Elijah reminded himself he’d been stood up before and had survived it. Once a couple years ago, a co-worker had convinced him to sign up for an online dating site. Against his better judgment, he’d gone to his co-worker’s house where they set up their profiles. When his friend took out a few beers, he’d reluctantly drunk, even though really Elijah didn’t find alcohol terribly appealing. After a few, he’d stupidly been talked into embellishing his profile. He got asked out almost right away and when he showed up for the date, he waited and waited. He ended up convinced his date had arrived, seen the real Elijah, and hightailed it out of there. Elijah had canceled his membership the next day.
Now it was five after the time Kirk had said he would pick up Elijah. He found himself looking at the clock on the wall every few seconds. About to tell himself once more to get a grip, he caught the sound of scuffling footsteps approaching his door and then a sturdy knock.
Whew.
Holding his breath, Elijah opened the door. Kirk, who looked even better than Elijah remembered, stood on his doorstep smiling.
“Hi,” Elijah said, more than a little surprised when Kirk pulled him into an all too quick hug. “Um, want to come in for a moment?”
Kirk entered Elijah’s apartment and glanced around. It gave him a chance to study Kirk. His hair, several shades lighter than Elijah’s dark brown, appeared windswept but very sexy. His hazel eyes were framed by thick, long lashes, and he had to be a good five inches taller than Elijah’s five-seven. Kirk was dressed similar to him, wearing jeans that framed his legs and ass perfectly, and a crisp white T-shirt over which he wore a suede jacket. Really, Elijah decided, Kirk was far too good-looking to be seen with him, and he couldn’t help wondering what Kirk saw in him.
Kirk smiled. “Hey, you stopped greasing your hair.” He stepped close to Elijah and ran his long fingers through Elijah’s straight hair.
“Yeah, I only do that for work.”
“Well, you should stop altogether. Your natural hair is pretty.”
Elijah wrinkled his nose. “Pretty?”
The other man just laughed. “Oh, and your glasses are different from the ones you had on in the hospital.”
He nodded, reaching up to straighten his new designer glasses. They were absurdly expensive, but his insurance had covered most of it. “Those were just spares, an old prescription. These are the new ones.”
“I really like them. They’re less…“
“Less?” he prompted when Kirk stopped mid-sentence.
Kirk flushed. “Nothing. Are you ready to go to dinner?”
He decided to let it go, but he was pretty sure Kirk was about to refer to his prior pair of glasses as being nerdy or geeky. He supposed they were. Which since Elijah was that way himself it made sense. To him, anyway.
“Yeah.” He reached for his crutch. “I’m down to only longer walking around at least.”
“You look amazing actually,” Kirk said, holding the door while Elijah went through it.
“I do?” He locked the door behind Kirk when the man walked out.
Kirk nodded. “Considering.”
And just like that his balloon of happiness deflated. Adding a qualifier took away the joy of the compliment. Ah, well, he supposed he shouldn’t expect anyone to think he looked amazing. Put him next to Lucas and the words ugly duckling came to mind.
He forced a smile and followed Kirk over to his sedan parked pretty close to Elijah’s apartment. “So, where are we going for dinner?”
“I thought a nice steak house. You aren’t a vegetarian, are you?”
He said it as though being one would be a mortal sin. Fortunately, Elijah didn’t take offense since he did indeed eat meat. “Nope, I’m good. Sounds great.”
A short time later, Kirk pulled in front of the valet attendant. “I figured this would be an easier walk for you.”
“Yeah, thanks.” It turned out to be not far to the restaurant door and Elijah recognized the famous name of the steakhouse. He’d been there a few times when Lucas paid. They were good but pricey. Apparently, Kirk meant to impress him. He hoped that meant the man really liked him.
The hostess sat them in a cozy corner booth and soon they’d each ordered a drink. Kirk ordered some fancy sounding white wine and he’d ordered iced tea.
“Not much of a drinker?” Kirk asked as the waiter left their table.
“No, not really. I’ve tried wine, I just don’t like it.” He held his breath, waiting. Once he’d gone out with a doctor who had pompously told him he just hadn’t tried the right wines.
Kirk smiled and picked up his menu. “No big deal.”
Exhaling, Elijah smiled back and studied his own menu. So far, so good. The fact was, he wasn’t very good at social situations. He somehow managed to screw up every time. Well, maybe not every time, but certainly a good eighty percent. He would never be suave and sophisticated and that suited him fine. Most of the time.
Elijah tried not to pay too much attention to the prices. It seemed rather absurd to pay so much for a hunk of meat. Everything else, such as sides and salads, had to be ordered separately. But he didn’t want to be one of those people who came to a nice restaurant only to order a watercress salad. But he also decided the best way to make his decision was to determine what Kirk intended to order and choose accordingly.
“So, what do you think you are going to have?”
“Probably the filet mignon. You?”
He nodded. “Yeah, that looks good. Me, too.”
“Want to get a couple of sides to share?” Kirk asked. “Say the mashed potatoes and the mushrooms?”
“Sounds great.” He closed his menu.
“I’m going to get a side salad as well. How about you?”
“I’ll pass on that.” He didn’t want to get too greedy with the food.
The waiter approached once more and when it came to his turn and he ordered his steak well done, Elijah held his breath once more. Kirk didn’t make any comment though and the waiter moved away.
Kirk took a sip from his wine and then leveled his gaze at Elijah. “What’s up?”
“I’m sorry?”
“You had a weird look on your face when we were ordering our steaks.”
His face heated. “Well, uh, to be honest I had a date go a little psycho on me once for ordering my steak well done. He acted like it was a personal affront. He pretty much thought I was a fool all the way around, really.”
“No offense, Elijah, but he sounds like the fool.” Kirk shrugged. “Why should I give a damn how you like your steak? People are strange sometimes.”
“I agree. And thanks. I’m glad my weirdness doesn’t bother you.”
Kirk smiled and reached for his hand, wrapping his fingers around Elijah’s palm. “So, how do you feel? Really?”
“Pretty good. Still a bit sore, but the leg feels close to being healed. I’m hoping to have the brace off soon, definitely by the time I return to work. How about you? All your injuries gone?” He couldn’t help noticing his hand felt really good in Kirk’s grasp.
“I never got as battered up as you did, of course, so yeah, I’m good,” Kirk said. “I’ve been back to work since right after the accident.”
Elijah couldn’t remember what it was Kirk did, though he was pretty sure Kirk had mentioned it, so he asked, “What is it you do again?”
“I work at a company that goes to other companies and puts on motivational programs. Stuff like How to Accept Change, Making Opportunities Count, you know crap like that.” Kirk grinned.
“Ah, do you present them yourself?”
“No, actually, I’m the assistant of the woman who does. She’s got a PhD in business. I go along and set up the equipment she needs. Make sure she has all that’s required both for the classes and for her hotel room and dinner. I’m a glorified assistant.”
“Oh, I sort of remember you telling me that on the bus. Sounds pretty cool,” Elijah said politely.
“It’s boring as hell and it�
�s too much traveling. I’m hoping for a promotion, but we’ll see. You’re an engineer?”
“Right. Environmental Science. Talk about boring.”
“I bet you had to go to school for a long ass time for that.”
Elijah laughed. “Yeah, some. But it pays the bills, including my never ending student loans. It’ll be kind of good to get back to work, actually.”
“Yeah, I’m sure it’s hard to find something to do all day. Especially since you spent a lot of time at your brother’s.”
He stiffened. It was a casual enough remark anyone would make, but he did not want the conversation to lean toward talk of Lucas. His famous actor brother was off limits.
He smiled and decided to find a new topic. Kirk still held onto his hand, so he thought their attraction might be safe. “You know it’s funny, I never would have guessed you were interested in me from our time on the bus.”
Kirk chuckled. “If you had bothered to ever look up for your mini-laptop, you would have seen me ogling you.”
Blinking, Elijah just stared at him for a couple of seconds. He couldn’t imagine anyone ogling him, let alone someone as gorgeous as Kirk. He decided Kirk had to be pulling his leg or something
“Yeah, right.”
“I’m serious, Elijah.” Kirk’s fingertips skated over his palm, and then he released Elijah’s hand when the waiter came by with his salad. He picked up a fork and stabbed it into leafy red lettuce. “I don’t think you realize just how appealing you are.”
He rolled his eyes. “Um, sure. You look up sexy in the dictionary and my picture is there.”
“Exactly.”
“Come on, be serious. I could have starred in that movie, Revenge of the Nerds.”
“Just because you’re smart doesn’t make you a nerd, nor does wearing glasses.” Kirk shook his head. “We’re not in the fourth grade here, Elijah. Whether you can accept it or not, I happen to think you are hot. Didn’t you notice I always picked the seat right behind you on the bus?”
Sure, he’d noticed. He’d noticed everything about Kirk, though he’d tried not to, of course. He hadn’t even gotten to the point of hoping Kirk was gay. He never had that kind of luck. “Um, I guess, yeah.”
“I loved staring at your neck,” Kirk confided. “You have perfect skin.”
Blushing, he laughed. “You sound like a vampire.”
The other man grinned. “Only in my fantasies. And if you think about it, sitting behind you symbolizes something.”
Elijah frowned. “What?”
Kirk waggled his eyebrows. “Can’t you imagine what being behind you means?”
He choked. He was pretty sure he couldn’t turn any redder than he was that minute.
Smiling a little, Kirk said, “I’m sorry if I’ve made you uncomfortable.”
“No, I just…Well, I’m not really used to such innuendos.” Which was true. Elijah’s past lovers had never tried to pretend he was particularly attractive.
“You went out with some real clowns, obviously.”
A short time later their steaks arrived, which were delicious, and the waiter brought them a dessert menu.
“It must be pretty strange having a well-known brother,” Kirk said, taking a swallow of the coffee he’d ordered.
“Yeah,” Elijah said cautiously.
“Can’t even imagine how it must be. Especially staying at his house. Did you get a lot of paparazzi watching you?”
“Not really.”
Kirk smiled. “Still, he seemed like a cool guy when I met him at the hospital.”
Elijah sighed. “He is. But, I may as well tell you, I don’t introduce guys to my brother. I’m not his pimp. So, if this is why you asked me out, I’m afraid you’ve wasted your time, Kirk.”
“What? Elijah, no. I’m making conversation to get to know you. I’m not interested in Lucas.”
He swallowed. “Okay, good. I’m sorry if I came off rude, it’s just…I’ve run into that before.”
Shaking his head, Kirk finished off his coffee. “You’ve really dated some losers. Did you want dessert?”
“Not really. I’m not much of a dessert eater.”
“Great, then I’ll have the waiter bring our check.”
Chapter 5
Kirk wondered the whole drive back to Elijah’s apartment if he should make a move on the rather shy man. He’d always guessed his nerd was pretty shy, but his constant blushing at dinner had removed all doubt.
The leg might stand in the way of full on sexual activity, but if they were careful they could possibly manage it considering Elijah was down to just the leg brace. The question was, though, would he be going too fast for Elijah?
“You can put the radio on whatever station you might like to listen to,” Kirk said to break the silence in the car.
“Thanks.” But Elijah made no move to change the channel from the hard pumping rock music.
“You think maybe I could get some coffee when we get to your apartment?” Not very subtle, he guessed, but Kirk didn’t think outright asking, want to have sex, would work either.
Sure, it was their first date and all, but they’d been riding the same bus for months. That had to count for something.
“I only have instant,” Elijah replied in almost a whisper.
“That’s not a problem.”
And so Kirk was thrilled when the same visitor space right in front of Elijah’s apartment was still available. “At least this parking lot is well lit. Where’s your assigned space?”
Elijah pointed to a covered carport a short distance away. “That end one there.”
“Can you drive yet?”
“I haven’t yet, but I think maybe when I see the doctor next he might okay it.” Elijah unlocked his front door and set his crutch just inside the door. “Geez, that thing is getting really tedious.”
“Still, you need it some to get around, don’t you?”
Elijah shrugged. “I can manage inside my apartment without it and I’m supposed to experiment putting weight on my leg. Let me get that coffee.”
Kirk followed him into the kitchen, making sure Elijah didn’t stumble. How to broach the subject of not really wanting coffee? “Hey, Elijah.”
The man was reaching into a cabinet for mugs. He glanced at Kirk and he had such a sweet little tentative smile on his face that Kirk’s cock jumped to full attention.
“I was wondering if your leg would prevent you from…“ Kirk trailed off.
“From?”
Kirk stepped close and wrapped his hand around the back of Elijah’s neck, drawing their mouths close together. “Can’t you guess?”
Elijah’s blue eyes widened behind his glasses. “But you wanted coffee.”
He shook his head. “I just wanted to come home with you.”
“Should we?”
Rubbing his thumb across Elijah’s full bottom lip, he said, “I don’t want to push you if you think it will hurt you or your leg or you’re not ready, but you’re the sweetest, sexiest man who’s come along in I don’t even know how long. I would love to spend the night showing you just how much I want you.”
The other man’s hands slipped from the mugs in the cabinets and linked around Kirk’s neck instead. Even then, Elijah didn’t make a move to kiss Kirk, he just stared, his pink lips slightly parted.
Kirk figured that was as much permission as he was going to get, so he lowered his mouth to Elijah’s. Soft lips parted under his and Kirk’s tongue slipped inside. His hand moved down to curve over Elijah’s surprisingly firm, round ass. Elijah might be thin, but he still had a mighty fine body, ready to be fucked. Or at least Kirk hoped so.
He broke the kiss, but only to trail his lips over that perfect neck he’d spent so much time fantasizing about while riding the bus. He brought their bodies flush and felt the hard ridge in Elijah’s jeans. Moaning with nearly unchecked desire, Kirk seized Elijah’s lips once more, his tongue thrusting inside.
When they came up for air, Elijah whispered,
“Did you want to go to my bedroom?”
Oh, yeah.
Kirk nodded. “Do you need help?”
“No, I can make it on my own.”
He was reluctant to let Elijah go, even for a moment, because the man had felt so damn good in his arms. But, he was being silly he supposed. He’d have him back where he wanted him within seconds.
Following Elijah into a rather large bedroom for an apartment, Kirk flung his jacket on a chair in the corner next to the dresser and pulled his T-shirt off as well. “Where do you keep your condoms and lube?”
Elijah, who had just sat on the edge of the bed, looked startled. His pale skin had turned to a dark red. “Um.”
Pushing aside his own potential disappointment, Kirk forced himself to say, “I’m going too fast, aren’t I? I’m sorry.”
The other man shook his head. “No. I guess…well, you are very direct. I like it. I think.”
Kirk grinned. “You think?”
“I’m used to more subtle come-ons. Here you come and tell me I’m sexy and amazing and all that.” Elijah shook his head. “The guys I’ve been with want to ask me what games I play online and while I’m telling them that they start blowing in my ear.”
Kirk smiled and knelt on the floor between Elijah’s legs. He rested his hand on the man’s inner right thigh. “You ear’s sexy enough but there are other things I’d rather blow.”
Elijah laughed. “I can’t believe you said that.”
“Me either. Need help with your brace?”
“No, but I am going to have to keep it on, if that’s okay. I even sleep with it on.”
Kirk nodded and closed his hand over the hard bulge of Elijah’s crotch. “As long as I can have the rest of you naked, it works for me.”
Elijah’s breath hitched. “I…uh.”
“Let me.” Kirk removed Elijah’s glasses and reached across the bed to the table beside it and set them down. He undid the first button on Elijah’s jeans, then slowly lowered the zipper. His gaze on Elijah’s face, he reached inside to pull the man’s cock free of his pristine white briefs. The cock he closed his fingers around was long, thick, and hard as steel. Which turned him on even more. His mouth hovered over the tip of Elijah’s erection.
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