A/N: Here you are, Milady, as requested. -DL
Chapter 6
Damien was riding a total high. Tonight was the night! His first date with Rahul! He grinned to himself in the mirror, where he was prinking and preening. He wanted to look his best for the lovely Indian man. He couldn’t seem to stop grinning. He’d been doing it all day long. And it pleased him that Rahul had seemed utterly cheerful today as well. Every time that their eyes met as Rahul went about his housekeeping duties, he’d felt a bolt of lust race through him, along with a surge of anticipation. It wasn’t as though he thought that he’d be getting laid tonight; Rahul didn’t strike him as the kind of man who’d put out on the first date. But that didn’t matter. It would just give him something to look forward to over the long term.
He chuckled to himself as he carefully shaved his face. He was thinking about Brandon’s reaction to learning that Damian and Rahul were going out on a date tonight. The hairdresser had wailed: “Not fair!” And had openly pouted. “You’ll go out with Damian but not me?” he’d said with a scowl to Rahul.
The housekeeper had only smiled serenely as he’d cut a piece of his steak. “Might I point out to you, Brandon, that I told you already what you’d have to do to go out with me?” he’d said calmly. “You have to stop having sex with anybody else. Also, I won’t sleep with you on the first date, so you’d have to go without completely until I decided whether to have sex with you or not. If you can handle that, I’ll definitely consider going out with you,” he’d looked at Damian at the other end of the table as he’d said this, and one of his eyelids had flickered down in a small wink.
He’d had to fight to keep a straight face as Brandon had looked mutinous. He’d stuck his lower lip out in that charming way he had when he was feeling sulky, and had muttered: “Still not fair,” half under his breath.
Josh had, of course, decided to stick his two cents worth in just then. The writer had drawled: “We all know you wouldn’t last two days without getting some, Brandon, let alone weeks or months. You don’t want somebody like Rahul, and you know it.”
Brandon had scowled at him. “You don’t know that I couldn’t go weeks without sex, Josh,” he’d growled.
That had set Josh off into a bout of laughter. When he’d finished, he’d leaned forward with his elbows on the tabletop and had smirked at Brandon. “Prove it,” he’d purred.
Brandon had looked disconcerted. “What?”
“Prove it,” the writer repeated. “If you can. Go without sex for two weeks.”
Brandon had glared ferociously at Josh, while crossing his arms over his chest defensively. The writer had smirked again and leaned back in his chair. “Thought so,” he’d remarked to the air.
Brandon had stormed off after that, which made Rahul gently lecture Josh about teasing him. The writer had shrugged negligently. “If he can’t stand the heat, he shouldn’t hit on the kitchen,” he’d quipped, which had made Rahul laugh in spite of himself. Then he’d looked guilty over having laughed, an expression that Damian thought was utterly adorable.
He whistled to himself as he shrugged into a light jacket. Even if this date didn’t go well, at least he was realizing the dream he’d had for over a month now. At least he got to try to make it work with his lovely housekeeper. Although, if it didn’t work out, he hoped fervently that he could manage to keep Rahul from quitting. He suspected strongly that he’d have a riot on his hands if the housekeeper quit his job and left. Especially if his tenants blamed him for making Rahul quit.
Ah, all of those worries were in the future, and mighty never materialize anyway. For now, he was going to enjoy his evening and his first date ever with Rahul. He carefully smoothed his hair, and left his apartment to walk down to Rahul’s door. He knocked at it, and it was promptly opened by the housekeeper.
He whistled appreciatively, his eyes running over Rahul in admiration. “You look amazing,” he said.
Rahul blushed faintly, a sight that did bad things to certain parts of Damian’s body. One slender hand rose to run lightly over the collar of the blue, Indian-style silk shirt that he was wearing,. There was embroidery at the collar and cuffs, and the color threw his beautiful eyes into relief. He was simply gorgeous. “Thank you,” Rahul said softly in reply to his statement. “You look very handsome as well, Damian,” he added, looking the other man over.
He shrugged, though he felt pleased by the admiration in those lovely eyes. “Thanks. You wanna get going?”
“Yes,” Rahul stepped out into the hallway, shutting his room door behind him.
“So, I made reservations at this Spanish restaurant,” Damian began as they walked along together side-by-side. “The food’s really good.”
“I don’t care if we were going to McDonald’s, as long as I don’t have to cook for once,” Rahul said with a smile.
Damian chuckled. “I can understand that,” he replied. “It must get really tiring, cooking for twenty people three times a day. Maybe we should initiate a take-out dinner once a week, to give you a break,” he mused thoughtfully.
Rahul looked startled. “Oh, you don’t have to do that!” he protested.
“Sure, why not? We could put up a suggestion list, and people could name what kind of take-out that they wanted. Then we could all vote on it, and whatever gets the most votes wins. I’m sure that the guys wouldn’t mind eating take-out once a week to give you a night off.”
“You really think they’d do that?” Rahul asked hopefully.
Damian’s smile was crooked. “For you? They’d do a lot more than that, Rahul. Haven’t you noticed? All of the guys really love you.” ’Though probably not as much as I do,’ he added mentally.
Rahul’s cheeks turned a bit red, and his smile was soft and pleased. It did bad things to Damian’s mid-section(and parts lower down). “They’re all so sweet,” the housekeeper remarked as Damian opened the front door for him. “I love working here.”
“And we all love that you work here,” Damian assured him as they went down the front steps and walked toward his car. “You’re the best housekeeper we’ve ever had, bar none.”
Rahul glanced at him from under those magnificent lashes as Damian opened the passenger’s side door for him. “Are you sure that you’re not just saying that because you like me, Damian?” he teased gently.
He shrugged as Rahul slid into the seat lithely. “Hey, I’ll admit that I might just be a LITTLE prejudiced in your favor,” he said as he closed the door.
Rahul giggled as Damian went around and got behind the wheel. “It’s really great,” he mused as Damian started the engine.
“What is?” Damian asked curiously as he pulled out onto the street.
“Having somebody who likes me. I’ve never really had that before. Ever since I realized that I was gay, I dreamed about finding a guy who’d adore me. But then I didn’t want to come out to my parents and family, and I was working and going to school all at the same time, and I was just too tired and in the closet to go out looking for a guy like that. It’s only since I moved into your building and took the housekeeping job that I’ve felt free enough to even think about it, and then…there you were…I liked your smile right away,” he added, his head turning so he could look at Damian’s profile. “And your eyes. They’re so gorgeous.”
Damian flashed him a smile, then turned his attention back to the road ahead. “Yours, too,” he said.
“But you didn’t seem the least bit interested in me,” Rahul went on thoughtfully. “I mean, you were nice and everything, but you didn’t hit on me or flirt with me. I thought you weren’t interested at all.”
Damian snorted. “Hah! As if! But I couldn’t just jump all over you, drooling and leering, not if I wanted you to take the job. I didn’t know how you’d react to that, and you were an answer to my prayers. I needed a competent housekeeper desperately, so I was willing to keep my hands - and everything else - to myself if it meant that you wouldn’t quit on me.”
Rahul giggled. “And naturally, I couldn’t see the more subtle signals that you were interested,” he commented. “I didn’t hang around with a lot of gay men before this. I guess I just thought that you’d all be like Brandon, and hurl yourselves on me if you were interested in me.”
Damian grinned. “I can see that,” he remarked. “That being a stereotype about gay men. But we’re not all like Brandon, not by a long shot. And you can thank Bill for us going out on a date, because he encouraged me to go for it.”
“He did? Wow! Bill’s such a great guy,” Rahul said.
“Agreed. I feel bad about him being alone; he broke up with his boyfriend of over two years six months ago, and he hasn’t dated since. Sometimes I think I should go out on the streets and meet some eligible single men, then bring them back to the building for a social mixer. So many of the guys who don’t have anybody also don’t have time to go out looking for someone. Isaiah and Tran are busy with school - and, in Isaiah’s case, sports - Bill’s often too tired to bother, Caleb hates clubs and bars and the Castro’s night life, and Josh will hole himself up in his apartment for days on end when he’s writing. Only Brandon gets ‘out and about’, though he does it enough for the rest of them combined…”
Rahul’s laughter was a beautiful sound. “Maybe that would be a good idea,” he said. “You could do it like once a month, and hope that everybody got hooked up with somebody eventually. Well, except for Brandon, since he doesn’t seem to care about finding a steady boyfriend.”
“Brandon wouldn’t know what to do with one,” Damian agreed. “Any man who took him on would have to be either crazy - or just really, REALLY good!”
Chapter 6
Damien was riding a total high. Tonight was the night! His first date with Rahul! He grinned to himself in the mirror, where he was prinking and preening. He wanted to look his best for the lovely Indian man. He couldn’t seem to stop grinning. He’d been doing it all day long. And it pleased him that Rahul had seemed utterly cheerful today as well. Every time that their eyes met as Rahul went about his housekeeping duties, he’d felt a bolt of lust race through him, along with a surge of anticipation. It wasn’t as though he thought that he’d be getting laid tonight; Rahul didn’t strike him as the kind of man who’d put out on the first date. But that didn’t matter. It would just give him something to look forward to over the long term.
He chuckled to himself as he carefully shaved his face. He was thinking about Brandon’s reaction to learning that Damian and Rahul were going out on a date tonight. The hairdresser had wailed: “Not fair!” And had openly pouted. “You’ll go out with Damian but not me?” he’d said with a scowl to Rahul.
The housekeeper had only smiled serenely as he’d cut a piece of his steak. “Might I point out to you, Brandon, that I told you already what you’d have to do to go out with me?” he’d said calmly. “You have to stop having sex with anybody else. Also, I won’t sleep with you on the first date, so you’d have to go without completely until I decided whether to have sex with you or not. If you can handle that, I’ll definitely consider going out with you,” he’d looked at Damian at the other end of the table as he’d said this, and one of his eyelids had flickered down in a small wink.
He’d had to fight to keep a straight face as Brandon had looked mutinous. He’d stuck his lower lip out in that charming way he had when he was feeling sulky, and had muttered: “Still not fair,” half under his breath.
Josh had, of course, decided to stick his two cents worth in just then. The writer had drawled: “We all know you wouldn’t last two days without getting some, Brandon, let alone weeks or months. You don’t want somebody like Rahul, and you know it.”
Brandon had scowled at him. “You don’t know that I couldn’t go weeks without sex, Josh,” he’d growled.
That had set Josh off into a bout of laughter. When he’d finished, he’d leaned forward with his elbows on the tabletop and had smirked at Brandon. “Prove it,” he’d purred.
Brandon had looked disconcerted. “What?”
“Prove it,” the writer repeated. “If you can. Go without sex for two weeks.”
Brandon had glared ferociously at Josh, while crossing his arms over his chest defensively. The writer had smirked again and leaned back in his chair. “Thought so,” he’d remarked to the air.
Brandon had stormed off after that, which made Rahul gently lecture Josh about teasing him. The writer had shrugged negligently. “If he can’t stand the heat, he shouldn’t hit on the kitchen,” he’d quipped, which had made Rahul laugh in spite of himself. Then he’d looked guilty over having laughed, an expression that Damian thought was utterly adorable.
He whistled to himself as he shrugged into a light jacket. Even if this date didn’t go well, at least he was realizing the dream he’d had for over a month now. At least he got to try to make it work with his lovely housekeeper. Although, if it didn’t work out, he hoped fervently that he could manage to keep Rahul from quitting. He suspected strongly that he’d have a riot on his hands if the housekeeper quit his job and left. Especially if his tenants blamed him for making Rahul quit.
Ah, all of those worries were in the future, and mighty never materialize anyway. For now, he was going to enjoy his evening and his first date ever with Rahul. He carefully smoothed his hair, and left his apartment to walk down to Rahul’s door. He knocked at it, and it was promptly opened by the housekeeper.
He whistled appreciatively, his eyes running over Rahul in admiration. “You look amazing,” he said.
Rahul blushed faintly, a sight that did bad things to certain parts of Damian’s body. One slender hand rose to run lightly over the collar of the blue, Indian-style silk shirt that he was wearing,. There was embroidery at the collar and cuffs, and the color threw his beautiful eyes into relief. He was simply gorgeous. “Thank you,” Rahul said softly in reply to his statement. “You look very handsome as well, Damian,” he added, looking the other man over.
He shrugged, though he felt pleased by the admiration in those lovely eyes. “Thanks. You wanna get going?”
“Yes,” Rahul stepped out into the hallway, shutting his room door behind him.
“So, I made reservations at this Spanish restaurant,” Damian began as they walked along together side-by-side. “The food’s really good.”
“I don’t care if we were going to McDonald’s, as long as I don’t have to cook for once,” Rahul said with a smile.
Damian chuckled. “I can understand that,” he replied. “It must get really tiring, cooking for twenty people three times a day. Maybe we should initiate a take-out dinner once a week, to give you a break,” he mused thoughtfully.
Rahul looked startled. “Oh, you don’t have to do that!” he protested.
“Sure, why not? We could put up a suggestion list, and people could name what kind of take-out that they wanted. Then we could all vote on it, and whatever gets the most votes wins. I’m sure that the guys wouldn’t mind eating take-out once a week to give you a night off.”
“You really think they’d do that?” Rahul asked hopefully.
Damian’s smile was crooked. “For you? They’d do a lot more than that, Rahul. Haven’t you noticed? All of the guys really love you.” ’Though probably not as much as I do,’ he added mentally.
Rahul’s cheeks turned a bit red, and his smile was soft and pleased. It did bad things to Damian’s mid-section(and parts lower down). “They’re all so sweet,” the housekeeper remarked as Damian opened the front door for him. “I love working here.”
“And we all love that you work here,” Damian assured him as they went down the front steps and walked toward his car. “You’re the best housekeeper we’ve ever had, bar none.”
Rahul glanced at him from under those magnificent lashes as Damian opened the passenger’s side door for him. “Are you sure that you’re not just saying that because you like me, Damian?” he teased gently.
He shrugged as Rahul slid into the seat lithely. “Hey, I’ll admit that I might just be a LITTLE prejudiced in your favor,” he said as he closed the door.
Rahul giggled as Damian went around and got behind the wheel. “It’s really great,” he mused as Damian started the engine.
“What is?” Damian asked curiously as he pulled out onto the street.
“Having somebody who likes me. I’ve never really had that before. Ever since I realized that I was gay, I dreamed about finding a guy who’d adore me. But then I didn’t want to come out to my parents and family, and I was working and going to school all at the same time, and I was just too tired and in the closet to go out looking for a guy like that. It’s only since I moved into your building and took the housekeeping job that I’ve felt free enough to even think about it, and then…there you were…I liked your smile right away,” he added, his head turning so he could look at Damian’s profile. “And your eyes. They’re so gorgeous.”
Damian flashed him a smile, then turned his attention back to the road ahead. “Yours, too,” he said.
“But you didn’t seem the least bit interested in me,” Rahul went on thoughtfully. “I mean, you were nice and everything, but you didn’t hit on me or flirt with me. I thought you weren’t interested at all.”
Damian snorted. “Hah! As if! But I couldn’t just jump all over you, drooling and leering, not if I wanted you to take the job. I didn’t know how you’d react to that, and you were an answer to my prayers. I needed a competent housekeeper desperately, so I was willing to keep my hands - and everything else - to myself if it meant that you wouldn’t quit on me.”
Rahul giggled. “And naturally, I couldn’t see the more subtle signals that you were interested,” he commented. “I didn’t hang around with a lot of gay men before this. I guess I just thought that you’d all be like Brandon, and hurl yourselves on me if you were interested in me.”
Damian grinned. “I can see that,” he remarked. “That being a stereotype about gay men. But we’re not all like Brandon, not by a long shot. And you can thank Bill for us going out on a date, because he encouraged me to go for it.”
“He did? Wow! Bill’s such a great guy,” Rahul said.
“Agreed. I feel bad about him being alone; he broke up with his boyfriend of over two years six months ago, and he hasn’t dated since. Sometimes I think I should go out on the streets and meet some eligible single men, then bring them back to the building for a social mixer. So many of the guys who don’t have anybody also don’t have time to go out looking for someone. Isaiah and Tran are busy with school - and, in Isaiah’s case, sports - Bill’s often too tired to bother, Caleb hates clubs and bars and the Castro’s night life, and Josh will hole himself up in his apartment for days on end when he’s writing. Only Brandon gets ‘out and about’, though he does it enough for the rest of them combined…”
Rahul’s laughter was a beautiful sound. “Maybe that would be a good idea,” he said. “You could do it like once a month, and hope that everybody got hooked up with somebody eventually. Well, except for Brandon, since he doesn’t seem to care about finding a steady boyfriend.”
“Brandon wouldn’t know what to do with one,” Damian agreed. “Any man who took him on would have to be either crazy - or just really, REALLY good!”
