“So why the rush to leave?” Gabe’s tone grew sultry as he traced a circle on the small of Cole’s back, causing that one part of him to jump again. “I thought we were having a good time.” His smile widened. “I thought you liked me.”
“I do,” Cole whispered, looking away. “I just…” He swallowed. “I don’t think I’m ready to…” He looked at Gabe, falling into his baby blues. “… go out on the town.”
Go out on the town.That isn’t what he meant. Gabe knew what he “wasn’t ready for.”So, why are you pushing it?He didn’t know. He wasn’t thispersistentwith the club customers—so why this guy? What did it matter if he walked out and never came back? He was just another hot man among many. One thing the Phoenix had noshortageof was hot men. This one wasn’t any more special than the rest.
Even as the thought went through his head, Gabe’s mind dismissed it. This manwasdifferent; he had sensed it the moment he saw him. And when they danced…fuck. He’d neverfelt so “in tune” with another man—not even Logan, who was a master of the craft.
You can’t let him just walk away.
The “desperation” was unlike Gabe—men came and went at the Phoenix every day. He never once worried about whether any of them would return. Never really cared. There was always another man to replace the last one.
No one can replace this man.
Did he honestly believe that? Cole was a complete stranger. What gave him the idea that he was irreplaceable?
The dance.That’s when he knew.
“Can I at least give you my number?” Gabe asked, trying to sound casual rather than desperate. “When, or if, you decide you want that tour of the city, just give me a call.”
Cole nodded without much hesitation—a good sign, right? He took out his phone, opened the contacts, and handed it to Gabe, who entered his number, email,andphysical address. Gabe returned the phone to Cole.
“I don’t sleep much,” Gabe said. “So, if you wake up in the middle of the night and feel like chatting, call me or shoot me a text. The only time I might not answer is if I’m here at work, on the clock. But just leave a message, and I’ll get back to you ASAP.” He smiled. Yeah, he was aware he sounded a little too eager, but he didn’t care—some guys wereflatteredby the eagerness.
Still, Gabe resisted the urge to walk Cole out of the club when the man got up to leave. He wished Cole had given him his number, too. But maybe it was just as well he hadn’t—Gabe didn’t think he could stop himself from phone-stalking the man if he had a direct line to him.
Gabe left the club shortly after Cole and headed straight home. He’d barely entered his apartment when his phonebuzzed with a text message. After closing and locking the door, he went into the kitchen and took out his phone.
The text came from an unknown number.
Gabe smiled, hope fluttering in his heart as he opened the message.
‘I’m thinking about it. Have a good night.’
Gabe grinned. He’d already been having the best night, and this just made it even better.
Cole sat on the edge of his bed, staring at his phone. He didn’t expect Gabe to message back and wondered why he had felt compelled to send the text.
I’m thinking about it.
Had he meant thejobsuggestion—or other things? Thedance?He couldn’t get it out of his head. Cole hadn’t wanted to leave—he really wanted to go out on the town with Gabe. But he knew where that would lead, and he needed to take a breath, let his body cool down, and think with therighthead for a minute about whether that was a place he wanted to go—with Gabe oranyone.
Cole undressed down to his briefs and lay on top of the blankets, gazing at the ceiling. The only light was a dim bedside lamp, casting a soft glow through the small bedroom. Cole turned his head and looked at the bottle of sleeping pills on the nightstand. He always kept them close at night. Often, he took them preemptively to stave off the nightmares always looming right there when he closed his eyes. They weren’tasbad as when he’d first run away, but still bad enough.
He hesitated when he reached for them now. Maybe he didn’t need them tonight. He’d never hadanything elseto think about, todreamabout.
Breathing deeply, Cole relaxed on the bed, closed his eyes… and let thoughts of the beautiful stripper consume him as he replayedthe dancein his mind.
He drifted into a restful sleep, where the memory of his evening at The Phoenix became his dream; pleasant, sensual… and free from nightmares.
CHAPTER 4
Gabe picked up his phone, stared at the blank screen, then placed it back on the bar. That was the fifth time he’d checked his phone in the last ten minutes, even though it was right there in front of him; he wouldn’t have missed a call or text. He groaned, feeling a bit disgusted with himself. He’d never “sat by the phone” waiting for a guy to call.
A light smack on his back made him jump and swear. “Shit.” He looked at the man who sat down on the stool beside him. “Don’t sneak up on me.”
Dane smiled. “Wasn’t sneaking.”
Dane Chambers. Twenty-two. Jet black hair with eyes almost as dark. Body of a god.Hot as fuck. He showed up at the club barely two weeks after Gabe, carrying some serious baggage he hadn't yet unpacked for Gabe. Despite that, the two quickly became friends. Dane’s first night on stage at the Phoenix nearly knocked superstar Logan off his pedestal. The man had a passion for the dance Gabe had never seen before—and the body andtalentto match it.
