Page 10

IT'S THE NAKED TRUTH

Knock. Knock. Knock.

With a quick sniff check, I verified I smelled like a fresh shower. I checked my t-shirt, ensuring I hadn’t stained it on the way over. I even put on a nice pair of jeans. After all, I wanted to impress.

The door swung open, and I was greeted by Simon in a button-down shirt and tie.

I had to do a double take to soak in the image.

The blue shirt had thin pinstripes and rounded his gut before being tucked into a pair of black pants.

He preferred suspenders over a belt, and I had to remind myself to blink… and not drool.

“I overdressed?—”

“No, no.” My t-shirts and jeans felt inappropriate. At least I hadn’t worn a shirt with a hole in it. “You look… amazing.”

“I didn’t know what to wear.” I had spent all day thinking about where to take him. Nothing I came up with warranted a tie. The suspenders, however, he could wear those whenever I was around. “I should go change.”

I reached for his hand. “Don’t worry.” Holding his hand, I didn’t care what he wore. If he wanted to toss on some daisy dukes and a crop top, he’d still be the sexiest man in town. I’d spend the night staring at him and following his tie to his zipper, but that would happen no matter what he wore.

“Who is it?”

A rapid thumping came from inside the house.

Simon stood aside, gesturing for me to come in.

A tiny version of Simon flew down the stairs.

I couldn’t help but look at Simon and then at his son.

I suspected if I had seen his childhood photos, he and Lucas would be twins.

The only difference was the circular glasses Lucas wore.

“Lucas, this is my friend Jason. He’s the owner of the comic book store.”

I noted the friend comment. I didn’t have time to focus on it as Lucas’s eyes lit up. When he gasped, I felt like the most important person in the world. People called me a geek or a nerd, but never had somebody looked at me with this much admiration.

“Your dad tells me you like comics.”

“He reads them to me. Do you have more? Do you own all the comics? What’s your favorite? I like the superheroes. I want to be a superhero when I grow up. Do you know any superheroes?”

The questions came out quickly. I couldn’t get in a word. Despite wearing his pajamas, he was anything but ready for bed. I pitied whatever babysitter had to wrangle this bundle of energy. Simon wrapped his arm around the boy’s shoulder, pulling him tight.

“I blame you for this.”

I dropped so we could speak eye-to-eye. “Think we can convince your dad to let you visit the comic store?”

Lucas tugged on his dad’s hand. There’d be no stopping the kid. “Can we? Pleeeeease.”

“I think we can manage that.”

Lucas gave a joyous squeal. “Which is your favorite?”

“I’m Team Sentinel all the way.”

Lucas shook his head, not caring for my answer. “Valiant has the cooler costume.”

“It is pretty cool.” I caught Simon smiling. It wasn’t my first time dealing with rambunctious kids. After giving a talk to a room full of third graders the day before vacation, Lucas didn’t scare me. “Now that you mention it, your dad kind of looks like Valiant. Think he might be a superhero?”

Lucas jumped back, looking at his dad. “Nah. He’s not a superhero. He’s just Dad.”

“I dunno. Seems pretty super to me.” I gave Simon a wink. “Did he tell you about the convention?”

Lucas stopped imagining his dad in a mask. That was one of us. His little head bobbled up and down. “Dad said people can dress up.”

I rose to my feet. “Absolutely. There’s a contest and everything. Think we can convince Dad to put on a superhero costume?” I’d pay money to see Simon in spandex. The fastest way into my pants was through my geeky heart. Him wearing a cape wouldn’t hurt.

I snorted when Simon’s face scrunched up. “Dad, can we? I can be Valiant. You can be Sentinel. We can fight crime together.”

I had opened Pandora’s box and there’d be no coming back. I’m sure I’d get a lecture for suggesting it. Thankfully, a knock at the door grabbed all our attention.

“Hi, Mr. Peterson.”

“Julie?” I had gone to school with Timmy, her older brother. I barely recognized her after all these years. “It’s been ages. You haven’t graduated yet?”

She had a bulging backpack clutched against her chest. “Senior year. If I don’t pass physics, it’ll be my first senior year.” Mr. Valente. I remember his class well. If it weren’t for his pity, I would have never passed.

“Okay, lil buddy.” Simon swooped down, picking Lucas up. The strength in those arms made me shiver. “Julie’s going to watch you tonight. You’ve got an hour until bedtime. Are you going to behave?”

His head shook back and forth.

“What if we get some ice cream tomorrow?” Good to know he wasn’t above bribery. Lucas’s head changed direction, now quickly nodding. “If Julie says you behaved, we’ll get ice cream tomorrow.”

“Julie, do you like comics?” As Simon set Lucas down, my heart swelled.

Once upon a time, I had been Lucas. I was about his age when Mom bought me a stack of comics to keep me quiet on a long car ride.

I had gone from being a reluctant reader to picking up anything I could get my hands on.

Knowing I could make a difference for a kid… pure joy.

I couldn’t help but smile. Julie looked from Lucas to me. “This is your doing, isn’t it?” Did all teenagers have the ability to judge and not care at the same time? Too bad. I’d take this victory.

“Yup! Just wait until after the con. Every kid you babysit will be demanding you read them comics.”

“I’ll be there.” The statement lacked any emotion. When I said nothing, her body language shifted. “Mrs. Sampson is giving us extra credit if we attend. I figure, why not? How bad could it be?”

“Your unwavering support is appreciated.” She gave me a salute, missing the sarcasm. I made a mental note to reach out to Mrs. Sampson. If the teachers were on board, then I could expect Firefly’s teens to be in attendance.

Lucas grabbed Julie by the hand. “There’s this guy. He flies and has a really big axe. Oh, he shoots lightning, too.” He led her into the living room, where she plopped down on the couch. An hour to bedtime? I somehow didn’t think that’d happen.

I gestured out the door. “After you, good sir.”

I closed the door behind us, watching his ass as he stepped off the porch. When we reached the driveway, I felt embarrassed at the state of my truck. Here he was, dressed to the nines, and not only did I look like a bum, but I was going to drive him around in a rusted pickup truck.

“This yours?”

I debated stealing Julie’s car and claiming it as my own.

The truck’s passenger door whined as he pulled it open.

He climbed into the cab without a word. I followed suit, noting his dress shirt and tie, which looked out of place with the torn seat and busted glove box.

I grew self-conscious. At least I had done a quick cleaning before I came over.

“Don’t judge,” I said. “Mom sold it to me after Dad gave up his license.”

“This is a judgement-free zone.”

“Dressed up like that, you’re raising the truck’s value.” When I turned the key, the truck rumbled to life.

“Are you sure I’m not overdressed? Maybe I should change. Yeah. Let me go change.”

If clothes were the issue, I knew how to nullify the disparity between us.

I popped the truck in reverse and rolled down his driveway.

“Too late now. I’m going to show you how we have a good time in Firefly.

” As we hit the road, I couldn’t help but tease him.

“Besides, you won’t be wearing them for very long. ”

“Is this where you murder me?”

“Nah. You’re too cute for that.” We hit a bump in the road, tossing us about the cabin.

We had left the pavement and, for the last five minutes, driven down a dirt road.

As I turned off the dirt road, the power lines vanished.

We had left civilization and entered the wilderness of Maine. “We’re almost there.”

“I thought we’d be driving around town.”

“That’s for tourists. You can see the town anytime. You need the real Firefly experience.” I reached behind his seat while using my knee to steer the truck. Pulling out a couple of towels, I set them between us.

“You’re not helping your murder defense.”

I laughed. “I shouldn’t mention I keep a shovel in the back?

” It amused me to no end that for the locals, this wouldn’t raise a single red flag.

Flatlanders and their need for safety, it bordered on adorable.

The sinister thoughts in my head had less to do with murder and more to do with getting Simon out of those slacks.

“Do you want the legend or the reality?”

“Curiosity piqued. Give me the legend.”

I appreciated his sense of adventure. “Firefly is known for its lumber industry, at least back in the day. Little known fact, we were also known for our rocks. They would mine these giant holes in the ground and then move on. Years ago, there was a drag race?—”

“Firefly had drag racing?”

I gave the engine a rev. “We’re wild people. What the guy didn’t know, the finish line was just before a quarry. He thought he was winning the race but drove his car into it.”

I slowed the truck as the tree line opened to a wide area. I popped the truck into park and opened the driver's door. The dome light revealed his confusion.

“Fun fact. There’s a car at the bottom of the quarry.”

“So, it’s not a legend?”

“Oh,” I laughed. “That’s the truth. The legend is, his ghost still haunts the place.”

I flipped the brights on and got out. Standing in the beams of light, I waited for the familiar whine of the door.

I gave him props for his bravery. At this point, we were little more than strangers, and I did just bring him to the middle of the woods.

I had seen plenty of horror movies that ended like this.

“Such a city boy,” I joked.

“Hey! I could be a rugged country boy.”