Chapter 9

Some groans this time, but at least he had everyone’s attention. I glanced at the ballooned condoms above but Barry was on his knees, digging out a bowl from beneath the food table. Standing, he held the bowl out to me and said, “Pick a color, Jason. Any color.”

Inside the bowl were coin-shaped condoms, still wrapped in their foil shells. There were four different metallic colors, and as I reached for a blue one, Barry whispered, “Holiday colors, get it? Red and green for Christmas, blue and silver for Hanukkah. Marty’s Jewish, right?”

I took a green one instead. Barry moved onto the next guest and I palmed the condom. “Simple game,” he said, passing the bowl around. “Don’t worry what your boyfriend picks, just take your favorite color. Once everyone has one—”

A heavy knock on the front door made everyone jump. Someone muttered, “Fuck!” Someone else giggled. Over his shoulder, Barry asked, “Can you get that for me, Jason? Must be Nigel. Shit, he’s early.”