Love Was Not an Option

Chapter 2-2

“I guess whatever you thought would make you late, didn’t,” Brenda said with a grin when Nick walked into his office on time Tuesday morning. “You couldn’t convince the guy to stay the night?” she teased.

“You got it,” Nick lied. He wasn’t surprised at her comment. It was well known throughout his company that he was gay. He’d never made a secret of that fact—with his employees. As far as their clients were concerned, the question never came up. But then there was no reason why it should. Even if Nick found one of the men interesting, he wouldn’t have made any overtures to him. It didn’t pay to mix business with short-term pleasure.

“Mail, messages, and when are you going to settle down?”

Nick laughed. “Thanks. Anything important? And never?”

“Two potential new clients. I scheduled them to come in this afternoon at one and three, barring you wanting to change the times, or the day.”

“No. That’s fine. You know better than me what I’ve got on my plate,” he replied.

Not quite the truth. He knew down to the minute what he had to do each and every day. He also knew she’d never alter his plans without consulting with him first if it looked as if there would be a conflict. That’s why he’d hired her and had yet to regret it.

His day went as it always did, even his meetings with the men who wanted what the ad agency had to offer. The first man went on to hire the agency, and so Nick gave him to Charles, one of the account executives. He would start to work with the man on creating an advertising plan that would meet his expectations. The second man told Nick he’d get back with him after he’d talked with people at the two other firms he thought might suit his needs. “And hopefully, my budget. I know you’ll do a great job, but I do have to worry about the cost,” the man said. Something Nick understood. His agency hadn’t become one of the best in the city by cutting corners to satisfy a client’s budget.

When the day was over, Nick went home with a feeling of accomplishment. The agency had a new client, and the old ones were all happy with what his people had, or were coming up with, for them. Can’t ask for anything more than that.

After eating supper, he decided to visit one of his favorite clubs. What Brenda had said that morning had put a bug in his ear. It had been much too long since he’d had real s*x. Over a month ago, in point of fact. In the interim, he’d taken care of his needs in the time-honored fashion, jacking off in bed or in the shower. It helped, but it didn’t satisfy the way having s*x with another man would.

Being Tuesday, the club he chose wasn’t too busy. He found a seat at the bar, ordered a drink, and began checking out who was there. There were a couple of men he knew from previous interactions with them. They were nice, and pretty good in bed, but he had no interest in renewing his connection with them. He was single and unattached for a reason. Forming a relationship would lead to questions he had no intention of answering. He knew this from past experiences, before he’d wised up and realized there was no such thing as privacy when two people were intimately involved.

Nick was halfway through his drink when a cute guy took the stool beside him.

“Are you new here?” the young man asked.

“No. It’s just been a while,” Nick replied.

“A long while,” he said. “I’ve been coming here pretty steady for the last couple of months. I’m Stan, by the way.”

“Nick.” He smiled, offering his hand, which Stan shook, holding it a beat longer than was necessary. “Can I buy you a drink?” Nick asked.

“Sure. Whatever you have there. It looks interesting.”

Nick found that amusing, because he was sipping a Scotch on the rocks. “That’s a hell of a come-on line, but sure. I’ll warn you though, it’s an acquired taste.” He caught the bartender’s eye, pointed to his drink and then Stan. A couple of minutes later, the bartender set down Stan’s drink.

Stan took a sip and shuddered. “It’s definitely not beer.”

“Um, no.” Nick couldn’t help grinning.

“But it’s not bad,” Stan said after taking another sip. He put the glass down, then asked, “What do you do?”

“You mean when I’m not talking to a nice young man? I own an advertising agency. How about you?”

“Nothing that exciting. I work at a men’s store at the mall.”

Nick chuckled. “Better than flipping burgers, for damned sure.”

“No kidding.”

They continued chatting for a while before Stan asked Nick if he liked to dance. When Nick admitted he did, they made their way to the dance floor. It didn’t take long until they mutually decided they wanted more than the body contact they were already experiencing. “If we keep this up, I’ll be screwing you here and now,” Nick said, his hands gripping Stan’s tight ass while their already hard c***s rubbed together, separated only by the fabric of their jeans.

Stan replied that he lived within walking distance of the club. “Which is where we’re going, because I do not do club restrooms.”

“Neither do I,” Nick replied as he steered Stan toward the entryway. By the time they reached the street, they were, if not totally presentable, at least able to walk to Stan’s place without embarrassing themselves. From there, things proceeded as they both wanted, ending with them being well-sated.

“Stay the night?” Stan asked sleepily, curling into Nick’s embrace.

“As much as I’d like to—” which was a lie on Nick’s part, “—I have a flight to catch at the crack of dawn.”

Stan sighed, then laughed. “That’ll teach you to go clubbing the night before a business trip.”

“No kidding. But I did, and I don’t regret it.” Nick eased Stan’s head off his shoulder so he could get up. After a trip to the bathroom to get rid of the condoms and clean up, he got dressed.

“Maybe I’ll see you again at the club?” Stan asked hopefully.

“Perhaps,” Nick replied. He dropped a kiss on Stan’s forehead before he left the apartment, making certain the door locked behind him. As he drove home, he decided it had been a night well spent, while reminding himself to avoid going to that particular club for at least a month, if not more.