Thursday

GABE FORCED HIMSELF not to look for Mark’s car on his way to work. He made it through his commute on Monday and Tuesday without catching a glimpse. Wednesday, he thought he saw the sun glint off the shiny black roof ahead of him, but the car turned out to be dark blue instead.

There hadn’t been any more texts from Mark. Gabe couldn’t bring himself to delete Mark’s number or erase the series of texts they’d exchanged. He reread them two or three times a day.

He kept Cruised off, mostly. He caved and opened the app a few times a day. Just to see if Mark had messaged him again. No message, but Mark’s profile was still there, so he wasn’t blocked.

Mark never seemed to be on when he checked either.

Thursday afternoon, Gabe idly pulled up the app while he and Maggie waited for their to-go lunch order. It would give him something to do other than drinking all his soda before his lunch arrived.

Mark’s profile lit up like Christmas. He was on, and he was nearby. About five hundred feet away.

Gabe’s head shot up as he peered around. They were in a strip mall full of popular lunchtime restaurants. Mark could be anywhere. He probably wasn’t in the shitty sandwich place Maggie swore made the best meatball subs in town. Mark seemed more the type to be at the fancy, white-tablecloth Mediterranean joint a few doors away.

Gabe pictured him sitting down to lunch with other important people in suits. Even in his fantasy, Mark was gorgeous.

His thumb hovered over the Message icon. It felt too intimate to text. They needed to make up before that happened. If making up was possible.

Maggie’s head appeared over his shoulder before he had time to close the app. “Oooh, is that your mystery man?”

He should have known better than to open it when she was around.

“Nah, we’re not meeting up anymore.” He tried to make it sound as nonchalant as possible. But he kept his eyes glued to the screen, in case Mark saw he was close by and decided to send a message.

“Really? Too bad. You were a lot nicer to be around when you were getting laid.”

Heat flush across his cheeks. “Keep it down. We’re in a damn sandwich shop.”

She pushed a paper bag against his stomach. He clamped it under his forearm to keep from dropping his phone. It already had grease stains on it.

“Don’t be so uptight.”

He slipped his phone into his back pocket to get a better hold on his food. He’d driven them to pick up lunch, so on the way to the car, he juggled his drink, his keys, and the bag.

Gabe thought he felt a vibration in his pocket as he unlocked his car door. He came close to dropping his drink. It might have been that phantom vibration thing people got sometimes, so he tried to play it cool as he fished his phone out of his pocket.

Not a phantom vibration. A message from Mark. On Cruised rather than text. Sorrow filled Gabe at that digital distance, even if he wouldn’t have texted first either.

Impossible to read it now. Maggie would be all over him. And it didn’t matter what it said, he had to return to work and take Maggie with him.

Gabe slid into the car, dropped his phone in the console, and ignored the second vibration it gave off.

Maggie stared at the phone and then squinted at him skeptically. “Everything cool?”

The engine turned over with a little bit of a grinding noise, and Gabe shifted the car into reverse. He scarcely glanced in the rearview as he reversed out, which was probably a mistake in the busy parking lot.

“Yep, everything is fine.”

 

MAGGIE INSISTED ON eating lunch with Gabe in the break room. His phone was burning a hole in his pocket. Halfway through his sandwich, he considered faking a trip to the bathroom.

He could be patient. He’d wait until Maggie went to her own desk. It was probably a blow off anyway. A “thanks but no thanks, get the fuck off my profile” message.

Gabe was a big boy. He could handle Mark telling him off explicitly. He hadn’t been holding out hope they’d make up. He’d apologized, and Mark was silent. It was pretty much all he could do without coming off like an obsessive creep.

Maybe he was an obsessive creep. Nodding along, thinking about the message from Mark, he wasn’t listening to a thing Maggie said as she chewed with her mouth open. Gabe barely noticed when Maggie tossed her balled up wrapper and empty chip bag in the trash.

“I don’t know what’s up with you, but you need to get it together. You’re all over the place today.”

Gabe shrugged. “I’m a little unfocused, that’s all. I’ll go to bed early, and tomorrow will be fine.”

Maggie stood next to Gabe, gazing down at him appraisingly. “It’s not just today though. You’ve been hot and cold for a couple weeks now. Someone is going to notice soon.”

Someone other than her, she meant. Someone like a boss. Gabe tried to find the energy to care. He didn’t. Not with Mark’s message in his pocket.

The door had no sooner shut behind Maggie before Gabe struggled to get his phone out of his pocket with shaky fingers. He tried to swipe open the message from his notifications bar but accidentally closed it instead. Shit.

He got the app open and stared for a moment at the green dot by Mark’s name indicating he’d sent Gabe a new message. Mark was no longer online though. Gabe would have missed him altogether if he hadn’t opened the app at lunch.

He thumbed the message open.

Taking a lunch break?

Great. What was he supposed to say to that? If he had responded right away, they’d have had a normal conversation. Would it be weird now?

Gabe wasn’t about to miss his opportunity to start talking to Mark again, no matter how weird it might be.

i'm sorry i didn’t reply sooner

how are you?

It was a stupid, pointless message Mark might not respond to, but Gabe didn’t know what else to say. He didn’t want to ask if Mark worked around there or if they might run into each other at lunch one day. It seemed too personal since Mark was likely still mad at him. Talking about the weather was even more stupid.

Gabe slid his phone into his pocket, but took it out again right away and set it to Do Not Disturb. If he kept thinking about Mark’s reply—if Mark did reply—he’d never get any work done. Maggie was right. He’d been slipping.

He probably should put his phone in his car or something. Lock it in the trunk and forget about it. But he wasn’t ready to go that far.

 

GABE CHECKED HIS phone before leaving the office. He ignored a couple texts from his brother about Mother’s Day plans and an appointment reminder from his dentist and went straight to Cruised.

Mark had responded.

I’m okay. Do you want to meet up on the way home? Just to talk.

It was only 4:45. Gabe might be able to catch Mark before he drove all the way home.

yeah that would be great

Gabe thought about suggesting somewhere. There had to be at least one coffee shop along the highway they hadn’t defiled yet. There was a little cafe in the strip mall where Gabe had noticed Mark online earlier today. That would work.

Meet you at the coffee shop off exit 291 at 5:15?

They had definitely fucked in that bathroom. Gabe never wanted to go back there again. They’d probably be asked to leave immediately.

sure ill be there

Gabe hurried to pack up his things. He’d have to take his laptop home to finish up some client documentation needing to be done first thing tomorrow. If he was going to make it to the coffee shop, he had to leave now.

He hoped traffic didn’t slow him down.

 

THE COFFEE SHOP was nearly empty. Not much call for caffeine for folks on their way home from work, apparently. Even if it had been crowded, Mark would have stuck out like a sore thumb.

A gorgeous sore thumb.

He was near the counter at a small table. His navy suit and white shirt appeared crisp, even this late in the day, and his shoes maintained a high-gloss shine. He sat with his left ankle resting on his right knee, relaxed and stretched out. It was casually, stupidly erotic.

Or Gabe had gotten used to orgasms in coffee shops, and his dick was taking over already.

Mark had a small paper cup on the table in front of him, so Gabe went to the counter and ordered some tea. He was wired with nerves; the last thing he needed was coffee. Tea was supposed to be soothing, even if it was just a bag dunked in boiling water. He felt Mark’s eyes on him as he collected his drink from the barista.

“Hey.”

Not an inspired way to start, but Gabe was at a loss for words. Standing there, Mark staring at him head on, he wanted to apologize. He’d done so before, and Mark had ignored it, so it was probably wrong to try again. Gabe tried hard not to slump, not to roll his shoulders in and curve his spine.

“Hello. Sit down.”

Gabe hadn’t realized he was still standing. He wasn’t waiting for an invitation, exactly, but it seemed weird to sit at Mark’s table without being asked. It wasn’t as if Mark had invited him to talk and then was going to make him stand the whole time, but still.

The chair scratched against the floor, and Gabe winced. He didn’t want people to notice them.

“Nervous?” Mark smiled at him. A small one, but it was better than the blank expression he’d been wearing so far.

Gabe shrugged, trying to play it cool. “A little. I don’t want anyone to recognize us from last time we were here.”

Mark’s smile tipped up at the corner. It didn’t grow, but the shape of it changed, became softer. It made Gabe’s stomach do a little flip.

“They won’t recognize us. Completely different staff than at 7:30 in the morning.”

Gabe was way too mature to giggle at “staff.” He did bite his lip though.

“Listen, I’m sorry.” The apology started to tumble out of Gabe’s mouth even as his brain kept telling him he had apologized already. “I shouldn’t have assumed anything, and it’s really none of my business. I shouldn’t have called you out for it. Hooking up with guys cheating on their wives or girlfriends, or whatever the risk is you take on these kind of apps, and that’s my problem so—”

Mark held up a hand to cut him off. “I’m not cheating on anyone.”

Gabe flushed, more embarrassed now. “Yeah, well, I think most people would assume you’re not single.”

Mark grinned over the rim of his coffee cup. “None of my exes would assume that.” One of Gabe’s legs bounced under the table when Mark’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. “Are you?”

Gabe blinked. “Am I what?”

“Single?”

“Um, yeah.” The question caught Gabe by surprise. He didn’t think Mark would care if he were single or not. He hadn’t responded when Gabe texted that he didn’t have anyone. “I don’t like cheaters. I wouldn’t be on Cruised if I was seeing someone.”

Mark nodded, and his shoulders lost some tension Gabe hadn’t noticed before. “Good. I don’t like cheaters either.” Mark cracked a big smile, and shallow dimples appeared on his cheeks. “I can’t believe you thought my sister was my wife.”

“Hey! How was I supposed to know! It’s not like we exchanged family pictures before hooking up in the bathroom.” Gabe dropped his voice to a whisper and leaned over the table for the last part. He was embarrassed, and Mark was laughing at him, but it didn’t feel uncomfortable. It was nice, actually.

“I obviously haven’t done a good enough job of conveying how entirely homosexual I am if you thought I’d ever have a wife.”

Gabe grinned back at him. “I don’t discriminate against our bi brothers in the big acronym family of queerness.”

“Fair point.” Mark took another sip, so Gabe did too. It burned the tip of his tongue.

They were silent for several minutes, but, as with their laughing and teasing, it didn’t feel strained. They were just enjoying each other’s company.

It could be a date.

Gabe slammed the brakes on that thought train right away. He was not going to make more of this than it was. He’d already fucked this up once by assuming something. He wasn’t going to get ahead of himself again.

He took another sip of his tea. It was still too hot.

Mark spoke up again. “Since we’ve cleared up that we’re both single, are you interested in continuing this?”

If they weren’t in public, especially a public place where they’d had their pants down, Gabe would have said something flirty and sexy. Instead, he swallowed, cleared his throat, and said, “Um, yeah. If you are?”

“I very much am. I’ve been enjoying meet up with you immensely.” Mark canted forward. He apparently wasn’t afraid of whipping out all that sexiness in public. “And I enjoy talking to you. I’ve missed sending you messages over the past few days.”

Gabe’s heart beat a little faster. Mark glanced down, away from Gabe, when he said it. He might have been blushing. It was endearing how Mark seemed to be embarrassed by admitting he missed talking to Gabe.

It made it a lot easier for Gabe to do the same.

“Yeah, I’ve missed that too. I’ve actually had to work at work.” He cracked a smile, hoping Mark would look at him again.

Mark met Gabe’s eyes and all traces of embarrassment were gone; his blue eyes burned with lust instead. “I’m glad.”

Gabe took a swig of his tea. He needed something to do with his hands and his mouth that would keep him from staring at Mark.

Mark’s long leg bumped against Gabe’s shin. “Walk outside with me?” Mark was up and halfway to the door before Gabe had a chance to respond.

Gabe followed, dumping his mostly full cup into the trash a second after Mark tossed his own. Gabe picked up the pace to walk beside Mark. He followed as Mark rounded the corner of the building to a section of the parking lot blocked on one side by the coffee shop and the other by a tall hedge. Mark’s car was the only vehicle there.

He bit down a grin, in case this wasn’t going where he thought it was going.

Mark pushed him up against the rear passenger side door as soon as they reached the car. His tongue tasted like coffee in Gabe’s mouth, and Gabe grabbed at his lapels. He wanted to wrinkle Mark’s perfect suit just a little bit. Make it look like they’d really been up to something.

Mark’s thickening cock ground against his hip. Maybe they were really up to something.

Gabe smiled against Mark’s mouth.

“What?” Mark whispered against Gabe’s lips as he laid short, biting kisses there.

“Nothing.” Gabe gasped as Mark pushed him harder against the car and kissed down the side of his throat. “I like this.”

Mark hummed against Gabe’s neck. “Me too.” He bucked his hips forward. Mark’s cock pressed against Gabe’s for a moment before Mark pulled away. Gabe tried to follow, but Mark held him away with hands cupped around his shoulders. “Get in the car with me?”

Gabe had never had sex in the backseat of a car. It seemed like the sort of thing everyone should do once. He stepped away from the car, but only enough for Mark to reach around him to pull the door open. It was an awkward slide getting two grown men, including one as tall and leggy as Mark, into the back of a car not meant to have much space for a seat.

Gabe was giggling, and Mark was grinning widely by the time he pulled Gabe into his lap.

Mark’s thighs flexed under his legs, and Mark’s hands roamed over his back as they kissed. Mark’s mouth was hot and insistent. Gabe didn’t hold in his eagerness. He poured how much he’d missed Mark, how much he loved kissing him, and fucking him, and talking to him, into his kisses. Mark met his fervor head on.

Gabe suddenly wasn’t afraid of seeming too interested anymore.

He scrambled to straddle Mark. He needed to bend a bit to keep from hitting his head, but that was okay. It put him right back in range of Mark’s mouth.

Mark’s hands settled on Gabe’s hips. He pushed down, fingers digging into taut skin to curl around Gabe’s hip bone. Gabe rolled his hips into the pressure, making Mark groan into his mouth as their cocks pressed together.

Multiple layers of fabric and a cramped space didn’t stop Gabe from repeating that roll, over and over again, until their kisses dissolved into simply panting against each other’s lips.

The windows were wet with condensation, and the sky was darker than when Gabe had crawled into the car. His face stung with abrasions from Mark’s beard and mustache. None of it made him want to stop.

Mark thrust up against his continued hip rolls. Gabe’s cock, aching and leaking, would likely leave a stain on his khakis if he wasn’t careful. The thought of staining his own pants was a little gross. But making Mark do that, to have him mess up his fancy, probably very expensive suit pants with an obvious sign of how Gabe turned him on, was incredibly hot.

Gabe wasn’t one for power plays, but Mark was so well put together, so established-looking, that tearing him down a bit was appealing.

Mark’s hands squeezed hard at Gabe’s hips. He stopped moving and pulled away to meet Mark’s eyes.

“As much as I want to encourage you to be on top of me, you should slide over.”

Gabe rolled his hips again and smiled mischievously. “Why should I?”

Mark’s eyes fluttered closed for a brief second, and his hips bucked up to press his cock against Gabe’s. Yeah, this power thing was kinda nice.

“Because if you move over, I can get my hand around your cock.”

It seemed like Mark could have done that in the position they were already in, but Gabe wasn’t going to argue with a hand job.

He slid from Mark’s lap and started getting his belt and pants open. Mark was doing the same. It evoked the fumbling, kids-stealing-a-quick-fuck feel of fooling around in the car.

Gabe got his pants open and pulled his cock out. It was fully hard, red, and slick. Mark reached a hand over to push Gabe’s pants and boxers even lower, and Gabe’s cock jumped toward it, begging to be touched. Gabe had to lift his hips for Mark to pull his pants to his knees, leaving his bare ass against the cool leather seat. Most kids probably didn’t fuck in cars this nice.

The benefit of age, Gabe guessed. And hooking up with someone better off than you are. Kids probably did fuck in cars like Gabe’s.

Mark shimmied his own pants and briefs down to past his knees. The idea of being caught flitted through Gabe’s mind, but he pushed it aside. If Mark wasn’t afraid to get off in the backseat in a public parking lot, neither was he. Mostly.

Any of Gabe’s lingering concerns vanished as soon as Mark wrapped his hand around the base of Gabe’s cock. His hips rocked up to chase Mark’s fist as he stroked him.

Mark only got in a few slow strokes before he pulled his hand away. He took hold of Gabe’s wrist and brought Gabe’s hand to his own cock. Gabe went willingly, feeling a surge of lust as he trailed his fingers along the head of Mark’s cock before wrapping his hand around him.

They stroked each other, fucking each other’s fists, while the car got even hotter and even steamier.

Mark half turned and pressed his bicep against Gabe’s shoulder.

“I can’t wait until we go someplace where I can take my time with you. Actually make you come in a bed.”

Gabe moaned. The opportunity for dirty talk and making noise had been limited before. A car was halfway to private.

“Oh yeah, what are you going to do to me then?”

Mark leaned over him. It put some stress on Gabe’s wrist and made the angle more difficult, but it led to Mark attaching himself to Gabe’s neck, always a good thing.

Mark sucked and kissed against the underside of Gabe’s jaw on the way to his ear. “Take my time with you. Lie down. Stretch out for once. Get all your clothes off.” Mark’s hot breath against his ear sent a shiver along Gabe’s spine and made his balls tighten.

“What if I want to take my time with you instead?”

There was a hitch in Mark’s breath, and he nipped the shell of Gabe’s ear. “Not instead. In addition to.”

“We can take turns.”

Mark thrust faster into Gabe’s hand. Gabe shifted closer and turned to meet him. It brought more of their bodies together, and all at once, being completely naked, stretched out on soft sheets seemed like a fantastic idea.

The leather seat was starting to stick to his ass. Sheets would definitely be better.

Mark dropped his head to kiss along Gabe’s neck and ended with his mouth on the spot where Gabe’s neck met his shoulder. He breathed, hot and heavy, against Gabe’s skin. “I can’t wait until you fuck me.”

Gabe saw stars. Actual fucking stars, as he came in Mark’s hand. He could barely keep his hand pumping as his own orgasm took over. But Mark didn’t seem to need it. He was coming, moaning against Gabe and bucking his hips, as the last waves of Gabe’s orgasm shook through him.

Their panting resonated loudly in the car as they cooled down. Sweat prickled on Gabe’s stomach and on his forehead. His ass was definitely going to stick to the seat now. Hopefully, Mark wouldn’t care. This had been his idea after all.

Mark’s fingers brushed gently through the sparse hair on Gabe’s thighs.

“You like dirty talk, huh?”

Gabe smiled and brushed his lips against the crown of Mark’s hair. It felt nice to have Mark rest against him. This was the most leisurely postcoital cuddle they’d ever been able to have. Gabe worked his arm around Mark’s shoulders.

“Yeah. It can be cheesy, but in the moment it’s hot as hell.”

Mark tensed in his arms. “Is it just the talking or did you like what I said, specifically?”

Gabe wasn’t sure if Mark was talking about the fantasy of them spending more time than a quick hookup together or Gabe fucking him. Thinking about both scenarios, and both scenarios as one, made desire shoot straight through Gabe.

“What you said, specifically.”

Mark kissed his way from Gabe’s shoulder, up his neck, to his lips. For a moment, Gabe thought he was about to get a lapful of Mark, but Mark pulled away at the last moment.

“Come to dinner with me.”

Gabe’s brain went offline for a split second. Was Mark asking him on an actual date? Was Mark asking him on an actual date right now?

“Wait, you mean now? I’m covered in jizz. We’re both covered in jizz!”

Mark sat up and tucked his cock into his pants. His hair stood up where he had rubbed against Gabe’s shoulder, his lips swollen and red, and his cheeks flushed. He looked wrecked and gorgeous.

“Go home, get cleaned up, and meet me somewhere.”

“Where?”

Mark laughed. “Anywhere. I have no idea what part of town you live in, but I’ll meet you anywhere.”

Gabe’s heart kicked in his chest. Mark was asking him on a date, and he really wanted Gabe to say yes.

“Really?”

“Yes, absolutely.”

It was the least ridiculous Gabe had ever felt with his flaccid cock still out after getting off with someone. He kissed Mark, hands going into the mess of Mark’s hair and tugging him forward.

“I live near downtown,” Gabe said when he finally broke away.

“Good. Meet me at Samson’s at—” Mark checked his watch. “—eight?”

Samson’s was an incredibly popular, expensive steakhouse in the heart of downtown. Gabe laughed. “There’s no way we can get into Samson’s without a reservation.”

“I’ll take care of that.”

Gabe tucked himself in and buttoned up. He needed to look away from Mark before he laughed in his face. “Okay, you do that. When we can’t get a table, there’s a half-decent Italian place a block over.”

“You don’t believe me?” Mark’s eyebrow arched, and he suddenly didn’t appear wrecked at all. Gabe hoped they’d get to the fucking-in-an-actual-bed thing after dinner. He more than hoped. He wanted in a way he hadn’t wanted in a long time.

“I believe you.” Gabe took hold of Mark’s chin and kissed him again. “Mostly.”

Mark rolled his eyes. “Get out of my car and meet me at the damn restaurant.” He reached across Gabe to open the car door, and Gabe managed to steal another kiss.

Mark swatted at his ass as Gabe pulled himself out of the backseat. Their playfulness made Gabe giddy. And brave. “So is this a date?”

“What? Jerking each other off in my car?” Mark followed him out of the car. “You are a cheap date.” He smoothed some wrinkles in his pants. His suit jacket was a lost cause. It left Mark somewhere between sexily disheveled and devastatingly handsome.

“You know what I mean.”

Mark went very still for a moment and then brushed a hand across the already smoothed-as-they-were-going-to-get wrinkles. “Do you want it to be?”

He seemed so unsure. As if Gabe hadn’t spent the last few days terrified he’d driven Mark away, and hadn’t been finding every excuse to stop on the way to work and have sex with this man in the days before.

Gabe smiled. “I asked you first.”

That got him Mark’s patented “annoyed but not really” look. “Technically, you didn’t ask me if I wanted it to be a date. You just asked if it was one.”

“Only because I thought you were smart enough not to ask me on a date if you didn’t want to go on one.”

“Are you dumb enough to say yes to a date you don’t want to go on?”

Gabe laughed and leaned back against Mark’s car. This was fun. Teasing Mark, ruffling his feathers a bit, was really fun. He wasn’t afraid Mark would get angry or cancel dinner. It felt good.

“Nope, wouldn’t agree to a date I didn’t want.”

Mark pinned him to the car with a hand planted over each of his shoulders. “But you’re meeting me at Samson’s?”

“Yep.” He popped the p and grinned up into Mark’s scowl.

“Then it’s a date, jackass.”

Gabe grabbed Mark’s crushed tie and pulled his head down until their lips barely met.

“Yes, it’s a date.”