Chapter 6
Daniel let the peaceful silence lengthen. Aasif sat unmoving, letting himself stay in Daniel’s embrace, his eyes closed. But, finally, he knew he had to speak. He sighed, softly. “Aasif?”
Those lovely eyes opened and found his. “What is it, Daniel?” he asked, stirring a little. But he seemed reluctant to entirely leave the circle of Daniel’s arms.
“I have a confession to make,” Daniel said grimly. The next few minutes could make or break his relationship with Aasif forever.
Worry sprang up in Aasif’s gaze at his harsh tone of voice. “What is it?” he said again, anxiously.
“Remember when I told you that I was working overseas before this?” Daniel’s voice was flat.
“Yes,” the bartender husked.
“Well, I was working overseas. In the military. Up until four months ago, Aasif, I was a soldier.” Aasif stiffened in his arms, and pulled away. Daniel tried to brace himself for Aasif’s rejection of him, though it was hard. Really hard. Already he was in pretty deep with this guy. He suspected he’d be completely heartbroken if Aasif didn’t want anything to do with him anymore.
“Why didn’t you tell me this sooner, Daniel?” Aasif asked tonelessly, staring down at the pavement of the path underfoot.
He sighed again. “Because I knew how scared you were of soldiers, Aasif. I was afraid that you wouldn’t want anything to do with me if you found out too soon what I was.”
Aasif’s head jerked up. He stared at Daniel’s face in bewilderment. “You…knew…? How could you know?” he asked in confusion.
Daniel’s lips quirked. “Do you remember about seven months or so ago? You were walking down the sidewalk with grocery bags on your arms, and you ran into somebody? Then you saw a uniform and you freaked out and bolted?”
Aasif gasped. “You mean…?!”
“Yeah, that was me,” Daniel told him. “And then when I walked into the bar a few months later after I left the Army, you didn’t recognize me at all. I realized that it was the uniform you had to be afraid of, not the guy inside of it, since you showed no recognition when you looked at me and you never seemed more scared of me than you did anybody else in the bar. That was what made me curious about you in the first place. It’s why I started hanging around. I wanted to know why you were so scared of soldiers. Then, as I got to know you, I started to become really attracted to you, too. That’s why I was afraid to tell you that I’d been a soldier. I was afraid you’d never want to talk to me again.”
To his utter surprise, Aasif glowered at him. “That is a foolish thing to think, Daniel!” he cried. “I know that you are nothing like those monsters who raped me! I’ve never assumed that all American soldiers were the same way, just because of what happened to me. I will admit that if I’d known right away, I might have been nervous around you as a reflex. But I wouldn’t have shunned you, because I know you’re a good man. I’ve always known that, practically since the moment that you walked into the bar.”
Daniel stared at him. Then he grinned. “Man, you rock hard, Aasif,” he told the surprised bartender. Then he leaned slightly over and gently put his mouth over the other man’s, in a tender little kiss that totally stunned Aasif.
Aasif froze, but he didn’t pull away or bolt in terror. He sat very, very still as Daniel’s mouth moved just a little over his, no aggression in sight. A very soft moan was torn from his throat, and his hands jerked at his sides as he tried to lift them to twine around Daniel’s neck instinctively. It was his very first kiss ever!
Oh, Allah, he wanted it to never end. Any fear he’d initially felt faded away, and when Daniel’s hand lifted to cradle the back of his head he didn’t fight it. This was so perfect, so right…he felt safe and protected in Daniel’s embrace, all fear fled. He didn’t want anyone else but this man to kiss him. This was where he belonged. The searing memories of his rape slowly faded away, and he thought of nothing but the feel of Daniel’s lips on his.
When Daniel finally pulled back, Aasif half-lay in his arms and panted softly. His eyes were glazed. Daniel hid a triumphant grin. He met the dazed eyes with his own. “That was great,” he said softly. “I’ve wanted to kiss you for so long…”
Aasif’s eyes returned somewhat to reality. To Daniel’s delight, his dusky skin turned a rosy shade as his long lashes hid his eyes. “It was my first kiss,” he murmured softly.
Daniel felt even more triumphant at those words. Even though he’d suspected that he was getting Aasif’s first kiss, it was nice to hear that it was true. “Did you like it?” he asked, his voice a bit teasing.
Aasif nodded slightly, still blushing. Daniel ran a hand lovingly through his curly locks. “Good,” he said in satisfaction.
After a bit of contented silence, he sighed. “I should let you go. You have to be at work in less than an hour, don’t you?”
Aasif glanced at his watch and made a small sound. He leapt to his feet. “Yes! I must go!” he stopped, and looked down at Daniel. “Will you…be here again tomorrow?” he asked uncertainly.
Daniel smiled at him. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Get going. I might drop by the bar later on and get a beer.”
Aasif’s smile was like sunlight after rain. He nodded and hurried off down the sidewalk. Daniel watched him go, feeling relief about the way his confession had gone. Aasif hadn’t cared in the least that he’d been a soldier. With that out of the way, he had no more secrets to hide. He and Aasif could continue Aasif’s therapy together, and the better he got the more that Daniel would be able to kiss, touch and hug him. And eventually…
His cock stirred lazily in his jeans at this thought. He turned a bit so no passing child would glimpse the mound in the front of them. He shouldn’t be fanaticizing about having sex with Aasif in a public park anyway. He should go home and attend to his ’problem’, instead. Rising to his feet, he walked slowly toward where he’d parked his truck. He moved that slowly so he wouldn’t hobble like an arthritic old man. People might wonder what was wrong with him, and if anybody got a glimpse of his crotch they might realize just what was ailing him…then they might call the cops and report a pervert with a hard-on near the children’s playground. That he did NOT need!
Daniel walked into the bar around six. He saw that the place was starting to fill up, and he had to search to find an empty barstool to sit on. Aasif was serving a customer, but his face brightened and he smiled when he saw Daniel sit down. He lifted a hand in greeting, and the bartender brought him a beer as soon as he was finished with the other customer. Their fingers brushed as he handed it to Daniel, and he took in a sharp breath when he realized that this touch was deliberate on Aasif’s part. The bartender’s eyes were gleaming as he walked away.
“Hey, cowboy,” a voice purred nearby. “I’ve never seen YOU in here before,” he turned his head to see a good-looking young man perched on the barstool next to him, interest in his blue eyes as he looked Daniel up and down.
“I don’t often come in this late,” he replied, a bit loudly to be heard over the music on the dance floor. “I like to come in for a drink in the afternoons.”
“Well, I’m glad that you changed your routine,” the younger man said with a wolfish smile. He leaned closer. “How’d you like to get out of here? With me?” he asked, batting his eyelashes for all he was worth.
Daniel felt his lips twitch. “Thanks for the offer, but I’m good where I am,” he replied.
The other man sat back and pouted. “Oh, come on! I promise I’ll make it worth your while,” he said in a wheedling tone of voice.
Daniel shook his head. “I’ve already got a man, but thanks again,” he said calmly.
A shrug. “Who cares? Bring your boyfriend along, too. I like threesomes.”
Daniel’s eyebrows lifted. “No, thanks. My boyfriend wouldn’t like it if I did that. Ours is not an open relationship.”
“Your loss, then,” the other man said with a shrug, looking faintly annoyed.
Daniel nodded. “Yes, it is. I’m sure I’ll regret it later,” he went on dryly.
A glare. The younger man slid off the barstool and flounced away onto the dance floor. Daniel took a sip of his beer to hide his grin. He looked up and saw that Aasif had watched this encounter. He shrugged and grinned, and the bartender shook his head but smiled back. He turned away to his customers again, while Daniel chuckled and ate some pretzels out of the bowl in front of him.
In the next hour and a half, he was hit on a dozen times. He politely turned down each offer, aware of Aasif watching him every time. It was a good sign if the bartender was jealous, Daniel thought in satisfaction. Not that he was going to do anything with any of these men, but…Finally, he’d had enough of the pounding techno music, the bright lights, and the chatter that surrounded him. He lifted a hand to get Aasif’s attention, then leaned forward when the bartender came over to him. “I’m going to get going now, Aasif. I’ll see you in the park tomorrow,” he said as softly as he could and still be heard over the music.
Aasif nodded. “I will be there, Daniel. Thank you for coming in here this late. I can tell you don’t like this place when it gets crowded.”
He shrugged. “No, I don’t. But I always like getting to see you,” he reached out and lightly touched Aasif’s fingers. “See you tomorrow,” he repeated, sliding off of his barstool and making his way toward the door.
Aasif watched Daniel go. He saw the man brush away the groping hands of several men in the crowd, before he walked out the door. His lips twitched. Daniel definitely didn’t enjoy the bar when it was in full swing like it was now. He found that he didn’t like it, either. All of those men crawling all over Daniel! It made him very angry to watch it. He wanted to push those men away and snarl at them that Daniel was HIS! Not that he could have; he still had problems touching any man but Daniel. But since Daniel had handed all of those propositions quite neatly himself, it was okay. But he still didn’t like it. Aasif was finding that he had a very jealous nature, something he would never have imagined before he met Daniel Radway.
But then, before he’d met Daniel he couldn’t even touch another man or look him in the eye. All of this was a voyage of self-discovery for Aasif, one that most people went on much earlier in their lives. But since he’d been frozen emotionally and physically when he was thirteen by the trauma of the rapes, it wasn’t surprising that he was blooming so much later in life. The wonderful thing was that it was happening at all…and he had Daniel Radway to thank for it. He’d never, ever forget that, or cease being grateful for the other man. Never.
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