Page 3 of Dark Room Junkie

I creased my forehead in surprise. The guy really wore his heart on his sleeve.

He held his hands up, startled by his own words. “Sorry. No idea where that came from.” He tried to leave but seemed to struggle with walking away and leaving me by myself at the bar.

I chuckled and placed my empty glass back on the counter.

Maybe I can try something new tonight. He keeps giving me these sneaky glances …

“Do you like guys?” Once the words came out of my mouth, Alex nearly choked on his beer. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“I ... uh ... yeah.”

“Nice,” I said, smiling. “Let’s get to know each other better.” He had no idea how much his value had just risen. Someone who looked so well-groomed and had such good manners almost inevitably had a clean apartment and a nice bed. He seemed a bit reserved, but that would surely change once I got my hands on him. That was the case with everyone.

“What? Are you sure? We’ve only known each other ... I don’t know, for five minutes? Although I feel like I’ve known you for weeks. But I could be some kind of freak.”

“Almost everyone here seems to know you. And they can see that I’m talking to you. You’d have to be a genius to cover up a murder on me.”

“Maybe I am.”

A spark lit up in his eyes, and he exuded so much confidence that for a brief moment, I was inclined to question my assessment of him. Maybe that was his sense of humor, and he was a good actor. “Disguised as a photographer that almost every architect here knows? Really good prerequisites for a murdering genius. I’ll get you.”

Alex laughed loudly, revealing his beautiful white teeth. “Oh yeah? And what tells you that I’m not a judo master?”

His contagious laughter made me grin, and I shook my head in amusement. “Well, then I guess I’ll have to come up with something.”

The man radiated a unique warmth. I hoped so much that he wasn’t naive because I’d be gone again with the rising sun. After all, I was only here for the bed. That’s why the attraction between us, seemingly within reach, irritated me all the more.

“Want another one?” Only when Claude took my empty glass and snapped me out of my thoughts did I notice the silence between Alex and me.

I cleared my throat, glanced at Claude, and then back at Alex. His glass was almost empty, and he shrugged.

I signaled to Claude that I didn’t want another one and shifted my gaze to Alex. “I’m Noé—if you care.”

Alex laughed again. “Do you think I’m one of those?”

“Who knows?”

“Don’t get me wrong, but I already knew your name.”

“How could I misunderstand that?”

“I’m not a stalker or anything.”

“Okay, I ...” Somehow, I was glad when he seemed a little unsure again.

“But it’s nice of you to introduce yourself.”

“Nice.” I let the word roll off my tongue and raised my eyebrows. “That’s just how I am,” I said in a monotone voice.

“Now you’re scaring me.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. It had been a while since flirting had been this much fun and felt so natural and honest to me. “You can still consider taking me home with you.” I kept to myself that I would have otherwise taken up Steffan’s offer.

“Aha, so we’re going to my place?”

“Exactly.”

“We could also go to your place.”

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