Dylan’s gaze intensified, and for a split second, unconcealed desire flared in his eyes. It was just a flash, but Jared didn’t miss it.
Nothing Dylan had ever done or said indicated he might be into men. And while Jared had heard some of the women at work gossiping about Dylan’s romantic life—a few of them were crushing on him hard—not once did they mention him crossing swords. So the possibility of that door being opened was shocking, in the best of ways.
“Of course you do.” Dylan chuckled.
Jared didn’t know if that comment was good or bad, but his body entered flight mode. Instead of running, though, he strolled towards the bathroom like he was a calm and confident person, not a shy teenager talking to his crush.
When did I become this weird?he thought, as he closed the door behind him.
Their dynamics were mostly built on backhanded compliments, witty banter, sarcasm, and fake flirting. And it worked beautifully.
But they were like day and night. No one would have bet half a penny on them getting so close, not even themselves. Dylan was a tough-looking adrenaline junkie wrapped in muscles and tattoos, while Jared gave off good boy vibes with his messy blond curls and generally quiet demeanor.
However, they’d clicked right away. They complemented each other perfectly. So much so, Penny and Cora, two other colleagues, called them each other's work husband.
Ironically, as different as they were, everything was easy between them. But Dylan was as straight as they came, older too, which is probably why he treated Jared like a younger brother. So nah, there was no chance in hell anything could happen.
Why are you even thinking about that?
Sure, Dylan was a certified hottie, but no. Nope. Jared wasn’t going to cross that line. Cheating was not within his moral compass.
Although his relationship wasn’t the happiest at the moment, loyalty was his middle name. He would never intentionally hurthis partner like that. Besides, he loved him. They had been arguing almost daily for a few months because Paul was ready to take the next step and Jared didn’t feel like it was the right time. They had barely settled into their new jobs after moving to the capital. But that wasn’t reason enough to start acting like a dickhead.
After washing his hands and splashing some water on his face, Jared walked out of the bathroom.
“Here.” Dylan offered another beer when he sat on one of the stools in the open-space kitchen.
It was pretty stylish, with light wooden floors, high ceilings, white countertops over black cabinets, and exposed brick walls—not the red ones, more of a sand, neutral tone. But maybe Jared was the only one who found it fancy, because he lived in an old converted house with four other people, including his boyfriend, and couldn’t see this happening for him.
Although both Dylan and Jared were gameplay programmers and made decent money, London was expensive as fuck. Jared was surprised his friend could afford a place like this by himself, especially since it was downtown.
“Thanks.”
“Food will be here in twenty,” he said while checking something on his phone, ass resting on the counter of the breakfast bar.
“Cool,” Jared answered mindlessly, rotating the small ring in his ear.
Dylan chuckled.
Jared narrowed his gaze at him. “What?”
“Nothing. It’s just funny how you are when you’ve got a controller in your hand.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Sure.” Dylan snickered. “By the way, did you listen to the FKJ guy I sent you today?”
“I was listening to it practically all day. Dude’s awesome.”
“Right?” Dylan’s eyes sparkled with enthusiasm, like every time he talked about something he was passionate about.
Jared smiled. This man was like a grab bag of quirks and contradictions.
Dylan was your typical bad boy, with dark hair and captivating blue irises. He was also a magnet for trouble, considering the number of adventures and misadventures he had shared. Jared didn’t know how he wasn’t already locked up in some dingy sitcom jail.
But he was much more.
Beneath his tough appearance lurked a nerdy geek with a passion for aircraft and video games, whose love for trap music was almost religious fervor. Though, he could listen to anything and appreciate its beauty. Just like with the French multi-instrumentalist guy he’d sent Jared that morning while they were working—electronic, with some jazzy vibes, rhythm and blues... all super atmospheric.
