by Andi James
“Okay. Are you ready?”
“I was born ready.” Daniel winked, then made a big show of cracking his knuckles and stretching out his shoulders, like he was entering a boxing ring.
Oliver rolled his eyes. “Oh my god, this is going to be so easy.”
Daniel grinned.
“First thing, I can’t dance at all.”
"Well, that’s obviously true. It’s difficult to dance with a stick up your—”
“Hey!” Oliver interrupted, but Daniel just laughed. “Okay, that’s one.”
“Second thing, I once took first place in a mechanical bull riding contest.”
Daniel snickered. “Yeah, okay.”
Oliver just smirked. “Third thing, I once served John Travolta in my restaurant in New York.”
"I think you might think that is more impressive than it really is,” Daniel said dryly.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I missed the stipulation that I had to impress you.” Oliver nodded and whispered. “Choose wisely, young grasshopper.”
“Oh, man. This isn’t hard at all. Prepare to pay up.” Daniel’s face hurt from smiling. “The mechanical bull.”
Oliver’s eyes lit up and a gleeful smile crossed his lips. “I win!”
“Bullshit,” Daniel cried.
“No, mechanical bulls don’t really do that.”
“There is literally no way that is true.” Daniel tsked. “I never thought you would stoop so low as to lie to win a bet, Ollie. Have some integrity, man.”
“Oh, for the love of...” Oliver sighed and picked his phone up from the bar. A few moments later, he turned the screen to Daniel, who had no choice but to admit he was looking at a picture of a younger Oliver, grinning and holding a blue ribbon next to a mechanical bull.
“Well, I’ll be damned.” Daniel shook his head. He lost the bet, but couldn’t quite work up to being sad about it. “So, you didn’t serve John Travolta? Bummer.”
“Nope, I actually did... Do you need to see photographic evidence?” Oliver’s tone was teasing.
Daniel looked at the floor then up at Oliver, his eyes widening. “So, the lie was... that you can’t dance?”
Oliver’s face was covered in smugness. “Not so smart now, are you, Mr. Reads-A-Lot.”
Daniel moved in closer to Oliver. “So, you’re saying that you can dance.”
Oliver glanced at the dance floor and his bravado seemed to falter. He swallowed. “Y-yes.”
Daniel moved and erased the distance between them, his face just a few inches from Oliver’s. “Prove it.”
Oliver swallowed again and an awkward chuckle escaped. “W-what?”
“Prove you can dance.” Daniel tried not to let his face show his glee at Oliver’s obvious discomfort. “Unless,” Daniel said flippantly, “you just want to concede that I won the bet.”
Oliver’s eyes narrowed and he set his jaw. “Not on your life,” he growled before turning and striding onto the dance floor.
Daniel followed Oliver closely as he walked toward the center of the room, stopping when Oliver turned to face him. Daniel saw his lips move, but conversation was pretty impossible, so Daniel just grinned and started moving in time to the music. Oliver shrugged and did the same. And no, the man wasn’t lying. Oliver was an amazing dancer. The long lines of his body kept perfect rhythm, so fluid as he moved. He was so amazingly beautiful, even if his gorgeous face still held its usual scowl.
Daniel had no idea how someone could be dancing and frowning at the same time. Daniel loved to dance, loved how it made him feel, and he knew that showed on his face. He couldn’t believe he’d actually gotten his grumpy friend onto the dance floor, but his new mission was to see Oliver dancing and smiling at the same time.
Unfortunately, it seemed that moment was when Oliver decided he’d proven his point and he took several steps in the direction of the bar. Daniel instinctively reached out to grab his hand. At the touch, Daniel was sure everyone in the packed club could hear his heartbeat over the driving bassline of the music. He pulled Oliver close and leaned over to yell close to his ear. “Not good enough. I need to see more moves.”
Oliver pulled away, puzzled expression on his face. “Moves?”
“Moves!” Daniel yelled. He backed away from Oliver and grinned. He immediately started moving his arms and legs in short, choppy motions. “The Robot!” he yelled with no idea if Oliver could even hear him, but the man didn’t crack a smile, so he kept going.
Daniel started swinging his hands in arcs in front of him, elbows tight to his waist, and hips moving from side to side. “The Carlton!” he shouted above the crowd. He was catching a few side-eyes from regulars, but he didn’t care. Oliver was still staring at him as though he was insane. Daniel took a deep breath. This was going to work.
Daniel moved in for the kill. He held his closed fists in front of him about waist high, miming pushing a shopping cart. He raised one of his hands as though he was pulling something off of a shelf and reading it before putting it back and continuing to push his imaginary cart. “The Grocery Store!” He started to mime rifling around in a purse, looking for coupons obviously, when he glanced up to find Oliver’s scowl was gone. He was actually laughing.
Daniel felt warmth bubbling out of him, more thrilled than he had any right to be. Why did making Oliver happy feel so good? Daniel grinned and in three steps he was wrapped tightly around Oliver, only vaguely aware he was being squeezed right back. The embrace felt so right to Daniel, so perfect, he didn’t want to let go, but after several long moments he loosened his clutches on Oliver but didn’t release him completely. He slid his arms up so his hands linked around the back of Oliver’s neck, and his heart skipped a beat when he looked into Oliver’s eyes and saw a smile there too.
Unable to help himself, Daniel leaned forward, tilted his head, and lightly pressed his lips to Oliver’s. The kiss was gentle and sweet, contrasting with the chaos surrounding them, but the electricity between the two men was undeniable.
Eventually, Daniel reluctantly pulled away, unwinding his arms from around Oliver, drinking in the expression of surprise written all over his face, but paying extra attention to the heat hiding behind the reflection of the lights dancing in his eyes. Before Daniel could move away, Oliver made a sound Daniel almost couldn’t hear — was that a growl? — and slipped his hand around the back of Daniel’s neck, pulling him into another kiss. But there was nothing gentle about the way Oliver’s lips moved or how his tongue found its way to Daniel’s. The electricity was back, and this time there was an undercurrent of urgency and need, emphasized by how their hips were grinding together in time to the music.
Oliver kissed him so intensely, everything around Daniel faded into the background until someone bumped into Daniel from the side, forcing them to part.
Daniel smiled and grabbed his hand, leading Oliver through a hidden side door into the staff dressing room. Daniel was hoping they’d be alone and could pick up where their lips left off, but another dancer was sitting in front of one of the lighted mirrors, painting his nails and listening to music through headphones. Stealing a kiss or two while dancing was one thing, but Daniel was way too polite to start a make-out session with someone else in the room. He gave a small sigh and wondered if Oliver was disappointed as well, but a glance in his direction showed an unreadable expression.
Daniel gestured at one of the overstuffed couches along the back wall. “Have a seat if you’d like. I’ll grab the book.” Daniel moved to his duffel bag but Oliver didn’t sit. He strolled casually around the room, stopping to look more closely at the music and movie posters covering the walls.
Daniel sat down on the couch and placed the book on the seat beside him.
Finally, Oliver broke the silence. “So, this is where the magic happens, huh?”
Daniel smiled. “I don’t know about that. I think the magic happens out there.” He gestured vaguely in the direction of the main floor of the club. “In here is just where we keep our white rabbit
s and top hats.”
Oliver chuckled, a warm, deep sound, and Daniel thought he could listen to it forever. “So, this area is more for the preparation of magic?”
“And post-magical meetings, yes.”
Oliver took the seat on the couch beside Daniel and cleared his throat. “So, how did you, um... get started working here?”
The quasi-polite way he posed the question was a far cry from his usual bluntness.
“Ah, yes, the timeless ‘why do you dance almost naked for money’ inquisition.” Daniel’s words were teasing but held no edge. It was something people asked him a lot. Oliver’s cheeks were dusted with the lightest shade of pink as he nodded.
“I moved to Easton for college from Somerville, a small town in Iowa. I’ve known since I was eleven that I wanted to work in a library someday, it was my favorite place to be, and the University of Easton’s library science program is one of the best in the country. But my transition was... difficult. In all of my efforts to get here, I never really thought about actually being here, how far Easton is from Somerville, and missing my family. It’s not like I could just hop in the car and visit them at any time, so that was a huge change for me. My family is... they just all mean a lot to me.”
Daniel cleared his throat. “Anyway, I was an eighteen-year-old kid, far from home. My dorm roommate was a great guy but had a penchant for death metal played at an eardrum bursting volume. So, when I wasn’t hiding in the library, I kind of spent a lot of time wandering around, exploring my new city. One day I wandered into a bakery and met the most amazing person.”
Daniel grinned and Oliver’s eyes were filled with love for his mother. “And Patty basically turned things around for me. She kind of stepped in as a surrogate family.”
“So, then my mom got you into semi-naked dancing. Yeah, it’s happened before.” Oliver gave Daniel a wicked little smile.
“Ollie, was that a joke?”
“Hey, I can be funny.”
“Yeah, you can apparently. Who would have guessed?” Daniel leaned over and gave Oliver’s leg a squeeze. “Anyway, smart ass, she actually did kind of get me the job here. Or, at least pushed me into applying. I was talking to her about how I was getting more comfortable in my classes, but still felt kind of bored in my off time. She asked me what kind of things I enjoyed doing and made it her mission to find me things to do. Before I started at Cinnamen, she made me go to a pottery class, goat yoga, and a volunteer day at the animal rescue center.”
Oliver chuckled again, and Daniel felt warm tingles down his spine at the sound. “Yeah, that sounds like my mom.”
“I loved it. Sometimes she came with me and sometimes she just gave me some scones and sent me on my way. It was kind of like she helped me find myself. She introduced me to the Easton Daniel, while still letting me remember the Iowa Daniel.
“One day she told me to meet her at the club beside her shop, which I assumed was her way of helping me find a date, but the instant I stepped through this door, I was in love with this place. It is so unlike anything back home. The energy and the excitement are thick in the air all night every night. It’s like anything can happen here.”
Daniel wondered if Oliver noticed that he moved a little closer to Daniel on the couch.
“And, I started coming here pretty regularly, getting to know the bartenders and the dancers. We kind of all became friends. When a job opened up, I jumped at it.” Daniel gave a small shrug. “I love it. I love to dance, I love the guys and the customers, and it’s nice to not always be a poor college student.”
Oliver leaned in closer and Daniel held his breath, rethinking his no-kissing decision from earlier.
“I’ve never met anyone like you, Daniel. You’re so—”
Before Daniel could find out what he was, the dancer who’d been in the room with them abruptly got up and grabbed his bag. Oliver pulled away from Daniel as though he’d been burned. The dancer waved as he left the room. Daniel tried to lean into Oliver again, but the moment was lost.
Oliver cleared his throat. “So, do you think you’ll find a job dancing when you move? After you graduate?”
“I honestly don’t know if I will leave Easton.”
“Really?”
Daniel laughed. “I kind of love it here. There are so many things you can do and see that I’d have never been exposed to back in Somerville. Plus, there are a ton of public and academic libraries in the surrounding area. I’d have a better shot at a job here than back at home.”
“But, what about your family? You said they’re important to you.”
Daniel tried not to read too much into the warmth growing in his chest at Oliver’s sweet question.
“They are. I miss them so much, but I go to see them and they come out here to visit.” Daniel laughed. “They actually love it out here. My dad says if he didn’t have so many roots in Iowa he’d move to Easton in a heartbeat. I think he likes being in the proximity of so many different places to eat. He says these are his kind of people.”
Oliver stiffened slightly in his seat, and Daniel’s heart sank. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought that up.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, um, like, I know how you feel about Easton.”
Oliver gave Daniel a sad smile. “I think everyone in Easton knows how I feel about Easton.”
“Yeah, but I mean, after what happened with your dad...” Oliver’s eyes blazed and Daniel wished he could take the words back as soon as he said them.
Oliver’s tone was even. “What about my dad?”
Daniel tried to backpedal, change the subject, anything, but Oliver’s eyes were boring into him.
“What about my dad?” he repeated in the same even tone.
“I mean...” Daniel struggled to find the right thing to say. “I don’t know... everyone says you hate Easton because it killed him.” His voice was a whisper and he couldn’t meet Oliver’s gaze.
Oliver barked out a laugh, but it wasn’t deep or warm. He stood abruptly and narrowed his eyes at Daniel. “Do you think you know me because you’ve gossiped about me? Because you talked to my mom for a while after you abandoned yours in Nowhere, Iowa?”
Daniel’s heart pounded. He wanted to stand up for himself, say anything, but it felt like his lungs were taking in just enough air to breathe and talking was not an option.
Oliver looked down at Daniel on the couch, his red face a contrast to his dark, cold eyes. “You know nothing,” he spat. “Cancer killed my dad. This town just didn’t give a fuck about it.” His next words were ice in Daniel’s blood. “And I should have known you were just like everyone else.”
Without another word, Oliver grabbed the book from the couch, spun, and stomped from the room.
Chapter Six
Oliver
“Mom, I really don’t want to talk about it.” Like at all, ever.
Oliver had joined his mom in the family room, where she’d set up camp since coming home from the hospital, because he needed a distraction. He had a rare day off from the bakery, and all he’d done the entire morning was replay the events of the night before. It was hard to think about how well everything had been going at the club — to the point he’d even call it fun — until Daniel had to open his mouth and bring up his dad. Like he knew anything about Oliver, about what had happened. Like he had some right to talk about it.
His blood pressure rose every time his mind went there. But, no matter how many times he told himself to forget about Daniel, something about the man was stuck in his mind and he couldn’t focus on anything else.
Making an effort to get anything else moving around in his brain, he figured he’d spend time with his mom talking about work, and maybe fill her in on his latest restaurant idea. If nothing else worked, he was going to suggest they put on a movie marathon.
His plans never even got off the ground, though. In what his mom swore was “a complete coincidence,” she’d spoken with Daniel about an hour before he’d come dow
nstairs. It was just his luck she’d apparently picked up enough clues in their conversation to figure out something had happened the night before, and she’d spent the last five minutes listening to Oliver’s account of it and accusing him of doing something wrong.
“Tough. Because we are going to talk about it. And you’re going to fix it.” She’d put on her best “mom voice” and “mom glare,” and Oliver knew from her tone there was no escaping this.
“Fix what, Mom? There is no rule that says I have to get along with Daniel. I tried, it didn’t work out, that’s that.” At least, that’s what he’d been telling himself since he’d left the club. If he concentrated hard enough, he could even sort of believe it too.
His mom looked at him, her eyes appraising him and making him want to squirm. “Did you really, though? Or did you walk away the exact second things didn’t go as you wanted them to?”
He sighed. He knew that was a not-so-veiled reference to how he’d basically run away from this town. She’d never come right out and say it, but he knew deep down his leaving had hurt her. If he had to guess, it was the biggest reason she lived for work, and for all the people she’d claimed as hers… like Daniel.
“What do you want me to say? Sorry I left and moved away and built a life somewhere else?”
She tsked. “Honey, you don’t have to apologize for that. All I want is for you to be happy. If that isn’t here, then I can’t do much about it, even if it’s nice having you around. But… what if you could be happy here? Have you ever considered that possibility?”