Page 1 of A Hard Fit

Chapter One

LoveLust at First Sight

Love at first sight? Not real.

Probably not, anyway. Maybe it happened to some people, but not everyone. It was certainly not something Finn expected to happen to him.

Well, maybe it could.

It wouldn’t.

But it might.

If it was going to happen, now was the perfect time—new job, fresh start, a whole city full of people. It would just take one, after all.

Worth trying, anyway.

His first date in Oakport was with Albert. They matched on a dating app. It was definitelysomethingat first sight, although Finn suspected that something was lust… Hard to tell the difference in the moment.

“Albert?” he asked the man at the bar, even though he knew Albert from his profile pics. He was Finn’s type—tall and lean, smiley, tousled hair.

“Finn?” Albert grinned.

“Great to meet you,” Finn said, shaking his hand.

“You too.” Albert studied him up and down in a way that made Finn’s dick twitch. “Want to go back to your place and fuck?”

Finn laughed as he sat considering the offer. “You’re on the wrong app, Albert.”

Albert’s green eyes twinkled. “Doesn’t change my question.”

Finn pushed his ginger curls back, taking in the way Albert’s cuffs were rolled up, displaying sculpted forearms. “Why arrange to meet here if you just want to fuck?”

Albert shrugged and tossed back the rest of his cocktail. “Making sure you matched your pictures.” He eyed where Finn’s T-shirt pulled tight over his biceps.

Finn rested an arm on the bar and leaned in. “So you like what you see?”

Albert nodded and inched closer on his stool, gaze now dropping to Finn’s lap. “And now I want to see the rest.”

Albert came back to Finn’s place. And came at his place. Finn hadn’t even gotten his breath back yet when Albert rolled over and looked at his phone. “That was great. I’ve gotta get going. I’ll call you.”

He never called.

So, lust—definitely lust.

It wasn’t quite as easy to tell with Safa. They had sex on the first date too, then there were more dates. At least five, by Finn’s count, plus he ran into her at the charity 5K. Anyway, they spent enough time together that there was something more than lust, but she broke up with him because, quote, “Mycat thinks you’re too loud.”

You’re choosing your cat over me?was the question that came to Finn’s mind, but that was where it stayed, because there were some questions he shouldn’t have to ask. Plus that cat was an asshole.

Scott was hot but had no sense of humor. He didn’t laugh at a single thing Finn said, not even his standard first date dirty jokes.

Wynn was rude to servers.Next.

With Luka, gorgeous Luka, there had been promise, at least. When Finn had seen him for the first time, he had felt warm all over. Luka was new at their office—young and sparkling, brown hair flopping into his forehead, killer blue eyes, sharp dresser. The two of them were the only openly queer men at Breakpoint and had gravitated toward each other instantly. In fact, Luka asked him to go for a drink after work at the end of his first week. Finn said yes without hesitation.

Finn took him to the Bitter Exchange, a new pub that had opened only a few blocks from the office. It was dim and already grimy somehow, but the wings were excellent and the beer was cheap. After the requisite chit-chat and delivery of their pitcher, they started diving into more personal topics.

“So, where did you go to school?” Luka asked before taking his first sip.

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