By the Numbers

by Chris Owen

  "Do you work?" Jesus, dumb question. Deuce had mentioned an office, hadn’t he?

  "Depends who you ask." Nathaniel gave him a slow smile and lifted his beer bottle. "I say yes. My boss says 'mostly yes'. My co-workers, depending on the day, would say, 'oh, hell, yes!' or 'he's a lazy lout. And he stole my lunch from the fridge'. That last one is a dirty lie, though. I never steal lunches -- the deli is a more reliable option. Now, if you want to know what I do for a living, that's a whole other complicated question."

  "I guess that's what I should have asked in the first place," Trey laughed. "My sister says I'm never specific enough and then I get pissy when I don't get details." He actually thought Tammy was the one who got pissy without details, but Trey never argued with her. His little sister was still a brat, even though she was in her thirties. "So, do you work for a living, and if you do, what's your job?"

  "I do." Nathaniel was still smiling at him, not looking away. He was a little intense for a moment, but then he leaned back in his chair and the smile turned into a grin that hooked up higher on one side of his mouth. "I'm in computers. My title is Lead Developer, but it's a lie. I do a bunch of things, from project management to website building to network systems. Sometimes I get to play with graphics, but that's more of a hobby -- which means I like it, I'm not bad at it, but I don't have the right certification yet to add it to my job."

  Trey looked at him for a long moment. "I gotta tell you, man. I'm just a dumb fireman." He grinned. "So, I understood about three words you just said. I can check my email and find porn online, but that's pretty much it."

  "That's pretty much all that most people need the internet for." Nathaniel didn't seem bothered by Trey's lack of technical know-how. "Just think of me as one of the guys making the porn sites user-friendly."

  "Cool. You do good work." Trey lifted his beer bottle in mock salute and took a drink. Somehow, he thought he should be more embarrassed by his admission of searching for porn online, but Nathaniel had just looked amused instead. After all, the guy didn't need to know it was gay porn.

  "I certainly try. The world will stop if people can't get their porn." Nathanial laughed and drank from his bottle. "Actually, I do a lot of boring stuff interspersed with just enough bouts of the good stuff to keep me interested and happy at my job." He shrugged. "It pays the bills and I can leave it at work at the end of the day. What else can I ask for, really?"

  "Hey, job satisfaction is a rare thing. If you like it, good for you." Trey glanced around for a bar menu. "They got food in this place?"

  "They do, indeed. It's pub food, but if you like deep fried, burgers or pizza, you're at the right place." Nathaniel looked around, too, then leaned way over and grabbed a menu off a nearby table. "My dad and uncle and used to bring me here." He passed the menu over without even looking at it.

  Trey glanced through the small, plastic-covered book and skimmed over the usual fare of potato skins and nachos. His gaze lit on the meager selection of salads and sandwiches, and Trey figured a turkey club without the bacon wouldn't ruin his workout too much. "Are you eating?" he asked Nathaniel as he tossed the menu onto the table.

  "Oh, yeah. Beef nachos, totally loaded. I've been working up to this meal for two weeks." He patted his stomach, which was smooth and flat and apparently firm, too. "I might get to skip riding my bike to and from work if I gave up the nachos. They own me, though." He smiled ruefully. "They're worth it."

  "Fattening food is always worth it while you're eating it." Trey grinned, glad he wasn't eating alone. "So, you ride your bike? Do you work out, too?" He couldn't help glancing again at Nathaniel's stomach. "You look like you do." Whoops, that slipped out accidentally. Damn it.

  Nathaniel leaned back, his hand smoothing over his shirt. "Well." He shrugged one shoulder and smiled broadly. "I ride my bike often, and when I had my old place I did free weights a few times a week. But other than that and swimming at the beach when I can, I don't do a lot. I don't even belong to a gym, though that might have to change if I eat too many nachos." He gave Trey a slow once-over. "You work out or work hard."

  Trey couldn't deny he liked the up-down look. Trey was pretty comfortable with identifying as gay, these days. He'd long ago decided that being bisexual had just been more of an excuse than anything for why he married Holly. She'd been one of the women that always seemed to turn up at Corrigan's when he stopped in to have a beer with some of his crew on their nights off. "Hose-hopper", they'd called her. Just one of the many fairly offensive terms for women who hung around firefighters. But Trey had been inexplicably attracted to her, back in the days when he still had a slight interest in females, and they'd dated for five short months before eloping. His mom had cried at being denied a wedding.

  Nathaniel was looking at him expectantly, and Trey realized he'd lost himself in thoughts of his ex-wife. "Uh, yeah." He nodded. "I run and do some inline skating. We exercise together at the station, too. Your tax dollars at work." Trey swallowed the last of his beer and wondered if he could get away with ordering another.

  "I like it. Best results of my tax dollars I've seen in a while." Nathaniel just said it and smiled, then looked around and waved to one of the waiters like it was nothing.

  That was kind of encouraging. Trey hadn't considered the fact that this was more than just a beer together. Nathaniel had been friendly and open, but until now Trey hadn't realized maybe he was looking for more. Of course, he'd misjudged guys' intentions before, so Trey played it kind of close to the vest these days.

  "Yeah?" Trey ventured. "Well... thanks. If you ever want to come for a run with me, let me know. Do you have blades?" He loved his rollerblades.

  "Nope, but I can get some. I've done a bit of ice skating, and it looks about the same." Nathaniel asked the waiter for another beer and looked at Trey with one eyebrow up. "You?"

  Trey nodded gratefully. "Yeah, just one more. Have to work tomorrow."

  Nathaniel ordered the beer and his beef nachos, and Trey ordered his club sandwich, no bacon.

  "Any news yet on when they'll let you back into your place?" Trey asked as the waiter left.

  "They won't get more specific than a month. I know Peter would let me stay that long, but I'm really putting more thought into what you said about extended-stay motels. An end unit with a little kitchen would be great, really -- the dogs aren't that noisy, but a little more space would be nice. A whole two rooms would be even better."

  It actually sounded kind of sucky, but Trey knew Nathaniel didn't have much choice. "A buddy at work stayed in one a while back. I'll ask him what he thought of it, or maybe there's a better one around here somewhere."

  Offer to have him stay at your place, a little voice whispered. You have the room, and you're not home half the time anyway.

  Stupid, Trey thought. There wouldn't be any difference between his house and the guest room where Nathaniel was currently staying. Except, of course, for the fact that it'd be kind of fun to have all the puppies there. Lacey would love them. And Nathaniel would have much more freedom at Trey's place. Trey's guest room had the attached bath and the large east-facing windows that let in the morning sunlight.

  And why the hell would Nathaniel want to stay with Trey, anyway? He seemed pretty anxious to get out of his current situation, and that was with his best friend. Staying with a virtual stranger wouldn't really be an improvement for him, Trey supposed.

  "Yeah," Trey said again, after another swallow of beer. "Let me ask Jim about that place he stayed."

  "That would be awesome." Nathaniel beamed at him, showing even, white teeth. "Thanks, man. Do you think Jim would like a puppy?"

  Trey choked on the beer in his mouth and narrowly avoided spitting it out. "Uh, no. I can definitely say he wouldn't like a puppy. He's not what I'd call an animal lover. Or an animal liker, really."

  "How is that possible?" Nathaniel's eyebrows shot way up. "I find it hard to trust a person who doesn't like animals. It's a measure of a man,
how kind he is to other creatures, you know? That uncle I used to come here with was a vet. We were always getting animals to take care of for a while when I was a kid."

  "Dunno. Jim's a good guy; I've worked with him for a long time. He's nice enough to animals, I guess. But he's never had a pet. Once in a while one of the wives will come down to the station to visit and bring the family dog or whatever. Jim's the only one who won't pet them. ...Uh, I mean the dogs, not the wives." He could feel himself flushing. Sure seemed like he was babbling a lot around this guy.

  Nathaniel nodded seriously. "Petting other men's wives is usually not a good thing, you're right. Pet the dog, pet the man, but keep the hands off the wife." His eyes twinkled and the corners of his mouth twitched.

  Trey rolled his eyes. "Wives aren't my thing, anyway. One was enough. You ever been married?"

  Nathaniel shook his head. "Nah. Not even when it was briefly legal. I think I'll wait until that whole thing settles down -- I get confused about what's allowed right now and what's still invalid. I suppose dating would be a good first step on that road."

  It took a minute for Trey to process what the man meant. Legal? Marriage was legal. Trey thought a sanity test should be required before marriage in some cases, but anyone who wanted to get married, could. Oh, wait -- except for...

  "You're gay." Trey didn't phrase it as a question, although it was one.

  "As it gets." Nathaniel nodded once, not looking away, his eyes full of challenge.

  All it would have taken would have been a simple "me too", but Trey didn't say it. Caution was his friend these days, especially when it came to protecting his job or his daughter. Nathaniel was a nice guy -- and cute, if Trey was going to be honest with himself -- but what else did Trey know about him, besides the fact that he was the owner of a million dogs?

  He wanted to find out, though. How the hell was he supposed to do that? Trey didn't really... what was the word? Oh, yeah. Date.

  "So, the puppies!" Trey said brightly, in an effort to stop thinking about dating. "Did I really say I was going to take one?"

  "Yes." Nathaniel sat back, seeming to relax a little. Or maybe he was merely being less challenging. "And I'm not letting you back out, especially if I'm retaining custody of the little chomper." He glanced up and smiled as their beer and food was delivered.

  "I won't back out." Despite his better judgment. "So, do we need to set up a visitation schedule or something? Or do I just trust you're doing right by my puppy?" A visitation schedule would be good. A regular one. Nathaniel was interesting, and Trey liked interesting guys.

  "It's your puppy. You need to come and visit, for sure." Nathaniel waved a hand casually and dug into his nachos. "Play with him -- or her -- go for walks, start teaching basic commands. I think it'll be easier than a baby, but harder than, say, a goldfish. Or a cat, I suppose."

  Trey scratched his head. "Teach it stuff? I've never trained a dog in my life. I heard they're harder to train than kids." He started eating too, noting that the food was good and exactly as described -- pub food, pretty tasty.

  "Oh, heck no!" Nathaniel drank from his bottle and shoved in another nacho chip. "Way easier. You bribe them, for one, and most dogs will do just about anything for a tasty treat or a belly rub. Q will do anything for a good belly rub."

  "So would I," Trey laughed. It was true. His favorite thing in the world -- besides sex -- was getting an all-over body rub. Of course, depending on who was doing the massaging, body rubs turned into sex most of the time anyway.

  Nathaniel gave him a slow grin. "Noted."

  He was a little out of practice, but Trey could almost swear he was being hit on. And that wasn't a bad thing, really. It had been a while since he'd been out with a nice guy. He ate his food steadily for a few moment, thinking about that and puppies. "So," he mused, "when do you want me to come over and pick the puppy?"

  "Whenever you want." Nathaniel leaned forward, resting his arm on the table between them and leaning over it. He wasn't in Trey's space, but he was getting close, only the rapidly emptying plates between them. "I'm free most evenings. You can come over and play with them, see who you like best. You can come back with me after we eat, if you like."

  That idea had merit, for several reasons. Trey nodded and finished his beer, then pushed his own plate away. "Sure, let's do this. I have to work for the next two days, so might as well do it now." He wiped his mouth and threw some bills on the table.

  As he stood up, Nathaniel made his contribution to the bill and said, "Q will be delighted. If they're all done nursing, we can take them to the yard and let them run around a bit. That might actually be easier on me with you to help keep them from going in twenty different directions."

  Trey tried but failed to picture what seven dogs would look like all running around together. "This I've got to see." He made his way toward the door, fully aware that Nathaniel was only two steps behind him.

  "Hopefully you'll see it a lot. I could get used to having help with taking them all outside. I'm not even kidding a little." They made it outside and Nathaniel moved up next to him. "Hey, what's the Trey for? If that's not too personal."

  No one had ever asked him that before. "I'm the third son of a third son." Trey shrugged. "My parents were from the south, even though they moved here to California before I was born. It means three, obviously. It's kind of a southern tradition to give that nickname to the third generation, although they chose it as my given name instead. People don't usually question it."

  Nathaniel shrugged. "I'm Deuce to my family and anyone who met me before I was about twenty. Nothing fancy like being the third son of a third son, though -- I just have the same name as my father and he's 'Nate'. So I got 'Deuce'. I think it's better than 'Junior', overall."

  Trey stopped where he was. "They call you Deuce?"

  "Uh-huh. Most people I know well do. I use Nathaniel for work and for people I meet when I'm not with my family; since I grew up here and see them fairly often, it's kind of a toss-up which name I use."

  He could feel his lips tugging up in a smile. "So what do I call you? I have a buddy named Nate; if I slip up and call you that, it's nothing personal."

  "I'll shudder all over and feel all old and shit." Nathaniel winked at him. "It's up to you. I'm cool with either of them, though Deuce is a lot less formal. Nathaniel makes me feel like I'm at the office, sometimes."

  "Okay, so not Nate." Trey thought for a minute. "I guess we'll wait and see whatever comes out naturally, then. But that's kind of funny. Deuce and Trey. Two and three." It had kind of a nice ring to it.

  "We can name the puppy 'One' or 'Four', I suppose. I used to even know what order they came in, but they're all mixed up, now."

  Trey laughed. "I should let Lacey name it, if it's going to be hers. But I'll try and steer her in that direction. So, back to your place?"

  "Sounds good to me." Nathaniel gave him a sunny smile, all straight teeth and twinkling eyes. "Puppy madness ensues."

  Five

  Deuce got home after noon on Thursday, Trey's second day off after Deuce'd been to visit at the fire station. He wasn't totally, one hundred percent sure that Trey was going to stop by to see the dogs again, but he hoped so, so he'd taken the afternoon to work from home.

  He let himself in and winced as the dogs started up. "Shh, you guys. Pete's going to toss out us out if you don't get a grip."

  "Nah, Pete'll just move for the duration."

  Deuce jumped and then waved as Pete came out of the kitchen, laughing at him. "I'm not going to kick you out, man. Really."

  "But you're not going to stay, huh?"

  "Nope. But look at it this way -- Rebecca and I are learning we can live together, and the other option is me staying here and you taking the dogs over to her place. Not going to happen."

  Deuce nodded. He couldn't really fight with that. "Sorry," he said for the millionth time.

  "Don't worry about it. I'll talk to you in a couple
of days -- need to get back to work now. Lunch is never long enough." Pete grabbed his car keys and left, calling out a good bye to Q as he went.

  "This is so not right," Deuce said to himself as he went into his room. "And that's gross, little puppy. Outside is good for that. I guess I'll take care of you lot before I shower. Baths for everyone, what do you say?"

  The dogs approved, rolling and tumbling all over the place to get to him.

  In the backyard while the dogs romped, Deuce didn't realize he'd been waiting for the chime of his cell phone until it came. A text message yielded the information he'd been hoping for.

  "are u home? want to see the dogs."

  Deuce smiled and carefully shook a puppy off his foot while he sent one back. "in backyard w/them. come save me." He put his phone back in his pocket, located a chew toy that was in danger of being buried in Pete's garden, and hoped Trey would get there soon. The puppies were being especially adorable, after all, and what better way to snare a pet owner?

  Twenty minutes passed before Trey finally showed up, in uniform, an apology on his lips. "Sorry. We got a call right before my shift ended. Then it got canceled as we pulled out of the driveway, and I got held over for a few hours, waiting for my relief. Hey, pretty girl." He knelt and gave Q a pat, flopping her ears around and making her collar jingle. Then he looked up at Deuce. "Can I use the bathroom to change?"

  Deuce would have been delighted if Trey had stayed just as he was, but he had to concede that he himself would probably have wanted to change after work as well. "Yeah, sure. Of course." Deuce gestured to the door. "You can use my room if you want, since it's roomier."

  "Thanks." Trey rose and disappeared inside. Q whined and snuffled at the door for a while until he reappeared in workout shorts and a soft-looking T. "Whew, that's better. You have no idea how much underwear I go through in one shift." Trey dropped down again to play with the dog, who looked delighted with the attention.

  "Um. What?" Try as he might, Deuce wasn't sure what underwear had to do with uniforms. Plus, the idea of Trey in his boxers, briefs, or boxer-briefs was distracting.