Page 81 of Just A Little Fling

“Fair enough.”

“I’m guessing you’re the landlord, so it must’ve worked out all right.”

“You’re making a lot of assumptions.”

“Am I wrong?” I shrugged but didn’t contradict him.

“I’m Casey, by the way.”

“Levi.”

“Not going to introduce him?”

“Nope. You remember him well enough for a hookup that wasn’t. You don’t need his name.” The guy’s rueful grin seemed at odds with something undefined, but I still couldn’t name the contradiction other than to know there was one.

“Relax, my guy, I’m not trying to steal ya boy.” I gave Casey what I hoped was a non-predatory once-over. The guy was built like a damn freight train.

“Sorry. I assumed you were gay.”

Casey looked at me confused and then let out a boisterous laugh. “Oh, fuck yeah, I like boys, but I am not into them.”

What the hell was he even talking about? “Are you okay? Have you had too much to drink? Do I need to call someone for you?”

“Yeah, don’t even worry about it`. Glad to see he found his man,” Casey said with a chuckle before he turned and blended in with the rest of the crowd.

When I glanced back at the dancefloor, Nico was looking at me curiously, but I just waved and smiled. He shrugged and continued with his dancing. I went back to watching the only thing I wanted to see.

It was a few more songs before Nico was ready to come over to where I stood holding his stuff.

“Hey, handsome, you new in town?” Nico’s attempt at the movie flirting was a big hit with me.

“Yeah, you gonna show me a good time?” We lost all hope of coolness when we both dissolved into giggles.

“Here, drink some water. You look like you were working hard out there.”

“Thanks. It’s been a minute since I came out.”

“Yeah, that makes sense. I think this is the first time you’ve been to the club in weeks. Do you miss it?” My question hung in the air, unanswered. For the first time, I saw uncertainty in Nico’s face.

As a lawyer, I was ready to kick my own ass. The first rule of court was always knowing the answer to your question before it was asked. The second rule was if you didn’t know the answer before you asked, you better be damned sure you wanted the answer. I’d fucked up on both counts.

Nico’s expression changed from silly to uncomfortable to stricken to something inexplicable. Where his hand was lightly on my arm, he drew back like it was singed. It finally dawned on me what his expression was. Guilt. When he stopped meeting my gaze, I knew what I needed to say because I knew what was coming out of his mouth next. I’d accidentally triggered his fight or flight, and Nico was about to run.

“Nico, you’ve always been straight with me, and I won’t ever tie you to something you don’t want.”

“I don’t want to do this anymore. You said if I wanted to explore with other people, all I had to do was tell you. I’m telling you.”

CHAPTERTWENTY

NICO

Babbo

Everything okay?

Nico

Yeah, just running late for work this morning.

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