Page 1 of The Boyfriend Zone

Chapter 1: Lucas

I leaned against the sticky bar counter, nursing my second whiskey sour of the night and watching the chaos unfold on the dance floor. My journalism classmates had dragged me out to "live a little" before the semester swallowed us whole, but they'd all abandoned me for the pulsing mass of bodies. The music was so loud I could feel the bass in my chest, and the flashing lights were giving me the beginnings of a headache.

"Another?" The bartender gestured to my nearly empty glass.

"I'm good, thanks." I glanced at my watch, calculating how long I needed to stay before I could escape without looking like a total buzzkill.

The club scene had never been my thing, even if this was the most popular gay bar near campus. I preferred quiet coffee shops where I could actually hear what people were saying. But my friends insisted I needed to stop overthinking everything and get out of my comfort zone, which is how I ended up alone at the bar, watching other people have fun.

I was about to call it a night when I felt a shift in the atmosphere around me. Maybe it was a journalist's intuition, but something made me look up.

That's when I saw him.

A tall, broad-shouldered man with the most captivating eyes I'd ever seen was making his way directly toward me. He moved with purpose through the crowd, which seemed to part for him automatically. His hair was artfully tousled, as if he'd just run his fingers through it, and he carried himself with the easy grace of an athlete despite his imposing frame.

My heart rate kicked up several notches as he approached, and I quickly looked down at my drink, pretending I hadn't been staring. But then he was right there, his presence impossible to ignore.

"Is this seat taken?" His voice was deep and warm, cutting through the club noise effortlessly. He gestured to the empty barstool beside me, a half-smile playing on his lips.

I looked up. "Depends on who's asking," I replied, with far more confidence than I actually felt.

His smile widened into a grin that made my stomach flip. "Sean. And I've been watching you turn down dance offers for the past half hour." He slid onto the stool without waiting for my permission. "So either you're waiting for someone special, or you have two left feet."

I laughed. "For your information, I'm an excellent dancer. Just selective about my partners."

"Is that so?" Sean raised an eyebrow, angling his body toward mine. "And what's your selection criteria?"

"They need to be interesting enough to make me want to put down my drink." I was surprised by my own boldness, but something about this man made me want to play along. I extended my hand. "I'm Lucas, by the way."

His palm was warm against mine, his handshake firm but not aggressive. "Nice to meet you, Selective Lucas. So, am I interesting enough yet, or should I try harder?"

"That remains to be seen." I took another sip of my drink to hide my smile. "What brings you here tonight?"

"Would you believe me if I said fate?" Sean's eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled. "My flat mate insisted I needed to 'get out more' instead of 'being a boring bastard who only thinks about hockey and classes.'"

"Your roommate sounds a lot like my friends."

"Let me guess, they're all out there," he nodded toward the dance floor, "while you're holding down the fort at the bar?"

"Got it in one," I confirmed. "They mean well, but..." I gestured vaguely at the club around us.

"Not your scene?" Sean finished for me.

"Is it that obvious?"

"Only to another person who's been dragged here against his better judgment." His smile was conspiratorial now, like we were sharing a secret. "Don't get me wrong, I enjoy dancing occasionally, but the whole 'shouting over music until your throat hurts' thing? Not my idea of a good time."

"Exactly!" I found myself leaning closer. "I'd much rather have an actual conversation."

"Like this one?" The corner of his mouth quirked up, and I realized just how close we'd gotten, drawn together like magnets over the narrow bar top.

"Yeah," I said softly. "Like this one."

Sean's eyes dropped briefly to my lips before meeting my gaze again. "So, Lucas, what do you do when you're not being selective at bars?"

"I'm a journalism major. Junior year." I rotated my glass on the napkin beneath it. "What about you?"

"Sports Management major, with a minor in Business." He ran a hand through his hair, making it even more attractively disheveled. "Sports takes up most of my time, though."

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