Page 9 of Vodka And Virtue

Gordy eyed him like he had grown two heads. “The fuck do I care?”

“You’re not interested in either of them?”

He sounded as if he couldn’t believe it. Before my brother fell in love with Ryan, he rarely turned down anyone, whether he was attracted to them or not. He once told me that if he wasn’t all that interested, he just closed his eyes and pretended they were someone else.

“Nope,” Gordy drawled, popping the P sound.

“I don’t get you, man. You go home alone night after night. I mean, objectively speaking, you’re not ugly. Your personality could use some improvement, but other than that…”

“There’s more to life than sex, Carson. I know it’s hard for you to believe that, but trust me.”

“Whatever, man. Excuse me if I’m happy and I want everyone I care about to be just as happy. Including you,” he said, pointing at me.

“Me? I am happy. Like Gordy said, there’s more to life than sex.”

He mumbled under his breath, something about living with a bunch of monks, before taking a large sip of his beer.

My brother was sort of clueless when it came to what defined others’ happiness, but he had a huge heart.

“So, Gordy, is your surf and turf menu all planned out for tomorrow’s Save The Oceans fundraiser?”

“Yep. Don’t worry about my food. You won’t have any complaints.”

He was right about that. Gordy was so talented with food. He was the head chef in our kitchen and often played with new items on the menu when he felt creative.

Carson asked, "So where did you find the talent from?”

I had planned a live bachelor auction, selling dates to the highest bidders to raise money. The influx of customers tomorrow night would be ordering plenty of food and drink to entertain themselves during the auction, while the proceeds from the bids would go to charity. My aim was to triple our food and liquor sales.

“I reached out to the community and asked for volunteers from the fire department, rescue services, a marine biologist from the Oceanic Research Center, and a dolphin trainer from the Seaquarium. Trust me, I vetted them. They’re hot.”

“Sounds good. You always come up with the best ideas,” Carson praised. “As long as I don’t have to get up there, I’m happy.”

Gordy snorted, choking on his beer. “Who would pay more than five bucks for your ass? The idea of the fundraiser is to raise funds.”

Carson laughed good-naturedly, taking the joke in stride. His eyes strayed towards the bar. “You should have made them bid on Uncle G. He could use a date, even if you have to buy him one.”

“Would you stop trying to hook everyone up? Go be happy and leave us alone,” I teased.

But as I sat there, listening to a song on the jukebox that I had chosen, I thought how nice it would be if I felt as satisfied and happy as my brother looked. I had never experienced the kind of love he shared with Ryan. In just a few short months, he had completely transformed from a flirty playboy to a dedicated and loyal partner.

I wondered what kind of effect that kind of love could have on me.

4

RORY

Aside from theoccasional large group that became rowdy from too much alcohol, or the random customer that hadn’t paid his bill, I hadn’t encountered any problems with security at the lounge. Tonight’s auction was the first event I’d worked here, and the size of the crowd surprised me. I had no idea there would be so many people in attendance for a charity event. But when I went backstage to make sure everything was secure, I got a glimpse of some of the bachelors up for auction. It suddenly became very clear why they had drawn such a large crowd. The men were successful, environmentally conscious, generous and community-minded, and above all, smoking hot.

Carlisle had done a stellar job of organizing it, and I was more than a little impressed with him. Not that I should be surprised. I had a feeling he could organize a State dinner on short notice. Single-handedly. He was just so competent and creative. I’d witnessed it many times while observing him during work.

Everything I learned about him wowed me and further proved to me that I had my eye on the right man.

His voice came through the microphone, loud and clear as he stood front and center on the stage under the bright lights. “We’ll get started in five minutes. Loosen up those arms because when I start taking bids, I want to see them raised high in the air.”

Then he set the microphone back in the stand and jumped down from the stage, cutting through the crowd to the bar.

“Give me a shot of something strong,” he requested of Shannon, who was tending bar.

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