Page 105 of Whiskey Neat
Taking the microphone, I look at it, then my friends, the crowd, and finally Salem. Beautiful, surprisingly sweet Salem. The crowd falls silent in expectation, and all I can hear is my own breathing and the clicking of cameras.
“I’m not quite the public speaker Lowen is, but I’ll give it a shot.”
Salem wraps his arm around mine in support.
“Like Lowen said, I had this crazy idea. Jimmy’s meant a lot to us back in the day, and something about it called to me again. I was ready for a big life change, and I knew I couldn’t do it without these guys who have become my family.”
I turn my gaze to Salem.
“And because of that wild decision, I met this stunning angel beside me, who I’m going to spend the rest of my life loving.”
Salem gasps as his eyes turn glassy.
“I found my footing again,” I continue. “And most importantly, I’m excited about the future. I can’t thank you all enough for being here to support us tonight, and to my friends, Jerryn, Bane, Ridley, Kit, and Lowen—” My voice breaks and I huff through an emotional laugh. “You guys are the best friends a guy could ever hope for. Thanks for trusting me.”
They smile back at me with just as much emotion as I feel.
“Let’s do this, huh?” I nod at Wren, who hurries inside with the door propped open. “Welcome to the grand opening of Moby’s Bar and Dining.”
Wren flips the switch and the sign lights up brilliantly. We went with a whale, the water spray representing the colors of the progressive pride flag to make sure it’s real clear what kind of place this is. We also added a flag in the window to drive the point home.
The six of us arrange ourselves out front for pics, and then they highlight Wren and Florian too. I don’t know what kind of ‘small’ article this is going to be, but if I know Lowen, and I do, there won’t be anything subtle about it.
We follow the crowd inside, and within minutes, the place is filling up and there’s a line at the door. People laugh at the sign Ridley insisted on hanging behind the bar—No Whales, Just D. I stand at the bar, completely stunned.
A group of imposing men enter, heading straight for the bar. There are twelve of them, and as they pass, one of them pauses, his wild hair and penetrating gaze causing my stomach to tighten. Please don’t let there be trouble on our first night.
“Are you the owner?” he asks.
“Co-owner. Can I help you?”
“Nah. We just came in from New Onyx to check it out.” He extends his hand. “Thorn Orpheus. About time this sleepy town woke up.”
“Nice to meet you. Indy.”
Salem clears his throat, clutching my arm possessively.
“This is my partner, Salem.”
Thorn grins, reaching behind him to pull forward a sweet looking man with glasses. “And the love of my life, Kyson.”
“Your place is nice,” Kyson says, smiling softly. They make an odd couple but I can almost feel the love coming off them.
“Thanks. Enjoy the evening, huh?”
Thorn and Kyson rejoin their friends at the bar, and I glance around in near shock at how full the place is already.
“Holy shit,” Kit says, appearing next to me. “If this is a sign of things to come, we’re gonna be busy.”
“The social media posts I put out today were getting a ton of traffic.” Salem bounces on his toes.
“This is incredible,” Jerryn says, almost in awe.
“Gonna need some help here,” Florian yells as he and two other bartenders make drinks as fast as possible.
“On it,” Ridley says, jumping up onto the bar top.
“What is he doing?” Bane asks.