“Testing, testing. Let me know if you can hear me.”
Justin’s voice filled Finn’s ear in a way that felt completely foreign and a bit off-putting. It was as though his conscience had been given a voice and now directed his every move. He was currently standing in the bathroom of the Pear Tree restaurant, adjusting his shirt and trying not to play with the earbud. “I hear you.”
“And I hear you. Well, this will be an interesting learning experience if nothing else.”
It would also be difficult. With one ear essentially blocked, Finn would have to focus extra hard to be able to hear Leo. The restaurant wasn’t busy this early in the evening, but there was enough ambient noise to concern him.
A man came into the bathroom and went immediately for the stall. The bang of the door wasn’t louder than normal, but Justin made a soft noise of surprise. “Your mic is really good. I take it you’re no longer alone?”
Instead of answering, Finn turned the water on and washed his hands.
“You can’t say a word, and I can yammer on in your ear.” Justin’s chuckle sent a shiver through him. “This is going to be the most fun I’ve had in months.”
Reaching into his pocket, Finn pulled out his cell phone. “Hello? Hey. Yes, I’m here.” He then left the bathroom. “With my phone, no one will think I’m talking to myself.”
“They probably wouldn’t at any rate. Enough people have these things with their phones, people would make assumptions.”
God, Finn hated how freaking logical Justin could be. “I’ll feel better, how’s that?”
“Fair enough. Now, down to business. Is he there yet?”
Finn retook his seat at the still-empty table. “No.” His nerves had him fumbling with his cutlery and tapping out a beat on the table with his fingers.
“It’s only been ten minutes. He doesn’t strike me as necessarily the prompt type.”
“You don’t like him, do you?” Justin had never come right out and said it, but it was clear from his tone and careful words whenever the topic of Leo came up.
“It’s not my place to pass judgment. I’m here helping you as a friend.”
Finn smiled. “We are friends, aren’t we? Like, really honestly friends, not just two guys doing something crazy together.”
“Of course. Two lonely men spending time determining how to land a third as a potential mate. As friends do.”
The laugh that popped from him was unexpected. “You’re funny.”
“Never been accused of that before.”
It was then that Finn glanced up to see Leo enter the restaurant.
“Based on the sudden gasp, I imagine Leo just arrived?”
Finn jumped to his feet, his burst of nerves making it impossible to sit still. “Hey.”
Leo had on a tight pair of black jeans, and a shirt that showed off his biceps. “There’s my guy. Good to see you.” He stuck out his hand and grinned. “Looking good . . .”
“Finn.”
Justin groaned. “He forgot your name? Wonderful start.”
Finn clenched his teeth, biting back a response. Leo’s hand was warm and big, but he squeezed Finn’s far harder than necessary. Finn managed to conceal his wince. “I wasn’t sure you were coming.”
“Why?”
“Ah, we were supposed to meet at five.”
“We were?” Leo glanced at his phone. “Dude, it’s only twenty after. You know what traffic is like.”
Justin snorted. “I would think he knows exactly how long it takes him to get here.”
Leo sat down and flagged the waiter over. “Hey, beautiful. Can we get a couple of beers here? I saw you had a local dark on tap. Those will do.” He turned back to Finn and smiled. “You’re okay with beer, right?”
“Sure.” Finn was more of a wine person, but anything would be helpful now that the moment of truth was at hand.
Leo turned in his chair so his arm draped across the back and his ankle was braced on his opposite knee. “Mr. Finn. You’re quite the good-looking man. Why haven’t we gone out for drinks before?”
Okay, this is the conversation starter. He threw you a fucking softball. Say something! “Ah . . . not sure.”
Finn’s heart was pounding so hard, the sound of it was echoing around the ear piece. His palms were full-on damp now and for the slightest of moments, his vision darkened. Shit, he wasn’t going to be able to do this. Who the hell did he think he was, going out on a date with someone like Leo? God, Leo hadn’t even remembered Finn’s name; he was that unmemorable.
As his panic reached a crescendo, a soft voice in his ear came to his rescue. “Finn, breathe.”
He took in a breath, held it for a count of three, before letting it go.
“Good, now I want you to smile at Leo.” Finn smiled. “Give your head a little shake.” He did. “Excellent, now say this . . .”
Justin’s words drove Finn’s voice. “I’m sorry. I’m nervous. I’ve been admiring you at the gym for so long, it’s hard to believe I’m sitting here with you.”
It was clearly the right thing to say. Leo’s entire demeanor changed. He dropped his foot to the floor, and leaned his forearms on the edge of the table. “Well, aren’t you the smooth talker? I have to admit I only knew your face because you trained with Eli.”
Justin clicked his tongue. “Say, ‘I bet you’d love to get into the ring with him for real. Not one of those training matches.’”
Finn took a sip of water. “I bet you’d love to, ah, get into the ring with him. For real. Not just . . . ah, a training match.”
“Good job.” Justin’s praise helped ease Finn’s building tension as Leo started to respond. “When he’s talking, make sure to maintain eye contact as long as you’re able. You have a tendency to look anywhere but the person you’re speaking to.”
That turned out to be far more difficult than Finn had expected. Thankfully, Leo was talking away, apparently oblivious to Finn’s struggles.
“I’ve been fascinated with him for years. Dude is brutal in the ring. It’s a fucking shame he retired when he did. Sure, he’s gay, but that shouldn’t have mattered. He would have kicked Caulfield’s ass, then moved on to win a title, but he’s the reason I got a membership at the gym in the first place. I study him, make notes, but he only let me spar with him once a few weeks ago, and he kicked my ass. I think he realized how good I am and got nervous. Put me down before I could embarrass him.”
This time, Finn didn’t need Justin’s prompting. “Why haven’t you signed on to train with him?”
It was strange how quickly Leo’s expression changed. For the briefest of seconds, the laid-back man was gone and, in his place, was someone filled with rage. “He said no.”
“Eli is only one man, and probably has to turn down clients all the time.” The only reason Finn had been able to sign on with him was because of his friendship with Devan. “I’m sure he’ll have an opening soon.”
“That’s what I don’t understand.” Leo leaned in so his head was quite low, appearing to hover above the table. “He had an opening. He simply didn’t want to work with me.”
Justin’s sudden voice in his ear made Finn jump. “Be careful here. There’s something not right.”
Leo smiled and leaned back, appearing relaxed once more. “I know it won’t take long for him to appreciate what I can offer as a client and he’ll change his mind.”
“There are other really good trainers at Ringside.”
Leo snorted. “He’s the only one good enough there to take me on. Shit, I knocked some guy out today. Soon, they’ll be saying that I’m too hard on people, and no one but Eli will be allowed to fight me.”
“We need to change the topic.” There was a panicked note in Justin’s voice. “Ask him if he’s seen any good movies recently.”
“Ah, yeah. Cool. Have you seen any—”
“I have an idea.” Leo slapped the table. “You train with Eli three times a week, right?”
“Yeah.”
“I should get in the ring with you.”
The waiter chose that moment to come over with their beers and give them menus. “Our special tonight is a lamb burger with our house-made potato chips. We also have salmon with maple glaze on a bed of—”
“I’ll have the burger.” Leo didn’t even look at him. “You?”
“Finn, you should get out of there. Cut the date short. I don’t like where this is—”
“I’ll have the same.” Finn smiled at the waiter and hoped he wasn’t too put out with Leo. “Thanks.”
Leo waited for him to leave before he turned around and checked out his ass. “Fucking sweet.”
Justin cleared his throat, which brought Finn’s attention back to him. “Try the movie question again.”
“Ah, cool. So, movies?”
“Don’t watch them. I train at the gym, go to work, and party.” This time when he looked at Finn, his gaze traveled down Finn’s body. “I don’t know why I hadn’t noticed you before now. You’re pretty fucking hot yourself.”
The blush heated Finn’s skin and set his heart pounding once more. “Thanks.”
“You’re not much of a talker, are you?”
“No. Not really.”
“I like that too. My ex told me I like to run my mouth off too much, but he was a prude who didn’t know how to have fun.” Leo picked up his beer and swallowed half of it down. “I bet you would be a lot of fun.”
Justin growled. “This guy is . . . Okay, you need to say something. I can’t help you with this one.”
Finn was barely aware of Justin’s voice then. All he could focus on was the picture of him and Leo rolling around on a bed, naked. “I like fun.”
“How about this?” Leo scooted his chair closer to the table. “You and I get into the ring and have a go. If you win, I’ll take you out for a night on the town that you won’t forget.” He licked the rim of the beer glass and winked. “If I win, you need to put in a good word with Eli for me.”
“I can do that.”
Justin muttered something off mic Finn couldn’t quite hear before coming back. “Finn, be careful. I don’t like where this is going.”
Leo’s expression became unreadable. “And you’ll even give me one of your training spots.”
“I . . . Pardon?”
Leo shrugged. “It’s only fair. If I can kick your ass, and you’re Eli’s best student, then that means the only other person who can take me is him. I deserve the chance to prove myself.”
“Whatever you do, don’t agree to this.” Justin must have been moving around, because he was slightly out of breath. “Put him off, but don’t say yes.”
“I’ll think about it.” Finn got to his feet. “Sorry, I need to go to the bathroom.”
Leo waved him away. “I’ll be here, sexy.”
Finn’s legs shook as he strode as quickly as he could to the bathroom. Rather than go into the men’s room, he stepped into the single-user stall and locked the door. “I’m alone.”
“Good.” Finn couldn’t be sure, but Justin sounded relieved. “Are you okay?”
“I . . . I don’t know. I think so.” Finn leaned against the door. “This isn’t going as I’d expected.”
“Leave. You’re under no obligation to stay there.”
“I have to at least get my meal. It’ll look weird if I take off now. I don’t know why—” He snapped his mouth shut.
After a moment, Justin spoke again. “Why what?”
Standing all alone in a bathroom, a friend on a microphone in his ear, and the man of his dreams somewhere out behind him, Finn wanted to cry. “I just want to be normal.”
Justin didn’t say anything.
“You still there? I can’t go back out there alone.”
“I’m here. And yes you can. You’re the one doing all of this. You’re amazing and I’m proud of you.”
Justin’s words should have made everything right in Finn’s mind. Finn was the one doing this. While Justin had certainly been helpful, Finn was the one saying the words, was the one who had been able to look Leo in the eye as he spoke. And yet, it was still difficult to breathe. “Thank you.”
By the time Finn made it back to the table, their meal had arrived. Leo was holding his burger, a few bites already gone. “It smelled too good. I couldn’t wait.”
“That’s fine.” Finn ignored Justin’s groan. “Any good?”
“It’s passable. I’m picky when it comes to lamb, but I’m sure you’ll love it.”
Leo was right about that. The first bit of the burger sent a burst of juice into his mouth and drew a moan from him. “So good.”
Justin sighed. “I should have taken you up on that offer to feed me before your date. Now I’m going to have to sit here and listen to you drool over your meal.” Then there was a rustle in Finn’s ear. “Oh yes, that will do nicely.”
“What will do?” Finn took another bite, sighing once again.
Finn hadn’t realized he’d spoken the question aloud until Leo stopped eating and stared at him. “What do you mean?”
The bite he’d been swallowing got caught in his throat, and Finn started to cough. Justin chuckled. “Just say, ‘I meant that will do.’”
When he was able to suck in air, Finn waved his hands around. Distraction! “I meant, ‘that will do.’ The lamb.”
“Ah.” Leo shrugged. “I thought you were going all weird on me there for a moment.”
The rest of the dinner conversation was easier. Justin continued to prompt him, and for his part, Leo did most of the talking. Finn felt as though he were participating in some weird version of the children’s game Telephone. The only difference was, he was focused on listening to Justin’s comments on what Finn would go on about.
“Ask him where his favorite place to vacation is.”
“Cancun! They have the best fucking tequila, and I’ve ended up in a few orgies there.”
Justin laughed. “Tell him having sex with an empty bottle while tonguing a banana doesn’t count as an orgy.”
Finn had to bite his tongue hard to stop from laughing. Leo was oblivious, still going on about his escapades.
When Leo started to slow down, Justin would prompt again.
“Ask him about where he went to school.”
“Ask him what kind of car he drives.”
“Ask him about his workout routine. That should keep him going for a while.”
It did. In fact, Leo talked for so long, their waiter had refilled their drink order three times and the tables around them had changed occupants, who were now eating dessert themselves, by the time he finished.
With their coffees almost done, Leo was still going on about whatever question Finn had last asked, when Justin chirped up again. “You know, had I realized how much he likes to talk about himself, I could have simply sent you with crib notes. Though this way, I at least get some entertainment. I also demand a piece of that cheesecake you’re having. The noises you’re making as you eat it are obscene.”
Leo dropped his fork to the plate. “I’m stuffed.”
“Me too.” Thankfully, the amount of food Finn had consumed had helped counter the amount of alcohol he’d had.
“Shit, it’s after seven. I need to get out of here.” Leo stood and threw several bills on the table. “I had a good time tonight. You’re more fun than I thought.”
“Thanks.” Though it didn’t feel like much of a compliment.
“Don’t forget our little wager. Maybe next time you’re at the gym we can meet up in the ring. It would be good.”
Before Finn could say a word, Leo came around to his side of the table, leaned down, and kissed him.
Everything Finn had been thinking poofed in a blink, leaving him a blank vessel. There was nothing that could have prepared him for the overwhelming sensation of being kissed by Leo Hayes in the middle of a restaurant.
Leo pulled back, giving him a wink. “See you soon.” And then, he was gone.
“Finn? Are you still there? Finn?”
“I’m here.” Finn didn’t even bother to pull his phone out, no longer caring if anyone noticed he was having a conversation with himself.
“What happened?”
“He kissed me.”
“He what?”
“Kissed me. And then he left.”
“He what?” Justin’s voice was loud enough, Finn almost took the earbud out. “Did he at least pay the bill?”
“Ah, sort of.” After a quick count of the money Leo had left, Finn pulled out his wallet. “He paid for his half. Mostly.”
“I promise I will pay you for the entirety of my cheesecake. As long as you bring it to me.”
“Deal. I’ll be over soon.”
Justin packed up the equipment as best as he could, giving up on fitting the bits and pieces into the correct spots. No doubt Finn would have a better idea and everything would be righted within moments. Justin currently couldn’t be bothered.
Tonight had been hell.
With each flippant remark Leo made, Justin had been ready to march around the corner to the restaurant and punch him. If Finn had been aware of how many times Leo’s comments had bordered on offensive, he hadn’t shown it. Even his compliments about Finn’s skills in the ring had come across as fake, and troubled Justin.
Leo’s infatuation with beating Eli in the ring was far too singular for Justin’s tastes. It was perfectly obvious to him that Leo was using Finn to get to Eli. And that wouldn’t lead to anything good.
Rather than knock, for the first time ever, Finn simply opened the door to Justin’s apartment and walked in, holding up a bag. “I have your cheesecake.”
“Thank you.”
Finn held out a second bag. “And a lamb burger for you too.”
Justin’s stomach gurgled in appreciation. “You’re a blessing.” The bag of chips he’d half finished last night had been the only food in his place, and certainly hadn’t been satisfying enough. “We seem to have a burger habit.”
“Nothing wrong with that.”
Finn sat beside him on the couch while Justin dug in to the burger. The smell might have been heavenly, but the taste was to die for. “No wonder you were moaning.”
Finn chuckled. “It’s one of the best I’ve had.”
Justin should have tried to have some sort of conversation, but the food was far too good and he’d done more than his share of chatting. Finn seemed content enough to watch him eat, which was relaxing in itself. At least Justin didn’t have to worry about what was going to happen any longer, not with Finn safe and sound beside him.
“I have money in my wallet for you.” But first Justin opened up the bag and peeked at the promised cheesecake. “I don’t know if I can eat all this.”
Finn leaned closer, his shoulder touched against Justin’s briefly. “You say that. You can even think it. But the moment you take your first bite . . .”
Justin scooped the end of the cake and a healthy dollop of the accompanying cream into his mouth and made a noise no grown man should ever make.
“. . . and that happens. You’ll eat every last crumb.” Finn swiped some of the cream with this fingertip. “I should have bought a second one to bring home.”
“So good.”
Once he’d finished everything, Justin was ready to fall into a food coma. He leaned back against the couch, for once not caring about the spring that poked into his lower back, and sighed. “I’m going to gain twenty pounds living here.” Finn was staring at him. “What?”
“You have something . . .” Finn reached out and brushed the food from the corner of Justin’s mouth. “There you go.” He licked his thumb.
Justin’s cock had gone rock-hard. “Thanks.”
Finn shifted back. “Leo kissed me.”
Thankfully, Justin had only had to listen to that event take place. He might not have survived seeing it in person. “You mentioned.”
Finn squirmed in his seat, his gaze dropping to the space between them. “I was wondering . . .”
“Yes?”
“Ah, fuck it.”
Justin had rarely been caught off guard in his life. One rare time had been when Grady had announced his fake engagement to Max. Finn leaning in and giving him a gentle but passionate kiss was another.
The taste of mint and chocolate from the meal passed between them, making each lick more delicious than the last. Justin’s heart pounded as he leaned against Finn’s fit body. The kiss was soft, but insistent, saying all the things Justin knew Finn couldn’t vocalize. He cupped the side of Finn’s face, deepening the contact between them. Finn sucked on Justin’s bottom lip, then he pulled back just far enough to let them both breathe.
“Oh.” Finn’s voice shook.
“Indeed.” This was a far cry from the last time Justin had kissed anyone else.
That had been Grady shortly before his brother’s wedding. It had been a personal test, a way to prove to himself once and for all that regardless of how much he’d wanted to be with Grady, they didn’t work.
This kiss?
Justin knew Finn felt whatever this thing between them was as well.
Finn’s crystal-blue eyes searched him, looking for answers Justin didn’t know if he could give him. The only thing he knew for certain was a night of comfort, of pleasure. Justin ran his thumb across Finn’s cheek. “Come to bed with me?”
Finn smiled. “Yes.”