Confessions in a Bar by SidheWolf_

The bar was dark and smokey. The smell of cigarettes and something more potent wafted across the dance floor and tickled Greg's nose, making him want to sneeze. He had given up cigarettes over five years ago, and rarely indulged in the other stuff now. But the nervous tapping of his foot as he stood at the bar, showed just how close he was coming to bumming a smoke from the blond at the table by the door.

The bartender stepped up and took his order for a Red-Stripe lager, and as he turned back to glance at the door once again, the very same blond he had been thinking of asking for that cigarette, stood and approached him. She stepped up to the bar, swaying a hip just enough to brush against his crotch, as he stood facing toward the door.

"Someone stand you up?" she asked.

Her voice was husky and too sweet. The bartender turned a questioning eye to her and she, in turn, eyed Greg.

He took the hint and smiled. "Sure, Bartender. Whatever the lady wants to drink."

The bartender brought his Red Stripe along with a Vodka Collins for her. Greg fished into his pocket, pulling out several bills and gave them to the bartender with a wave of his hand, telling him to keep any change.

"Thanks," she whispered seductively. She took a sip of her drink, then repeated, "Did someone stand you up?"

Greg sighed and looked at his new companion. "Well, looks like..."

"No, no one stood him up."

The familiar male voice caused the hairs at the back of Greg's neck to rise. Nick Stokes laid a steady hand in the center of his back and gently circled it across the old, hidden scars underneath Greg's shirt. The touch alone sent a shudder through Greg's entire body.

The blond sighed. "Damn," she muttered. "Guess it really is true. They're all either married or gay. But thanks for the drink." With that, she smiled and patted Greg's hand, which was still resting on the bar.

"Sorry," he mumbled as she turned to go back to her table.

As he watched her, a tall blond man in a suede jacket followed her and sat down beside her at the table.

The band broke into a new song, and Nick's hand slowly worked its way down Greg's spine until it finally stopped and again begin to circle gently over his lower back. It continued to circle, dipping occasionally to skim over full ass cheeks.

"Sorry," Nick said. "I got held up in traffic."

Greg shivered as the gentle touch continued. Nick felt Greg's body tremble and moved his hand up to Greg's elbow.

"Do you have a table?"

"No, I've been at the bar since I got here."

"Come on. I see a place back there."

Nick took the lead and guided him with the assurance of a man who knew where he was going and how to get there.

They sat down at the empty table, which was probably not being used because it was located far enough from the dance floor to make it troublesome for anyone interested in dancing.

They sat down beside one another, with their backs to the dancers. Greg shifted the bottle of Red Stripe between his hands as Nick turned and caught the attention of a waitress.

"Bring me what he's having."

She nodded her head and returned to the bar for his order.

"Well, it's not exactly coffee, is it?" Greg joked. He felt like a teenager on his first date. But Nick smiled.

"Hey, this will do just fine. And if it got you to call me, then I don't particularly care what it tastes like. I'm just glad you called."

He smiled again and the warmth of that smile helped to clear Greg's head.

He rubbed his palms across the table top, a nervous habit left over from those long ago college days. Nick halted the motion by covering Greg's hands with his own.

"Hey, settle down, Greg. There's nothing to be nervous about. You know me. We work together every night, remember? You're safe with me."

Greg took a deep breath and blew it out. He looked at their hands still linked on the table top. He thought he should pull away, but the comforting heat of Nick's hands surrounding his own was a feeling he did not want to lose this soon.

"Safe? Yeah," he said with a soft snort. "Like Chad and I thought we were safe. Safe is a relative term, Nick. Sometimes you think you're safe when you're really in so deep you're just about to drown."

The waitress chose that moment to bring Nick's drink to the table. Greg unconsciously tried to pull his hands from beneath Nick's, but Nick held them more securely and nodded his thanks to the waitress.

She smiled and nodded in return.

"Greg, that is not going to happen again. Times have changed. Things have changed. And people have changed. No one is going to hurt you for sitting in a bar with another man."

Greg's eyes rose from his gaze on their clasp hands. "Yeah, I know that in my head, Nick. But it's been a really long time since I've been with another guy. College, in fact. And then it was always in a very secluded place so no one would know. Never in public."

Nick smiled and loosened his hold on Greg's hands. He turned them so they were both laying palm up. Then he opened his own hands to place them, palms down, on top of Greg's. Very gently, he stroked several times, quietly working his touch up to Greg's forearms.

"So, is this another confession? You haven't been with another man since you were in college?"

Greg could feel himself blush. The feel of Nick caressing his hands and arms was one of the most tender touches he could remember. He looked at Nick's gentle hands, slowly letting his eyes travel to Nick's face. "Yeah, I guess it is."

"Good. I like someone who can be truthful with me. Listen, why don't we go to my place for a little while? I don't want to push too many new experiences on you all at once."

Greg smiled a hesitant smile. "Nick, are you sure about this?"

"Would I have asked if I wasn't sure?"

Greg studied his face. There was nothing but sincerity in his look.

"Okay," Greg whispered.

Nick rose and, still holding one of Greg's hands, tossed some bills onto the table to cover his beer and a tip. Then he led Greg to the door of the bar, past the table with the blond and her pick-up in the suede coat.

She looked up from a whispered conversation with him, and smiled a knowing smile as Greg and Nick left the bar.

And here ends the second in the series. To look for the next one, go back to the Fanfics. or if you'd prefer, go back to Homepage.