Hopefully His
Hopefully His
By Shawn Lane
Published by JMS Books LLC
Visit jms-books.com for more information.
Copyright 2017 Shawn Lane
ISBN 9781634863612
Cover Design: Written Ink Designs | written-ink.com
Image(s) used under a Standard Royalty-Free License.
All rights reserved.
WARNING: This book is not transferable. It is for your own personal use. If it is sold, shared, or given away, it is an infringement of the copyright of this work and violators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
No portion of this book may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher, with the exception of brief excerpts used for the purposes of review.
This book is for ADULT AUDIENCES ONLY. It may contain sexually explicit scenes and graphic language which might be considered offensive by some readers. Please store your files where they cannot be accessed by minors.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are solely the product of the author’s imagination and/or are used fictitiously, though reference may be made to actual historical events or existing locations. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Published in the United States of America.
NOTE: This book was previously published by Amber Quill Press.
* * * *
Hopefully His
By Shawn Lane
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 1
“That guy’s here again.”
Tyler Larson froze just as he held the paper cup under the orange juice spout. “The hot guy?”
His coworker, Janice Choi, smirked. “Yeah.”
Tyler thought about it. “Which one? The one who owns the car dealership?’
She shook her head. “Nope.”
He bit his lip. “The one who wears the cowboy hat?’
“No! Geez, you like too many guys.” She rolled her eyes. “The one in the scrubs.”
Tyler’s mouth fell open. “My sexy doctor?”
“You don’t know he’s a doctor. He could be a nurse or a technician.”
“A brain surgeon.” Tyler shook his head. “A cardiologist. Saving hearts every day.”
Janice snorted. “More likely breaking them. Why don’t you go ask him his name? Strike up a conversation.” She nudged him toward the coffeepot.
“Mr. Jensen’s here for his to-go order.” He waved the paper cup.
“I’ll take care of that. You go check on your hottie.”
“I’m not his waiter.”
Janice took the paper cup. “You are now. I’ll switch with you for that one. He’s at table thirty-five.”
Tyler nodded and attempted to swallow back his nervousness. He could totally do this. He was not shy. Never had been. He headed over to table thirty-five.
Crap.
Janice didn’t say he had someone with him. He could see the back of the head of the other man’s sitting across from his hottie. Looked like he was wearing scrubs, too. He couldn’t recall Dr. Hottie ever bringing someone with him before.
Tyler got a few feet from the table when he noticed Dr. Hottie, blond and classically handsome in a “soap opera doctor” sort of way, wore a gold band on the ring finger of his left hand.
Double crap.
“Hi,” Tyler said brightly as he stood before them. “My name’s Tyler and I’ll be your server.” He smiled at Dr. Hottie, then turned his attention to the guy with dark hair, dark eyes, and dark sexy stubble across his too sexy jaw sitting opposite Dr. Hottie and almost dropped the coffeepot. “Jack?”
Tyler knew he couldn’t be mistaken. The guy had to be Jack Ridgley. As in the guy who broke Tyler’s heart his first year of college. He’d had a huge crush on the older college student and they’d had a one-night stand. Only Tyler hadn’t realized until he woke up alone that it had been a one-night-stand. Jack was gone and Tyler had never seen him again.
“Tyler?” Jack frowned, like he was trying to remember exactly who Tyler was. Bastard.
“Tyler Larson,” he supplied helpfully.
Jack shrugged. “Sorry? Not really sure I remember you.”
Okay, and didn’t that sting like a son of a bitch. But there was nothing Tyler could do about it. So he plastered on his professional smile.
“Coffee?”
“For me, yeah,” Dr. Hottie said.
“And you?” Tyler asked with a raise of his eyebrows.
“Hot tea, please.”
“I’ll be right back with those.” Tyler walked away without a backward glance and went behind the diner’s counter. “He’s married,” he hissed at Janice.
“Your hottie?”
“Yes. I should have known. The hot ones are always straight and taken.”
“I’m sorry, Tyler.”
“And that’s not even the worst of it,” Tyler said, waving his hands dramatically. “He’s there with someone else who I know. And who doesn’t know me!”
Janice frowned. “Say that again.”
“The guy across from Dr. Hottie, who is also a doctor by the way, once fucked me seven ways to Sunday back in college and now he claims not to remember me.”
“Seven ways to—”
“You’re missing the point,” Tyler interrupted. “He had his dick in my ass, more than once that night I might add, and now it’s like, sorry, sucker, don’t remember you.”
Now she rolled her eyes. “Guys pull that shit all the time. I bet you five bucks he knows exactly who you are.”
“You think?”
“Yeah, he’s just trying to act macho or whatever. You want me to take the table back from you, sweetie?”
“No,” Tyler said sullenly. “May as well have the pleasure of fucking up their order myself.” He grabbed two empty mugs, the coffeepot, and a metal teapot filled with hot water and headed back to their table.
He poured coffee into the mug he set in front of Dr. Hottie and then set the tea stuff in front of Jack I Don’t Remember You Ridgley.
He turned his back pointedly to Jack and flashed his winning smile at Dr. Hottie. “What can I get for you?”
“Egg white veggie omelet with fruit instead of the potatoes,” Dr. Hottie said.
Tyler wrote it down and then reluctantly turned back to Jack. “And you, sir?”
“I’ll have the same but with no cheese.”
Sounded disgusting and boring to Tyler, but whatever. “Be right back.”
Tyler clipped the order onto the spinning order taker, whatever it was called, and then he leaned back against the counter and scowled.
Janice came back behind the counter. “You sure you don’t want me to take that table back? You can take my twenty, two sweet little old ladies.”
“No, really. I like the idea of glaring at him the rest of the time he’s here. Maybe he’ll get the hint and never come here again.”
“More likely you’ll get a crappy tip.”
Tyler scoffed. “Bet he’s a lousy tipper anyway.”
A while later, after he’d brought them their food, Tyler came back to their table to drop off the check. “Will there be anything else?” he asked Dr. Hottie.
“No, we’re good,” Jack said to his back.
Tyler flashed a vague smile at both of them and set the check down. “Pay the cashier when you’re ready. No rush.”
After they’d left, Tyler went to the table. He lifted the five-dollar bill they’d left on the table and underneath it was a folded square of white paper. Only three
words were written on it.
I remember you.
Chapter 2
“Hey, Steve, I’ll catch you later,” Jack told his friend, Steve Monroe, after they left the restaurant where they’d stopped for breakfast after their shift at the hospital.
“You don’t want to stop off and hit a few balls?” Steve asked, surprise written all over his face.
They’d talked about it on their way into the diner. Steve loved golf, Jack not so much. But he’d go with Steve sometimes just to make his friend happy.
“I’m really tired actually. Another time?”
Steve smiled. “Okay. Think I’ll go anyway.”
“All right, see you at work,” Jack said with a wave. He made a show of getting into his sedan while he waited for Steve to drive out of the parking lot. Then he got back out and leaned against his car. Jack didn’t think he had long to wait.
Less than five minutes later Tyler Larson appeared. He still wore his stained work apron he’d worn in the restaurant. Jack had to fight to keep the smile off his face. But damn, Tyler looked good. Really fucking good.
The high cheekbones that had seemed almost delicate back in college had matured enough to make Tyler more masculine but also very striking. Strike that. Stunning. That was more the word.
Tyler had round, wide blue eyes that kind of reminded him of a china doll right down to the long, curly lashes. Then there were his Kewpie doll pouty lips. And the mop of curly brown hair that draped in ringlets on his forehead.
Jack admitted all those things taken separately might sound strange, but together, really, Tyler was gorgeous. Had been in college and was more so now. The way those oh-so-blue eyes raked over Jack as he stood just outside the restaurant doors had Jack’s cock hardening.
Damn.
“I knew you knew who I was,” Tyler said, glaring at Jack.
Jack grinned. “It took me a minute, but I figured it out.”
“You’re full of shit.” Tyler crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m unforgettable.”
“And with a massive ego to boot,” Jack replied.
“So, what do you want?”
“Who says I want anything?’
“There’s gotta be a reason you’re still here. Dr. Hottie’s gone.”
For some reason that annoyed him. “You think Steve is hot?”
Tyler smirked. “Hell yeah. I’ve had my eye on him for a while.”
“He’s married.”
“I saw that today. Never noticed it before though.”
“It’s recent,” Jack admitted.
“The point is, Jack, why are you still here? Your friend left.”
Jack straightened from his car and walked a few steps closer to where Tyler still stood. “I was curious about you.”
“Sure.”
“I was. It’s been years.” Jack shrugged. “Thought I’d ask you to dinner and see what you’ve been up to.”
Tyler scoffed. “So you go from not knowing me to asking me out?”
Jack grinned. “Just a friendly dinner with two old friends.”
“We were not friends, Jack.”
“Two acquaintances then. A chance to catch up. Come on, Tyler. No strings attached and no expectations.”
“I’m pretty sure you used that line on me before and I ended up getting fucked,” Tyler said with a raise of his eyebrows. “And then you were gone.”
Jack held out his hands in surrender. “Not this time. I promise. I’m a changed guy.”
“Uh-huh. Well, so am I. And I’m not so easy.”
“You were never easy,” Jack assured him. “I’ll even pick you up.”
“Fat chance. I’ll meet you.”
Hell, at least he was agreeing, so Jack figured that was a victory. “What kind of food you like?”
“Anything but diner food.”
“There’s a steak and seafood place down on De Soto. Murphy’s. Cross street is Vanowen.”
“You buying?”
Jack laughed. “Yeah, sure.”
“Then okay. What time?”
“Seven?” Jack suggested.
Tyler nodded. “All right. See you there.” He turned and walked back into the diner.
* * * *
Jack arrived ten minutes early and waited in front for Tyler to show up. If he did. Jack had no reason to think Tyler wouldn’t.
But while he waited, Jack wondered what he was even doing here. Jack was seeing someone. Kinda sort of. Okay, yeah, he had a boyfriend. A long distance one who he only saw on weekends, but Jack was not the cheating sort. Not these days anyway. But Tyler was damn edible.
He could just leave, but that was shitty. Tyler didn’t deserve to be stood up. And Jack had asked him out.
Soon it was five after seven though and Jack began to wonder if the whole thing wasn’t moot. Maybe Tyler really had stood Jack up.
The door of the restaurant opened and in walked Tyler. He wore jeans that could have been painted on and a gray long sleeved T-shirt. On anyone else the clothes would be plain and boring. There was nothing boring about Tyler.
“Hi, Jack.”
Jack smiled. “Hey. Was starting to wonder if you were coming.”
Tyler shrugged. “Had nothing better to do. And you did say you’d buy.”
He laughed. “True enough. So it wasn’t my dashing charm and good looks, it was the chance for a free meal.”
“At this place? Absolutely.”
“Fair enough.” Jack walked up to the hostess, who he had already told he expected someone else. “All right, we’re both here.”
She gave them a polite, friendly smile and picked up two menus. “This way.”
She sat them at a secluded table in the back, rather romantic really. Murphy’s was in a busy part of the San Fernando Valley, so there was no perfect view out a window or anything, but this little spot in the corner was quite nice.
“Your waitress will be Courtney,” the hostess told them as she handed them menus. “Enjoy your dinner.”
“Have you ever been here?” Jack asked when she moved away.
“Nope. Couldn’t really convince myself to spend the money.” Tyler shrugged. “Most of my dates couldn’t either.”
“You’ll really like it then.” Jack picked up the wine list. “They have carafes. Want to share some wine?”
“That depends on what kind you like.” Tyler smiled serenely. “I’m very picky.”
Jack did not doubt that at all. “Do you prefer white or red?”
“White mostly.”
“Pinot grigio?”
Tyler nodded. “I can work with that.”
The waitress came by. “Hi, I’m Courtney. I’ll be your server. Can I get you something to drink?”
“We’ll have a carafe of the house pinot grigio,” Jack said, handing her the wine list with a smile.
“Coming right up.”
Jack pretended to be surveying the menu while he watched Tyler instead. Tyler’s tongue darted out and rubbed along his bottom lip absently. “What are you thinking of having? You can have whatever you want. Money’s no object.”
Those round, blue eyes rose from their study of the menu. “Must be nice.”
“Well, not for everything, obviously,” Jack said with some exasperation. “I meant for tonight’s dinner.”
“Steak and lobster?”
“If that’s what you want, absolutely.”
“What are you getting?” Tyler asked.
“The bone-in New York.”
“You made up your mind pretty fast.” Tyler lowered his menu. “You come here a lot?”
“A few times. Lawrence likes it,” Jack said without really thinking about.
Tyler blinked. “Lawrence?”
Jack knew he was blushing and wasn’t sure why. He knew he was going to have to admit to Lawrence before the night was over. And really, he hadn’t done anything wrong. Had he? “My, uh, friend.”
“Boyfriend, right?”
“Yeah. Long distance. We see
each other on the weekends,” Jack admitted. “He works for a politician up in Sacramento.”
Tyler did not say anything immediately, and the waitress arrived with their wine. She poured some in a glass for Jack to taste, and when he gave his approval she poured them both glasses.
Tyler ended up ordering the steak and lobster, and with their orders taken, Courtney left their table once more.
When Tyler still didn’t say anything, merely sipped his wine, Jack couldn’t stand it any longer. “What are you thinking, Tyler?”
“Honestly, I’m wondering what the point of tonight is,” Tyler admitted. “You have a boyfriend, so you aren’t interested in dating me. Your only interest has to be sex. I’m fully aware there are plenty of guys who screw around and maybe because you only see each other on weekends you have an open relationship and Lawrence doesn’t care. But you can’t be thinking I’m gonna let you fuck me just because you bought me dinner. I already told you that wasn’t going to happen. I’m not easy and I’m not letting you do to me what you did in college. So, really, Jack? Why am I here?”
“Maybe I’m just looking to be friends. I always liked you back in college. And seeing you at the diner made me curious.”
Tyler’s eyebrows shot up. “Curious about what?”
“You. The Tyler I knew was pretty smart. So, I’m wondering—”
“How I could be working such a low class job as a waiter in a diner?”
Jack shook his head. “I didn’t say that.”
Tyler scoffed. “You didn’t have to. You’re a doctor and you think, wow, he’s working in a diner, a dead end job. I know that’s what guys like you think.”
“Okay, fine. I admit there’s something to that.”
“First, back it up a little. You didn’t know me, Jack. We were barely acquainted and I can count on one hand how many conversations we had before today. You fucked me. One night. That was the limit of knowing me. So don’t pretend some knowledge you didn’t have.”
Jack winced, but decided it might be best to keep his mouth shut.
“Second, we all choose different paths in life. You’re a doctor, good for you. I couldn’t do that in a million years. I couldn’t be a mechanic or a doorman either and I bet you couldn’t either, but that doesn’t make those professions somehow less than yours.”