Tobias: An MM Rent-A-Date Novel, page 4
I huff out a laugh. “Yeah, that’s a good point. How long have you been doing this?”
“Eight years.”
“And you like it?”
“Love it,” he says. “I get to meet so many different sorts of people. Sometimes I get free vacations.”
“Wow,” I say in awe.
“It’s kind of a dream job.”
“Don’t you ever consider settling down?” I have no idea why I ask that. “Sorry, that’s personal, and—”
“It’s okay.” He waves me off. “I’m an open book. I’ve got no secrets, and I’m comfortable talking about almost anything.”
“Almost?”
He smirks. “Don’t get me started on religion and don’t tell me the Seahawks suck.”
I can’t help but laugh at how seriously he says it.
“Well, you don’t have to worry there. I refuse to speak about religion and I’m not much of a sports guy.”
“Ah, you wound me.” He presses his hand to his chest, smiling at me. It’s a fucking blindingly beautiful smile, and if I were on my feet, I’d have fallen over.
The waitress drops off our drinks, and we still haven’t looked at the menu.
“May I suggest the prosciutto wrapped figs? They come stuffed with goat cheese, a little drizzle of honey, and topped with thyme. It’s our newest item, and a hot seller.”
Tobias looks at me expectantly, and I shrug.
“We’ll give it a go,” he says.
“Perfect. I’ll get that in right away.”
“We should probably figure out what we want to eat before she starts to hate us,” he says with a chuckle, picking up his menu. I do the same.
When she drops off the appetizer, which looks delicious by the way, we put in our meal orders. I get the pan-seared scallops while Tobias orders a steak.
“Do you actually get full on that?” he asks when the waitress leaves the table.
“Guess we’ll find out.”
“So,” he starts, leaning forward slightly. “What made you want to rent a date?”
“And here I thought I’d be at least three drinks in before answering that question.” I pick up my glass and take a sip.
He chuckles. “That bad, huh?”
“Bad isn’t the right word. Maybe embarrassing.”
“Color me intrigued,” he says in a low tone that has my dick stirring to life again. Fuck that thing already. Why does he get a mind of his own?
“This is going to sound so ridiculous.” I take another sip, the glass already half gone.
“Here,” he says, taking a sip of his drink then dumping the rest into mine. I raise a brow. “For courage.”
I chuckle before taking a mouthful, then the last dregs of it. The waitress walks by, and he gestures for two more.
“Need another minute?” he asks.
“No, I should probably just get it over with.”
“All right, let’s hear it.”
There’s excitement shining in his eyes, that I fear I’m going to destroy when I tell him how lame my reasoning is for getting him here.
“So, I… Well, I…” I blow out a breath, rubbing the back of my neck. “Don’t know where to begin, it seems.”
“Okay, so let’s try another way.” I settle into my seat a little more, waiting for him to continue. “How’d you find out about Foxy’s?”
“A friend of mine is a bartender. She gave me a card.”
“Love that,” he says enthusiastically. “And why’d you choose me?”
I groan. “Do I have to answer that?”
“Well, you do now.” He chuckles.
I shake my head, then stare right into his eyes. “Eeny, meeny, miny, moe.”
He rolls his lips between his teeth to stop from laughing, but I see how badly it wants to come out.
“Here you are, gentlemen. Can I get you anything else while you wait for your meals?”
“No, thank you,” I say, reaching for one of the figs. She nods and leaves, and I pop it into my mouth. Wow, this is good. Better than I thought it would be. Not typically a goat cheese fan, but everything works nicely together.
“I’m going to say fate led us here together,” he says, picking up his drink.
“Is that so?”
“Yeah.” He shrugs. “Whatever reason you’re here for, it’s supposed to be me here with you.”
I sigh, picking up another fig and chewing thoughtfully, then washing it down with a mouthful of scotch. When I look up, I find him watching me carefully.
“I think I’m gay,” I blurt.
If he’s shocked by it, he doesn’t show it, and for that I am grateful beyond words.
“Not the first time I’ve heard that,” he answers simply.
“I’m supposed to be married in a few months,” I add, knowing I can top anything he’s ever had before.
“I’m going to take a leap here and say it’s to a woman?”
I nod. “It’s to a woman.”
“And you’re trying to figure out if you should call it off or not?” he asks carefully.
“That’s the thing,” I say, reaching for another fig. The alcohol is starting to work now, not only warming my belly but settling my nerves. “I don’t have a clue. I just… need to know.”
I have no idea what I’m going to do with this information, but trying to ignore it hasn’t helped. Calling off the wedding isn’t an option. My family would disown me, and I’d ruin Marianne’s life. It’s just… for my own peace of mind, I need to know.
“And you thought going on a date with a guy would tell you this about yourself?”
Maybe it’s the alcohol, but I feel like I could tell Tobias anything and he wouldn’t judge me. Maybe it’s just because he’s so calm and his eyes are trusting. I feel like I could expose my soul to him and not feel weird about it. He’s the kind of person you spill your heart to without even realizing it. And I think that’s why I end up word-vomiting everything to him.
“I have these dreams. Sex dreams that turn into wet dreams.” His eyes flicker with excitement, but for once, my dick acts right and I keep going instead of stopping to wonder why he’s excited about that. “They’ve been going on for months. It’s always with a guy.”
“Since we’re being so open here, let me ask you this: have you had sex with your fiancée?” I nod. “And you’ve come?” Fuck, that word out of his mouth, the way his lips press together when pronouncing the M… I nod again. “But…”
“How do you know there’s a but?”
“Because you’re here.”
Right. That makes sense.
“But,” I say with a sigh. “Something is missing. It’s not enough. Not… satisfying.”
“And I’m also going to guess you’ve never had sex with a guy before?”
I shake my head.
“Is that what you were expecting to happen tonight?”
“What? No.” I shake my head, panic seizing my chest. “No, not at all. I wouldn’t think that about you or anyone else. You’re a professional.”
He’s chuckling, and I frown.
“Calm down, Theo. Is it okay if I call you Theo?” I nod, reaching for my glass again. “Cool. You can call me Toby if you want.”
“I like Tobias.”
“Yeah, me too.” He grabs his drink, taking a sip. “Anyway, I think the only way you’ll actually know is if you do it. And I’m not condoning you cheating on your fiancée. Not a fan of cheating at all, and I don’t condone it in any way, but this isn’t about me. You have to think about it, right? What’s going to bother you more? Cheating on your fiancée or never knowing if you’re gay? Or bi or anything else.”
I nod carefully. “I hadn’t looked at it that way.”
“Like I said. I was meant to be here with you tonight.”
And suddenly, I really believe that.
Chapter Six
Tobias
Theo’s demeanor changes when I throw some reality at him. He’s been a bit sullen ever since, stuck in his head, no doubt contemplating what to do. It’s an important thing to think about, but is it worth $500 an hour? Because that’s what he’s paying me to be here, and he’s not even taking full advantage of it. Not my problem. In fact, it’s my gain. But I do feel a little bad for the guy.
We’ve since finished dinner, declined dessert, but we are working on another drink.
“Hey, have you ever been to The Butterfly?” I ask, not sure why I’m asking him this. There’s just something about him that has me curious and wanting to help.
His gaze darts to mine. “The Butterfly?”
I nod. “Yeah.”
“No, never even heard of it.”
“It’s a bar on the other end of town. My friends and I go there all the time. You should come hang out tonight.”
I hadn’t planned on going out to the bar tonight, but I mean… maybe it’ll help the guy. He’s sad as hell, confused about his life, and he needs to figure that shit out before he makes a huge mistake. I may never see him again, but I don’t want him to be miserable for the rest of his life. I was miserable for four years and that was hell—never mind being married to someone.
Brandon may be a piece of shit, but unfortunately he does know me, and helping people is something I am passionate about. He wasn’t wrong about that. Not in the way of donating tons of money, though I have done that. It’s more in the way of helping people understand themselves. I should have been a therapist or counselor, rather than a physical therapist, but at the end of the day, I’m still helping people.
“A bar? I don’t know.”
“If you’re worried about the money—”
“I’m not. I have plenty of it.”
“I was going to say it’s not a paid gig. I’m asking you as a nice person.”
“Oh…” He blinks a few times. “Well, okay then.”
I narrow my eyes, wondering how that changes anything. Did he think I was only doing it to get money? Seems what this guy needs is a friend to talk to, not a paid date. He’s lonely. Doesn’t have someone who understands him. I could be that person for him, even if it’s only for tonight.
“I’m ready to go whenever you are,” I say, finishing my drink.
He’s already taken care of the check, and I even offered to pay for half because I really do feel for this guy, but he refused. Said it wasn’t appropriate. Whatever that means.
Theo takes the last mouthful of his drink then moves to get up, so I do the same. We get our coats from the coat check, and then we’re out on the sidewalk. The air is crisp, but at least the rain has stopped for now.
“I’ll order a ride,” I say.
“I can do it.”
“Well, so can I. It was my idea, so I will do it.”
He blinks at me, then his shoulders sag. “Fine.”
So, he likes a firm hand? Interesting. It seems learning about him only makes me crave more.
“It’ll be here in six minutes,” I say, pocketing my phone.
He nods, rocking back on his heels, hands shoved into his Milford coat. Had I seen that on him at the beginning, I’d have known he came from money. Those aren’t cheap. It’s not just about the money, but the style. It’s long, stopping at his knees, and navy blue, which matches his pants. Not an everyday, casual jacket.
“Do you invite all your dates to the bar?” he asks, looking over at me.
I give a small shrug. “Just the ones who don’t annoy me to the point of wanting to jump off a cliff.”
“Wow. I must really be something special then.”
I chuckle.
He adds, “Do you get a lot of annoying dates?”
“Depends what you’d consider is a lot. A couple a month.”
“Out of how many dates?”
“I do roughly twenty-five a month.”
“Damn,” he comments. “And they’re all different people? Like strangers?”
“I have my regulars, but the dating business is lucrative. Foxy is rolling in the dough, for sure.”
“That’s really her name?” he asks.
“Probably not legally, but it’s what she goes by and what we all know her as.”
“How many guys work for her?”
“Around thirty.”
He huffs out a laugh. “Maybe I’m in the wrong business.”
I give him a good look up and down. He swallows hard as I do, so I do it for a moment longer just to fuck with him. “Yeah, you’d do great in my line of work.”
I look away, leaving him to stew in that as he continues to stare at me. I try my best to hide my smile. I bet his cheeks are a nice rosy pink right about now, but I’ll never know, thanks to the darkness blanketing us. My phone vibrates and I glance at it.
“Car will be here in a minute.”
He doesn’t say another word until we get to the bar.
The driver drops us off right in front, and I give him a tip from my phone as I make my way onto the sidewalk. Theo grips my arm, so I look over at him.
“Aren’t we a bit overdressed for this place?”
I glance at the bar that is a hole in the wall dive bar most people avoid. I can just barely hear the bass of music inside.
“Not at all. These guys love seeing a man all dressed up.”
His eyes narrow before they widen. “This is a gay bar?” he whispers.
“Did you expect to see college frat boys looking for pussy in a bar called The Butterfly?” I deadpan.
His cheeks are pink now, but I can’t tell if it’s from what I said or the nip in the air.
“I didn’t really think about it.”
“Do you not want to go in? We don’t have to. I should have told you beforehand. I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s fine. It’s just…” He looks at the door. It’s dark wood, thick and heavy. On the building, in faded paint, are a bunch of butterflies and the bar name, which doesn't let anyone know what it is. If you don’t know the place, you likely won’t ever go in, and that’s how they like it.
I raise a brow when he doesn’t answer.
“You’ve never been to a gay bar before?” I ask.
He shakes his head.
“I’ll tell you, this is a great place to be your first. If you want to leave at any time, feel free, but I do think you’ll have a great time here. Everyone is very accepting.”
He nods, taking a breath. “Okay, let’s go.”
I grin at him before moving to the door and pulling it open. The music gets a little louder, but we have to walk down some steps and the hallway before getting to the actual bar.
“After you.”
It’s dark inside, the lights dim. We make our way through the hallway that’s lined with different pieces of artwork and sconces in the shape of dicks.
“Are those…”
“Yep,” I say with a chuckle. "Dicks."
He smirks, shaking his head, and we make it to the next set of doors that I pull open. The music is much louder. Not so loud we won’t be able to chat, but loud enough that you know it’s okay to dance. As we step inside, the smell of bar food hits my nose and my mouth waters. I do love a good meal from a nice restaurant, but nothing beats greasy burgers.
As we step inside, I spot Nathanial up on the small stage, singing his lungs out to “Pink Pony Club” by Chappell Roan. It isn’t karaoke night or anything; Nathanial just goes up there any chance he gets to sing. No one complains because he sounds great and is a good source of entertainment.
“Let me have your coat,” I say loud enough that Theo can hear. I take mine off. He gives me his, and I hang them both up on one of the many coat racks lined by the door. I put my hand on his lower back. It’s warm and firm, and I guide him over to the bar, where I see a group of my friends.
“Holy shit, it’s Tobias!” Benton shouts from the bar, throwing his arms up. The guys he’s sitting with all look my way, smiling at me in shock.
“Hey, guys,” I say. “Long time no see.”
“No shit. Where have you been?” Mario asks.
“Just busy working.” I gesture to Theo. “This is my friend, Theo” I give him a look to ask if introducing him as Theo is okay, and he gives a little nod. “This is Benton, Mario, and Luca.” I point to each of them as I say their name.
“Hey,” Theo says, waving shyly.
They all return a hello.
“So, is this a friend or a friend?” Benton asks, waggling his brows.
“Don’t be annoying so soon, Benton. I just got here.” He holds his hands up in an apologetic way, causing Mario to laugh.
“Let’s move to a table,” Luca says as he gets up from his stool. “There’s a free one in the back over there.”
There aren’t any free seats at the bar, so moving is a good idea. I don't mind standing, but sitting is more comfortable.
“How long has Nathanial been up there?” I ask, gesturing toward the stage as we walk by it to get to the table. He sees me, smiling and winking as he belts out lyrics to “I Kissed a Girl” by Katy Perry.
“Too long. He’s on this Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan kick,” Luca explains.
“And Katy Perry, it seems,” Theo adds, and I grin at him. Glad he’s comfortable enough to add to the conversation.
“Yeah, that’s new,” Luca says.
We get to the table, which is a half circle booth with a small table between. There’s enough room to get up and walk out, even if you’re in the center of the booth, but the table is big enough to hold our drinks and some food. Great design, if I'm being honest.
“So, what brings you here tonight?” Benton asks.
I never come here after dates. Usually only when I have a night off, which is rare. And I have never, not once, ever brought a date here. This is personal to me, and I keep personal stuff to myself.
“Just looking for something to do,” I say as I get up. “Who needs a drink?”
Probably should have ordered them before we came over here, but I wasn’t thinking. My three friends raise their hands all at once.
