“About what?” I raised a brow and turned to him.
“Tell me about yourself.” He drummed his fingers on his knees, I watched them as they tapped the same beat that he did every day. The way his long fingers tapped on his knee mesmerized me.
“What do you want to know?” I whispered unsure.
“Anything.” I looked up into his eyes, the chocolate brown depths held me captive.
“Well.” I rubbed my hands down my legs. “I have a son.”
“Yeah, you told me that already.”
“Right.” I cleared my throat and took a sip of my coffee “His names Eli.”
“You with his dad?”
“Excuse me?” My back stiffened. “Of course I’m with his dad.”
“Whoa!” He held his hands out in front of him. “Just asking.”
“Sorry.” I dipped my head down.
“Hey.” The couch dipped next to me, his aftershave wafting around me. “You don’t need to apologize.”
My cheeks heated from his stare.
“You heard from Corey lately?” I was thankful for the change of subject.
“A couple of Saturdays ago.” I looked at him from under my lashes. “Don’t know when I will again.”
“I know.” He sat back, his long legs stretched out in front of him. “Can be a long time between phone calls.”
I forgot that he had done the same, that he had spent months at a time without talking to his family. I suddenly saw him in a new light. I’d only seen him as a boss, but now I could see him as Corey’s friend. It made me feel that much closer to Corey.
“Can you tell me about him.” Tyson raised his brows “Corey…what he was like over there.”
“You miss him,” he said it as a statement.
“He’s my only family. Apart from Eli.”
Ty opened his mouth, closed it and shook his head.
“Please Ty.” I swallowed the lump in my throat. “I haven’t seen him for so many years.”
“I like that.”
“Like what?”
“You calling me Ty.”
“I did?”
“Yeah.” He smiled at me, I hadn’t meant to call him that but if felt so natural. The rest of the guys called him Boss but that didn’t feel right coming out of my mouth.
He went on to tell me all of the pranks that Corey used to pull on people, how he was one of his best men as well as one of his best friends. I listened intently and at some point I leaned back and watched Ty talk. His lips moved in time with his hands, every few sentences he would chuckle at something then tell me what had made him laugh.
Then I started to tell him what Corey was like as a child, he laughed at some of the things we used to get up to. He especially liked it when I told him how we came up with a secret code. He leaned his head on the back of the couch, turned to face me and watched me the way I had with him.
It felt easy to talk to him.