Page 3 of Euphoria

“I’d say that we’re off to a good start,” Colter said, sitting back in his leather chair. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off the guy. He was sexy as hell and Hugh was picking up some pretty strong vibes off Colter that he was gay. He needed to keep his head in the game and ace the interview first. Then, he’d ask the guy a few questions that would confirm his suspicions.

“How can you tell?” Hugh asked, “I mean all I’ve told you so far is my name and that I’m in the market for an apartment if I get this job.”

Colter barked out his laugh and nodded, “You’re a bit of a smart ass, Hugh, and I like that. I’ve also looked over your references and experience. You’ve done a lot of work in the industry, managing bars. Why do you want to work here?”

Hugh sat up in his seat and nodded. They were finally getting to the bullshitting part of the program. This was where he’d tell Colter how much he loved working in the bar industry. He’d tell him that it was his passion to help bar owners get theirbusinesses up and running. But before he had a chance to do any of that, Colter held up his hand.

“Don’t feed me any bullshit,” he insisted. How he knew that Hugh was about to feed him some bullshit line was a mystery. “I understand that interviews are about selling yourself and your skills, but I want an honest answer. Why do you want to be in this town and work here?” Colter asked.

“Okay,” Hugh breathed, “I’m feeling kind of lost these days. My boyfriend and I broke up a few months ago and I’ve been drifting, you know?”

“I do know,” Colter said, “my grandfather died a couple of months ago and I knew I couldn’t stay in the house I had grown up in. He raised me and staying in that town felt like a step backward. So, I packed up some of my stuff and hit the road. This was the first place I stopped and when I found this building, I knew it had to be where I’d build my bar.”

“Ah, so I’m assuming that this place is named after your grandfather then,” Hugh guessed. He thought the name to be old-fashioned and now he knew why.

“Yep,” Colter said, “his name was Abner, and I thought that he’d get a kick out of me naming a bar after him. After all, it was the money that he left me that allowed me to do all this.”

“You are very lucky to have a grandfather who loved you so much, Colter,” he said. “I never knew my family. I grew up in foster care, and while I never really minded much, sometimes I miss the family that I never knew.” He shrugged, “It’s hard to explain.”

“No,” Colter said, “my parents were killed in a car accident when I was seven, and while I loved my grandpa, I still missed them.” Hugh nodded, noticing the same sadness that he often felt reflected in Colter’s eyes. “How would you like the job, Hugh?” Colter asked.

“I think that I’d like it here,” Hugh said, “thank you.” He stood and shook Colter’s hand and turned to leave. “Oh, when do you need me to start?” he asked.

“How about Monday?” Colter asked. “We can start going over the final details of the bar together. I can use all the advice that I can get.”

“That works,” Hugh agreed. That would give him the weekend to find an apartment and move his meager belongings in. He didn’t have much, so it would be an easy move. “Are the people in town nice?” he asked.

“Nice?” Colter questioned.

“Yeah, you know, would they accept a man like me?” Hugh asked.

“Oh, you mean will they accept you being gay?” Colter asked, picking up on his meaning. He nodded and Colter laughed. “Well, I hope like hell that they do, because if not, I’m not going to have very much business. I’m gay too, Hugh,” he said. Hugh turned around to look at Colter. His Spidey senses were still working, and Hugh liked the fact that his new boss played on his team—not that he’d ever pursue Colter. The one thing that Hugh had learned from his last failed relationship was not to mix business and pleasure.

“Good to know,” Hugh said, turning to leave again. “See you on Monday, boss,” he called back over his shoulder.

Hugh met with a realtor about an hour after accepting the job with Colter. He knew that he might be jumping the gun, but he wanted to find a place to rent and get settled before he had to start his new gig on Monday. The problem was that the realtor had two places to show him, and both were basementapartments in old homes that were mostly rented by college students in town. The last thing he would want to come home to after a late shift at the bar was a frat party or some damn loud music playing. Did that make him sound old—sure, but he didn’t give a shit? He knew that he couldn’t commute from his current place, so he decided to thank the realtor and head over to the cute diner in town for some food and to mull over his options.

He was halfway through his turkey club when Colter walked into the diner and sat up at the front counter next to him. “Well, I didn’t expect to find you here,” Colter said. “I thought that you had places to look at.” He wasn’t planning on being there either, but he needed food and honestly, he needed to come up with a plan for where he was going to live, not that he wanted to tell his hot new boss that.

“Well, the apartment search didn’t take too long. There were only two choices, and they were beyond awful. Do you know if there are any good places to live within thirty minutes of town? I might have to commute to find a suitable place to live,” Hugh said.

“I tried going the rental route first, not knowing if I’d want to put down roots here, but I found my bar and decided to buy. I remember how scarce things were around here, though. Let me guess—college students,” Colter drawled. God, the man sounded like sex on a stick. Hugh loved a good southern boy, and Colter seemed to fit that bill.

“Yep, and the last thing I want to do is party with some frat boys, you know?” Hugh asked. Colter threw back his head and laughed as though Hugh had just said the funniest thing he’d ever heard.

“I know exactly what you mean. When my realtor sent me listings of the places she found for me, I told her the same thing. I’m too old for that shit,” he grumbled.

“Same, and now, I’m going to have to look further out, but I don’t think that will be a problem. I mean, it will just mean a little less sleep, but I think that I can handle that,” Hugh lied. He loved his sleep and being deprived of it only made him a bear to deal with, but he was sure that Colter would find that out sooner than later.

Colter sat back on the barstool and crossed his arms over his massive chest. “How about you come to stay with me until you can find something better? I just bought a house, and while I can’t promise that it’s decorated or anything like that, it’s a nice place. It has four bedrooms, so you can even have your pick—but not the master. That’s the only room that I’ve already made my own. You can bring whatever you want—the more furniture, the better because I still don’t have much since I’ve been too busy to go shopping.”

Hugh was sure that he was looking at Colter as though he had lost his ever-loving mind. “You can’t be serious,” he insisted.

“Why can’t I be?” Colter asked. “I mean, I know that I have a dry sense of humor—at least that was what my grandfather used to tell me, but I’m not kidding around here. You need a place to stay, and I’ve got plenty of room. Besides, it’s more of a selfish offer on my part,” he admitted.

“How so?” Hugh asked.

“Well, I can’t have my new bar manager grumpy and tired from having to commute from work to home. My house is literally right around the corner from the bar, and you won’t have to miss out on your sleep,” Colter offered. He was being serious, and Hugh wasn’t sure if he wanted to kiss the guy or laugh his ass off at him.

---