The food was good, which was probably why the place was packed, and I’d cleared half my plate before I realized my stomach wasn’t growling anymore. I’d been so caught up in Keaton and his mercurial mood that I hadn’t been paying attention to myself. That was new.
And I kind of liked it. He was entertaining, if nothing else.
I waited until Keaton took a bite of food, then asked, “Who was that man? Or can we not talk about him, either?”
Keaton covered his mouth and coughed while giving me an infuriated glare. “No one.”
“Old lover?” I twirled my fork. “Did you have regrets kicking him to the curb? Good in the sack?”
He dropped his chin and stared at me, and I wanted to howl with laughter, but I held out.
“His accent was nice. Bet he was a good boyfriend.”
Keaton flinched, and I was starting to become convinced he was in the closet. “Keep your voice down! No!”
Concerned, I leaned forward and shoved my plate back so I could rest my elbows on the table. The waiter gave me side-eye from all the way across the room.
Keaton grunted. “Tav Greer was a neighbor. He moved away. He’s gay, like us. His man’s rich.” He rolled his eyes.
“So, you were searching for a sugar daddy. The guy with the hot accent had to go get his own.”
Keaton glanced in the direction of the door, and I reached across the table to put my hand on his.
“If I go again, I’m not coming back,” he growled. And I believed him.
“Sorry.” I caught the waiter’s eye and dragged my wallet out in the universal sign ofplease let me get the hell out of this restaurant. The kid had barely reached the table when I slapped my card in his hand. All at once, I wanted out of here. I wanted to get Keaton behind closed doors, where I could use other, much nicer, techniques to interrogate him.
“I could—” Keaton shifted around as if he might offer me some cash.
“No. Got it.”
He bowed his head and licked his lips. “What can I get?”
“My dick in your ass, dirty boy.” I didn’t bother keeping my voice down.
He moaned, and I think I fried something in his brain because he forgot to be irritated with me about saying something tawdry in public.
The check came quick, and I signed and left a huge tip, so the waiter wasn’t giving us pissy looks when we left. He even gave me a weird half bow. I probably shouldn’t have done that. I didn’t want to be memorable anywhere I took Keaton, but oh well.
We went out into the growing gloom and an ambulance with all the lights whirling and sirens blaring screamed past us.
“Yikes,” I said, watching the vehicle.
He nodded and shuffled a step closer. The man radiated warmth, and I wanted to burrow against his side, but I restrained myself.
“The hotel?”
“Yeah.” His voice was a growl that melted through me, leaving heat in its path. Fuck, he was sexy.
I wanted to hold his hand, but I didn’t want to push my luck, so I tucked mine in my pockets as we walked along the sidewalk to our hotel. The gray stone exterior shimmered in the glow from the streetlights, but he didn’t gawk as we went inside. The swanky lobby packed with gray leather furniture and a burbling fountain in the center didn’t snag his attention, either. No, he was too busy looking at me, and my heart soared.
Fuck my life. He was sexy.
We reached the mirrored elevator and stepped aside as a twentysomething man twirling a gold ring between his fingers walked out. He brushed his long dark hair off his shoulders and gave Keaton a soft smile. The poor guy blushed so bright I couldn’t stop myself from laughing as we got on the elevator. The doors closed, and I got the delightful view, from every possible angle, of Keaton doing his best to hunch his shoulders and hide.
After we reached our floor, I opened the door to my hotel room and gestured for Keaton to go inside. He nodded at me in an oddly gentlemanly way that had me grinning as I closed the door behind him. He stopped and perused the room with his hands clenched at his sides. It wasn’t dramatic. There were rooms I could’ve gotten that would’ve had his jaw on the floor. This one simply had a king-size bed done up in the silkiest white comforter I’d ever come into contact with, a couch, comfortable armchairs, and a small kitchenette with a half stove. Not that crazy at all.
“Now what?” He cradled the back of his neck with both hands and spun toward me.
