by J. P. Scott
“The line is starting to move.” Cam’s voice was trying to give his friends hope. He knew that they had barely bought into going out to a club and he could lose them at any moment. The line did advance several people and the group moved forward. “See. We’re almost to the front of the line.”
There were a handful of guys in front of them. Patrick knew that looks could be deceiving when it came to lines. The club could be at or near capacity and the bouncer might not be letting anyone else in for a while. From where the bouncer stood a couple steps above the street level, he had a good view of the line and who was waiting. Patrick had seen a few times that the bouncer had let certain people skip ahead in line and enter the club. They were usually young and good-looking guys. Patrick surveyed his group of friends. They were all handsome, but none were the kind of guys that seemed to be getting the bouncer’s attention. Several other groups had tried to bypass the line and had failed. In Patrick’s eyes, they all deserved to get into the club and it seemed up to the bouncer’s personal preference in the kind of guy he wanted in the club.
“I’ve got this,” Aaron said as he elbowed Patrick in the side. He slipped under the rope that separated the line from the sidewalk and designated walkway. Patrick tried to grab him before he got away. He wanted to know what Aaron had planned. Everyone wanted to get in the club and would be trying to get the bouncer’s attention. What did Aaron think that he could do that no one else was able to get done?
“Where’s he going?” Ollie leaned over Patrick’s shoulder as they watched Aaron approach the front of the club. Patrick could just shrug.
They watched as Aaron got the bouncer’s attention and they chatted. Aaron pointed towards them and they chatted. Patrick could not tell if Aaron was being successful or not. He could not read the boy language.
“I’m totally okay if we find someplace else.” Jeremy did not have much faith in Aaron’s efforts either. He was looking at his phone, trying to see what else was nearby that might suit for the rest of the night.
“Let’s give Aaron a chance to work his magic. If we don’t get to skip the line, maybe he can find out an approximate time we might get in.” The group gave each other skeptical looks. They were all spoiled by the gay bars in Phoenix that never had any sort of line. At their favorite spots, they were known and could easily get access if there was one.
“I think we may be in luck,” Aaron said, catching Patrick by surprise. He had slipped back under the rope and put his hands on Patrick’s hips as he stood up and regained his balance.
“What was the magic trick?” Cam looked slightly perturbed that Aaron was able to accomplish what he had not been able to. No doubt that annoyance would be easily replaced with elation if they got into the club.
Aaron looked at Patrick. “Well, he asked about you…and me.”
“What do you mean?”
“He thinks both of us are cute.” That was a positive sign for getting in. Patrick didn’t know why Aaron was acting coy about it.
“Is he going to let us in?” Cam was growing more excited by the moment. “All of us?” That was the key. The bouncer may think that Patrick and Aaron are cute, but would that buy access for six people? That seemed a stretch. And if they all weren’t getting into the club, it was going to be a dealbreaker.
“I think he will let us in.” Aaron looked at Patrick, “But there’s a catch. And I’m not sure that you’re going to like it.”
What kind of catch could there be? Patrick folded his arms in front of him and cocked his head to the side. “What is it?”
“Well, I had to say that we were brothers.”
Patrick shook his head. Would there ever be a day that someone didn’t make that assumption? “What difference does that make?”
“He was a little intrigued that we were both gay. He said he found that very hot.” Aaron looked away, clearly avoiding saying something but hoping that Patrick would understand the subtext.
“What did you tell him?” Patrick looked towards the front of the club and could see the bouncer looking their way. It was more than just a casual glance. He was very interested in what was about to happen.
“Just kiss me.” Aaron reached around Patrick and pulled him close to him. His tongue quickly worked its way into Patrick’s mouth for a wet, passionate kiss. Patrick closed his eyes and moaned after the brief shock of the kiss. When they parted, Patrick realized he had forgotten they were standing out on the street in public.
“What was that for?”
Aaron didn’t answer. He looked over towards the bouncer who held up a hand and waved them towards the door. Several people in line ahead of them saw the motion and turned to see who had been given the honor of skipping the line.
“Let’s go, boys.” Aaron tugged at Patrick’s hand as he dipped down to go back under the rope. The rest of the group looked at each other, unsure of what was happening. They followed slowly and caught up to Aaron at the front door to the club where he winked at them.
“That was hot,” the bouncer said to Patrick as they approached.
“He has a thing for brothers,” Aaron whispered in his ear. Patrick took it as a cue to play along. They each received a stamp on their hand and entered.
Patrick and Aaron were still holding hands as they made their way down a short hall into the bar. With each step the boom of the music grew louder. They entered to find a packed dance floor that spilled through the space so that there was no separation from those there to dance those standing around the bar.
“I thought we agreed to not do that anymore.” Patrick’s voice was more of shout as he leaned over to Aaron. He wanted to be heard over the noise.
It had been months since anyone had made a comment that they looked alike. Patrick had believed that maybe they had somehow gotten past anyone making comments. They hadn’t done anything different about how they looked or acted. People just assumed they were a couple and that was that. In the bedroom, they had played with the fantasy for a while, but eventually found it to be less exciting than it had been in the beginning.
“I didn’t bring it up. The guy asked if we were brothers. He brought it up and I saw it as my in for getting us inside.”
“Well, you’ve made Cam’s day.”
Aaron scanned the room and saw several guys checking them out. “The bouncer might not be the only one with a brother fantasy.” There were definitely guys looking at them and whispering. They could only assume it was about their appearance.
“Maybe we can get some free drinks out of this.”
“And what if they want more?”
Aaron smiled and grabbed Patrick’s hand. “I have everything that I need right here.”
“But what if someone wants something more?”
“Well, is he hot?”
Patrick shook his head. “Let’s assume he is.”
“Then I still have everything that I want right here.” Aaron looked into his eyes. “I love you, Patrick. No cute distraction in a bar is going to change that.”
“I love you, too, Aaron. More than I ever thought I could love someone.”
Someone jostled into Patrick from behind as he pushed through the crowd. Patrick pressed in close to Aaron. “I suppose we should kiss.”
“Kiss like no one is watching.”
Their lips met and they closed their eyes. They were surrounded by hundreds of gay men, flashing lights, and booming bass, but they felt like they were on their own. There was nothing else that Patrick wanted in the whole world, and he was overjoyed that Aaron wanted him, too.
They had never fantasized about Jacob again. When the DNA results came in, there were no connections in the database to Patrick. He spent some time again thinking about if he wanted to find Jacob’s family and decided it wasn’t something he wanted to pursue. Instead, he found it interesting to learn about what parts of the world his ancestors had come from. When he showed his parents, they were surprised at the results. They had lived their lives thinking they had a certain her
itage but had been wrong. His father started a new project to trace his family tree and discover where they really had come from.
Jacob had better results. He did not locate his father, but did he matched with some distance cousins. He waited awhile, but he finally sent messages to them through the website right before they left on this trip to New York. He was hoping to hear from them soon.
Considering all that they had gone through, it made Patrick confident that they could get through so much more in life. Aaron was the other half to his soul. He was closer than a brother could ever be.
Also from J. P. Scott
Body Conscious—Body Heat, Book 1
Did you miss how it all started? The first Body Heat book is available now!
Ollie is after the perfect body. That's the way to get the perfect boyfriend and the perfect life, right?
Stuck in the same routine every day, Ollie is not expecting to fall for a man who does not conform to the gay ideals of perfection. Still, he's confident and sexy. Can Ollie get past what he thinks he wants to love what he needs?
Jeremy is a man that knows what he wants. He has his sights on Ollie. Can he get Ollie to be okay with himself and let love in?
Body Positive—Body Heat, Book 2
Look for additional titles in the series coming soon!
Body Surfing
Body Building
Available on Amazon as a Kindle download and Kindle Unlimited
Burning Desire Series
Spark, Flame, Blaze
Spark—Burning Desire, Book 1
When sparks fly, who will get burned?
Alex thought he knew what he needed--a summer on the Mogollon Rim in Arizona to focus on finishing his next novel. Just like every summer--write, drink wine, take his dog for walks. He never anticipated Josh, Cody, and a long-forgotten mystery upending it all.
Love can start with a spark, but the fire that starts reveals secrets and mysteries that will consume them all.
Flame—Burning Desire, Book 2
Josh never wanted to move to Arizona, but his uncle needed him to run his business.
Now, his uncle is sick, his long-time boyfriend is gone, and the only other gay man around for miles hate him. Bills are piling up and Josh needs help.
Enter Jonathan Clay. He's just returned to Arizona and is looking for work. He is good with his hands, both in and out of the bedroom. He may be just the right man to help Josh fix up the cabins. Can he also help Josh find love?
Blaze—Burning Desire, Book 3
Cody never asked to fall in love—much less with two men. Two complicated men. He started the summer in love with Alex, but then he left. Josh became his friend and helped fill the void when Alex was gone.
Is either man right for him?
As the summer ends, Cody will face his family’s past and chart a course for his own future. Which man will be the one that goes with him?
