s fine.” He waves my comment off. “Anyway, ready to go? We’ve got an agenda.” He pulls out his phone and shows me a list.

“I thought this was a casual stroll through town.”

“You don’t know this about me yet, but nothing is casual with me. Now come on. We’ve got places to go and people to meet.”

“Okay. Let’s do this, I guess.”

We start out walking past the fish market where we sell our daily catch, Fran’s Coffee Shop, and Beacon Island Gifts. Kian chatters on about who owns what and who to avoid. There’s no way I can keep up, so I nod and let him yammer on.

We turn up on Main Street and stop for a coffee at the Seaside Café. It’s cute and obviously there for tourists because little trinkets no local would want line the entrance. I order a black coffee and Kian orders some kind of citrus tea.

Drinks in hand, we continue our tour.

“This is the Daily Harald, owned by Paul. Stay away from him unless you want to make the front page with some kind of headline like, New Guy in Town, What’s He Hiding? or something equally annoying. It’s more of a gossip tabloid than a real newspaper,” he grumbles. Without taking a breath or giving me time to figure out if he’s being serious or joking, he continues, “Across the street, you’ll remember my wine bar and club, Focus and Blur. I’m a little biased, but I like to think we’re the shining star of Brigs Ferry Bay.”

His prideful smile and the way his chest puffs up is cute. It reminds me of the way I felt when Adler, Mason, and I bought our boat. The world felt like our oyster, or king crab, since that was our currency.

Things can change so quickly. But I won’t bring it up and rain on his parade. Not everyone’s stories end as tragically as mine.

“You’re kinda young to own two bars, right?”

“I’m not that young. I turn thirty next month.”

“You’re a baby. I’m forty and have nothing to show for myself. You should be proud of all you accomplished.”

“Age is just a number, old man. But you’re right. I am young. I inherited some old money when my parents passed. When I turned twenty-five and this building went up for sale, I guess I thought why not? This may come as a surprise, but I’m gay.” He watches for my reaction before finishing his thought.

“I knew that.” I chuckle.

“Just being transparent.” He tosses his empty coffee cup in a metal trash bin on the sidewalk. “Anyway, there weren’t many establishments for the younger gay community. So I decided to change that. We’re open to anyone, obviously, but I made sure everyone knew we are gay friendly.”

“That’s commendable.” I still haven’t disclosed my sexuality. I’m not embarrassed. I’ve been out since I was a teenager. I guess I’m worried once he knows, this mild flirtation between us will amp up and I need a friend right now, not anything more.

“I’m proud of it.”

“What’s with all these rainbows painted everywhere?” I point at a vandalized building.

“Oh, that’s just the Rainbow Vigilante.”

“The what?”

“We don’t know who does it, but every now and then a new rainbow pops up. Although he’s been quiet for a while.” He appraises a colorful painting on the side of one of the buildings.

“I kind of like them. They’re cheerful and fun.”

“And destruction of private property,” I add.

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