Hugh

H ugh Davis wasn’t sure if managing a new bar was his jam, but breaking up with his boyfriend, Luke, had him spiraling and he needed a fresh start. He had held so many different jobs over the years, trying to find his niche, but nothing ever stuck. Honestly, he had worked at many new bars—helping the owners to start up a new business and watching them succeed should have been enough for him, but it wasn’t anymore. The older he got, the more he toyed with the idea of starting his own place from the ground up. Of course, that would require capital that he didn’t have, so his dream would have to wait, and he would have to keep working his ass off trying to claw his way to the top.

The new bar owner sounded cool enough on the phone. Plus, the bar was right next to some funky Kink Club that he planned on checking out. He was hoping that he’d be able to find another gay guy in town, but he doubted that such a person would exist in the po-dunk town that he was stuck in.

walked into the unfinished bar and looked around. A full construction crew was working and when he cleared his throat, they all turned around to look at him. “I’m looking for Colter Williams,” he said. “I have an appointment with him.” He looked down at his watch and realized that he was about ten minutes early and wondered if that was a good or bad thing. Some people hated it when others were early, and some people thought it was a show of excitement for the new job. He’d go with the latter if asked.

“I’m John, the construction foreman,” one of the guys said, stepping forward. “Get back to work guys,” he ordered. The men did as asked and had to admit—he was pretty impressed.

“I’m Davis.” He held out his hand to John and watched as the guy dusted off his hand on his jeans and shook ’s hand.

“I hate to tell you this, but the boss left a few hours ago and I don’t know when he’ll be back,” John said.

“Oh, I have a job interview and am supposed to meet with him in five minutes. Do you mind if I wait around?” he asked.

“Sure, you can sit back in his office. It’s the only room that’s completely done. It’s dusty back there, but tolerable. Follow me,” John ordered. He liked bossy men and wondered if John was available. He was never shy about asking a man out, but he was out of his element in this town.

John showed him back to Colter’s office and told him to have a seat. He offered to call “his boss” and was grateful for that. He had a few apartments to look at and if this interview went well, he’d need to rent one of them soon. The bar looked about finished and he’d want to help with the final touches. had a feeling that was why he was called into an interview while the place was still a construction site.

“I’m so sorry that I’m late,” a big guy wearing sunglasses said. He walked into the office and sat down behind the desk in the corner of the room. “Oh, where are my manners?” he asked. He stood and offered his hand. “I’m Colter Williams, the owner.”

“Good to meet you, Colter,” he said, shaking his hand. “I’m Davis—hopefully your new bar manager.” The big guy smiled at him and didn’t miss how blue the guy’s eyes were when he took off his sunglasses or the adorable dimples that he had in each cheek.

“You okay, ?” Colter asked.

“I am,” he said, trying to clear his mind of how much he’d like to lick his possible new boss’ dimples. “I guess I’m just a bit distracted after the long ride to town this morning.”

“You don’t live in town?” Colter asked.

“Not yet,” admitted. “I live about three hours from here, but I’m looking at apartments after our meeting—if everything goes well.”

“I’d say that we’re off to a good start,” Colter said, sitting back in his leather chair. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off the guy. He was sexy as hell and was picking up some pretty strong vibes off Colter that he was gay. He needed to keep his head in the game and ace the interview first. Then, he’d ask the guy a few questions that would confirm his suspicions.

“How can you tell?” asked, “I mean all I’ve told you so far is my name and that I’m in the market for an apartment if I get this job.”

Colter barked out his laugh and nodded, “You’re a bit of a smart ass, , and I like that. I’ve also looked over your references and experience. You’ve done a lot of work in the industry, managing bars. Why do you want to work here?”

sat up in his seat and nodded. They were finally getting to the bullshitting part of the program. This was where he’d tell Colter how much he loved working in the bar industry. He’d tell him that it was his passion to help bar owners get their businesses up and running. But before he had a chance to do any of that, Colter held up his hand.

“Don’t feed me any bullshit,” he insisted. How he knew that was about to feed him some bullshit line was a mystery. “I understand that interviews are about selling yourself and your skills, but I want an honest answer. Why do you want to be in this town and work here?” Colter asked.

“Okay,” breathed, “I’m feeling kind of lost these days. My boyfriend and I broke up a few months ago and I’ve been drifting, you know?”

“I do know,” Colter said, “my grandfather died a couple of months ago and I knew I couldn’t stay in the house I had grown up in. He raised me and staying in that town felt like a step backward. So, I packed up some of my stuff and hit the road. This was the first place I stopped and when I found this building, I knew it had to be where I built my bar.”

“Ah, so I’m assuming that this place is named after your grandfather then,” guessed. He thought the name to be old fashioned and now he knew why.

“Yep,” Colter said, “his name was Abner, and I thought that he’d get a kick out of me naming a bar after him. After all, it was the money that he left me that allowed me to do all this.”

“You are very lucky to have a grandfather who loved you so much, Colter,” he said. “I never knew my family. I grew up in foster care, and while I never really minded much, sometimes I miss the family that I never knew.” He shrugged, “It’s hard to explain.”

“No,” Colter said, “my parents were killed in a car accident when I was seven, and while I loved my grandpa, I still missed them.” nodded, noticing the same sadness that he often felt reflected in Colter’s eyes. “How would you like the job, ?” Colter asked.

“I think that I’d like it here,” said, “thank you.” He stood and shook Colter’s hand and turned to leave. “Oh, when do you need me to start?” he asked.

“How about Monday?” Colter said.

“That works,” agreed. That would give him the weekend to find an apartment and move his meager belongings in. He didn’t have much, so it would be an easy move. “Are the people in town nice?” he asked.

“Nice?” Colter questioned.

“Yeah, you know, would they accept a man like me?” asked.

“Oh, you mean will they accept you being gay?” Colter asked, picking up on his meaning. He nodded and Colter laughed. “Well, I hope like hell that they do, because if not, I’m not going to have very much business. I’m gay too, ,” he said. turned around to look at Colter. His Spidey senses were still working, and liked the fact that his new boss played on his team—not that he’d ever pursue Colter. The one thing that had learned from his last failed relationship was not to mix business and pleasure.

“Good to know,” said, turning to leave again. “See you on Monday, boss,” he called back over his shoulder.

Euphoria (The Kink Club Book 3)-

https://books2read.com/u/bpAQNk

What’s coming next from K.L. Ramsey? You won’t want to miss Hurricane’s House (RBMC Yonkers, NY Chapter Book 1)!