"Julian, Dino, I would
like you to meet the owner of The Club, Darius Alexander. Darius,
this is Julian and Dino. This is Julian's first time here. From the looks
I'm getting from Tim, I think Dino has been here a time or two."
Julian nodded towards
Darius as Dino leaned over to shake his large hand. When Dino went to scoot
in next to Darius, Dillon held him back by his arm, giving him a slight
wiggle of his eyebrows as he looked from Julian to Darius and then back to
Dino.
Dino looked at him,
confused, for several seconds before understanding dawned on him. His grin
was huge. He leaned over to Julian. "Hey, I'm going to run to the little
boy's room. I'll be back in just a second. Why don't you go ahead and save
our places."
Julian shrugged his
shoulders and sat down, scooting into the booth as Dino walked off to use
the bathroom, followed quickly by Dillon. He plastered a smile on his
nervous face as he looked up at the big man sitting just inches from him.
"It's a really nice club,
Mr. Alexander."
"Please, call me,
Darius," he replied, his voice deep and husky. Julian nearly swooned right
there and then. The sound of his deep whiskey voice sent chills up and down
his spine.
"Are you having a good
time?"
"Yes, everyone has been
very friendly and the music is really great."
"I'm glad you like it. We
aim to make everyone comfortable here."
Julian looked around the
lounge a little. The conversation was a tad bit stale. What do you say when
you meet your dream man? Hi, my name is Julian. Do you mind if I jump
your bones? It just didn't seem appropriate.
Darius could tell that
Julian was nervous. He was too. He almost wished Dino would hurry back from
the bathroom so that he could take up the slack in the conversation. Dino
seemed to have no problem talking, a lot.
"Dillon said this is your
first time here?" Julian smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I don't go to clubs much.
It's usually too expensive. And this place, well, it's way out of my usual
price range. Dino dragged me in here. He's bound and determined to find me a
boyfriend." Julian turned slightly red when he realized what he had said.
Oops, so much for being subtle.
Darius grinned. Yes! He
was single and gay. Just the way he liked them. If he had been anyone but
who he was he probably would have jumped up and danced a little jig right
there and then.
"Sounds like your friend
is trying to look out for you," Darius stated, trying to ease Julian's
nervousness. "Do you have a specific set of perimeters in mind or will just
anyone do?" Julian was saved from answering by the return of Dino, who slid
in next to Julian making him move closer to Darius until their thighs were
nearly touching. Dillon slid in next to Darius, forcing Darius closer to
Julian from the other side.
"Miss me?" Dino laughed.
"Yeah, with every
bullet," Julian mumbled under his breath. He couldn't believe that Dino had
abandoned him. He heard Darius's deep chuckle and felt it all the way up his
spine.
Darius decided to be a
little bold. "Julian tells me that you are on the search for a boyfriend for
him. Maybe I can be of some assistance. What specifically are you looking
for in a boyfriend for him? Height, weight, build?"
Dino looked from where
Darius's obviously interested gaze was devouring Julian to Julian's
incredibly red face and started laughing again. Julian had really gotten
himself into the soup this time. And Dino was going to do everything in his
power to stir the pot!
"Hmmm, tall, dark, and
breathtaking… basically… you."
Julian shot daggers at
Dino's laughing face. He just couldn't believe that he had said that. If
they weren't in public Julian would reach over and strangled his ex-best
friend. His jaw dropped open in astonishment when Dino continued.
"We are accepting
applications, however."
Dillon tried to keep his
face from breaking out in a grin as he saw the hostile look Julian was
shooting at Dino. Oh, this was too good to be true. Dino was trying
to find Julian a boyfriend? That meant he was gay and single. He couldn't
have planned this better if he had tried.
"Where would Darius apply
and what are the job requirements?"
Darius's smile was nearly
feral as he grinned over at Dillon and Dino, catching onto their game. He
leaned forward to rest his arms on the table as he looked down at Julian.
Dino pursed his lips as
he leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms over his chest. He watched
Darius for several moments, assessing him as possible boyfriend material. He
could see the savageness of Darius's gaze as he looked down at Julian. He
was hungry for him.
"I oversee all
applications. Helps weed out the undesirables. However, Julian does have the
final say on who we decide on. But I think I'm a pretty good judge of what
he is looking for. As for the qualifications for the job, Darius does have
the right height, weight, and build necessary for the—position."
Julian suddenly started
choking on the water he was swallowing. Darius reached over and rapidly
patted Julian on the back. Once Julian waved his hand that he was okay
Darius stopped patting his back but he did not remove his arm from behind
Julian. He just rested it on the back of the bench seat they were sitting
on.
"Are there any other
requirements we should know about?" Dillon asked as he watched his brother
go all protective over Julian.
"Well, obviously, whoever
fills the position can't be a heavy drinker since Julian doesn't drink. He
definitely has to have a sense of humor. It wouldn't hurt if he was romantic
either. A little romance does anyone some good."
"That's true. Can you be
more specific as to what that might entail?"
"Well—" Dino began only
to be interrupted by Julian's loud groan.
Julian had had enough.
"Okay, that's enough. We've all had a little fun at my expense. Its time to
end this little game. I'm perfectly capable of finding my own boyfriend,
thank you very much."
Darius took a chance and
leaned down to whisper in Julian's ear. "Does that mean you don't want me to
apply for the job? I'm sure I could fill the position— more than
adequately."
Julian looked up at him
sharply. Was he serious? Without looking away from Darius's sparkling dark
eyes he spoke, "Dino, go powder your nose."
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