The Half of Us (Family 4)

Chapter 2

ABE FOLLOWED his friend Thad into the Phoenix. After a week’s worth of late nights preparing report cards, the quarter finally ended and he was ready to unwind.

“Thad, Abe, over here!” their friends called out and waved.

Stress melted away and Abe smiled, happy to be out with adults. “Hey,” he said as he reached the table. He looked at the empty glasses covering almost every square inch and arched his eyebrows. “How long have you been here? I thought we were meeting at nine. We’re not that late, are we?”

“Nah. We just got here. It’s busy, so we grabbed the table when the guys who were here before us left. Nobody’s bussed it yet.”

Abe looked around the bar. Only nine o’clock and it was already packed. Apparently the Phoenix was the place to go on Saturdays. He didn’t go out enough to know which bars were popular on which nights. Not that it mattered. He planned to sit with his friends, have a couple of drinks, and catch up. Hanging out at someone’s house would have been just as fun, but Thad liked going out and being seen. Well, as long as he was there, he’d make the most of it.

“Who wants a drink?” he said. “I’m going to the bar.” His friends called out their orders, and he smiled and turned around.

“That’s a lot of drinks. I’ll go with you.” Thad stood up next to Abe and leaned close as they walked away from the table. “There’s a guy at the bar who looks good enough to eat.”

“If you’re eating Bar Guy, how are you planning to help me carry the drinks?” Abe asked with a smile.

“If Bar Guy lets me eat him, you’re on your own with the drinks.”

“You’d abandon me with an armful of drinks after I came here for you?” Abe said in mock horror. “That’s heartless.”

“The guy’s really hot and—” Thad stopped midsentence, dipped his chin, and quietly hissed, “That’s him. He’s looking at me, right? I mean, don’t look, but he’s looking at me, right?”

A cute guy at the bar was glancing in their direction, so Abe said, “Yes.”

“Okay.” Thad straightened his shoulders. “I’m going for it. Wish me luck.”

“Good luck,” Abe said with a laugh.

“Did you see that?” Thad asked as he stumbled.

“What?”

“He just winked at me and grabbed his dick.” He smiled broadly and sauntered away. “Forget luck. This one’s in the bag. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

Having grown up in Utah, Abe had been surprised by the openness and promiscuity he’d witnessed when he moved to Las Vegas. But after living there for seven years, making friends with people from all over, and having a couple of short-term relationships, very little fazed him.

Plus, he now had a firsthand understanding of the appeal of going home with a hot guy. He had made it his birthday present to himself a couple of months earlier, when he’d taken home a man with sad eyes, a handsome face, and a talented body. And even though Abe had been disappointed when he’d woken up alone the next morning, he had no regrets. It wasn’t something he’d make a habit of—he was built for relationships, not hookups—but he’d had fun that night and the sex had been…. The memory made his heart speed up and his dick swell.

“Hi. Abe, right?” a deep voice said from behind him.

The voice sounded like Jason’s, and Abe’s first thought was that he must be hearing things. When he felt a big hand on his shoulder, he knew someone was behind him, but he figured thinking of the man had him attributing his voice to someone else. Then he swung around.

“Jason,” Abe moaned. He swallowed thickly and tried to slow his suddenly rapid breathing. “Hi.”

“I thought that was you.” Jason slowly moved his palm down Abe’s arm. “You remember me too, huh?”

“I, uh, have a decent memory and you made a pretty good impression.”

“Pretty good?”

Feeling his cheeks heat, Abe ducked his head and ignored the question. “How’ve you been?”

“Fine.” Jason kept slowly moving his palm until he reached Abe’s hand, and then he curled his fingers around Abe’s. “Better now. Let’s get out of here.”

The feeling of Jason’s hot skin, the sound of his husky voice, and the sight of his broad body had Abe’s senses reeling. He remembered how good it felt to be touched by this man. He had never cum so hard or had it last so long. Of course, he had never been tossed aside so quickly, either. He harbored no ill will toward Jason because he’d known going in how the night would end, but that didn’t mean he wanted a repeat of waking up alone the morning after.

“I don’t do that,” Abe said.

“As I recall, you do it really, really well.”

Though he was glad the pleasure from that night hadn’t been one-sided, the compliment wouldn’t hold him all night or kiss him good morning. “That was a one-time thing,” Abe explained. “Look, I had fun, but I don’t do hookups.”