Gabriel
“I’ve got us a booth,” said Sergio. “Shall we sit down? We can order our drinks from the table.”
“How do you know Jason?” asked Sergio.
“What’s he told you?”
“All he did was big you up, so you have nothing to worry about.”
“Jason’s my boss.”
“He didn’t tell me that, just that you were a good friend, and he emphasised that you were single several times.”
Gabriel flushed. “Jason is a good friend. We met a few years ago at work and were peers then. When he left, he got a more senior role, then he hired me for his team, so now he’s my boss as well.”
“How do you feel about your boss interfering in your sex life?”
Gabriel snorted. “It’s Jason. Nothing surprises me about him.”
“Yes, his interview process was very . . . thorough.”
“I don’t even want to know. I could guess, but reality would be far worse.”
Gabriel knew Jason meant well, but it was best not to think about whatever he’d said and done to make this date happen. If he did, then he’d probably need to leave from the mortification and call a therapist.
“Well, he was right about how handsome you are,” said Sergio, with that perfect smile again.
Gabriel wasn’t sure what to say to that, and if he tried to speak now, he’d probably squeak with embarrassment.
“Sorry,” said Sergio. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, but I say what I think.”
“It’s fine. Thank you. You’re hot as well.” Gabriel gasped, feeling his face ignite with heat. “Oh God, can we just forget I said that?”
Sergio laughed and took hold of Gabriel’s hand, giving it a squeeze. “You’re going to make it very hard to respect your first date rule, Gabriel. Shall we order food? And then we can get to know each other – with no more mention of Jason, of course.”
“Sounds good. One question, though. How do you know him?”
“We’re both on the committee for the Pride celebrations this year for the Corporation of London.”
That explained things. At least Jason hadn’t been randomly interviewing prospective dates in here.
Although it wouldn’t surprise Gabriel if he had been doing that as well.
They both ordered their food, and Sergio poured their wine, which had arrived.
It was delicious. The man had good taste in wine as well.
He was a great match for Gabriel, but his head wasn’t in this date, which made him feel shitty.
“Do you know that guy by the bar?” asked Sergio.
“Which one?”
The place was busy, but once he saw Bobby watching them, Gabriel knew who he was referring to. What was he doing here, and why did he look like he wanted to punch someone?
“That’s just my . . . flatmate.”
He couldn’t think of another way to describe Bobby that didn’t sound messed up. Sometimes less was best, and this was one of those times.
“He seems pissed off about something,” said Sergio. “Do you need to speak to him?”
Gabriel glanced over at Bobby, who was staring at them. What the fuck was he playing at? Maybe he wanted to check that Gabriel was okay or something.
“Give me two minutes.”
Sergio nodded, and Gabriel stood up and walked over to Bobby.
“Is everything okay?” asked Gabriel.
“Yeah. I just popped in for a drink on my way home.”
This place was nowhere near home, but Gabriel didn’t know where he’d been for the rest of the day.
“Are you checking up on me?” he asked.
“What?”
“Why are you here, Bobby?”
“Like I said, just having a drink.”
Why did he look shifty? Bobby was usually all smiles, and if he had a tail, it would be permanently wagging, but right now he looked like his favourite toy had been taken off him.
“I’ll see you at home, then.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“What do you mean?”
“I think Sergio wants to drag you back to his cave.”
Gabriel snorted, but also flushed with embarrassment, so it came out as more of a pig grunt.
He’d done it before, and Bobby usually made the same noise back at him.
Not today. He still had a moody look on his face.
His eyes looked over Gabriel’s shoulder, so he followed where he was looking.
Sergio was watching them intensely, and it seemed these two men were in some kind of stare-off.
Was Bobby jealous of Sergio? No, that couldn’t be it.
He was probably just pissed off that Gabriel couldn’t keep him company tonight.
They had fallen into a bit of a domestic routine the last few weekends.
Bobby was just annoyed that Sergio had stolen his .
. . well, the toy analogy kind of worked here, although Gabriel wasn’t sure about referring to himself that way.
“Maybe I want him to take me back to his cave,” Gabriel challenged.
“I thought you said you didn’t do that on the first date.”
Gabriel shrugged and went to walk away before Bobby grabbed him by the arm.
“You can’t go back with him,” said Bobby, who now had an angry look on his face.
“Why not?”
“It might not be safe. You hardly know him.”
Gabriel chuckled. “I’ve been back to guys’ houses and not even known their names.”
“What?”
“Bobby, what’s going on here? Is it because he’s your colleague?”
Gabriel found Sergio attractive, and there was chemistry there, but Bobby was his priority.
If he was upset by Gabriel dating Sergio because they worked together, then he wouldn’t take things any further.
His friendship with Bobby was too important to risk over something that might go nowhere beyond a few fucks.
“It’s nothing like that.”
“Then what’s the problem?” asked Gabriel, exasperated.
“You shouldn’t be here.”
“Why the fuck not?”
“Because you’re my husband!” he shouted.
“Whoa!” said Sergio, who had appeared next to them. “You two are married?”
Gabriel glared at Bobby, who was smiling. The fucker had done that deliberately. He must have seen Sergio walking over. Why had he done that?
“It’s . . . complicated,” said Gabriel. What else could he say?
“Can I have a word, please, Gabriel?” asked Sergio.
“Of course. You stay here,” he added, pointing at Bobby.
He walked back over to the booth where he’d been having a lovely evening with Sergio until Bobby had arrived.
“No judgement from me, Gabriel, but I don’t get involved with poly guys. I only have monogamous relationships.”
“It’s not like that.”
“I thought Bobby was marrying a woman. I don’t know him that well, as we’re in different departments, but I didn’t even know he was queer.”
“He’s not. He was supposed to marry my sister on Valentine’s Day.”
Sergio’s eyes widened. “And he married her brother instead?”
“Long story short, she cheated with his best friend. We were on his stag do in Vegas. Got drunk. Woke up married. Getting it annulled.”
Sergio looked a bit surprised and then started laughing.
“It’s not that funny.”
Sergio looked at him as if to say, “Are you fucking kidding me? This is hilarious!” Gabriel couldn’t help but laugh with him.
“Look, I’m sorry about this. It’s complicated, I know, but Bobby and I aren’t together in that way. It’s just a legal thing, which will be sorted in a few months.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“What do you mean?”
“I wasn’t sure what was going on at first, but now I know the details, I think your husband might be jealous that you’re on a date with another guy.”
“Bobby’s straight.”
They both looked over at Bobby, who was watching them with his jaw clenched.
“Not to keep repeating myself, but are you sure about that?” asked Sergio.
Gabriel was about to say that of course he was, but the way Bobby was looking at them both gave him doubts.
What. The. Fuck.
It was at that moment their food arrived. Gabriel wanted to go back and speak to Bobby, but he had a different idea.
“You can tell me to fuck off, but we both still need to eat, and I’d like to test something.”
Sergio looked over at Bobby again, and then back to Gabriel with a smile.
“Of course, let’s eat.”
They sat down and got comfortable. Gabriel didn’t look over at Bobby, but he could feel his eyes on him.
It felt possessive, and Gabriel couldn’t help but feel a bit turned on by it.
Thankfully, Sergio was taking the whole thing in his stride.
He’d be well within his rights to be pissed off.
Gabriel wasn’t convinced about what Sergio had said about Bobby, and believed it was more, “you’re taking my friend,” instead of anything deeper.
Nothing was going to happen with Sergio now. The whole thing was messy, and nobody would want to get involved in it all, but he could still have an enjoyable evening with a handsome guy.
The conversation flowed, and the food was incredible, as it always was here.
For what was effectively a restaurant bar in the city, the food was to a high standard.
It wasn’t presented in a pretentious way like some restaurants, and you always got generous portions.
However, the quality was better than some Michelin-starred restaurants Gabriel had been to.
Ryan was an amazing chef, and Gabriel was sure he wasn’t the only one who wondered why he wasn’t working in a high-end restaurant instead, but their loss was a gain for all the customers here.
“Did you want to go somewhere else after here?” asked Sergio.
“Where did you have in mind?”
“Just a drink somewhere else, where we aren’t being watched.”
“You don’t just want to run home and put this down to a terrible night?”
Sergio chuckled. “I’ve had a fun evening. If you were . . . available, then I would ask for another date, and I know you’re not in a relationship with Bobby, but I think you’d like to be.”
Gabriel’s eyes widened, and he felt his face heat. “You must be an excellent lawyer.”
“I am.”
“And cocky.”
“That too.”
They both laughed.
“If he hasn’t been attracted to a guy before, then this will all be new to him. Remember, we went through all that when we were teenagers. Imagine being in your thirties and having those feelings. If you are interested in him in that way, you could nudge things along and see what happens.”
“What if he rejects me? I don’t want to lose him as a friend.”
“Then let him make the first move. Or you could force his hand.”
“How?”
“We'll go for a drink, but make it look like you’re coming back to mine.”
“What will that do?”
“You’ll know if he’s just a possessive friend, or if he sees you differently.”
“I don’t want to hurt him.”
“Wow.”
“What?”
“You’ve got it bad for him, haven’t you? How long?”
“Two years. Since I first met him.”
“When he was with your sister?”
“Yes, I know, I’m a terrible person.”
Sergio took hold of his hand. “We’ve all had that unrequited crush on the straight friend. You just kept it in the family.”
They both laughed. He glanced over at Bobby, who looked like he was about to burst a blood vessel. Gabriel wondered why and then realised Sergio was still holding his hand. Could Bobby really feel something for him other than friendship? There was only one way to find out.