Beware of Geeks Bearing Gifts by Charlie Cochet Page A

was telling me all about his childhood shenanigans. Like when he and his brother climbed their dad’s avocado tree after school and got stuck. She left them up there for an hour to teach them a lesson. They never went near the thing after that.” He laughed and then remembered what he was up against. “Dude, it’s like he doesn’t know any average people. His whole family consists of doctors, lawyers, architects, and I’m pretty sure his mom mentioned something about one of them being a mayor somewhere.”
    “If Quinn’s mom likes you, you’re in, dude. Cuban moms are like the godfather of the family. If she hates you, you are screwed. If she likes you, you’re pretty much family. Besides, they might seem perfect, but believe me, every family has issues. My family’s got subscriptions, and it’s not nearly as big as Quinn’s. Don’t be so quick to brush them off. The fact that they’ve embraced Quinn after coming out says a hell of a lot more than their job titles.”
    “Thanks, man.” Spencer had picked up the groceries again when he spotted one of Quinn’s friends coming out for a cigarette. It was Javier. Great.
    “Hey, Spencer.” He walked over with that big cocky grin of his. “Can I talk to you a second?”
    “Sure.” Spencer turned to Danny, who waved him off.
    “Go ahead. I can manage.”
    He grabbed his shopping bags and disappeared inside. Spencer waited for Javier to light up, wondering what he wanted to talk about. He doubted the guy had come out here to make peace, but Spencer would give him the benefit of the doubt.
    “Listen, we’ve convinced Quinn to have a little get-together for his birthday on Saturday night. He’ll probably text you about it later. His mom will probably throw a big party at her house, but anyway, we wanted to put something together just with the guys from the team and a few friends. I wanted to do something really special for him, ’cause, you know, he’s injured and shit.”
    “Okay.” That sounded nice. Sort of.
    “I was thinking of hiring a stripper.” He looked around and, seeming content there was no one eavesdropping, continued, his voice lowered. “Don’t tell him I told you, but ever since that movie about those gay strippers came out, it’s been kind of a fantasy of his.”
    Spencer pursed his lips in thought. “Um, are you talking about Magic Mike ?”
    “Yeah, that one.”
    “They weren’t gay.”
    Javier blinked at him. “What?”
    “The strippers. Well, one of the actors is gay, but he was playing a straight guy. I’m pretty sure they were all playing straight guys.”
    “Okay, sure. Anyway, it’s been kind of a fantasy of Quinn’s to have a stripper for his birthday, but he’s too embarrassed to ask. So I thought I’d surprise him.”
    “Is there a question in there or…?” Spencer studied him carefully. There was something the guy wanted to ask. Javier might be Quinn’s friend, but something about the guy bugged Spencer. “I don’t know any male strippers, gay or otherwise, if that’s what you were going to ask.”
    “Nah, never mind. You and Quinn are getting close. I couldn’t ask you to do something like that.”
    “Do something like what?” What was the guy getting at? Better yet, did he think whatever he was trying to put over on Spencer would work? “Wait, who said we were getting close?”
    “He did. Said you were a really sweet, funny guy. Normally he keeps that kind of relationship shit to himself. I think he really likes you. He was fucked off that I called you a nerd.” Javier gave a lazy shrug, like he didn’t know what the big deal was.
    Out of curiosity, Spencer asked, “What were you going to ask me to do?”
    “I thought, since it’s his fantasy and he really likes you, that maybe you would do it.”
    Spencer stared at him. “As in… strip for him? At the party? In front of everyone?”
    “It’ll only be a small group. We’ll turn the lights down, cue the music. You do a dance for him, just