Better Than Friends (2 page)

I started when I heard a throat being cleared and realized I’d once again been caught staring. The blush was instantaneous, of course. Might as well make my mortification complete. This guy was so far out of my league I had serious doubts I’d be able to hold my end of a coherent conversation.

“Um. No worries. I’m fine. Thanks, though,” I babbled as I stepped backward as though to keep moving toward the garden.

“No, no. I got it. What are you having? Vodka tonic? Want a lime?” His generous mouth twitched in amusement.

“No. Gin, but don’t….”

“Cool. Be right back.”

I held up a hand, intending to stop him, but he was already gone.

“Curt! There you are!” I swiveled back around to find Matt bounding toward me. He was buzzing with energy. He always got that way after he played guitar in front of an audience. “I wondered where you’d headed off to. Great ceremony, huh?”

“It was beautiful, man. What do you think? Does it make you want to pop the question and take a walk down the aisle with your man?” I teased.

Matt and Aaron had been together for two years now. Hell, it had to be over a year since they got their own place and I’d been forced to rent my bachelor pad for a party of one. They complemented each other well. Complete opposites in practically every way, and maybe that’s why they worked. I smiled at the thought of those two walking down the aisle. Matt was head over heels in love with his beautiful spitfire boyfriend. Yeah, they’d be next.

“You know… it kind of does.” Matt winked at me and patted my back hard.

“Easy, dude! I already had half my drink spilled and I’ve only taken two sips.”

“Sorry…,” Matt began.

“Actually, that was my fault. Here you go. Gin and tonic. And I had him throw in a twist of lime. Better that way.”

The hunky pirate was back with a drink in each hand. I looked over at Matt, who was wearing a mystified expression with his mouth wide open. It made me check my own and hope we both didn’t look like a couple of drooling morons. I recovered before Matt and graciously took the offered beverage, depositing the half-empty glass in my other hand on a nearby table.

“Wow. That was fast. Thank you. I’m Curt, by the way. And this is my friend, Matt.” I nudged Matt hard in the stomach with my elbow. He grunted and stuck out his hand.

“Nice to meet you.”

“You’re Aaron’s boyfriend, right? I think we’ve met before. I’m Jack.”

I was pretty sure I heard Matt mumble something like “I would definitely have remembered,” but he coughed to cover the words that no doubt would have had Aaron smacking him upside the head if he were within hearing distance. Instead he shook Jack’s hand effusively while I rolled my eyes.

“My friend Curt here is a bit of a wallflower sometimes. I just wanted to make sure he wasn’t hiding in a corner somewhere,” Matt teased.

“You are hysterical. I think I hear your man calling you, Mat-ty.” I drew out the pet name Aaron called him in a singsong voice that was sure to annoy him.

“I can take a hint, Curtster,” he countered before turning to Jack, who was standing at my left looking highly amused. “Don’t let this guy start blending in with the furniture.” Matt winked playfully at me and squeezed my shoulder hard as he left us.

I discreetly flipped Matt off and took a sip of my cocktail before addressing the hunk in a tuxedo standing next to me. I had to admit I was a little intimidated by Jack’s looks. Jack had a presence that felt larger than life. It wasn’t simply his height that set him apart, though. He exuded an energy and vibrancy that was magnetic. I didn’t even know the guy, but I could feel something was different about him. Special, almost.

I, on the other hand, was a mere mortal. A regular guy. I would say I was considered attractive, but my features weren’t anything extraordinary. Thus the floral-print bow tie, I mused. My most interesting feature seemed to be the beard I’d recently grown. I was fanatical about grooming, so I kept it neatly trimmed and close-shaven. What had started as an accidental “weekend without a razor” thing stayed when Aaron fawned over how sexy it looked, much to Matt’s chagrin. The guy worked at a fashion magazine, so I figured he knew what he was talking about. Either way, I had to admit I seemed to get more looks with it than I had before. Unfortunately, it by no means put me in league with the guy standing before me eyeing me curiously.

“So….”

“Do you….”

We started at the same time. I felt myself redden again and took another quick sip to hide my flustered state.

“I was going to ask how you know Jay and Peter,” Jack said conversationally. “Let’s step away from the bar. It’s getting crowded here.”

He gently steered me toward a seating area on the lawn with the slightest touch to my elbow. I breathed in the crisp late-afternoon air and looked out at the gardens behind the estate. They were glorious. Spring was blooming all around me. I turned to make a comment about the setting to my companion and found him to be sitting much closer to me than I expected. I leaned back in my chair and took another drink.

“Well?”

“What?”

Jack gave a half laugh and observed me thoughtfully before he repeated his question. “How do you know the happy husbands?”

“Oh sorry… I met them through Matt, who obviously knows them through Aaron. And you know Aaron is….”

“Yes. I’ve actually known Aaron for years now through Jay. He’s a beautiful man.”

Men don’t talk about other men being beautiful unless they find them to be attractive. Beautiful was a special sort of adjective. They also don’t make a point of refilling spilled drinks and engaging in prolonged friendly conversations with other men unless they’re attracted. Or maybe just interested. Although I couldn’t see someone like Jack being attracted to someone like me. Maybe he was just killing time waiting for his date or the photos to finish. I looked closely at him. Was he gay? I really couldn’t tell.

“He is. Matt and I went to law school together at Georgetown. I met Aaron when he and Matt became a thing…. and that has to be over two years ago now. Jay was always around especially when Peter got busy traveling with work.” I took another drink without thinking and set it on the table beside my chair. “What about you?”

“Peter and I have known each other since we were teenagers.”

“Oh. Cool.”

“My sister Kelly and he are best friends.”

“Right. Okay. I’ve met your sister. She’s great.”

So Kelly was the connection. For some reason that rang a bell for me, like he’d given me a puzzle piece I needed but didn’t know where to place. I felt like I was in one of those conversations where I was interested in knowing so much more than was polite to ask so I had to fumble around with safe topics until I got a green light. Or had too much to drink.

“Mmm-hmm. You’re a lawyer?” The pirate grin was back. I wondered idly if he was making fun of me.

“Yeah.”

“What kind?” This time Jack used his hands to indicate he was pulling information out of me. The twinkle in his eye was kind and set me at ease.

“Not an exciting kind. I….”

“I wasn’t aware there was an exciting kind,” he teased.

“Ha. Ha. Well, that may be true. I specialize in eminent domain and property acquisition.”

“Guess you were right… that doesn’t sound sexy at all.” He arched a brow at me, and I couldn’t help but think the gesture was flirtatious. I was definitely thinking gay.

“Who ever said anything about law being sexy?”

“Not me. Is it at least intriguing?”

“Probably not to most, but I like it. I love the firm I’m with, and although I don’t always like the long hours, I like my job.”

“Good. That’s what matters. I’m sure there’s a sexy side to it too… somewhere.” This time he winked, shook the ice in his glass, and took a long sip. My eyes were glued to his mouth as I tried to follow what it was we were talking about.

“Uh… I don’t….” I was flustered again. Sexy eminent domain? No. I didn’t think so. “What about you? What do you do?”

“I own a couple of businesses.” His answer seemed evasive, though he looked perfectly at ease as he sat back in his chair with one arm draped casually over the side. I picked up my glass and took another sip, catching a piece of ice on my tongue. I set it back down and repeated his rolling hand motion, gesturing I was now the one pulling information from him.

“Sexy businesses?” Uh-oh. I pushed the glass aside. Jack laughed out loud, throwing his head back.

“It depends on your idea of sexy, I suppose.”

“Sexier than eminent domain?” I teased, loving his easy humor.

“Imminently and unarguably,” he countered with a wolfish grin.

“Now you sound like a lawyer. So… what kind of businesses already? Porn sites? A triple-X bar slash club for horny old men? Why so secretive?”

Jack laughed again. I cocked my head, taking in his handsome features. Damn. Even his Adam’s apple made me swoon. I wanted to lick a trail up his neck to nibble on his sexy, stubbled chin. I wanted to… I pulled myself from my musing when I noted his intense gaze on me.

“No secrets. I do own a bar, but not quite the kind you suggested. And I—”

“What kind, then?” I interrupted.

“It’s a gay bar.” His voice was very matter-of-fact, almost as though he were stating the obvious.

“You’re gay?” Part of that question was the gin and tonic talking for me, but I wasn’t sorry I asked.

“Yes.” This time Jack didn’t smile. A slightly longer than comfortable silence passed between us, and I couldn’t help but think I was being closely observed as he waited for me to acknowledge his admission.

“Cool. Me too.”

He smiled then but hid it quickly by taking a sip from his own glass.

“Where’s your bar?”

“It’s in Dupont. Jack’s. Heard of it?”

I gulped audibly and picked up my glass to suck on a piece of ice nervously. Jack’s. Okay. That was a new one. And I now had absolutely no idea what to say.

I’d heard through the gay grapevine Jack’s was
the
bar for leather daddies and muscle men. It had a reputation as a hook-up place for guys into the leather scene. They’d go to Jack’s before heading to underground sex clubs catering to those who enjoyed a little kink. Or so I’d heard. I had been once with some friends on a dare, but I hadn’t stayed long. I remembered feeling very much out of my element. I wasn’t a leather type of guy. I wasn’t overly muscled. Hell, I didn’t even have a tattoo. Something told me Jack probably had a few under his beautifully tailored black tux.

“Y-yeah….” I cleared my throat and tried again. “Yes, I’ve heard of it.”

“Have you been?” There was more than simple curiosity in Jack’s question. There was challenge.

“Once. Last year, I think. I… uh… I don’t think I remembered to wear leather that night. I felt a little out of place in my khakis.”

“You can wear whatever you want. Leather isn’t a requirement.” Jack arched one brow in challenge, but there was a flash of humor in his eyes. I didn’t think he was laughing at me but I couldn’t be sure, and all I really wanted now was a topic change. I swallowed hard, trying to wrack my brain for a segue. “Gee, I’ll try again” didn’t ring true because I had no intention of ever going back to Jack’s. Simply put… it wasn’t my scene.

“Did you say you have another business too?” I was hoping it was something innocuous like tutoring college-aged kids looking to brush up on their algebra skills.

Jack gave me another one of those rakish smiles that curled one side of his mouth higher than the other before he answered.

“I own a motorcycle shop. We sell bikes and do repairs too. That’s where I spend most of my time.”

Motorcycles and leather bars. Um…. Okay. I was right. I was out of my depth, as in a twenty-five-foot tidal wave out of my depth. I didn’t even know what kind of questions one asked about those subjects. I couldn’t help the fact that my thoughts went directly to a stereotypical tatted-up bad-boy persona when I looked over at my companion. Fuck, I needed another drink.

“Um… so what kind of…?” I struggled to think of the name of a motorcycle brand, snapping my fingers as though it were on the edge of my tongue.

“Motorcycles?” he helpfully supplied. I nodded, hoping he’d talk without needing my input.

We were interrupted by the timely arrival of a handsome young waiter carrying a silver tray of champagne flutes. I quickly sprang to my feet and took two, smiling widely as I handed one to Jack.

“To Peter and Jay,” I toasted. Jack raised his flute and took a small sip, never taking his eyes from mine. Everything about him was hypnotic. Damn, what were we talking about? Motorcycles! That’s it.

“So… yes, tell me about your motorcycle business. What kind do you sell?”

“Harleys mainly, but I have a few other brands as well. Do you ride?”

“Hell no!” My eyes widened at my frankly rude fit of honesty. “I mean….”

Jack’s eyes twinkled with amusement. “Let me rephrase the question. Have you ever ridden?”

I hesitated before I admitted I hadn’t with a shake of my head.

“Well, as they say, Curt… don’t knock it ’til you try it. You just may end up lovin’ it.”

Wisely, I refrained from saying what I really was thinking, which was something like “Yeah, right.” Instead, I fixated on something else I’d noticed.

“Where are you from? Wait… if you and Peter grew up together, then you must be from Georgia too. Right?”

Once again I had a niggling feeling I had been given a clue I didn’t know how to use. Georgia, Kelly’s brother… whatever. My diet of gin and tonics and now champagne wasn’t doing anything to help jog my memory.

“Atlanta, yes.”

“Great city.” Safe subject. I was feeling better already.

“Yes, but I haven’t been back in a while. Funny thing that you would notice an accent. It’s been a while since anyone has.”

“What can I say? I’m detail-oriented.”

Jack opened his mouth to say something and held back at the last second, shaking his head in an amused fashion instead. From somewhere inside the mansion, an announcement was being made. Jack shifted in his chair and leaned forward as though he were going to stand.