Page 13 of His Stepdad Wears Leather

The bartender studied him through narrowed eyes.

“I don’t drink much.”

“No shit?”

“My dad… he’d drink… and get mean,” Noah shared, not sure why he was bringing his parents up to a complete stranger. “I don’t want to be like him.”

The bartender’s gaze softened a little.

“But I’m celebrating tonight. A drink and some dancing sounded fun.” He pulled out his wallet and took out a twenty. Slapping it on the bar, he eyed the man.

“What’cha celebrating?”

Remembering that the birthday on his fake ID was not that day, he stopped himself before potentially getting his ass into hot water. “My freedom,” Noah declared. “After a successful escape.”

“Bad breakup?” The corner of the man’s lips tilted. “Or prison break?”

“In some ways, you could say both.” Noahhadleft a bad relationship, and left the prison-like home his parents had tried to bind him inside. He grasped the tumbler and swallowed it whole—as he’dalsoseen in a movie. The liquor was like fire down his throat. He sputtered and coughed.“Fuck.”

The bartender chuckled. “It’ll put hair on your chest.”

“Maybe… I don’t…wanthair… on my chest,” he said between gasping for air.

“You’ll be fine.” He leaned those big, muscular arms on the bar, moving closer. Noah bent forward a bit more, too. “Do I hear a bit of an accent? You must not be from around here.”

“Nope. I’m not from around here,” Noah said. “Though I have some family in the area.”

“Ah,” the man said. He glanced down the bar. “Be right back.”

A ripple of disappointment filled him as Noah watched the bartender take another order. He’d failed to keep the man’s attention.

Or had he? The bartender’s stare drifted to him as he prepared their drinks. A smile played over Noah’s lips at the development.Act casual. Don’t seem too interested.Turning on the stool, he surveyed the dancefloor. Soon, the music had ramped up again and he moved his upper body to the beat. The warmth of the whiskey burned through his arms and legs.

Everything was going a little liquid.

When he turned back to sneak a peek, the bartender was near, pouring him another drink.

“Oh no… I can’t—”

“It’s on me,” the bartender said before pouring himself a glass, too. He slid Noah’s glass back and then lifted his own. “To the end of a bad relationship and the potential of whatever’s coming next.”

Noah got a sudden surge of confidence. One drink wasn’t enough to be the cause, but he’d blame it either way. “I knowI’dlike to be the one who’s coming next.”

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, his face flamed.Did I really just say that?

“Oh?” The man lifted one arched brow. A hint of a smile played at his very kissable lips.

Noah released a sigh of relief. He wasn’t being told ‘no’, which was a good sign.Right?He considered those lips another moment, wondering if they were as soft as they looked. Wondering if the beard and mustache would tickle.

Wondering if he actually had the nerve to fuck a complete stranger.

He’d run from a carload of danger, but now he was offering himself up as a sacrificial lamb? Difference was, his gut had screamed for him to run from the first. Now, it was telling him to get closer. Listening to his instinct, he captured the man’s gaze. “Know anyone who could help me make the most of my night?”

The bartender eyed him, a slight smirk on those sinful lips. Warmth ran through Noah’s veins. His cock jerked, thickening.

“I might,” the bartender said, desire glittering in his eyes. Another bartender stepped beside the man and whispered something. His bartender refocused on Noah. “I can take a break in a few, if you’re game?”

Noah grinned. “Oh, I’mdefinitelygame.”Oh my god, what am I doing?He downed the second drink, needing a little more liquid courage if he was going to make it through the night. It burned, but not as bad as the first had.

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