“Awesome sauce.”
Sloane glared at the back of the guy’s feathery brunette head as he walked away. Awesome sauce? What was he, a teenage girl? Fucking ass hat.
Yuppie Guy infiltrated the harem, but they didn’t seem to mind, dancing with each other as the guy pressed against Dex, threw an arm around him and started grinding. Soon both of Yuppie Guy’s hands had made their way down to Dex’s ass, gripping tight, his lips inches away from Dex’s. The guy’s hands were all over him, at one point slipping under Dex’s shirt and getting far too close to his crotch.
Sloane swiveled his chair around to face the bar and ordered a Coke. What he should have ordered were another couple of beers, maybe a shot or two. Looked like he’d end up getting that taxi home on his own after all. Not that he had expected anything with Dex, though he had enjoyed shooting the breeze. Dex was single, but Sloane doubted he would stay that way for long. He was smart, good looking, and funny. After all the shit Dex had been through, he deserved a good guy. Someone to hold him close, laugh at his stupid quirks, and dear God, someone who could sit through a session of whatever ’80s song popped into his little blond pinhead. The thought made him smile.
“I wouldn’t let that one get away.”
Sloane’s head shot up to find the bartender leaning on the bar across from him.
“He likes you. A lot. You could tell by the way he looks at you.”
“Yeah, well, that’s not really the problem,” Sloane said, his voice gruff. Was he actually going to play his violin to the bartender?
“Oh, you got someone?”
Sloane shook his head, his throat feeling thick. “No, I lost someone a little while back.”
“Hey, I’m sorry, man.” The guy leaned forward, his gaze sympathetic as he cocked his head to one side. He looked like he was thinking something over before he appeared to come to a decision. “I don’t mean any disrespect, but I’m sure your guy would have wanted you to be happy. Think about it. You don’t want to lose a good guy to an ass hat like that.” The bartender walked off, leaving Sloane staring after him. Well, at least he wasn’t the only one who thought Yuppie Guy was a douche.
Ash bumped into him playfully. Looked like his best friend was already well on his way to passing out in the back seat of Cael’s car again. “Hey, you okay?” he asked Sloane.
“Yeah.”
“Dude!” Ash clapped a hand against his back, leaving a sting. Yep, well on his way to being shitfaced. “You should have seen it. Your boy got totally cock-blocked by his own brother.”
“What?” He didn’t know why he was so surprised. It wasn’t as if he knew what the brothers were like together other than what he’d gleaned from them at work. They were like a couple of kids at times. But Dex never gave the impression his brother interfered in his sex life.
“Pretty boy was dragging Dex to the bathroom, all over him, and Cael marched up to him and sent him packing. I tell you, the squirt don’t take shit from no one. Dex is right. He looks like this cute little puppy, but he’s got one hell of a bite.”
“Why would Cael do that?” Wait, did Ash call Cael cute? His friend was totally wasted.
Ash shrugged. “I don’t know, man. To be honest, Dex is so fucked up he didn’t even notice. Dude can dance, but he can’t hold his alcohol for shit.”
“Is Cael taking you home?” Sloane asked, patting Ash’s bulging bicep. The guy was down to his undershirt, which in Ash-speak meant it was almost time to go. “Buddy, you really gotta stop stripping when you get drunk.”
“It’s hot,” Ash replied with a pout. He pointed off somewhere over his shoulder. “Cael’s got my jacket. And yeah, he’s taking me home.”
“You sure you don’t want Calvin or Hobbs to take you?” Sloane had no idea how Cael even managed to get Ash to his front door every time. The kid was strong, but Ash was twice his size.
“Cael does fine. He parks in front of the house, sits there with me for a while, and then he wakes me up and helps me to the door.” Ash gave him a lazy shrug. “He’s good at tucking in.”
Sloane’s eyebrows nearly reached his hairline. “He tucks you in?”
“On the couch.” Ash peered at him. “What?”
“Nothing.” Sloane put his hands up, holding back a smile.
“Look, he’s a cool guy. I like him. Not like, in a gay way, just, you know, he’s a cool dude and I like hanging with him. That is possible. I can be friends with a gay guy, and not be gay.” Ash balled his hands into fists on the bar, and Sloane carefully put a hand to his friend’s shoulder.
“Whoa, easy there, big guy. No one’s arguing with you. Are you okay?”
Ash nodded, giving him a shaky smile. “Yeah, I think I had too much to drink.” He looked to the pool tables where Cael was laughing with Calvin. “I gotta go.”
“Okay.” He watched his friend stride off and deposit himself in a chair next to Cael. He threw his arm around him and leaned into him. Cael smiled at him and bumped his head playfully against Ash’s. Crap, Sloane didn’t get his answer.
“Hey man, there ya are.” Dex appeared next to him with a wide grin, his words coming out slurred. “I was lookin’ fer ya.”