Chapter Fifteen -- Back In The Saddle
Jared pushed his hands into the pockets of his jacket, adjusting the bag on his shoulder, and walked purposefully into the bar. Yes, it wasn't the one with the awful beer, but it didn't look any better. The same blue-collar workers populated the pub, and there were some people there who looked like they had just gotten back from working the fields. Maybe it was a look that was coming back in fashion, Jared mused. The difference was that no dance ring was in sight. Per se, he had nothing against the audience, but he couldn't see how he and Shane could get acquainted in that kind of place. He suspected that public displays of affection between two gay guys wouldn't be a welcome sight.
He scouted the area for Shane, and when he didn't see him, he decided to take place on one of the tall stools and order himself a beer. No, he would make it a tequila. Maybe a stiff drink would make the bad taste in his mouth after meeting with Chris's husband finally go away. The bartender was a morose man in his fifties that served him his drink without the faintest shadow of a smile. Jared wasn't bothered by it; probably, the bartender wasn't exactly into that rowdy atmosphere and hated his workplace. There was some sports match on the large HDTV mounted on a wall, and the audience was being part of it all.
He grabbed his shot and grimaced. Then he gestured for the bartender to hit him again. The man gave him an unreadable look, and then he put a half-full bottle in front of him. That was bold of him, Jared thought, but he decided to leave the man a tip. Maybe he would smile a little then.
The booze, on the other hand, was good. Jared didn't quite recall when it had been the last time he had done shots. If Shane didn't show up, at least he would have a good time by himself. He reached for the bottle so that he could fill his glass again, but a rough hand covered his. "Have you started partying without me?"
There was an unmistakable drawl in that voice, and Jared smiled, despite himself. He tried to turn, but Shane's warm body kept him a prisoner. Talking about bold, for real, this time. "I didn't see you, so I thought you'd bailed on me. Or that you're running late. Take your pick."
"Bail on you?" Shane was talking into his hair, and Jared felt a bit overly conscious. They weren't in a gay bar, after all.
Or were they? Jared tried to look around, but Shane was still keeping him trapped. If he recalled correctly, he hadn't seen any women inside. It looked like there was an all-male audience. Was it a gay bar? What kind of gay bar was that?
"Um, would you mind allowing me a bit of space?"
"I do mind. I have to stop you from bailing on me."
"Why would I bail on you?" Jared wondered out loud.
Shane spoke into his hair again, "Because you surely look like you're not too happy to be here."
Oh, damn. Jared knew that he was an easy to read kind of guy, wearing his soul on his sleeve and all that. He used to believe it was a positive trait, but now, he wasn't so sure. It meant that he was easy to take for a fool, too.
But that would end tonight. He was at that bar, with Shane seriously crowding his personal space because he had chosen to be. Now all he had to do was to avoid getting involved. Easy-peasy. It was just a hookup, although it seemed to start in a weird place, with an odd bartender, but with pretty damned good tequila.
"It would be easier to talk if you just sat by my side." Jared patted the empty seat next to him.
"I have a table. Let's go. And take the bottle with you."
"Then let me pay for it first. The bartender might think I'm trying to run away with his booze, and he looks like a guy who doesn't take such things lightly. I don't want to be responsible for being the guy who ruined his day completely."
Shane burst into laughter. "Old Charlie? He wouldn't think that. And I'm sure that if he left this bottle here, he has serious doubts you'd be able to finish it. It's his way of weighing the clientele."
"Old Charlie might just be surprised," Jared replied, feeling a bit competitive. "I must ask, though. Do you come here often?"
"It's close to where I live, so yeah." Shane wrapped one hand around his and pulled him from his seat.
"But it's not," Jared leaned in so that he could whisper in Shane's ear, and still somehow manage to beat the loud noises around them, "gay, is it?"
Shane chuckled. "I don't know. Some guys might be, though. I'm not judging."
Jared had a feeling that Shane was pulling his leg. "Really? You're not one? Then what are you doing, holding another dude by the hand like this? Experimenting?"
"I think I'm past that stage," Shane replied.
They sat at a table in a corner, Shane plopping down next to him on a wooden bench. They had no glasses, Jared noticed. "Hey, maybe we should --"
Shane took the bottle and took a hefty sip.
"—get glasses," Jared completed his sentence, his eyes never leaving his date for the night.
Shane was dressed pretty much the same as the other night when Jared had met him, although it could be a different checkered flannel. But the hat, and the tight jeans, and the boots were all there. For a moment, Jared wondered what he was getting himself into.
"Booze is better straight from the bottle," Shane explained with a sly smile.
Jared could feel his lips twitching. There was something about Shane's smile that was infectious. "Not any booze."
"Any booze," Shane said with conviction.
"Even champagne?"
"Yeah, even champagne."
"Of course, if you're some racing champion who just got first place," Jared retorted. "And now, how am I supposed to drink after you?"
"What? You're worried I might give you the cooties?" Shane asked, and his grin grew bolder.
"It's not exactly hygienic," Jared pointed out.
"Ah, then when I'm going to kiss you, you're going to think the same?"
Shane sat close to him, and Jared was overly conscious of his body heat. There was something about that man that made him pretty weak to his knees. He was truly masculine, with his shiny belt buckle and his cowboy hat, and his sexy grin. Maybe it was the shot making its way into a kick, but Jared felt like licking Shane's lips, just to learn how they tasted like.
Right now, maybe of the probably expensive tequila that would go on Jared's tab. Not that Jared could hold that against Shane since he had been the first to start drinking by himself.
"You're quiet, so that's a bad sign," Shane said with a small sigh. "All right, I'll use a condom on my tongue. Would that work for you?"
"A condom on what?" Suddenly, the idea of seeing Shane trying to fit the rubber on his tongue seemed awfully funny to him, so he burst into laughter.
