Daddy Business

Chapter 5: Behind Closed Doors

Chapter 5: Behind Closed Doors

“Come with me,” he said. “There’s an office down here where we can review these prints.”

Frankly, I considered myself a leader over a follower, but Dugan looked so good in his slacks, showing off his bulbous ass, I couldn’t help myself.

Two turns off the lobby, we ended up in a small room with three windows that overlooked Bastille Park. He closed the two glass doors behind us. The windows were tinted, and the carpet looked new. He sat at the end of a long table, and I sat perpendicular to him. He unrolled the blueprints and flattened the thick white paper out with his palms, preventing it from curling at its corners.

Faye’s west garden stared up at me. Inhabiting its few trees sat a triangular-shaped drawing comprised of blue, purple, and red lines. According to the diagram’s penciled measurements, the three connected buildings, once constructed, would be twenty-seven hundred square feet. Materials included aluminum, granite flooring, steel supports, and polycarbonate. Stone walkways would circle the structures as well as smaller, exterior gardens.

I knew for a fact that Dugan discussing Faye’s blueprints with me could not have been his first priority. He had an ulterior motive in mind, which, I had guessed, would be disclosed within a few minutes during our private meeting. Of course, he found me attractive and wanted to get me alone. And after a few minutes of chatter, I learned that he had already compiled notes on me.

“Faye has told me a lot about you.”

“Faye likes to talk.”

“She adores you and thinks you’re an amazing man. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say she has quite the crush on you.”

I laughed. “She and I go way back. Those days of experimental kissing are long over. I do consider her one of my closest friends. Both of us have shared the ups and downs of life with each other. As you probably know, life isn’t always easy.”

To our right sat a coffee stand. Dugan poured himself a black coffee into a Stone & Brae Incorporated coffee mug and added some cream. “How do you like yours, Paul?”

“Black.”

“Black it is,” he said and went to work on filling a second Stone & Brae Incorporated mug. After passing me the blue and yellow mug, he sat down, took a sip of his hot brew, and stated, “Faye told me you were born and raised in North Carolina.”

“That’s true. I went to Pitt and obtained my Masters here. Something about me fell in love with Pittsburgh, and I didn’t want to leave.”

“You live in South Grove on Farling Street, right?”

Apparently Faye had told him more about me than I realized. Not that I minded. At least someone of the same gender just happened to be interested in me.

“I do. I have a Tudor there.”

“And Faye told me you live alone.”

“Me, myself, and I sort of like it that way.”

He laughed, reached across the space between us with his right hand, and gently patted my left arm. “You’re adorable, Paul. Why doesn’t a man like you have a wife in your life?”

“Don’t play with me, Dugan. Faye tells everyone I prefer men over women.”

“I can relate to that.” He grinned from ear to ear, dazzling me.