I raise an eyebrow because a little put off is a huge understatement.
“Okay, so I was a lot put off,” she says, smiling. “But now I know to you. It’s your business and nothing more. You would also be a good influence on him. You’re a hard worker, you love your child and grandchildren, and you take care of the people you care about. I think all of those things are the qualities of a good man.”
My stomach tightens ‘cause those are not things I would have thought of. I know that a lot of people look at me and my club and say that I’m taking advantage of the women who work for me and I only see women as sex objects, but in my club, the women are safe. They are treated with respect. Most of them are students or mothers just trying to make a better life for themselves or their families. If I knew that the women who worked for me would be able to find somewhere else to work that had the same kind of environment, I would have closed the doors to Teasers after November moved home.
“Do you think that I should call his dad and tell him that his son needs him?” she asks, bringing me back to the moment.
“I don’t need him,” Brandon says, swaying into the kitchen. “He has never wanted to be a part of my life—even when you were married to him. He didn’t want to be a dad to me, so I don’t need him or want him in my life.”
“Honey.”
“No, Mom. Fuck him,” he growls, opening the door to the fridge.
“Watch your mouth,” I say.
Brandon looks at me over his shoulder. “You’re not my dad,” he states, holding my eyes.
Mine narrow on him. “You’re right. If I was your father, your ass would be handed to you for the stress you’re putting your mom through. I’m not your dad, but I’m an adult.”
“Whatever,” he mutters.
“You feelin’ better?” I ask him.
He shrugs, which only pisses me off further.
“You’re up and you don’t seem as drunk as you were, so take the hose and go wash off my car.”
“What?” he asks, looking from me to his mom.
“Go rinse off the vomit from the side of my car.”
“But it’s, like, midnight or something.”
“And?” I ask.
“Mom?” he says, looking at his mom again.
“Don’t look at me for help. And when you come in, we need to talk about your punishment.”
“Fine,” he says, stomping out of the kitchen, the sound of the door slamming shut echoing through the house.
“That went well,” Kat says then looks at me and smiles.
“Why are you smiling?”
“My son doesn’t agree to do stuff he doesn’t want to do. You have to understand that, as much as he’s mad right now, he respects you enough to go outside in the middle of the night to clean off your car because you told him to do it. That’s huge.”
“I think you’re reading to much into that, baby.”
She shrugs and takes the beer from my hand before putting it to her mouth and taking a drink. “Regardless, thank you for picking him up tonight.”
“You’re welcome,” I tell her, kissing her head.
After about fifteen minutes, the front door opens then shuts and Brandon comes into the kitchen.
“How long am I grounded for?” he asks his mom, and an idea comes to me.
“You’re gonna come work for me,” I say.
Kat and Brandon both say, “What?” at the same time.
“November has been trying to transfer all the stuff from my office to her home office. You’re gonna help her get everything organized.”
“So, I’m going to work at a strip club?” he asks.
Kat’s mouth has opened and closed a few times, but she still hasn’t said anything.
I look from her to Brandon and shake my head. “No, you’re not working at the strip club. You’re going to help November.”
“I think we should talk about this,” Kat says.
My eyes go to her and then back to Brandon. When Brandon’s eyes come back to me, something flashes in them before he looks at his mom.
“I wanted to get a job anyways, so I think this would be a good opportunity for me,” he tells his mom.
I give Kat’s waist a squeeze then look at Brandon. He needs something, and though I may not be the best person to give him what he needs, I want him to be successful and I want to heal the rift between him and his mom. I just hope I don’t make shit worse.
“Okay, but you’re still grounded. You can use the car for school and work, but no hanging out with friends for a month.”
“A month?” he asks, stunned. Then he looks at me like I should help him out.
“Do I need to remind you that you were picked up by the cops for underage drinking? If you were anyone else, you would have spent the night in jail and had to go in front of the judge in the morning. You’re lucky that this is your punishment,” I tell him.
Kat leans slightly back into me. “A month, Brandon. If you mess up during the month, another month gets added,” she says.
Brandon looks at her and nods.
“I love you, honey. I know that you’re mad about your dad and what happened, but I love you and I want you to be a better man than he is, and right now I’m worried about you,” Kat says softly.
Brandon’s body loosens completely. He nods again, and Kat steps out of my hold and gives him a hug.