Chapter 4
Chapter four
June
Crow went on some stupid camping trip and came back with a new boyfriend. And he wasn’t even a little. He looked familiar, might have seen him here at Afterglow before, but definitely not a regular.
Fuck him.
Last week, after getting blown off, I went to a dark corner and pouted, but if I couldn’t have Crow for a daddy, this twink sure didn’t deserve him either.
Who the fuck was he anyway? Then I went to their table and tried to sway Crow with an apology, but somehow, without saying a word, he won again.
Sure, my apology was fake, but damn. That guy got up, walked out, and Crow followed him, after shooting me a dirty look.
What the fuck? Well. If they broke up—fine by me.
And now, a week later, here they were, walking in together and straight out to the dance floor.
And what the fuck was he wearing? Leather booty shorts?
He tossed his head back and laughed, hanging on to Crow like he was James fucking Bond or something.
The Spy Who Fucked Me or whatever. I wasn’t having that.
I walked right up to them and thrust my hip out. “Can I cut in?”
“No. Overruled. Daddy Crow is taken. Move along.” He flicked his fingers at me. Was he some kind of lawyer or something? Overruled?
I knew when I was outmatched. Fuck my life. I turned and marched off, heading for the door. No way was I going to stick around and watch Crow fuck around with Mr. Lawyer Boy while I sulked.
It wasn’t even like I had a relationship with Crow in the first place. He’d never given me a chance. No one had. No one would.
I stopped at the liquor store on the way home and picked up a bottle of Tito’s. I didn’t normally drink much, but I’d kind of had it. Enough was enough. I needed to seriously shut the fuck off.
At home, I slid the bottle on the counter, searched for a shot glass, and poured the first of many.
Move in day.
Excited was an understatement. My designer had hired the best contractor, and they stayed on schedule. It wasn’t a huge renovation anyway, but I was happy with the results. This place was mine, and as my new friends and their partners helped me move shit in, it was beginning to feel like home.
The furniture company had delivered and set up the main rooms and bedroom as ordered by the designer, who also set up the outside pool and patio.
The rest was a work in progress. After we unloaded my personal belongings in the primary bedroom, we moved to the game room to have a drink and relax, since it was already set up.
Levi challenged Todd to a game of pool while Larry and Hudson sat in the seating area created by losing the extra guest room and moving the laundry.
It also had a nice wet bar in that area, and I poured drinks and passed them out.
We watched the two goofing off and taking silly shots, and everyone relaxed and laughed. “Thanks for helping out. I appreciate it.” And I appreciated them offering me friendship that I needed more than I’d originally thought.
“No problem. Honestly, it wasn’t much. You had anything heavy already done.” Hudson held his drink up. “Here’s to many hands and light work.”
We cheered with him, Levi and Todd also joining in.
They were cute. I had to admit it. Especially Levi.
Something about him was refreshing and young.
It was quite the contrast with Hudson, though he seemed totally devoted to Levi.
“You two seem like you’re really in love.
How’d you meet anyway?” My subtext was how do I meet someone like that, but I sure as hell wasn’t saying that part out loud.
Hudson laughed. “Oh, Geez. I haven’t told this story in a while; it’s actually hilarious.”
“Now, I’m really intrigued.”
“Let’s just say that before him, I wasn’t comfortable with my business associates knowing my, uh, taste in men.”
“Young?”
He shook his head. “No, little. You know, age play. Kink.”
I already did my homework on Afterglow, so I was pretty sure I knew what was coming next. “So you met him at that club?”
“What? Afterglow? No.” He shook his head. “We never even went there until later, but that’s another story.”
“Gotcha. So how?”
He leaned back in his chair and took a sip of his drink. “I used to order from a particular escort service.”
My eyes practically popped out of my head. “What?”
“No, no. He wasn’t. It was a misunderstanding.
He was trying to get some extra money by working a third-shift job, but he ended up at the wrong temp site on the internet.
When they sent him to my house, he thought he was going to a warehouse job.
I thought he was an escort, specializing in little play. ”
“Oh. Wow. That must have gone over well.”
“Better than you’d think, actually. We both discovered new things about each other. And now he’s my little nearly full-time.”
Levi slid into his lap. “Not all the time, but I love it.” He kissed Hudson. “I wanted a part-time job and got a full-time daddy.”
“It’s your shot, Levi,” Todd said, leaning against Larry.
“And how about you two? How’d you meet?” I wanted to hear more about their lifestyle; it piqued my interest. Though I wasn’t ready to admit why.
“Oh. Boring. Friends of friends and a cruise.” Larry downed the rest of his drink. “Can I get another?”
“Absolutely.” I waved toward the bar.
While he went to pour drinks, Todd snorted. “He made that sound super boring. We’re anything but.”
“How do you mean?”
“For starters, that cruise? Anything but boring. We started out fake dating because it was a couple’s cruise, and I was decidedly single.”
Larry put his arm around Todd’s shoulders. “Not anymore. Hey, when you throw your first pool party, you should get Todd to do his frozen drink specials. They’re fantastic.”
“I wouldn’t want to put a guest to work.”
“No, it’s fun. I love doing it.” He pulled a card out of his wallet. “Here. Check out my social media. It’s mostly how to make frozen drink tutorials.”
“Well, that sounds great then. I’ll be getting that planned as soon as I finish the guest rooms.” Wouldn’t want people drinking all day, then having to drive home.
We talked a little more, but eventually, I was simply appreciating what they had. What I wanted. Relationships molded how they wanted them with no apologies for it. “Hudson?”
“Yeah.”
I leaned closer and lowered my voice. “How do I meet someone like that? Like Levi?”
“Told you. Come to the club. And hell, you might just make new friends there too.”
That’s what everyone had been saying. I didn’t even know if I had any kinks, though I was intrigued by Levi. More than a lot. He was sweet and playful. And cute. I liked that. And maybe I didn’t know what I wanted, but I’d never figure it out if I didn’t explore.
After everyone left, I called Grant. “What should I do?”
“No brainer, dude. Go to the damn club and find someone.”
“That’s what everyone is saying, but I don’t know about finding someone at a club. I’m not really into hookups. That’s not what I want.”
“I get it. But you put that side of yourself on hold. You’ve never dated. Maybe give yourself time to explore. Go to the club. Meet people. See what happens. It doesn’t mean you have to fuck the first guy who turns your head. But don’t stay locked away either.”
“No. No, I won’t. But I have to get my house sorted first.”
“Plenty of time, dude.”
He was right, and honestly, I was officially out of the rental. I had no job or anything I had to do. Aside from meeting with Larry to talk about some investments next week, I had nothing but unpacking planned. I shouldn’t use it as an excuse. But I probably would.