A Chance at Love

by Silvia Violet

  “Hey.” Chance laid a hand on his arm. It was warm, even through his shirt and jacket. Darren wanted to feel it on his naked skin. He’d thought this would be a calm, peaceful flight, but now he was feeling more than he had in ages. Flustered, annoyed, wanting. What would it be like to fuck a man like Chance?

  You wouldn’t be in control.

  Darren was always in control. That’s how he liked things. Except when he thought about Chance taking charge, telling him what to do…

  He turned to face Chance, and they stared at each other for several seconds. What would Chance be like in bed? Darren imagined he’d like exploring everything, that he’d do whatever Darren asked, not because he was submissive, but because he was adventurous.

  “I didn’t mean to push,” Chance said. “You don’t have to tell me anything else.”

  “Centipedes,” Darren said. “I’m terrified of centipedes.” There. That was something he didn’t mind confessing.

  Chance shuddered. “Ew. Me too. The way they skitter. All those damn legs.”

  “Right. They’re just…”

  “Gross.” They said the word together and cracked up.

  A woman in a severe gray suit, who was seated across the aisle from Chance, gave them a dirty look. Much like Darren might have if he hadn’t been under Chance’s spell. That didn’t make him think very favorably of himself. Maybe he needed to be less of a stuck-up prick.

  Chance continued listing all the things that made centipedes abhorrent. Then Darren realized the turbulence had stopped.

  He was considering “working” some more when the flight attendant stopped by to see if they’d like snacks or another drink. Darren asked for another bourbon.

  “You know what? I think I’ll have one of those too,” Chance said.

  “You like bourbon?” Chance didn’t strike him as a bourbon drinker, more the vodka or tequila type.

  “I don’t know actually, but it’s a day to try new things, right?”

  Apparently it was. “So tell me about this game you bought.”

  Chance took a sip of his drink and winced. “Damn! That’s strong.”

  “That’s kind of the point.”

  “Huh. Bourbon makes its point quite well, then.”

  “If it were higher quality, it would be smoother. Then it could sneak right up on you and make its point far more subtly.”

  “I suppose that’s the kind you usually drink.”

  “It is.” I’d love to share some with you. Darren almost said those words out loud. This strange rapport between them really had him off-balance, but he wasn’t actually crazy enough to pretend it would last after they landed.

  Chance pulled out the cards, shuffled them, and began to explain the game.

  They played round after round, taking a few breaks because they were laughing so hard, they couldn’t go on. Suddenly, the plane began to shudder and jolt again. The cards slid all over their trays.

  “I guess we better put these away.” Chance’s voice was slightly shaky.

  “It was okay last time, right?”

  “Yeah, I know. It’s stupid to worry. It’s just…”

  “Like the centipedes. We know they can’t hurt us, but they make us uneasy anyway.”

  Chance nodded. “Yeah. Like that.”

  They were silent for a few moments, and Darren worried things were about to get awkward. Then Chance said, “We could do one of those get-to-know-you quizzes.”

  Was he for real? For just a second, Darren wondered if he’d fallen asleep right after boarding and dreamed this whole encounter. Was he going to wake up and find another bored businessman in the seat beside him?

  “Darren?”

  “Sure, why not. I’ll look one up.” He grabbed his phone. “What should I search for?”

  “Oh, I didn’t even think about how we’d need Internet. You don’t have to get it just because—”

  “It’s complimentary in first class, and even if it wasn’t, it’s no big deal.”

  “Oh, right. Okay. Thanks.”

  Darren tried to remember that not everyone could simply buy what they wanted as easily as he could, but he wasn’t always good at it. Chance had said he felt guilty using points for a first-class flight. “I want you to be comfortable so you can enjoy your flight.”

  “Thanks.”

  Chance’s smile was so bright, it made Darren’s chest ache. He couldn’t remember ever caring so much about a fellow traveler. Not that he wanted anyone to suffer, but he wasn’t usually the nurturing type despite what he did at work.

  “Okay, I found a quiz.”

  “Cool. You can ask me first, but then it’s your turn to answer.”

  Darren had a feeling he’d agree to just about anything Chance suggested. It was a good thing first class didn’t come with a larger bathroom. If it did, he might be contemplating a first-time experience for himself.

  “What is your favorite movie?” At least the first question wasn’t too personal.

  Chance wrinkled his nose like he was concentrating.

  “Difficult decision?”

  “Yes, but I’ll go with Pride and Prejudice, the A&E one with Colin Firth, obviously. It has the most perfect characterization of any movie I’ve seen.”

  That was an unexpected answer. “I…um…”

  “Don’t tell me you’ve never seen it.”

  Darren winced. “I can’t say I’ve seen any Jane Austen movies.”

  “That is truly tragic. You must remedy the error immediately.”

  Perhaps he should. And that was also not a thought he would’ve expected to have.

  “So what about you?” Chance said.

  “Hmm. I’m not sure I can pick just one.”

  “No fair. You have to choose since I did. That’s a rule.”

  Darren arched his brows. “There are rules for this?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “Says who?”

  “Me.”

  Damn if he didn’t want to kiss that smirk right off Chance’s face. “All right, then. The Martian.”

  Chance twirled his hand in a give-me-more gesture.

  “I have to tell you why? Is that a rule too?”

  Chance nodded, and Darren narrowed his eyes. “You’re making these rules up as you go along, aren’t you?”

  He shrugged. “So what if I am?”

  Darren’s gaze fell to Chance’s mouth again, and he wanted to kiss him, wanted it so bad, he had to grip the armrest to keep from reaching for him.

  “Explanation,” Chance prompted.

  Surely Darren’s brain could function well enough to say something about the movie. “It’s got humor, action, and a badass, smart-as-hell lead man.”

  “You like badass, smart men, do you?”

  “Yes, I do.” Darren held Chance’s gaze even though he wanted to look away. He felt like Chance was reading his thoughts, which was ridiculous. He was simply admitting he was gay. That wasn’t a big deal. He’d been out of the closet for a damn long time.

  “Well, that’s good to know.” Chance grinned, and Darren did look away then.

  Quiz. They needed to get back to the quiz. “What city do you dream of living in?” Darren frowned. “Who wrote these questions?”

  “Never question the questions.”

  “Another rule?”

  Chance nodded. “For me, my dream has already come true. It’s San Diego.”

  Darren smiled. “Same for me.”

  “Aren’t we lucky? Living our dreams.”

  Cheesy as that sounded, Darren had to agree. “I am amazingly lucky.” He had a job he loved and was good at, all the money any man could need, and an amazing house with an ocean view. What could be better?

  Someone to share it with.

  “How did you end up in San Diego?” Chance asked.

  “That’s not on the quiz.”

  “Answer it anyway.”

  Darren stiffened, not used to being told what to do and hating that he found it just a little
bit—okay, a whole hell of a lot—hot.

  “I’m making the rules, remember?” Chance said.

  Darren couldn’t imagine letting anyone else get away with such cockiness, but he liked Chance making rules. This was temporary, so he might as well enjoy the moment.

  “I grew up in LA. My family was well off, and I had all the trappings: private school, society introductions, expectations to join my father’s law firm. Then my mother caught him in their bed with his secretary. It’s so cliché, but that didn’t make it hurt any less. Dad took off, probably headed east to New York or Chicago. I don’t know because I never saw him again.”

  “Damn. That’s…”

  “I haven’t come up with the right words to describe it in all these years, so I don’t expect you to now.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  Darren shook his head. “I don’t need sympathy. I went to Stanford Law School, took a series of jobs I hated, then finally found one I love and moved to San Diego.” Darren didn’t want to say more. He oversaw a charitable trust started by his grandmother. But right now he didn’t want to be Darren Walsh, well-known philanthropist. He just wanted to be a guy Chance met on a plane. “What about you?”

  “My story is nothing like that.”

  “I’m glad it’s not. I hope it’s a lot happier, not that my life was awful or anything. It was shitty what my dad did, and it made me doubt how happy he’d been and…” Fuck. Why was he going on about this? “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you listen to all that.”

  Chance shook his head. “Talk all you want. I don’t mind listening.”

  “No, it’s your turn. Tell me how you ended up in San Diego.”

  “I grew up on a ranch outside Houston and majored in biology at Rice. When I started looking at programs for grad school, I fell in love with UC San Diego. I’m halfway through the first year of my PhD program.”

  “Congratulations! From what I understand, the researchers at UC San Diego are doing some amazing work.”

  Chance’s cheeks turned pink, which made him even more gorgeous. “They are. My focus is genetics, particularly epigenetics, which refers to changes in gene expression but not in the actual genetic code. Epigenetic changes can make it seem like people inherit changes based on their parents’ experiences, not just their genes. These experiences become encoded in epigenetic tags, but many of the changes are difficult to explain. I think it’s fascinating.”

  So he was a brilliant kid. Darren needed to remember not to make assumptions about people who wore pajama pants in public. “I’ve read only a little about it, and it does sound fascinating.”

  “I’m really excited about where my research could lead.”

  “You should be. Were you visiting your family? Is that why you’re flying out of Houston?”

  “Yep. What about you? Were you working?”

  Darren nodded. “I was negotiating with a new client”—he didn’t want to refer to them as a donor since he’d have to answer more questions—“and it took me a week, but I got the deal I wanted.”

  “Do you travel a lot?”

  “A fair amount, but it’s worth it.”

  Chance smiled. “Sounds like it. Grad school doesn’t compensate quite as well, but hey, I got to fly first class today.”

  “I’m very glad you did.”

  CHAPTER TWO

  They worked their way through a few more questions. Favorite book. Chance tried to say Pride and Prejudice again, but Darren insisted he go with something different, so he chose The Complete Works of Calvin and Hobbes. Favorite candy. Toblerone for Chance and sour gummy worms for Darren, an answer that had Chance laughing hysterically as he tried to explain how incongruous that answer was with Darren’s personality.

  The captain’s voice came over the speaker. “We’re making our final descent into San Diego. Our arrival gate is 39, and it looks like we’ll have you on the ground in just a few minutes. Thank you for flying with us today.”

  Chance touched Darren’s arm again, and Darren felt an honest-to-God jolt of electricity zip through him. “Thank you for distracting me.”

  Their gazes met, and Chance licked his lips, a provocative move that made Darren wonder if he really wanted to say goodbye.

  “Are you getting a cab or something?” Darren asked. Was he really going to ask Chance to share a ride with him?

  Chance shook his head. “A friend is picking me up.”

  “Right. That’s easier, I guess.” Darren hated how disappointed he was.

  “But…” Chance pulled something from the outer pocket of his bag. “Here’s my card. Give me a call if you want to play cards again or just talk or…something else.”

  Darren took the card. Was it already warm from Chance’s touch, or was that his imagination?

  Chance didn’t seem like the type to carry business cards around. He glanced down at it and realized the front was simply an artistic rendering of a DNA double helix. He flipped it over and saw Chance’s number and his email.

  When he looked back up, Chance had a wary look on his face. “No pressure or anything if you don’t—”

  The plane hit the tarmac then, jolting them. Darren hadn’t realized they were so close to the ground.

  “I gotta text my friend,” Chance said, pulling out his phone.

  Darren forced himself to focus on arranging a Lyft for himself rather than staring at Chance. By the time he finished, they were pulling up to the gate. Darren tucked Chance’s card into his leather iPad case and then slipped the device in the pocket of his briefcase.

  For the first time since Darren had been startled by the young man holding a giant container of cheese balls, an awkward silence fell between them. He considered assuring Chance he’d call just to make him feel better, but he’d be lying.

  He’d be tempted to, especially on nights when he was lonely. Going out or using an app to find a hookup often seemed like far too much trouble. But if he saw Chance again, it wouldn’t be the same. In the real world, Darren and this exuberant, young grad student had nothing in common.

  Are you sure? You talked to him more easily than with anyone else you’ve encountered in months, maybe years.

  Darren ignored that nagging voice and pretended to look at something on his phone for the few moments it took for the jetway to be connected. Then he and Chance were gathering their stuff and walking off the plane.

  As they passed through the gate lounge, Darren laid a hand on Chance’s shoulder, slowing him down. The younger man turned, eyes going wide. Had he felt that zing of connection too?

  They continued to walk side by side. “I wanted to say thank you. That was the most interesting flight I’ve ever taken.”

  Chance gave him that bright, painfully genuine smile. “You’re welcome, and thank you again for distracting me. The turbulence would have sucked a lot more if you hadn’t been there.”

  They were nearly to the VIP lounge, the one with a spacious bathroom. For half a second, Darren considered pulling Chance in there. Then real life slapped him in the face in the guise of one of his employees coming toward them down the concourse.

  She waved to him, and he waved back. “Where are you heading?”

  “Chicago.”

  “Good luck.”

  “Thanks. Enjoy your weekend,” she called. “It’s supposed to be gorgeous here.”

  He did love San Diego’s weather. This truly was his dream city, but no matter what his brain—or to be more honest his dick—was telling him, Chance was not his dream man.

  He turned toward Chance. “I’m going to duck into the lounge. Have a good weekend and, um…”

  “Call me.”

  Before he could respond with either a lie or the painful truth, Chance rushed off into the sea of fellow travelers.

  ***

  Chance forced himself to keep walking through the terminal. No matter how alluring Darren had seemed, no matter how warm his hand had felt on Chance’s shoulder, he doubted Darren would ever let their flirtat
ion become something more. Still, he was tempted to turn around, to be more assertive, more blunt about what he wanted. But what was that exactly? A hookup? A date? A white picket fence, a large dog, and a kid?

  He laughed to himself. Darren probably saw him as a kid, and why wouldn’t he? Chance had brought a giant tub of cheese balls onto a plane. He glanced down at the container and was surprised to see just how many he and Darren had eaten on the flight. He couldn’t keep what was probably a goofy grin off his face as he remembered how uncomfortable Darren had looked staring at his cheese-stained fingers and how badly Chance had wanted to lick them clean.

  But he’d been a good boy. He’d only touched Darren once, though it had nearly killed him to let go. What was it about the man? Sure Chance would’ve talked to anyone he’d been seated by, but Darren had caught his attention from the second he’d seen him boarding in that perfectly tailored suit, seeming absolutely unaware of how handsome he was. Chance tried to picture him in normal street clothes, but he couldn’t. Darren was born to wear suits like that.

  Then when Darren had turned to stare at him as he stowed his luggage, his eyes had mesmerized Chance. They were deep brown and held more heat than one would expect from such a polished businessman. He’d expected Darren to rebuff his exuberance as most strangers he chatted with eventually did. Darren had been openly dismissive at first, looking at Chance like he was one of those millennials responsible for most of the world’s problems, but he’d been drawn in by Chance’s offers of food and conversation, relaxing more and more as the flight went on. And he’d been surprisingly kind, truly seeming to care that Chance was scared. Chance had almost worked up the courage to ask him out, but then the flight ended, and all he’d had the nerve to do was give Darren his card.

  He’s not going to call.

  Maybe he will.

  No. You’re better off forgetting him.

  ***

  He didn’t call.

  And Chance didn’t forget him. He thought about him almost nonstop for days. He jerked off fantasizing about the things he wanted to do to Darren. If Chance got him alone, he’d peel that fine suit off him and his arrogance with it. He wanted Darren on his knees. He wanted him spread open and begging for Chance’s cock, and he wanted Darren in him too, filling him up, making him feel amazing, cherished, loved.