Chapter Five
It was drinks, not dinner. It was also the next night, a Friday, and the last of our trip.
The deployment had gone swimmingly. So much so, they wanted to take us out.
Their first choice was the steak house we’d just eaten.
Alec mentioned what a good idea that was, and how much he enjoyed his prime rib the night before. They suggested somewhere else.
The meal—at a fancy Italian place whose idea of dinner was three ravioli—was excellent, but left me starving. They insisted on taking us out on the town. Thus, the drinks. Which were also going quite well. The only thing not running on all cylinders was me.
I was a bundle of nerves the entire day, from opening my eyes to clinking shot glasses with our clients. And off my game.
“You okay, Blackwood?” Alec asked me as we walked into the bar.
He eyed me with genuine concern. Not a hint of malice on his handsome face. Christ, I even thought his face was handsome.
“Yup. I’m fine.”
“Yeah? ‘Cause you said shit all in the meetings today. And I’m not saying that as your boss. Technically, your performance was satisfactory. But you’re usually more engaging. And engaged.”
“Just tired. Didn’t sleep great last night,” I said, holding the door open for him.
Suspicion replaced concern, but the blaring pop-rock of the crowded bar prevented him from pressing further.
What could I say? That we exchanged dick pics? And liked each other’s junk? Or that I knew he was at least somewhat into guys, as was I? Or how about I woke up to an empty room and a response from him that made me blush?
The response read, “Sorry. Was sleeping. On a work trip, so couldn’t talk, anyway.
But now I’m thinking about you, and…” Which was followed by a picture of Alec grabbing his bulge in his workout shorts from the hotel’s gym.
He wasn’t hard, but most of the way there.
It made my mouth water, my heart race, and dick hard.
I blocked him right away. He returned sweaty, panting, and jumped right in the shower with nothing more than a nod my way.
I didn’t want to, I shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t stop myself from listening to the flow of the water.
It was probably my imagination, but I heard a rhythm in the splashing stream, like he was beating off.
Throughout the day, my anxiety turned into a white-hot, frothy, begrudging horny.
I barely spoke at our first meeting because I was sure Alec knew and was just waiting until we got home to let the hammer drop.
By lunch, I began asking myself if that would happen.
We sent pictures to each other, and yes, I reached out to him, but he responded, did he not?
That afternoon, the anxiety made a roaring comeback. Not because I was scared Alec knew, or was worried about my job. I was convinced he didn’t—his behavior all day helped prove it. No, my heart raced, and my stomach soured because I wanted something to happen.
We were into each other, right? All alone in a distant city, sharing a hotel room. Sleeping in nothing more than our underwear, just a few feet from each other. Both cocks ready and willing to be touched, stroked, and sucked.
Now, that would be cause for termination.
Both of us, probably, but definitely me, since I was so new.
Alec too, if he’d pissed off anyone in HR.
I didn’t want that to happen. As much as I liked the idea of some hot action with Alec, I loved my job more.
I could not, would not, lose it. For any reason, least of which, my damn dick.
I wasn’t used to that type of constant, creeping stress and self-doubt. Anxiety comes to me in long, sharp spikes I can easily snap in half. The subtle turmoil left me tired and more uncomfortable in my skin than I had ever been. And it only got worse with the booze.
We had a single shot with the entire team, and then the highest-ups left. Throughout our first cocktail, half of the rest left. Only two other guys stayed long enough to order a second drink. Alec and I were alone for our third.
The music was too loud for Alec’s old ears. We ventured outside after another shot and found seats off in a corner. He landed like a sack of wet dirt, exhausted, and clearly thankful to be off the clock.
As I took my seat, I laughed at him, the first time I did all day. I expected him to make a joke, or ask me what was funny. Instead, he said, “Feeling better?”
“Yeah, kinda.”
“Gonna tell me what was up your ass all day, or is that still a private matter?”
“Nothing, man. Just stressed. Handling my first product deployment on my own got me nervous, I guess.”
Alec leaned his head back and slumped in his seat. “You’re not the nervous kind, Blackwood. But it’s all good if you don’t want to share.”
I couldn’t share, but considering our conversation the night before, I felt I had to. So, I did what any salesperson does best, bullshitted.
“No, it’s just… I really like this job. Mostly for the travel aspect, but I guess something you said has been sticking in my head.”
Alec sat up. Less about paying closer attention, and more because he slumped so far, he was about to fall. “Oh yeah? What was that?”
“Months ago, when we first started working together, you said something about traveling with someone else is well worth the inconvenience. It’s true. It would’ve sucked to do this alone.”
Alec chuckled. “It’s the truth. I like my privacy, but on these longer trips, it sucks being alone.
Clients will always be clients. Your colleague is different.
” He smiled to himself before looking at me again.
“I’ve gone days without interacting with another person and not having to be on. Gets fucking exhausting.”
“That’s what I mean. I enjoy it when it’s just us after a long day.”
“Good, ‘cause you’re stuck with me.” He smiled. “But wait,” his face scrunched, “you’re what? Scared you’re gonna be on your own? Or something? Sorry, a little slow on the uptake right now.”
I had to think quick. “No, just like… yeah. I guess leading this deployment had me thinking of being sent off solo soon.”
Alec laughed. “You’re good, kid, but not that good. You got a few years left under my wing before you can fly on your own.” He laughed again, and so did I.
“Hey, better watch your back, old man. It doesn’t end well when the student surpasses the master.”
Alec laughed harder. “If you can, I’d let you.”
We both took a sip. That was around the time our most recent shot kicked in. Lingering worries and anxieties fell away, and I was nothing but happy as I looked around the less packed but still crowded patio.
It felt good to have the accolades of my boss and clients.
Also that Alec liked working with me so much.
I was lucky as fuck to be his Jr. Rep., anyone would be.
So what, we sent a few dick pics? Maybe it was a little messy, but it wasn’t the end of the world.
It was silly to care so much about something that meant so little.
I said, “This place is pretty cool. Have you ever been here before?”
“Nope. Never been to this city before the first time with you. You knew that.”
“Oh yeah. True.” I took a sip of my beer. “I fucking love being in a city for the first time. It’s exciting.”
Alec glanced at me up and down with a silly smile. It was the first time I realized how drunk he was.
“I forget how bright-eyed I used to be. Used to love it too. Now it’s all the same.”
“I don’t think it’ll ever get old, man. Backpacking around Europe legit changed my life. My small-town mind didn’t know how to handle it. I came back a different person bent on experiencing as much of the world as possible.”
“Makes sense. Shitty European hostels seem like your natural habitat,” Alec said with a laugh.
I laughed, too. “You know what, I’ll take it.”
“You don’t come off as a small-town boy. You’re too… big.”
“Small towns have tall guys.”
“No numb nuts.” He chuckled. “I mean, the small-town people I’ve known aren’t stupid, or even unsophisticated, but they’re content. They got what they got, and it’s enough. You’ve never come off that way.”
He wasn’t wrong, and I wasn’t offended, but I didn’t like talking about it. “Know a lot of small-town people?”
“I’ve lived in a lot of small towns.”
“Aren’t you from New Jersey, like right across from Manhattan? And you went to college right near the office and never left? Neither of those places are small towns, Alec.”
“No, I was born in New Jersey, and my folks are from there, but we moved a lot when I was a kid. I’ve lived everywhere in between NYC and L.A.
” He chuckled. “My teachers used to just assume I was a military kid, even if we weren’t near a base.
I stopped correcting them. Easier than explaining what was going on. ”
“Pharma sales moves you around that much?”
His face darkened somewhat. “Not typically, no.”
I’d seen that face before. The topic was closed for discussion. I respected it and moved on.
“Wanna get another drink, or head home?” I asked.
“Our flight’s not till tomorrow afternoon. I’m okay with staying if you are?”
“Yeah, man,” I said with a slow smile. “I’ll get the next round.”
“See, that’s the perks of not traveling alone I was talking about.”
I was more wobbly on my legs than I thought. I bought two beers and shots when I got to the bar. Why the fuck not, right? Alec looked surprised when I returned, but downed his shot. Things got fuzzy for a while, but I remember staring at him, letting my mind race and underwear tighten.
“What are you looking at, Blackwood?” His tone was firm, but his face was silly.
It was another question I couldn’t outright answer. Because I was looking at the sexiest motherfucker on the planet. So, I bullshitted.
“What’s the craziest thing you've ever seen in the field?”
“The craziest thing in the field, huh?” He scratched his chin halfway between comedic and genuine, but fully drunken. “Hmm. Not a lot of crazy things happen in financial software sales.”
“You know what I mean.”
“I don’t, actually.”
“C’mon, man! You’ve got to have some crazy stories.”
He tensed his eyes, then smirked. “If I have to say something, I guess it’d be when this dude’s wife, the guy was high up, like CFO or even CEO.
His wife bursts into our meeting, which was going well, followed by the admin.
The wife was majorly pissed, and the admin comes skittering in after her, whisper-shouting that she can’t just barge in.
But she does. And she walks right up to the guy, slaps him clear across the face, and slams divorce papers on the table.
Then, she storms out, but not before looking the admin up and down and asking her name.
The admin answers Lacy or something, and the wife throws her iced coffee right in her face, saying she heard how much she liked facials. Still closed the deal.”
“Holy fucking shit, Alec! What!” I was drunk and animated, flying forward and back in my seat. At that moment, it was the most fantastic story I’d ever heard. “And you closed it? How?! What?!?! What company was it? Are they still an active client? Jesus fucking Christ!”
“Yeah, man. Crazy shit. They were…” his face reddened, and giggles leaked out of his resolve. “They’re, uh…” The damn burst as he laughed. “I’m fucking with you, man.” He laughed so hard his red cheeks were wet.
I laughed, too. The joke was better than the story.
He said, “Crazy shit doesn’t happen. Maybe seeing an old executive flirt with a younger coworker? Or getting middle managers so drunk they puke all over themselves. But that’s about it.”
Still laughing, I said, “That shit’s boring. You should’ve let me believe the jilted wife story.”
“Boring, but that’s real life.”
“So what’s the craziest thing you’ve ever done? Full stop?”
“Aww, c’mon man, like in my whole life? When I was in college and shit? You don’t wanna hear that.”
“Yes, I very much do.”
“Uh… fuck. Well…” It looked like he was thinking hard. “Uh, one time me and the guys on my floor went to this stupid, but mandatory dorm meeting balls-out naked.”
That was the wrong thing to say. I didn’t want to steer my mind further toward Alec’s nude body.
“What? Why?”
Alec chuckled to himself, remembering. “My dorm had shared bathrooms and showers on each floor. An RA, not our floor’s, didn’t like how some guys dried off naked in the common area between the stalls.
We thought that was dumb as fuck. If you’re uncomfortable, just dry off in the stall.
But most of us were used to it from playing sports, anyway.
So, we walked down in just our towels, then dropped them once we got there.
Got in trouble, but the look on that RA’s face was beyond priceless. ”
I laughed too hard. It wasn’t as funny as his other story, but it was the best I could do to hide how aroused it made me. Alec didn’t notice my inflated hilarity, and must’ve thought his 19-year-old self invented comedy by how hard he laughed, too.
“Ok, your turn,” he said, still laughing. “I’m not gonna be the only one with an HR infraction.”
My heart thumped in my ears as I stared at him. If I wasn’t so drunk and horny, I’d never have said it. “I had a three-way with my buddy and his girl in college. Came in her, and then he gave me head after she fell asleep. To this day, it was the best blow job I ever had.”
Alec’s face dropped and then went red. It was his only slowed reaction. I could imagine what flew through his head. The personal and professional ramifications coming in fast and hot. He was my boss, and he had to play it right. Set boundaries, but also sound supportive in that corporate way.
Instead, he swallowed the surging ocean of awkwardness I pictured in his stomach, and laughed. “Good for you, man.” But the conversation was done, and he avoided eye contact.
I’d never seen Alec flustered before. Not unnerved, or uncomfortable, but rattled. And it was hot. So fucking hot. I had never wanted to shove a man’s head into my lap more in my life. I would’ve too, right there on that bar’s little patio, if I thought there was half a chance he’d be into it.
We both laughed it off when nothing else was said. Soon, he emptied his glass. “Ready?”
I did the same with my beer. “Yup.”