Page 1 of Refurbished

Chapter one

ANGUS

A man that I didn’t know approached me, and I offered him a smile. The look was a little lecherous, but he was cute, and he wasn’t shy about the way his eyes traveled over my body. I smiled again and gave him a little wink as we got closer. That earned me a smirk.

He carried himself with confidence. It was clear to me that his common-looking workout clothes were all designer. I suspected that the confidence he carried easily served him well. This guy would be invited into The Dapper Duck, the bar I worked at, because I could see through the ‘average guy’ facade, because he most certainly wasn’t. Once we were side by side, he came to a stop. “Are you a trainer? I really like your look.” He asked casually, both of us knowing it wasn’t casual at all. His lips turned up on one side.

“You look pretty good yourself. I’m not a trainer, though.”

“That’s a shame. I thought you might like to work me out, show me how to use specific muscles.”

And there it was, the truth behind why he stopped. I chuckled. The man was hot, and his attitude made him hotter. Every time someone hit on me, I was surprised that I had attracted them. In the mirror, I saw a tall, lanky kid with no friends who would rather read a book than socialize. The truth was, I had changed all that. My body was defined, my hair was lush and perfectly styled, I had some great friends, and my clothes were all designer, tailored to fit my broad shoulders and narrow waist. I was still a geek and loved a good book, had an affinity for LEGO, and I cared for raccoons that lived in my yard.

He opened his wallet and pulled out a business card, then gave me a gorgeous smile. My body reacted to the attention as he held out his hand. “Oliver.” He said as we shook hands.

“Angus.” Our contact was a little longer than natural.

“Angus, give me a call. We can work out,” he lowered his voice a few octaves, “or work out. I’d also enjoy dinner and drinks. I’m hoping you are interested in men.”

I appreciated how he didn’t assume and asked outright. Immediately, I decided I would take him up on his offer when I could. “Oliver, I am most certainly into men.” I took another long and very obvious look at him. “As I said, I am not officially a trainer, but maybe I could teach you a few things. All of those options sound good to me.”

“I’d really like that, Angus.” Suddenly, he looked shy, but it only took a second for his confidence to return. “I need to get in there, but I’m excited to hear from you.” He walked away grinning.

I took a minute to look at the business card. It was on quality card stock with raised lettering. That in itself told me a lot about him.

Dr. Oliver Mars, M.D, Ph.D

Director of Neurosurgery

It included his address and phone number. If I called Dr. Mars, I had to decide whether to start with dinner or go straight to exercise. I chuckled, still amused that I could get the attention of a man like him. As I approached my old car, I noticed streaks on my windows. I couldn’t help but chuckle because those were nose prints from Ramsey, my labradoodle, whom I loved dearly.

As soon as I got home, Ramsey raced across the lawn and bounced at my feet. I easily caught him, then spun around, laughing while he licked my chin. On the ground, he wagged his tail so hard his entire body wiggled. I shook my head as I walked to the front door. “You’re crazy,” I said as the front door opened.

“How dare you!”

I looked up at the gorgeous woman welcoming me home. I chuckled. “If the shoe fits.” She handed me a coffee cup, and I kissed her on the cheek.

“That ‘child’ of yours acts like you were gone for a year, not a few hours. You’ve created a spoiled monster.” Her comment was the same every time I’d come home since we’d been living together.

“He’s not spoiled.”

She rolled her eyes. “Your breakfast will be ready in a minute. And yes, he is”

“If I spoiled him, I learned it from somewhere.”

“It was your father who spoiled you. I was the strict one.”

I nearly choked on my coffee. “You cried harder than I did when you had to punish me for breaking the neighbor’s window with a rock.”

“You were such a good boy, Angus. Punishing you hurt my heart.”

I pulled her in for a hug and kissed the top of her head. When she moved in, she insisted I let my housekeeping service go because she wanted to ‘take care of things properly’. So she cleaned the house, made my meals, and took care of Ramsey when I wasn’t home. I was fortunate that she was an amazing cook, so it wasn’t a hardship. She didn’t have to do any of those things, but for some reason, she had always wanted to. She had a trust to manage and was still on the board of most of the corporations she owned. She also loved to do charity events. If she didn’t want to work, I suggested that she travel or take up a hobby. She teased that Ramsey and I were her hobbies.

“Come eat, sweetie.” When I sat down, she placed eggs and bacon in front of me, then patted my head. “Be a good boy and eat your breakfast.”

“Yes, ma’am.” I did as she said. You don’t disobey Amelia MacGregor. I was thirty-six years old and built like a wall, yet I was still afraid of the consequences if I didn’t do as she said. The funny thing was, she had never spanked me or even really punished me. Grandma, on the other hand, had been quick with the wooden spoon.

“When you are finished, take out the trash, please. Do you have any plans with your little friends this weekend?”