Chapter 2

"They're watching you again," Mason spoke in a low voice as he whizzed past Bryce, carrying drinks to the opposite end of the bar.

"You're imagining things again." Ever since Mason swore that Toby and Matt—who'd become regulars at the bar after Bryce started working there—were gay and interested in Bryce, he'd been teasing Bryce about their interest.

Bryce told himself not to look, but he couldn't help glancing toward the corner booth where they usually sat, before going back to wiping down the bar. Did they sit there because it gave them a good view of the bar? Bryce scowled. No way in hell were his hands shaking, and no way in hell was he letting himself get his hopes up. Even if they were gay, even if they were interested in him, starting something with two guys from work would be the pinnacle of idiocy. Hell, getting involved with more than one guy was insane from the start. Just because Mason and his boyfriends had made a threesome work didn't make it realistic for Bryce. There was an exception to every rule.

"You're wrong," Bryce said as he passed Mason on his way to take a customer's order.

Mason snorted in reply.

Bryce was glad to see the bar was filling up. He did not need to spend the next hour telling himself not to look at Toby and Matt. He did plenty of that at the firehouse. Toby's smile could heat up an entire room, and Bryce never wanted to look away from it, unless it was to contemplate running his hands through Matt's wavy brown hair while staring into his dark eyes.

But if Mason was right and they were gay, maybe they really were lovers. If so, he had no business approaching them, whether they were watching him or not. Just because they liked to look didn't mean they wanted to play. They didn't need him fucking up whatever they had going.

Plus, they worked together. They were a team, with people's lives on the line.

The line at the bar grew long, and Bryce got busy taking orders, making drinks, and ringing people up at the register. When things finally slowed down, he needed a bathroom break. As he headed to the back, he noticed Matt and Toby playing pool with a couple of guys he recognized as regulars. Toby waved, and he waved back, hating the way his pulse accelerated. What the hell was wrong with him?

He pushed open the door of the restroom but failed to check his instinct to glance back over his shoulder. Toby's eyes were glued to his ass. There was no doubt about it this time. He whirled back around before their gazes had a chance to meet.

So Toby wasn't straight. Bryce had to admit that now. He was gay or at least bi, but he was just appreciating the scenery. That didn't mean anything. Bryce appreciated guys' asses all the time.

When Bryce left the bathroom, Toby and Matt were leaning in close, talking, arguing actually based on the angry expressions on their faces. Bryce hurried back to work, glad he didn't have to decide whether to speak to them or not. Several minutes later, Toby appeared at the bar. Mason, the little bastard, wasn't busy, but he made no move to take Toby's order.

"What can I get you?" Bryce asked.

"Just cashing out our tab." Our? Maybe Toby was just buying that night.

"Sure." Bryce looked Toby's name up in the register, ran his card, and handed him the receipt to sign.

"Thanks," Toby said, flashing a smile that made his eyes twinkle. How was it that he made that single word sound flirtatious? Bryce was supposed to be the one who flirted, the one in control of a situation, but despite Toby being so much younger, Bryce ended up flustered every time they spoke.

Toby looked up from signing the receipt. "You working till close?"

Bryce gave him a questioning look. "No, I get off at midnight. Why?"

"Oh I was just… um… thinking you've probably had a long day." Toby twirled one of the strands of his longish bangs around his finger. His nervous gesture again. Why was he so often nervous when talking to Bryce?

You know why.

Bryce ignored his inner voice and shrugged. "It's not been too bad."

"Good. Well, I'll see you tomorrow." Their shift at the station began at eight AM the next day.

"Yeah. You heading home?"

Toby shook his head. "Nah, we're going dancing. You could join us if you wanted?" Was that what Toby had wanted to say before? Had he been trying to get his nerve up?

"Thanks, but us old folk need our sleep. Have fun."

"We will." Again with the sexy voice. Toby grinned at him and walked away.

"Was that proposition another example of my imagining things going on there?" Mason asked the next time things got quiet.

Bryce fought the urge to growl at his friend. "That wasn't a proposition."

"Right. He wasn't flirting with you, and he definitely didn't want to dance with you."

"That's right. He was just being polite."

Mason nodded. "If you want to talk about all this nothing at some point, you know where I am."

"Fine." The word came out harsher than Bryce meant for it to, but the last thing he wanted to do was talk about Toby and Matt. What he wanted was to forget about them, which was never going to happen since he spent several days a week with them.

Things got busy again, and before Bryce knew it, it was time for him to leave. "Have a good night," he said to Mason as he headed to the back to clock out.

"Yeah, you too. When are you working again?"

"Day after tomorrow. Six till close."

As he drove home, Bryce's mind drifted to thoughts of Toby and Matt dancing, their bodies sliding together. Would they have removed their shirts? Would their skin be slick with sweat? He let the fantasy spin. Matt was the aggressor, yanking Toby to him, pushing his hand between them and gripping Toby's cock. Toby's head would drop back with a groan, one Bryce would only hear if he were right there, grinding against Toby's ass, working him over, pumping his cock. He'd tell Matt exactly what to do, how to touch Toby, then he'd…

He slammed on the brakes, barely noticing the red light in time. Fuck. He'd never been that into the idea of two men at once before, but now…

He'd moved to Durham to start over, to see if he could still do the job after a horrendous fire in Atlanta had shaken his confidence. He shuddered, still unable to let the memories creep in without the threat of a total breakdown. That family. Everyone said they hadn't stood a chance, that no one could have gotten to them in time. Bryce pushed those thoughts aside, along with his fantasies of Toby and Matt. He concentrated on driving as he headed home to go to bed, alone. He wasn't ready for anything else.