Full Frontal Read online

  That long hug had affected Owen in a way he hadn’t expected. If he took off his briefs, the whole club might see exactly how he’d been affected. The more he thought about it, the more his cock twinged. There was no denying it anymore. It was becoming more obvious with each passing moment. And now the words were out. Someone else actually knew he might not be heterosexual.

  He looked at the girls in the room. Two of the groups were older women, and one was around his age. If he was straight, he should go up to the younger group. He nodded to himself and approached them. All three of them smiled at him and welcomed him to their table.

  “How’s your night going, ladies?”

  A girl with long red hair answered first. “It’s good. Even better now.”

  He chuckled politely. “Are you from around here?”

  “No, we’re visiting. Maybe you could show us around sometime.” The redhead leaned in, baring a good amount of her cleavage. “Or even just me. You know… a private tour.”

  Owen’s throat was dry. The girl was attractive. There was nothing wrong with her physically. In fact, she was gorgeous. Yet somehow he had no urge to do anything but turn her down, the way he turned down so many of the customers here.

  Was it honestly because she was a stranger? Did he actually need to get to know a woman before becoming interested in her? Or had he just been using that as an excuse?

  He reflected on his ex-girlfriends. One of the traits they shared was persistence. Pretty much all of them had badgered him into dating them. His good looks were to blame. He’d always had both male and female friends, and whenever he was single, girls had been interested in him. He had always said no until it was too hard not to say yes. Then he’d broken off the relationships as soon as possible.

  “If you’re looking for a tour, I can recommend some places to go,” he said blandly.

  The redhead barely looked discouraged. “What about coming with me? Or just skipping the tour and visiting my hotel?”

  As her friends giggled, Owen thought fast. “I would absolutely love to do that,” he said, reaching over to trail a finger down her arm. “We’re not actually permitted to meet customers outside of the club. It’s against our code of conduct.”

  It was a blatant lie, but if the girls weren’t from around here, they’d never find out the truth.

  “That’s such a shame,” the redhead said. “If you ever feel like breaking the rules, this is how you can find me.” She placed a business card in Owen’s hand, giving his fingers a light squeeze.

  He avoided her eyes. Although he stayed and made chitchat for a while, his mind was racing with worry. Why had he said no? Saying yes held absolutely no appeal to him. If he was straight, wouldn’t he have taken what he could get?

  Most straight guys would have been in heaven working at this club. He, on the other hand, had never taken advantage of all the willing women. He disliked giving lap dances and having women touch him. He had no desire for any of the girls in this club. When they put dollar bills in their cleavage, or did all the suggestive things that they thought would turn him on, he was unaffected at best… and disgusted at worst.

  He’d always figured it was because they were his customers, or because he didn’t have any emotional connection to them. But maybe it was more than that. Maybe he was… gay.

  Excusing himself, he stood up and ran his fingers through his hair. He wished he could go back for another shot. Cooper was right that he shouldn’t be drinking on the job, but this was an unusual occasion. If he was gay, why had he not figured out before? And what did it mean for him now?

  He shivered, wondering if he could have sex with another man. The answer came to him immediately. Yes. He wanted that – really wanted it, actually. He could see himself experimenting, but not with just any guy. Only with someone like… Cooper.

  Jesse nudged him as he passed by. “You haven’t been on stage yet, right? You should get up there. There’s so few girls here, that might be your only way to get tips tonight.”

  Owen glanced at him, not even comprehending his words for a moment. He had enough on his mind without worrying about the lack of dollar bills in his armband. “Yeah, you’re right. Thanks, man.”

  “No problem. Cooper told me to check on you.”

  Rolling his eyes, Owen headed back to the change room. He threw his clothes back on, then went up to the stage. The DJ announced him right after Ace. He went through the motions mindlessly, practically sleepwalking through them.

  His dance was familiar enough that he didn’t have to think about it. His face was probably blank, but it didn’t matter much when the place was practically empty. He would do better next time. Tonight, he just wanted to get through the song.

  As the music pulsed, the suggestive lyrics permeated his mind. Flo Rida’s song Whistle was packed with innuendo. It made him want to do things. He let his eyes roam around the audience. There was Cooper, standing nude with his back to the wall… and watching Owen closely.

  Owen tore his eyes away as soon as they met. He tried to focus on dancing. But the movement of his arms and the swaying of his hips came too naturally for them to be a distraction. His thoughts just kept going back to Cooper.

  Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at him. There was some distance between them, but from here, he would have sworn that Cooper was hard. Owen faltered midstep. The next time he looked over at the wall, Cooper was gone.

  Owen climbed off the stage a minute later, disappointed in himself for the lacking performance. He could have done so much better tonight.

  A pat came on the shoulder, and he jumped. He hadn’t even seen Cooper coming. He looked at him, trying once more to keep his eyes off his junk. This should have been getting easier, but it actually grew more difficult every time.

  “How are you holding up?” Cooper asked.

  “I’m fine. Why?”

  Cooper shrugged. “Just checking on you. I know times like this are pretty emotional.”

  He was pulling that damn big brother thing again. “I’m great,” Owen said. He reminded himself that Cooper was only trying to help, and forced himself to be polite. “I’ll let you know if I ever need to talk.”

  “All right, then.” Cooper turned away, and a second later he was chatting up a group of customers. Owen watched as their faces broke out in smiles. It was kind of annoying. Owen didn’t need anyone to take care of him. Cooper never stopped, did he? He was just full of charm and helpfulness.

  Owen’s eyes drifted down to his ass. Cooper was also full of sexiness. He was definitely the best-looking stripper in this place. Owen held his clothes over his dick, already feeling it lengthening. How did the other guys not have constant boners in this kind of atmosphere?

  He headed toward the change room, the image of Cooper still lingering in his mind. He thought back to the video he had watched. Cooper probably looked exactly like that when he jacked off. It would be amazing if Owen could see that in real life.

  As he dropped his clothes in the locker, the idea of jacking off with another guy came back into his mind. It appealed to him as much as it had last night. He wondered if Cooper would ever be willing to do that with him.

  Nothing more than that, of course. It was such a small thing, not even intimate. Surely Cooper would be willing. If Owen asked him, he’d have no reason to say no. He was gay, so it shouldn’t even take a second thought.

  Hell, maybe it would even lead to something more. If Cooper wanted to, Owen might be down to try. Just a little experiment, it wouldn’t mean anything. Owen bit his lip, imagining what could take place between the two of them.

  For the second night in a row, he brushed by the guys as they got ready to go to Ace’s place. By the time he got home, the thoughts of Cooper still hadn’t left him alone. Owen did want him. He would jack off with him, or fool around with him, or maybe even do even more than that. If Cooper was interested, Owen had to admit that he would do anything at all with him.

  Closing the apartment door b
ehind him, he let the mental image of straddling Cooper get him hard. Yeah, fine, he wanted to fuck that guy. And… the other way around? His boner faltered as he imagined it. He had never put anything back there, and never had any inclination to try. It was supposed to feel good, but could it be true?

  He let his hand drift to his ass, and for a moment, he considered using a finger or two the next time he masturbated. It could be interesting. But it would make this whole “curious” thing feel more… real. No, that hole would stay off-limits for the moment.

  After shucking off his clothes, he climbed into bed. There was only one face that he pictured as he stroked himself to sleep. It was undeniable now that he wanted Cooper. He wanted him badly.

  He had never been the kind of guy to sit around and wait for good luck to come to him. He knew how to ask for things, and he usually got what he wanted.

  This would be his first time applying that concept to people. He’d never actually needed to pursue anyone before. All of his exes had come to him. How would he even go about going after someone? He thought back to his middle school girlfriend, who had repeatedly asked him out over instant messaging. Other exes had gone about it in person, or sent the message through mutual friends.

  And then there were the customers at the club. They had a particular style of approaching him. Although they could be coy, they were generally direct and upfront about it. Surely that would be the best approach with a man.

  As he slid down under the covers, he knew what he had to do.

  Ten

  “You guys want to come over again?” Ace asked, looking baffled.

  Cooper yawned. The rest of the half-dressed men surrounding him in the change room showed no visible effects from Ace’s party last night. There was no surprise that they wanted to do the same thing tonight. But Cooper was older than most of them, and alcohol hit him harder than it used to.

  “Well, yeah,” Lev said, nudging Ace in the ribs. “I’m pretty sure your place is going to become the official after-work destination now.”

  This had been such a weird night. There had been Owen’s confession of questioning, and… well, that was the only weird thing. Somehow the night had left him feeling completely off-kilter.

  “I don’t mind hanging out, but it doesn’t have to be at our place,” Ace said.

  “I haven’t been to all the guys’ places, but I’m pretty sure you and Gabriel’s is the nicest.” Lev pointed to Elijah. “What kind of place do you have?”

  “Got two roommates. You guys can’t come over.”

  Lev gave Ace a meaningful look. “What about you, Jesse?”

  “I live with my grandparents, dude.”

  “See?” Lev said to Ace. “Your place is the only one that makes sense.”

  Cooper pulled off his knee pads and began to lace up his shoes. “It’s not only the roommates,” he said. “I have a place of my own, and so does Owen. But yours is way nicer.”

  “My place is a studio,” Owen put in. “You guys wouldn’t even fit in there.”

  Pulling his keys out of his locker, Ace gave a lazy shrug. “You’re welcome to come over, then. Just get the hell out by, say, nine or so. Some of us have things to do before we go to sleep. Or people to do, rather.” He patted Gabriel’s ass.

  The guys groaned, and Cooper tried not to envy them. He could go and hang out at Ace’s without getting jealous. He had no desire for what they had. He wouldn’t have gone for a coworker if his life depended on it.

  “I’ll go over for a little bit,” he said with another yawn. “I’m dead tired.” Since he was finished changing, he stood up. “I’ll meet you guys outside.”

  Cooper rubbed his eyes as he walked out of the change room. Before he could get out to the parking lot, Trenton waved him aside. “I want to talk to you for a second.”

  The other strippers walked around them. One or two called out to Cooper that they would wait for him.

  Ignoring them, Trenton gestured around the main room. “I'm thinking of having more stages installed,” he said. “One on each side of the main stage.”

  Cooper looked at him, bemused. “Why would you do that?”

  “It would allow more of the guys to dance at once. Give the customers more to look at.”

  Suddenly awake, Cooper frowned. It was strange that Trenton would sink more money into this place when it wasn’t doing too well. He wondered if this desperate move meant the club was doing worse than he had believed.

  He kept his voice gentle as he questioned Trenton. “Are you sure that’s a good idea? I feel like there are less expensive ways to get more girls in here.”

  “Doesn’t matter. I’ll make back the investment, I’m sure of it.”

  Cooper knew that Trenton respected his opinion. He had proved it many times in the past. Stages like that wouldn’t come cheap, and he was sure whatever additional revenue they would create wouldn’t make up for the cost.

  “I’m not too sure about this,” he said.

  “Maybe you’re right. You’re going over to someone’s place, are you?”

  “Yeah.” Cooper briefly considered inviting Trenton. It might be awkward to have him there. He wouldn’t accept, anyway.

  “Well, have a good night,” the owner said.

  When Cooper got out to the parking lot, most of the guys were already gone. He got in his car, only realizing once he had started to drive that Lucas was at the far end of the lot. Alone and on foot, he looked like he was starting to walk home.

  Cooper pulled over to the side of the road, pulling down the window to speak to his neighbor. “Hey, where are you going? You’re not coming to Ace’s?”

  Lucas’s voice was quiet as he responded. “No, I don’t think so. I didn’t get invited properly.”

  “Everyone was invited. You’re welcome to come.”

  Lucas shook his head. “You just think that because you’re always invited, whether they say it or not. It’s not the same for me. The guys always forget I’m even there.”

  There might have been some truth to that. Cooper winced, realizing Lucas had said something similar last night. He was sure the guys wouldn’t mind Lucas coming… even if they’d also never gone out of their way to invite him.

  He softened his voice in sympathy. “Hey, I’ll call Ace right now and check with him if you want. I know he’ll say yes.”

  Lucas just shook his head. Although Cooper felt bad, he couldn’t seem to convince him. Leaving Lucas behind, he pushed his foot down on the pedal.

  Ace’s apartment was still a bit of a wreck. It seemed that the couple hadn’t put a dent in the mess the guys had left less than a day before.

  Cooper let out a soft whistle. “Damn, Ace, do you need some help cleaning up?”

  Ace shook his head. “Not much point when we’re going to destroy it all over again. Me and Gabriel will clean tomorrow. I’m still getting used to not having a housekeeper.”

  The guys filtered through the apartment, some heading for the fridge and others dropping in front of the TV. Cooper accepted a beer that Gabriel handed to him. “Lev was right,” he commented. “This place is perfect for parties.”

  They talked about Ace’s changed lifestyle, and then the conversation turned to sports. Cooper tuned out. Owen hadn’t come – again. He wondered if the guy would ever join them. He definitely wanted to spend some more time with Owen. Then again, he knew he shouldn’t.

  “Sports are boring,” Lev complained, sprawled out on the couch. “Do we have to talk about this?”

  Cooper sat up, knowing Lev’s whiny tone could irritate the others – which meant he might be required to intervene. “Our coworkers are enjoying their conversation,” he told Lev.

  “Well, I’m not.”

  “Sports are great,” Gabriel said with the half-glazed look of someone who’d already had a few drinks. “You know what we should do sometime? We should all go see a game together.”

  The others scoffed. Now Gabriel was taking the brunt of their irritation. Luckily,
they were more amused than annoyed. “What, like a field trip?” Jesse asked.

  “Yeah, like a field trip. A coworker bonding thing. What do you call it, a team-building activity?”

  “Owen would know,” Cooper said without thinking.

  His heartbeat rose, but no one seemed to take his remark as strange. “Owen the businessman,” Jesse said. “You all think he’ll ditch us once he finishes his MBA?”

  Now Cooper’s heart skipped a beat for a different reason. He hoped Owen wouldn’t go anywhere.

  “He wouldn’t leave,” Ace said. “Are you kidding? He’s drowning in pussy. It’s the best gig a straight guy could possibly have.”

  “Except when all of us make it hard on him,” Jesse said with a laugh.

  Lev scooched to the front of the couch, clearly done with this topic. “Forget sports games. If we’re going to do a team-building activity, you know what we should do? We should go to a play.”

  “A play?” Cooper joined in the laughter. He couldn’t see any of his buddies willingly sitting through a play. Hell, even he’d get bored halfway through.

  “We should,” Lev insisted. “It doesn’t have to be a musical. We could get drinks after and talk about it…”

  A chorus of nos cut him off. He sat back on the couch and pouted.

  “Some kind of team-building thing wouldn’t be a bad idea,” Cooper said thoughtfully. “If we spun it the right way, Trenton might even foot the bill for it. Maybe Owen would have some ideas.”

  Damn it. He’d gone and mentioned Owen for the second time in five minutes. He glanced around, checking to see if anyone was giving him a funny look. It seemed like all of them were focused more on their drinks – or, in Ace and Gabriel’s case, on each other.

  Cooper had to stop thinking about Owen. Stop hoping his attraction could go somewhere.

  That guy was dangerous. He could only lead to bad things for Cooper.

  Eleven