“Is that a problem?” he asked, keeping his tone low.
“Not for me,” Erik replied, glancing at Kevin, who looked stunned as well. “But it might be a problem for you. I’m sure you know about Asher’s reputation. The man takes being a workaholic to a whole new level, and rumor has it he’s commitment-phobic because of his dad. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
“I appreciate that,” Zach said, reaching out rest his hand on Erik’s. “You’ve both been wonderful friends to me, and I don’t think Asher would have noticed me if it hadn’t been for the two of you. Believe me, I do know Asher’s reputation. Maybe things won’t work out for us, but he makes me happy. I hope I make him happy too.”
Kevin drew in a deep breath. “I hope it works out,” he said. “You deserve to be happy.”
Erik turned his hand over and squeezed Zach’s fingers. “I hope it works out too. I like Asher, but I’m concerned about his ability to give you what you deserve. I want you to have the best guy possible. If that turns out to be Asher, great! If not, Kev and I will kick his ass and find you someone else who’ll treat you right.”
“You bet we will!” Kevin replied, nodding emphatically. “There’s a million fish in the sea. If he’s not right, throw him back.”
The words gave Zach a warm feeling, and he squeezed Erik’s hand in return. “Thanks, guys. I appreciate it. But if you don’t mind, can we keep this just between us? I’m not ashamed, but you know the office rumor mill. If things don’t work out, I’d hate to feel like I had to leave the firm due to gossip.”
He didn’t know why, but he trusted Asher to be fair if they went their separate ways. Asher had a conscience and was as different from his father as it was possible to be, and Zach trusted his instincts that said Asher wasn’t the type to be vindictive.
“You got it.” Erik drew anXover his heart with his free hand. “Believe me, I think it’s smart to go slowly and be careful with him.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it,” Zach said. He squeezed Erik’s hand again and released it. “Well, counselors, now that you’ve wheedled a confession out of me, why don’t we get serious about having fun? It’s the holidays, after all, so we should celebrate.”
“Good idea!” Erik raised his martini glass. “I think it would be fun for you to tell us all about how good Asher is in bed. He must be pretty damned good to get you to agree to a secret office romance.”
Kevin laughed and smacked the back of Erik’s head. “You voyeur!” he scolded. “Look at poor Zach. If he blushes any harder, I think he might explode!”
“Oh, it’s all right,” Zach said, then looked at Erik with a little smirk. “He’s good in bed, but where he really excels is outside of it. Everywhere outside of it.”
But Erik was apparently shameless, because he let out a low whistle and appeared impressed. “I have to admit, I wouldn’t have pegged him as the adventurous type, but I’m glad to know you won’t get in a rut with him. Does he like toys too?”
“I don’t know yet,” Zach replied, too busy wondering if maybe he should find out to be embarrassed by the question. He didn’t want Asher to get bored with him, after all, especially if Asher was used to variety.
“Something to think about for Christmas,” Erik said with a wink. “You could get him something to help him jingle your bells.”
“Erik!” Kevin shook his head in amused exasperation. “Okay, enough. I think Zach can figure it out from here. If you want to think about jingling bells, we can discuss it at home.”
Zach snorted; he knew about the joke boxers Kevin had gotten Erik during their Secret Santa game. “I’ll keep your advice in mind,” he said, then lifted his glass. “But for now, I should thank you, fairy godfathers, for helping to make sure I’m not alone this Christmas. If it helps you to feel smug, you should know Asher doesn’t want me to wear those jeans for anyone but him.”
Erik laughed as he touched his glass to Zach’s. “Wow, you’ve got him hooked good. I knew those jeans would help!”
Kevin raised his glass as well. “You’ve hooked him. Now you just need to land him,” he said. “I have faith in you, Zach. Only a fool would let you get away, and from what I’ve seen, Asher Caldwell is no fool.”
“I’ll drink to that,” Zach said, then took a deep sip of his rum and Coke. He hoped Kevin was right, and Asher wouldn’t want him to get away. He was risking his heart, and if he could have a holiday wish, it was that his risk wouldn’t be in vain.
