“Wow.”
“Yea. Crap taste in men, but very good friends.”
“Hey!”
“Not you, little sprite. Obviously.”
Luc snorted.
“So far it’s been amazing. Aydin loves the place as much as I do. I wouldn’t have taken his money if he hadn’t convinced me of that. And he has great ideas. The lunch, coffee, cake afternoons, that was him, and the karaoke cocktail nights. We paid Cal off early, and are a few months ahead generally on repayments due to those. And the lunch deal for the contractors on the building site. That was him. Order’s in advance, we can prepare in advance and they’re going to be around for another two years, easy money.”
“Wow,” Luc said again. “What about Nigel aka Peter. You ever hear from him?”
“He’s dead.”
“What?” Luc squeaked.
Connor nodded. “Yea. Only a few months after he left here. He was over in Seattle working on his next mark. All of his cons were relationship based. Anyway, car accident. Just an accident. The guy he had been targeting walked away. Nig, um, Peter was killed. The FBI have traced over 2.5million so far.”
“You’re kidding?”
“I thought he was twenty-six. He was actually thirty-four. Been running cons nonstop since he was a teenager. Still, the banks got some of their money back. That makes me feel a little better, if I’m honest. I don’t feel like I have to look over my shoulder anymore.”
“I’m sorry, Con.”
“About what happened, or that he’s dead?”
“Both. He should have gone to jail. But you loved him, so you must have been really conflicted.”
“I’m okay now,” Connor reassured him, giving him a hug to prove it.
-X
Later that night, Aydin cornered Luc in the kitchen.
“You okay? You’ve been quiet tonight.”
Luc shrugged. “I guess. Con told me how you ended up business partners. I hate that he went through all of that.”
“Ah, I see. Yea, it’s a lot. But worked out, right?”
“Hope so. It’s a lot of money tied up.”
“We do okay. Most everything goes back into the business. We do well, we need more staff,” he waved his hand at Luc and grinned. “It comes in and goes straight back out, but it’s fun. I’m taking home a little more than I was before on busy months, so that’s good.”
“I think you’ve built something amazing. It’s a community space as well as a pub.”
Aydin beamed. “Thanks. That’s what we both wanted. I wonder if Con told you everything though?”
“Like what?”
“Like the fact I earn more than him.”
Luc shook his head, “How come?”
“It’s profit percentage based. Unlike you lot, who have a guaranteed wage. Mine and Con’s varies a little.”
“A percentage of the profit? Good incentive.”
Aydin laughed. “For sure. But Con insisted on my percentage being higher due to my living costs. Whereas he lives here.”
“Sounds fair.”
“Hmmmm,” Aydin frowned.
“Was that part of what Cal and his crack team of lawyers sorted out?”
“Yes. Cal was amazing.”
“Then you can be sure it’s fair. Or Cal would have said something.”
Aydin’s face cleared. “I never thought of that.” He grinned. “Thanks.”
“Aydin?”
“Yea?”
“What did Nigel look like?”
Aydin’s face fell. He searched Luc’s eyes for a moment and then clicked his tongue, before pulling out his phone. Hunting, and then brought up an image.
One of their regulars with a young man in the bar. Laughing at the camera.
Luc sighed. “A lot like me then. I figured.”
Aydin gripped his shoulder. “Surface only. Sure, Con fought his attraction for you hard, and that’s why. No question. But you’re nothing like that jerk. The more he got to know you, the less alike you were in his eyes. I know, because it’s the same for me. You’re a sweetheart, Luc, and Con knows how lucky he is.”
“Thanks, Aydin.” Luc mumbled into the hug that he got yanked into.
“Let it go,” Aydin advised. “Trust me. Con has.”
-X
The following evening Luc was finishing his break and stood reading a story in the paper someone had left on the table, when arms suddenly snuck around his waist and an impressive bulge pressed against his backside, even as cheeky fingers reached up to play with his quickly hardening nipple.
“Aydin! How many times?” he complained, and Connor snorted down his ear where he had been about to kiss it. “Urrgggghh, gross!”
Connor smiled and kissed his neck instead. “Tell me you can stay tonight. Tell me you brought clothes for the morning,” he demanded.
Luc leaned back and tipped his head to better Connor’s access to his neck. “I can stay tonight, and I brought clothes for the morning.”
Connor cupped his chin and turned his head, searching his eyes as he said, “Good boy.” Seeing Luc’s eyes widen ever so slightly with arousal. He pressed his thumb against Luc’s lower lip. “Is that okay? Good boy?”
In answer, Luc’s lips parted and took Connor’s thumb in slightly. Circling the tip of his tongue.
Connor smiled as his other hand tweaked Luc’s nipple through his shirt and he flinched, before closing his eyes and groaning. “Good. I’m feeling rather vigorous,” he warned in a fake British accent, and watched Luc’s lips curve.
Releasing him, Connor pressed one last kiss to his throat and murmured. “I hope you weren’t planning on a bike ride tomorrow!” Making Luc half cough with laughter and catch himself on the table.
Connor walked back to the bar-door. “Break’s over, kid. But you can take an extra five minutes,” he smirked as Luc weakly gestured at his hard-on before sauntering back into the bar.
‘Christ, he’s annoying,’ Luc thought before concentrating hard about cleaning the ice machine at the weekend. It was his turn, and that was a hard-on killer if ever there was one.
Aydin gave him a knowing look when he returned to the bar, making him flush, but then it got super busy and the evening flew by.
Finishing with the clean-up, Connor realized he hadn’t seen Luc in a while. “Where’d Luc go?” he asked Aydin. Glancing around the kitchen as if he was going to pop up.
Aydin quirked an eyebrow. “He’s upstairs, waiting for you,” he drawled. Voice dripping with innuendo.
“You know what,” Connor pushed the lid back on the bin and grabbed the car keys. “Take the car, I’ll deal with the trash tomorrow. Bye.”
He could still hear Aydin laughing as he locked the door behind him. The man was a terrible romantic. Always encouraging them.
When Connor hurried upstairs and into the bedroom, his breath caught.
As much as he enjoyed peeling Luc’s clothes from him. The sight of him knelt on the bed. Naked, hair damp from the shower, his hands clasped in front of him, not doing much to hide his swollen cock.
Well. It was a glorious sight.
Luc raised his head as Connor approached. “You wanted me tonight?”
“I want you every night.” Connor bent to claim Luc’s lips in a hard kiss. He was shaking slightly, but so was Luc. He stood straight, trailing his fingers over Luc’s cheekbone.
“You can do anything you want with me tonight,” Luc told him, his dark eyes earnest, and Connor nearly came in his jeans.
He let out a shaky breath. “Are you prepped?”
“No. I wanted you to do it.”
Connor’s smile was wicked as he started to shrug out of his clothes. Soon he was as naked as Luc, stroking himself slowly as Luc watched and licked his lips.
“Here,” Connor helped Luc from the bed and then bent him over. Hands resting on the mattress. Luc yelped at a quick slap, but Connor soothed it with his hand, before squeezing out lube.