Page 41 of Seductive Architect
“Follow your gut.”
“I never follow my gut,” I blurted out. What type of bartender rhetoric was he trying to feed me?
“Maybe that’s why it’s complicated.” Did he just drop some wisdom as he fired double finger guns at me? Mick spun about, shouting at a group of gentlemen at the jukebox. Just as the music came to life, he grabbed the cord and unpluggedthe machine. I appreciated the lack of noise andmaybehis advice. It sounded so simple, yet I had tied myself up in knots over the situation. Could I have feelings for a guy who might very well be at the center of superheroes coming to an end?
“Not my first bar.”
“Wow,” I gasped.
Hudson traded his button-down for a t-shirt that hugged his body in all the right ways. Tight in the biceps and around the belly. It was as if he intentionally highlighted his best assets. Well… until he flashed that smile. He grabbed a chair opposite me. I hated that the conversation ahead of us might wipe it off his face. I had beaten around the bush as much as possible. Inside, my brain, heart, and even the butterflies in my stomach waged a silent war.
“First gay bar?” I asked.
He spun about in his seat. Without prompting, Mick returned with a frosted glass filled with a dark amber beer. Hudson didn’t hide his surprise as Mick rested a hand on his shoulder, sliding the beer onto the table.
“Orion was just telling me about you.”
“Oh?” We said it in unison.
“I think you give him butterflies.” If I didn’t know better, I’d think Mick had telepathy. It’d explain how he predicted his patrons’ drinks and doled out sage advice. He’d be going on the board when I got home.
With a quick pat, he departed. Leaving Hudson withthat smirk. “Two firsts. Gay bar and giving somebody butterflies.”
He laughed, but I couldn’t join him. My stomach twisted.
This was it. No more waiting. This wasn’t a date. This was a reckoning.
“I… uh…” I needed to get it out before I chickened out. “I need to ask you a very serious question.”
“Go for it.” He leaned over, sipping from the beer without using his hands.
“Where were you a year ago?”
“In Vanguard.”
“What did you do for work?”
“I worked at the lab.”
He continued sipping. I slid forward, resting my elbows on the table. It was harder than I imagined. I wished I had taken a photo of him before I wrecked this relationship.
“I know your secret.”
His eyebrow went up. “What’s that?”
“That you’re…” It was one thing to say it to Janet. That hadn’t made my palms sweat. I fidgeted in my seat, mustering the courage. “Not human.”
He sat upright and froze. His entire body went rigid, as if he had turned to stone. Shit. I hadn’t considered his response. Would he whip the table to the side and kill everybody in the bar to cover up his identity? I probablyshould have done this in an abandoned warehouse to limit casualties.Thiswas why I’d never be a top-tier hero.
“I don’t know what you mean.” He poked his cheek to emphasize the squishiness of his flesh. “I feel pretty human.”
“What is your favorite elementary school moment?”
“I don’t know what you?—”
“What is the name of your first pet?”
“Stop. Please stop.” His eyes pleaded with me.
