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He shrugs, but there's nothing nonchalant about his expression. "She won't take a dime from me. She says I worked hard for my money and she doesn't want to be a burden. It's all nonsense, but she's stubborn as hell."
"Are the Bigfoot sightings still bringing in customers for her?"
He nods. "She's invested way more than she should in Bigfoot signs, shirts, mugs, mouse pads. Anything you can put an image of Bigfoot on, she's got it. If the Bigfoot sightings stop, she's going to have hundreds of dollars worth of inventory she can't sell." He twirls spaghetti on his fork and stares at it forlornly. "She needs to get into something more sustainable and build up her business model on something she can sell after Bigfoot is gone, but there's a lot of work that needs to be done to the shop to keep it operational and she's not big on changing with the times. If she'd let me, I could fix up her store and hire a whole army of people to help her figure out marketing and products, but she won't let me do anything."
"Other than run around the forest dressed as Bigfoot."
He winces. "She doesn't know it's me. She doesn't even know I'm in the area." He eyes us each in turn. "And I need to keep it that way."
In my opinion, any aunt would want to know her nephew is in town, but it's not my place to stick my nose in his business.
"We won't tell a soul." I draw an x over my heart.
"No one would believe me if I told them," Asher says. "I have a history of practical jokes around here."
I study him. "That doesn't surprise me."
Asher grins and I stuff another big bite of pasta in my mouth to keep myself from leaning over and kissing him.
I turn back to Jaxon as soon as I'm done chewing. "So, Jaxon, what's it like being a star? Traveling the world, swimming in designer duds, living the dream?" Asher frowns and there's a crinkle on his forehead I've only seen when he's spotted me limping. I raise my eyebrows in question, but Asher goes back to his food.
"I don't much care about designer clothes," Jaxon says. "But I've loved traveling the world and meeting so many people who've been touched by my music. I love being on stage and performing. I could do without the drama of being in the public eye, but the money is nice. I grew up with nothing and I love the security of having money in the bank, a roof over my head, and food to eat wherever I go."
I've been broke before, but I've never been poor, so I can't truly relate. What I want is a career that helps people, to know I'm making a difference, and I definitely wouldn't complain if money came along with it. "Didn't you perform with Lucy Leonard last fall? What's she really like in person?"
"She is hilarious," Jaxon says with a fond smile. "And truly talented. That show was a lot of fun."
For the rest of dinner and through a dessert of fresh fruit, Jaxon regales us with tales of life on the road and the stars he's met along the way. He's a surprisingly laid-back guy and doesn't seem to be name-dropping to impress us, just telling stories of people he's met along his journey.
"I actually trained Ronnie Bruce," I say after Jaxon tells us a story about meeting her. "She's a hard-ass worker. I worried I wasn't going to be able to keep up withherand that almost never happens in training sessions."
"No one's got more drive or energy than you." Asher grins at me. He's been uncharacteristically quiet during the conversation, just taking it all in I guess.
"You must have some stories from personal training days," I say, trying to draw him into the conversation.
He shakes his head. "I've never trained a celebrity."
"Celebrities are just people," Jaxon says. "Tell us about your most challenging client."
Asher launches into a story about an elderly client who continually argued about every piece of guidance he offered. Jaxon and I laugh so hard we have tears in our eyes. Jaxon might have met more famous people, but Asher is, by far, the better storyteller.
"We should do dishes since you cooked," I offer once everyone's finished eating.
"Naw," Jaxon says with a wave of his hand. "You need to stay off that knee and Asher could barely eat and hold the blanket around himself at the same time. I'll clean up in the morning."
"Thanks for dinner," Asher says. "I know you want to get that NDA signed, but maybe we could stop over and take care of it another time? We should be getting out of your hair."
"My sisters are probably worried about me," I say, because as much fun as I've had with Jaxon, I'm ready to get home. "And I've got to assess the damage done by my goat kid."
Jaxon frowns. "My lawyer actually sent the NDA half an hour ago. I'll print it out now and you can sign it before you go."
"That was fast," I say.
"You got lucky. He was working late on a case this evening."
Jaxon pushes back from the table and gets to his feet. "I'll switch your clothes to the dryer while I'm up."
He strides to the back of the house and into the small room that houses the washer and dryer.
