Danny Doormat Read online

  A dirty glass sat in the sink, and he smiled as he grabbed one for himself out of the cabinet and filled it. After tugging his phone out of his shorts pocket, he pulled up the number and hit Send.

  “Hey! You home?”

  “Hey, Lane. Yeah, I’m back. Just got in. Thanks again for taking care of Min on such short notice.”

  “It was no problem, really. How’s your dad?”

  “Better. Like I texted, it wasn’t a heart attack, but we all got a good scare in the time it took them to figure that out, so I had to stick around while they did some more tests. Then, when we got home, Dad freaked and had to have all of us go to see Rabbi Shaul and another trip to the family lawyer to make sure his will was up-to-date and everything morbid was all planned out and explained to us. Then he wanted quality father-son talking time with me and father-daughter talking time with Becca.”

  “Wow.”

  “Yeah.” Asa chuckled. “Stoic and taciturn are not words anyone would ever use to describe my father. But since we live on complete opposite ends of the country, he wanted to make the most of my visit while he had me. I can’t blame him for that, and it was nice seeing the family, even if the circumstances could have been better.”

  “How was Florida, by the way?”

  “Sweltering… but really, Lane, thank you so much. You were a godsend swooping in so I didn’t have to worry about Min even for a second. I owe you, man.”

  “You’re part of the family, Asa. You know that. Even if Sean isn’t here anymore, we are, and nothing’s changed. Anytime you need it, you call.”

  Asa’s throat tightened, and he gulped some water before he said, “Thanks.”

  “You have to be tired after your flight and all that. Min’s been on a walk already, so go crash, and we can finish catching up on Sunday during the game, if we’re still on for that.”

  “Yeah, we’re still on. See you Sunday, and thanks again.”

  Once he’d ended the call, he finished his glass of water and headed for the bedroom. Minion trotted along behind him and settled into his dog bed on the floor next to Sean’s side of the mattress. After Sean’s sudden death, Asa had tried moving Minion’s bed to his side so they could be closer, but Minion had only slept on the floor where his bed used to be, so Asa eventually moved it back. Minion had always been Sean’s baby. They’d both had the wind knocked out of them by Sean’s loss, but they were learning to breathe again together.

  Asa kicked off his shoes and socks, tugged his T-shirt over his head, and stepped out of his cargo shorts. In just his boxer briefs, he stretched out on his side of the bed with a groan of relief. He sank luxuriously into his memory foam mattress and tugged the top sheet over his stomach while his legs and feet remained free to expel the last of the summer heat from his body.

  He’d been up since five that morning to catch his flight, and it was definitely good to be home.

  MINION’S BARKING woke him up what felt like only minutes later.

  “Min! Dude! Give me a break, will ya?”

  The barking stopped abruptly, but the doorbell started him up again.

  “Shit.”

  A glance at the clock told him he’d been asleep for more than an hour, but that didn’t make him any happier about being dragged out of bed.

  “Okay! Okay, Min, I got it. Someone’s here. Give me a sec.”

  He snagged his shorts off the floor because those were the first thing he saw. After traveling most of a day in them and his T-shirt, he didn’t relish the thought of putting them back on, but they were better than answering the door in his underwear.

  He’d barely stumbled out of the bedroom and buttoned his shorts when he heard the garage door open, which set Minion off again. Frowning and a little alarmed, Asa changed directions and headed toward that door, with his T-shirt hanging forgotten from one hand.

  It was too late in the day for it to be Anna, his dog-walker. Besides, Lane had said Minion had already been on a walk. He made it into the hall in time to see Daniel Dorfmann let himself into the house through the garage and bend down to greet Minion, whose tail wagged so excitedly his whole body shook with it.

  “Danny?”

  Danny’s head popped up, and his eyes widened behind his glasses. “Asa! Oh, hi. I’m sorry. I tried the front door but figured you weren’t back yet, since no one answered. I forgot I’d left my work apron and a couple of other things in the dryer when I packed up earlier, and the brewpub charges for lost uniforms, so I had to swing back after my morning job and get it before tonight’s shift.”

  Danny had looked flushed and sweaty when he came in the door, but as he stood up, his gaze dropped to Asa’s naked chest, and his cheeks got even redder.

  “Shit. Did I wake you? I’m really sorry,” he stammered as Asa continued to blink at him in confusion. “I’ll just snag my stuff and get going. Sorry.”

  Minion’s heavy, wet panting was the only sound for a few seconds while Asa tried to wrap his tired, sleep-fogged brain around why Danny Dorfmann’s apron would be in his dryer.

  Danny swallowed and his straight brown eyebrows drew together above his glasses. “Asa? Are you okay?” Then he rolled his eyes. “Of course you’re not okay. Dumb question. I was really sorry to hear about your dad. I tried to call you earlier to tell you how good Min was and the last time he went out and stuff, since Lane told me you were on your way back, but I guess you’ve got a new cell number.”

  “Yeah, I use my work one for both now so I don’t have to carry two phones,” Asa replied absently as the pieces clicked together. “You watched Min for me?”

  Danny’s frown only deepened. “Yeah, since Monday. Lane didn’t tell you?”

  “No. He only said he took care of it. I assumed he’d stayed here.”

  “I left a note on the counter by the sink, since I didn’t have your number,” Danny said quietly.

  Puzzled, Asa glanced toward the counter in question in case he’d missed it, but it remained empty. There hadn’t been any note. And why wouldn’t Lane tell him Danny was the one taking care of Min? He hadn’t seen Danny since the funeral, but Danny was Derek’s kid brother, and they were all longtime friends. Obviously, Asa wouldn’t have had a problem with Danny staying in his house. It sure as hell beat a stranger having to be called in.

  Shaking himself, Asa let it go for now. He’d ask Lane about it on Sunday. It might be a little weird and kinda shitty of him not to give Danny credit, but it wasn’t the end of the world either.

  “Sorry, I didn’t see the note. I honestly didn’t know he’d called you. Thank you so much for doing that, though. You have no idea how grateful I was not to have to worry about Min while I dealt with my dad.”

  “He’s okay, though? Lane said it wasn’t a heart attack last time I talked to him, but not much else.”

  “He’s okay. Thanks for asking. He got a little scare and some blood pressure medicine and a lecture about not getting too excited and stressing himself out, but he’s going to be okay.”

  Danny’s smile was sweet. “I’m glad. You don’t need any more stress in your life either, after, you know, everything….”

  Danny shifted and looked away, and the silence stretched a little awkwardly as Asa struggled to find something to say to that. Eventually Danny winced and cleared his throat. “I’m sorry I woke you. I’m sure you’re tired, and I should probably get going. If I can just sneak past you and snag my apron and stuff, I’ll get out of your hair.”

  “Oh, right.”

  Asa stepped back, and Danny squeezed around Minion to go into the laundry room. A moment later he returned with his apron and a couple of other clothing items and gave Asa another sweet smile. “Min was great. A little stubborn at the start, but he warmed up to our walks eventually.”

  “Yeah, I think my dog-walker may not be putting as much effort in as she used to. He’s getting a little chunkier these days, and I haven’t really taken the time to check up on her.”

  “She seemed nice. I had to shift her sche
dule a bit to fit my hours, but she was fine with it.” Danny worried his lip for a second before he shrugged. “Well, if you need extra help or someone to stay with him again, let me know. You still have my number, right?”

  “Yeah, if it’s still the same. I transferred my contacts from the other phone.”

  “Great. And I’m really glad your dad is doing better.”

  “So am I.” Asa gripped Danny’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “Thanks, Danny. I’ll definitely let you know. Hey, can I pay you for your trouble at least?”

  Danny’s smile fell a little, and Asa winced. “Don’t worry about it. We’re as good as family, right? We help each other out.”

  “Let me know if there’s anything I can help you out with sometime, then, okay? I owe you.”

  It wasn’t until he saw Danny climb on his bike and ride away that Asa noticed how tight Danny’s biking shorts were and how nicely Derek’s little brother filled them out.

  “Perv,” he muttered to himself as he hit the button to close the garage door and turned to go back down the hall. Minion looked up at him and cocked his head, and Asa chuckled. “Can’t blame a guy for looking, though. Derek’s baby brother is all grown-up now, I guess. He must spend a lot of time on that bike.”

  EVEN THOUGH Asa had taken his laptop with him to Florida, there had still been a lot of catching up to do at work after his little family emergency that wasn’t, especially since the whole possible heart attack thing had rattled him more than he wanted to admit. He worked late Friday and into Saturday to get caught up, so Sunday’s game day came around in the blink of an eye. Sean and the rest of the boys had started the tradition long before Asa had come into the picture, but they’d all worked hard to keep it going after Derek had moved to Seattle and Sean had—

  “Asa?” Lane called as he came in the front door.

  Minion’s woof and rapidly clicking toenails on the hardwoods echoed off the vaulted ceiling in the great room as he rushed to greet the intruder.

  “In here.”

  Lane came around the corner into the kitchen, bearing four large pizza boxes, with Minion eagerly following behind him sniffing the air.

  “Hungry?” Asa teased.

  “Walker’s bringing his boyfriend, or whatever, so I figured I’d get a little extra.”

  “Gary?” Asa asked as he pulled a beer out of the fridge and handed it to Lane.

  Lane opened it and took a swig before answering. “No. That was last month, I think. This one’s name is Matt or Mark or something.”

  “Busy guy.” Asa grinned before taking a pull from his own beer bottle, and Lane laughed.

  “Somethin’,” he agreed. “I don’t really bother to learn their names anymore until they’ve at least reached the two-month mark.”

  Asa busied himself with dumping a bag of chips into a large bowl before clearing his throat. “So how come you didn’t tell me you had Danny up here to take care of Min while I was gone?”

  Lane paused with the beer bottle an inch from his lips, and Asa cocked an eyebrow at him. With a shrug, Lane took another pull from his beer before saying, “Things got crazy at work, so I couldn’t really do it myself. I didn’t want to worry you with the details, since it was all taken care of and you obviously had bigger things on your mind.”

  “But if he hadn’t stopped by to pick up something he’d left, I never would have known to thank him. He would have been wondering why he didn’t even get a text from me. I haven’t talked to him in two years, and I have him do me a huge favor without even a thank-you? He would have thought I was a seriously ungrateful asshole.”

  Lane waved that away. “He knows. Besides, he’s family. That’s what we’re for.”

  “What who’s for?” Walker asked as he rounded the corner, carrying a half growler from his favorite microbrewery in each hand.

  “Danny,” Asa answered.

  Walker set his burdens down on the counter as he said, “Dork-man’s little brother?”

  “Yeah,” Asa replied, despite rolling his eyes at the childish nickname.

  Walker gave each of them a hug hello before he said, “I haven’t seen Danny since he helped me move in March. How’s he doing?”

  Asa sent raised eyebrows to Lane, and the man gave an eye roll of his own. “He’s fine. He just helped out with Minion while Asa went to Florida.”

  “Oh, that was nice of him,” Walker said, smiling. “You can always count on Danny in a pinch. Glad to hear it wasn’t anything serious with your dad, by the way. Tell him not to scare us like that again any time soon, okay?”

  “I’ll pass it on,” Asa said as he lifted his beer bottle in salute to that sentiment.

  “Where’s Mike?” Lane asked.

  Walker gave Lane a sour look. “His name is Alex. Try to wrap that pretty blond little head around it… and he’s parking the car. I think everyone on your street is having a party today. He had to roam far to find a space.”

  “Come on, let’s get this party started. The game’s on any minute,” Lane said as he scooped up the pizza boxes and headed for the stairs to the basement.

  “Keep your panties on, Famine. It’s only preseason,” Walker groused.

  Asa couldn’t help but smile at the bickering as he grabbed the chips and salsa and followed them down to the media room he and Sean had built in the lower level. In all the years he’d known them, Walker’s and Lane’s interactions hadn’t changed much. Even Sean, who’d been VP of operations at a multinational software firm, and one of the most intelligent and mature forces of nature Asa had ever met, had devolved into a sixteen-year-old boy whenever any of them were in the same room.

  But there was something to be said for familiarity and tradition. It helped when Asa still hadn’t quite settled from his scare at the beginning of the week.

  “I need to come up with something to thank Danny,” Asa said to Lane when Walker went back upstairs to find his date.

  Lane sighed. “You talked to him when he showed up, right? I bet you he told you he was glad to do it and you didn’t have to thank him, didn’t he?”

  “Well, yeah, but that’s what you’re supposed to say. He rode his bike up here from who knows where to help me out. The least I can do is get him something to show my gratitude.”

  “Look. I’m the one who called him in. If I promise to get him something to thank him, will you let it drop?”

  Frowning, Asa opened his mouth to point out he was the one who’d needed the favor, but Walker came down the stairs with his new guy, and the moment got lost during introductions, making sure his guest felt welcomed, and the game starting.

  It wasn’t until Asa helped a rather inebriated Lane into the guest room upstairs and found the freshly laundered sheets and blankets neatly folded on the end of the bed that he remembered they hadn’t really finished their discussion about Danny. He dumped Lane on the bare mattress pad and threw a blanket over him. The guy was way too big and heavy. Asa should have left him on the basement couch to sleep it off instead of risking carrying his drunk ass up to bed. He sure as hell wasn’t going to try to make the bed.

  They’d talk about it later, when both of them hadn’t had quite so many beers and didn’t have work in the morning.

  Chapter Three

  “TREVOR? ANYONE home?” Danny called as he wheeled his bike through the door.

  When no one answered, he breathed a sigh of relief. He’d taken the 6:00 a.m. to noon shift at Caught in a Lye Bagels even though he’d worked until midnight at the brewpub the night before, halfway hoping he’d miss his roommate completely for another day.

  After taking his bike to his room, he shuffled tiredly back to the kitchen in search of something edible in the fridge. It took only a glimpse inside to make him wince. Trevor had apparently been busy on his weekend off. A line of black tape now divided the refrigerator shelves down the middle, with everything on Trevor’s side neatly stacked and bearing his name. Danny’s side appeared even more empty by contrast. He had mustard, ketchup,
a mostly empty jar of banana peppers, a couple of cans of RedBull, and two takeout containers of indeterminate age that he wasn’t quite hungry enough to risk.

  With a sigh, he closed the refrigerator and moved to the cabinets, but stopped before opening them. He didn’t want to know if Trevor had continued the great divide into the dry goods.

  The silent warfare had begun the moment he’d gotten back from dogsitting for Asa over a week ago. First, it started with notes on the counter and in the bathroom, reminding him of utility bills or delineating any and every way Danny might have failed to live up to his roommate’s high standards that day. Then came the silent treatment whenever they were in the apartment at the same time. Danny had tried once to get Trevor to tell him why he was so pissed off, but hadn’t gotten anywhere, and he didn’t exactly look forward to trying again. Silence wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Still, having anyone, even strangers, mad at him felt like an itch he couldn’t scratch. He could rationalize it all he wanted. He could tell himself he was being stupid or they were being unfair, but it didn’t make the itch go away.

  He’d always been a sucker for a guilt trip, whether deserved or not.

  Even now, despite being tired and irritated with Trevor’s childishness, a small whiny voice deep inside urged him to cave and grovel, to apologize even if he didn’t know what he was apologizing for. For one crazy second, he considered having sex with Trevor again, or at least giving him a blowjob to get him to chill the fuck out, but he had enough pride that he shoved that idea back where it belonged.

  He hadn’t done anything wrong, not really. Maybe he should have called or texted instead of leaving the guy a note, but seriously, Trevor was only his roommate. They’d had awkward, moderately unsatisfying sex a few times, whenever one or both of them had been drunk and desperate for human touch, but that was it. They weren’t boyfriends. They weren’t friends. They were barely even fuckbuddies. Why did he give a shit what Trevor thought?