“Another one?”
Nodding, Rico held out the glass, watching the colorless liquid splash over the ice cubes. This one he took in two gulps, and after setting the glass down, he blinked several times to clear his vision.
“You haven’t been here in a while.” The place was relatively empty. Rico saw a few people he knew from the neighborhood at the other end of the long wooden bar and one guy he’d hooked up with a year or so ago, sitting with someone. Rico watched in surprise as the two men held hands across the table, the glint of matching wedding bands catching the overhead light. Recalling the blowjob he’d gotten from the guy in the back alley, Rico could hardly believe this was the same man, but at the flare of recognition when their eyes met and then the guy deliberately turning his back to him, Rico was certain.
“Been busy.” He made wet rings with the bottom of his glass on the wooden bar top.
“Yeah, I figured. Didn’t think you’d met anyone.” He hesitated. “Have you?”
Rico shot his gaze to the bartender.Whoa.The last thing he expected was to see the naked hunger in the man’s eyes, but he recognized that yearning.
“Nah. Not for me.” For a moment Adam came to mind, but Rico quickly thrust all thoughts of him aside.
“So you want to meet up later maybe?”
This was what he came for. And the guy was seriously hot with his dark, burning eyes and pale, pale skin. His lips were plump and soft-looking, and Rico could only imagine them sucking him down.
“Sorry. I’m not in the right mood tonight.”
The guy’s face fell. “Oh, all right.” He left and walked to the other side of the bar to serve the two people sitting there.
What the fuck had possessed him to say that? In the back of his mind, he’d come here hoping to find someone to make him forget Adam. But it wasn’t that easy to do. For some reason, that man had inched under his skin, and Rico needed to find a way to exorcise him.
For the next two hours Rico sat and drank; he’d worked up a little buzz by the time the bartender, whose name he learned was Dale, had collected his credit card and closed his tab.
“Uh, it’s closing time. Have to kick you out.” Dale stood next to him, and Rico had to admit he looked pretty cute. He normally didn’t go for the small-and-thin type, but those kissable lips were pretty adorable.
“Okay.” The floor looked farther away than it had several hours earlier, and Rico slid carefully off his stool but still swayed enough that Dale reached out to steady him.
“Are you okay? Do you need me to call someone?”
“No one,” mumbled Rico, holding on to Dale’s shoulder. “There’s no one. I thought there was, but I guess he wasn’t interested.” He leaned closer, their faces only an inch apart. “I shouldn’t have said no to you.”
“You can still say yes.”
Dale leaned forward and kissed him, and Rico’s head spun. As he’d imagined, Dale was a wonderful kisser; his lips tasted sweet, and for a moment Rico let himself get pulled into the undertow and returned the kiss. As much as he wanted to be able to throw himself into someone new, it was Adam he thought of during the kiss, not Dale. The spark of desire that should have flared never ignited, and he pulled away.
“Sorry. It’s not you.” He rubbed his face with his hands to clear his mind.
“Ah, the old it’s-not-you-it’s-me speech.”
Relieved to see a twinkle in Dale’s eyes, Rico gave him a weak smile. “It’s true. There’s this guy…ah, fuck it. You don’t want to hear about my problems.” He held back a yawn as they walked outside. It might be after midnight, but plenty of people still walked on the street, and Rico stood for a moment, letting the night air clear his mind.
“I’d better let you go. I have work tomorrow too.” Tired and still a bit buzzed, he turned to go, but Dale put a hand on his shoulder, and he stopped.
“I’m a good listener. The shoulders might not be broad, but I’ve heard and seen a lot of shit. So if you ever need to talk”—Dale kissed his cheek—“you know where to find me.”
The problem, as he saw it, was that Rico didn’t know where to find himself.
*
Restless and awakefor the better part of the night, Rico showed up at the store before six a.m. No use sitting at home, staring into space, wondering at his choices in life. Keeping himself busy and focused on his business was the best thing for him. He had steered clear of personal relationships for this very reason. They took too much time away from what was important: becoming a success. It had worked for his father, and Rico knew it was what was expected of him; he didn’t want to disappoint.
By the time the kitchen staff showed up, he’d prepared six briskets and three turkeys and was washing up. Two of the guys stared at him and whispered to each other in Spanish—“está loco” and “está tuercas”—while the third scratched his head, his surprised gaze shifting from Rico to the counter. Rico caught their raised eyebrows and grinned. He might not have grown up speaking Spanish, but he knew enough to understand when his guys thought he was crazy.
“All right, I’ve made it easy for you, lazy bums. All you have to do is make the fried chicken and tenders, the pepper steak and chicken lo mein, and do the side dishes. Once you get done with that, I’ll make the baked stuff. Okay?”
At their nods, he took off his apron and tossed it over the back of a chair. “I’ll be outside for a little while, then in my office.”
