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Maybe his first clue should have been that they met in a bar. Not even a gay bar, because let's be honest, it was hard to find a decent one in Austin that wasn't filled with old perverts who wanted to get their rocks off before returning to their perfect little families where they'd continue to live their lies until they got the itch again. To be fair, he'd scratched a few itches when he was young enough not to care about what he was potentially doing to a family. He'd just wanted to get laid and if a guy could offer a good fuck, he was all for it.
Then he started to consider things and after a bit of soul searching (which he would never admit to) and being forced to watch way more rom-coms than any twenty-something young man should ever be forced to endure, he'd reached the conclusion that he wanted something-maybe not that "I'll follow you to the ends of the earth" be-all, end-all romance-but something he could be happy with. Someone he could actually be with for longer than a day. And maybe someone who treated him as more than just a hole to fuck. Someone who might appreciate him for the surprisingly angry ball of playfulness and sarcasm and video game addiction that he was.
To be honest, his track record wasn't all that great. It was pretty awful, in fact. With no relationships to speak of in high school, the no-strings-attached one night stands between then and graduating college, and the four failed attempts at actual relationships since he grew some self respect, he wasn't exactly a shining beacon of prime dating material. Add to that his penchant for spending hours upon hours playing (and yelling at) video games, his passion for drinking with his few friends and his very lesbian best friend who made damn sure that all of his boyfriends were aware that she didn't like them, and said boyfriends tended to bolt as soon as possible.
Maybe Lindsay would like this one. Greg, he said his name was. He was maybe a bit like the others Michael had dated, but he kind of had a weakness for the "bad boys" as Lindsay called them. No matter how many times he swooned over some dude with a motorcycle, or tattoos, or some piercing (let's not forget the muscles, because damn), she was always there to tell him that it would never work. That they would be just as big of jerks as his last few attempts at dating and he'd just end up on her couch covered in blankets and hugging the My Little Pony stuffy she'd bought just to be his pity stuffy. Apparently she was getting sick of him moping around that none of the guys he dated liked video games or understood his weird obsession with talking pony cartoons. Or that yes, Gavin and Geoff would absolutely show up whenever they wanted to drink with him regardless of what his boyfriend of the moment said.
Greg seemed decent, though. It helped that they were able to keep up a passable conversation about Titanfall, so when Michael asked him to dinner the next evening, he was pleased that the offer was accepted enthusiastically.
Which brought him to now. Standing in front of a probably too fancy restaurant for a first date, waiting for Greg to show up. It wouldn't have been his first choice. Some lobby restaurant of one of the nicer hotels in the city, but his date insisted and he relented. To his relief, Greg was only a few minutes late and while he wasn't dressed as well as Michael, at least his jeans weren't ripped and his shirt didn't say anything inappropriate.
They were seated quickly and Michael was surprised at how smoothly dinner went. The light, casual flirting from the night before at the bar continued and they picked up their conversation easily, segueing into different games they'd each played and comparing notes. Things were going great until Michael paid the bill.
That was the point when Greg smiled at him and gathered his things. "Thanks for dinner, man. But I gotta get back to my wife."
Michael froze and his stomach dropped at an alarming rate. For a second he was afraid he'd lose the obscenely expensive dinner he'd just paid for. "Wife? What the fuck, man? If you're married why the hell did you agree to this?"
Greg shrugged, unconcerned with the humiliated flush rising on Michael's cheeks. Nor did he seem to care that they were attracting the attention of a few nearby tables. "I'm not gay, dude. You offered dinner and I thought why not, free food, right? Maybe next time you shouldn't be so desperate to get someone to suck your dick, huh? Later."
He turned and walked away, leaving Michael to silently fight his humiliation. It wasn't until a throat cleared nearby that he looked away from the door Greg had disappeared through. He turned and immediately flushed for an entirely different reason. The man in front of him wasn't anywhere near what Michael had always thought was his type, but damn if he wasn't attractive. All soft edges, warm eyes and kind smile. And good lord that beard. Michael wondered what it would feel like against his skin, but he beat that thought down furiously. Because there was a beautiful woman next to him who obviously had to be his wife. Girlfriend at least.
"Are you ok?" the man asked gently and Michael felt like he'd been sucker punched because the man's voice was like warm, melted chocolate and he sort of hated himself for wasting so much time on idiots like all of his exes when he could have been searching for this perfect, gorgeous man. Who was taken, he reminded himself.
"Oh, uh. Yeah, I guess. It's stupid, really. I met him at a bar last night and we, well, I thought we hit it off, but. I mean, obviously I was wrong."
"Don't let that guy get to you," the woman said sweetly and damn it, she was Australian and no way the man would look at him when he had a foreign beauty at his side. "Obviously he's selfish jerk and I pity his wife for having to be married to someone like him." She turned to her companion and grinned. "Jack, you have to promise you won't let me marry someone like that. I demand that you keep me from making stupid decisions like that."
"Does that mean you'll actually listen to my opinion?" Jack-seriously perfect name for the man-rolled his eyes.
"Aww, Jackie, don't be like that. I always listen to your opinion. You're my best gay."
Jack laughed and Michael felt that sucker-punched breathlessness again. He was gay? "Anyway, I'm Jack, this is my best friend Caiti."
"Michael."
"We were about to head out to meet up with some friends of mine before Caiti flies back home in the morning and we saw what happened. I'm really sorry you had to go through that. I've been there myself."
Michael frowned and scrubbed an irritated hand through his hair. "Yeah, well. Not the first time I've made a dumb decision when it comes to guys I date. Lindsay says I have shitty taste in men."
"Well, based on that guy I think I have to agree. Are you sure you're ok?"
"I'm sure. Listen, I don't want to keep you from your plans-"
"Oh, Jack! Can he come with? He seems really nice and I'll bet he'd get along with your friends." Without waiting for a response from Jack, Caiti turned back to Michael. "Do you like mini golf? We're meeting his friends Geoff, Gavin and Ryan there."
"Wait, Geoff and Gavin? As in Geoff Ramsey and Gavin Free?"
Caiti beamed. "You know them? Well, that's perfect then. Come on." She looped her arm through Michael's and led him out of the hotel lobby and toward what he assumed was Jack's car. "This'll be great fun. And it'll even out everything. We can do teams."
An hour later, with no knowledge of how, Michael was teamed up with Jack while Gavin and Geoff proved to be the worst team in history and Caiti and Ryan basically dominated them all. As the night wore on, Michael found himself talking quietly with Jack, fully aware of Caiti's delighted gaze following them. Turns out, he and Jack had more than just mutual friends in common. Before they even reached the halfway point, they'd exchanged phone numbers and gamer tags. Michael had even spent a few minutes raging to Gavin about why the hell he and Jack hadn't been introduced before.
And really, considering how often Jack's hand appeared at the small of his back, guiding him through the course after the rest of their group, Michael should have expected it. As it was, his face flushed almost violently when Jack scooped up his hand and offered a shy smile. "So, I know we just met a few hours ago, but do you think maybe, you might want to go on a date with me?"
It was impossible to keep the smile off his face, especially when he heard Caiti and Gavin giggling from nearby, obviously spying on them. "I don't know," he teased gently. "This kind of feels like date already, doesn't it?"
Jack considered that. "Yeah," he murmured. "You might be right about that. If that's the case, though, would that entitle me to a goodnight kiss once I deliver you back to your car tonight?"
Michael grinned and leaned up to press a lingering kiss to Jack's cheek. The beard? Absolutely as soft as he'd hoped it would be. "If you play your cards right. But you should know I don't put out on a first date."
That wonderful laugh cut through the night air. "I think I can live with that." He lifted Michael's hand to his lips and winked before turning to take his turn.
"Fucking finally," Geoff grumbled, grin poorly hidden behind his hand. "Been your turn for a while now, asshole."
"That impatient for us to kick your asses, huh?" Jack threw back.
Michael stood back and watched as Jack putted cleanly despite Gavin's attempts to mess with him. He studied the man, unaware of the stupid grin on his face. Jack wasn't his usual type by far. But for the first time, Michael actually looked forward to introducing someone to Lindsay. She'd approve, he was sure of it. It had only been a few hours, but Jack was already proving to be much kinder than anyone Michael had ever dated. And he was friends with people Michael considered to be his closest friends. Not to mention he had the patience to put up with Gavin, so that was a definite plus.
Jack glanced back at him and gave that soft smile that had all of Michael's insides melting. Yeah. This could absolutely work. In any case, he was looking forward to finding out. Almost as much as he was looking forward to that goodnight kiss.
Who knew being tricked into buying a married prick dinner could turn into the best decision of his life.