The Square Peg (38 page)

to be marked, taken, owned. But the bar was a different story.

“You’re not the one I worry about.” Shane turned his head, and Ben followed his

gaze to where Vin stood, chatting to a customer. “Suppose he throws a party and the

place gets trashed? Or has a lockdown and things get out of hand?”

“He lives here. He works here. Why would he risk any of that for the sake of a

party?” Promoting Vin to assistant manager and letting him rent Shane’s apartment,

with Shane moving in with Ben, had seemed the ideal solution to a handful of

problems. It still was, but if Shane was fretting…

“Do you want to move back here?”

“Honestly?” Shane rubbed the back of his neck and looked up at Ben sheepishly.

“No. Not that I didn’t like being on top of things, literally, but I like being with you

better. It’s a relief to have some peace and quiet.”

“Good thing Vin doesn’t seem to mind. Oh, here’s Helen.”

She lifted a hand in greeting to them as she dodged her way through the crowd to

join them. “Are you both here tonight? Not that I’m complaining.”

“I’m trying to talk this one into going home early, but I don’t think I’m

succeeding.” Ben patted Shane’s shoulder. “How are you?”

Helen smiled; she had a slow, appealing smile that was probably sexy as hell to

anyone who was attracted to women. Her hair was long and sleek on one side and

shaved short on the other, and she wore two wedding bands on her left hand but had

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skillfully avoided talking about why even when Vin had asked. “I’m good. Oh no, wait,

I forgot. The right answer is
Ready to get to work
, right, Boss?”

“Clever girl,” Shane said.

“I aim to please.”

She walked away, and Shane grinned. “Think she stole my line…Boss.”

“Don’t call me that unless you want me to act like it,” Ben told him, already

feeling his body respond to the promise in Shane’s eyes.

“Details, please,” Shane said, then added a deliberately provocative boss, flirting

so shamelessly that Ben couldn’t help grinning back at him. He loved Shane in a playful

mood.

Lowering his voice and leaning in close so that they couldn’t be overheard, he

murmured, “Details? Hmm, let me see. Maybe I could send you home and tell you to

strip naked and shove that blue dildo up your ass as far as it’ll go. And I know you can

take most of it, you slut. You can call me when it’s in. Maybe show me on your phone,

just so I know you’ve been a good boy. Then you can lie there on our bed and wait for

me to come back and finish you off. If you’re not hard and squirming for me, the way I

like, I’ll spank you with it in and not let you come until tomorrow.”

“You fucking bastard,” Shane said exhaling through gritted teeth. “If you wanted

me so hard I can’t walk, congratulations. Job done.”

“Yay,” Ben said, and stole a quick kiss. “Sit here until you feel better; then think

about going home, okay? You were up early this morning. I’m not surprised you’re

tired.” Shane had a propensity for insomnia, and when it struck he’d creep out of bed

before the sun rose and busy himself with whatever appealed to him at the time. That

morning it had been rearranging the kitchen cabinets. He glanced toward the door and

caught sight of a slender blond guy in a blue shirt who would have been unremarkable

but for the look of sheer terror on his face. “Hey. Newbie.”

“Christ, look at the virgin,” Shane agreed. “How long do you think he’ll stand

there before he turns around and makes a run for it?”

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Jane Davitt & Alexa Snow

“He’s so scared I’m surprised he’s conscious.” Ben frowned. “Maybe I should go

say…I don’t know, something reassuring?”

“What might that be?” Shane asked.

“Yeah, I have no idea.” Glancing around, Ben tried to spot someone he knew who

would be able to help the poor kid. The blond guy was still standing frozen in place, but

now his gaze seemed to be locked on someone else’s. Ben’s eyes followed his to the bar,

where Vin was standing and staring back. “What the hell is going on?”

Shane shrugged. “Vanilla meets Goth. Maybe they’re both in shock. Go and throw

cold water on them if they haven’t moved in five minutes.”

“You’re not helping,” Ben told him. Slowly, conversation by conversation, the bar

was falling quiet, the silent communication between the blond and Vin drowning out

every other voice.

Just as Ben decided he should say something—anything—the newcomer took a

step forward, then glanced around at the curious faces studying him. He flushed

scarlet, shrinking into himself, and spun around, disappearing into the night.

“Fuck, no. No fucking way are you running,” Vin said into the expectant hush, his

gaze fixed on the door. He tossed aside the damp cloth he’d been using to wipe down

the bar and turned to look at Ben and Shane. “Boss? Both of you? I’ll be back in a

minute.”

Shane raised his hand in acknowledgment and stood. “Guess I’m not going home

early after all. You’ll need me to fill in for Romeo.”

Ben watched Vin stride across the bar floor, a man on a mission—or stalking his

prey. Images of nature documentaries flashed through his head. They never ended well

for the wildebeest, but he had high hopes for this particular hunt.

Because he’d realized who the blond was. Vin was chasing a happy ending, and

even if all he got was closure, it was better than the holding pattern his crush had

stranded him in.

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257

Ben watched Shane pull a pint, chatting to the customer with an easy smile on his

face, relaxed, confident.

His.

A square peg in a round hole. It shouldn’t work, but sometimes it did.

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Jane Davitt & Alexa Snow

Loose Id Titles by Jane Davitt & Alexa Snow

Accidentally in Love

Bound and Determined

Rock and a Hard Place

Room at the Top

The Square Peg

Truthful Change

* * * *

Laying a Ghost

Giving Up the Ghost

Waking the Dead

The Square Peg

259

Jane Davitt & Alexa Snow

Jane Davitt is English, and has been living in Canada with her husband, two

children, and two cats, since 1997. Writing and reading are her main occupations but if

she ever had any spare time she might spend it gardening, walking, or doing cross

stitch.

Jane has been writing since 2005 and wishes she’d started earlier. She is a huge fan

of SF, fantasy, erotica, and mystery novels and has a tendency to get addicted to TV

shows that get cancelled all too soon.

She owns over 4,000 books, rarely gives any away (but is happy to loan them), and

is of the firm opinion that there is no such thing as ‘too many books’.

Alexa Snow

Alexa Snow is an emotional person who appreciates practicality in others. She’s

prone to crying at inconvenient times, drinking too much coffee, and staying up too late

playing with words (either reading or writing.) A background of schooling she wasn’t

all that interested in resulted in a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and a vague sense of

wasted time. Alexa lives in a tiny, ancient house in New England with her husband,

young son, and two little-old-lady cats.

• Chapter One
  
• Chapter Two
  
• Chapter Three
  
• Chapter Four
  
• Chapter Five
  
• Chapter Six
  
• Chapter Seven
  
• Chapter Eight
  
• Chapter Nine
  
• Chapter Ten
  
• Chapter Eleven
  
• Chapter Twelve
  
• Chapter Thirteen
  
• Chapter Fourteen
  
• Chapter Fifteen
  
• Chapter Sixteen
  
• Chapter Seventeen
  
• Chapter Eighteen
  
• Epilogue
  
• Loose Id Titles by Jane Davitt & Alexa Snow
  
• Jane Davitt & Alexa Snow