Noah & Navid

Ch. 72- Hunting Navid

"Bram tag us in his pictures. He sends follow request, look. We have new friend." Navid set his phone between us on the counter where I was making his breakfast.

There were pictures from the night before posted by the South African muscle guy who had drooled all over my husband at the party. I was not in any of them. I'd been cropped. 

"He really liked you! See?" I pointed to one of the pics where Bram was doing a selfie with a huge grin while pushing himself back against a not-too-happy looking Navid.

"Is a party, he posts pictures and I am in background." Navid shrugged like I was inventing this.

"Read the caption! 'Always the best meat at my BBQs.' That's a thirsty man." Our year away from socializing had made me forget how much attention Navid gets from guys.

"I think you feel jealousy for this?" Navid chuckled. "Is long time since I see you jealous. Your cheeks glow with beauty-rage. Is not for your worry though... Look! He send us message. He has another barbecue on Friday. You want to go?"

"Did he invite me or just you?" I pinched his nipple.

"He invite everyone. See? Kemal and Will bring the dessert. You will make the salad I like with chickpeas. Karim will come too, he never misses a party." Navid stroked my hair as he switched over to work emails and got started on his day.

"We have to go! If we say yes then they'll invite us to more stuff. We want to be those guys where people say, 'Of course Navid and Noah will be there!' We want to be part of the group. I miss having a group." I was finally feeling myself again.

"We can not do fun every night with the gays, but it is good to see my baby happy. We came here to be happy. I will agree to this and you will not complain when I take you to client dinner to show off my happy princess?" Navid asked though I rarely complained about the client dinners.

"Yes, sir. I will be the happiest princess ever," I assured.

"You will come with me to work today. You have done all the unpacking you can and there is nothing to clean. You get sadness when I leave you alone and bored. We go to lunch wherever you wish." Navid kissed my forehead as I handed him his avocado toast.

+*+*+

It was total deja vu riding around LA with him while he did his business stuff. We got some papers signed in Silverlake, took pictures of a warehouse in Burbank, and then checked out a closed bakery in Tarzana.

"That is so sad. It didn't survive the pandemic? I loved their cookies." I put my hand against the window when he pulled up to the shuttered storefront on Ventura.

"They decide to retire and move to Arizona. A client want to open a coffee franchise here." Navid said as he pulled a file out of his case.

"There's a coffee place right there," I pointed down the block.

"Is not for me to decide. I am not King of Tarzana. Client want busy spot, I find busy spot. Is my job." Navid shrugged and we got out to take pictures.

He got the keys and we went in to make a video of it. I remembered my grandmother taking me here when she visited us. They had these little black and white cookies that were so good.

"Can we go by our old house? It's just up the street. Oh we should have lunch with Aram and Erik! Erik was texting me last night. I haven't seen him in over a year. Can we, please?" I whined.

Navid shushed me, nodded yes, and then began to film. He was so cute walking around and talking about the square footage and facilities. He narrated it in his deep, Persian rumble that made it sound like the beginning of a very strange horror film. I half-expected a small child dripping with blood to pop out from behind a counter at any moment.