JE owns the rights to anything familiar. Thanks to alix33 for the beta skills

This is for T, K, M and Ybanormlmom and for all the rest of you who have publicly or privately let me know how much you enjoy my version of Hector and Zip.

The Manor

Hector POV

The club was crowded and loud and just what I needed to shake off the last vestige of feelings I was holding on to for Ram. I'd seen him with more than his share of women so it wasn't like I didn't know he was straight, but I had a bad habit of wanting what I could never have. Tonight seemed like a good time to break that unhealthy inclination.

As I made my way through the throngs of people to the bar, I started scanning the room for a potential quick fuck. A lot of the time the teardrop tattoo on my cheek scared off anyone with interest but that wasn't going to be the case tonight.

From the looks I was getting, I wouldn't be leaving the club alone.

A brave but stupid suitor approached me before I got to the bar. "Let's dance," he said, seriously invading my personal space. He was too short for my tastes and so pasty white I thought he might never have seen daylight. I was also sure if a strong gust of wind were to rush through the bar it would sweep him away and dump him a mile down the road because he couldn't weigh more than a hundred pounds, soaking wet. I did manage not to break his hand when he suggestively laid it on my shoulder, but just barely.

I got an eyebrow lift from Pauly, the bartender who'd witnessed the exchange, when I finally made it up to the counter after successfully deterring the guy. Pauly knew what I liked and set a tumbler of vodka on the rocks, with a twist of lime, in front of me without me having to order. After a small nod in greeting, he left to attend to other patrons.

I cradled the glass in my hand as I turned my back on the bar and leaned against the wood to survey the array of dancers grinding together in a joint display of obvious foreplay. I recognized a lot of the regulars and saw one or two I could easily have whenever I was ready, but for now, I was enjoying the show and was content to watch.

In the second between the end of one song and the beginning of another, the crowd briefly parted and that's when I saw him.

I shouldn't have been surprised; sometimes I thought he must have figured out a way to place a tracker on me or my truck without detection because the number of times he showed up when I was here was too many to be entirely coincidental.

His eyes, those fucking amazing eyes, were already zeroed in on my presence as if drawn to me by an unseen force. He easily made his way through the people and headed in my direction. Multiple appreciative glances followed his progress across the dance floor but he kept his gaze locked with mine. I didn't know why, but I couldn't make myself look away.

Normally I didn't have any trouble ignoring him, but this time I watched every step he took to reach me. I heard a faint thumping noise as he got closer and actually glanced down at my chest when I realized it was my heart racing beneath my ribs. Had that happened before? I couldn't be sure.

By the time he got to the bar, I was finding it hard to keep my breathing even and when he flashed me that half grin, the one that highlighted the sexy as fuck dimple in his right cheek, I felt my cock respond in a very primal way. "Hey," he greeted casually, leaning close to be heard over the blaring music.

I didn't respond, I never do, and he didn't let it discourage him, not yet anyway. Pauly appeared out of thin air and asked him what he wanted to drink. "One of these," he replied, pointing to the vodka in my hand. I looked down at the glass and realized I'd yet to take a drink. I lifted it to my mouth and closed my eyes when the deliciously cold liquid hit my tongue. I loved that first taste and savored it a second before letting it glide down my throat.

When I let them open again, I found Zip's on mine and witnessed the normally light gold flecks turn a dark and sultry amber. My tongue darted out of its own volition and swiped at the hint of lime in the corner of my lip. His eyes widened slightly at the movement and I couldn't drag mine away from the heat I saw burning at their core. This was about the time I would walk away from him and find a different spot in the club where I couldn't feel his eyes on me. But I stayed where I was, held in place by the force of his stare.

Pauly arrived with Zip's drink and he took it without looking away from me. When the glass touched his full bottom lip and he tilted it up, letting the vodka spill into his mouth, I had the strong desire to find out what that mouth would feel like wrapped around my dick. As if he could read my thoughts openly, Zip flashed me all his teeth in a smile that suggested all I had to do was say the word.

I wanted to, badly, but I knew it was a terrible idea. He was too young and too pretty and the fact that we worked together was a huge deterrent. Everyone at the company knew I was gay but I was sure I was the only one there aware he was. If we started something it was bound to get out and I didn't want to deal with the bullshit.

It's why I rejected every advance he'd made over the past year, and there had been many, but he was relentless and I wondered, not for the first time, what the hell he saw in me. I downed the rest of my drink and ordered another, setting the empty glass on the bar. Zip lifted an eyebrow, watching me drink, and I tried not to stare at his neck while he swallowed his own. His skin looked soft there, in the hollow peeking out at the collar of his form-fitting t-shirt, and I bit the tip of my tongue to quell the urge I had to lean over and lick him in that spot.

Pauly set two full glasses in front of us and I caught the slight grin on his lips before he turned to another customer. Zip lifted his glass in sync with mine and surprised me by clinking them together. "Cheers," he said and purposely brushed his fingers against mine before pulling the glass away and tossing half the drink down his throat.

The erection was immediate and painful at his touch and I almost groaned aloud at the pressure against my zipper. I was in trouble here and needed to walk away before this got out of hand. I finished my vodka and slammed the glass on the bar. It drew a few eyes in our direction but Zip's were the only ones I saw.

He was staring openly, the heated gaze moving from my eyes to my lips and back again. The desire to kiss me was evident on his face and if I didn't go now I was going to let him. I pushed away from the bar and took a step before a strong hand latched onto my bicep, halting my getaway. Heat burned through his fingers and I could feel it all the way to my toes. Zip pulled me back until I was leaning against his body and a shiver slid down my spine when his warm breath drifted right into my ear. "Dance with me."

The vibration of his voice did nothing but make my dick harder and I knew if I had any chance of getting out of here I had to say no but I couldn't get my mouth to form the word. Zip must have taken my silence as an acquiesce because the next thing I knew, he was leading me to the dance floor.

I didn't know what was wrong with me. I'd never let him do this before. He asked me to dance every time we were here and I always blew him off, but tonight I'd lost the ability to speak in his presence. I'd never let him touch me before either, yet his hands were on my hips and his muscled chest was pressed into my back as we moved with the relentless beat of the music. I let his fingers slide to my abdomen, pulling my torso back against his while he pushed forward. We kept rhythm with the music and with each other until the song ended. He didn't let go when he put his mouth to my ear again. "I need a shot."

And then he was gone and I stood alone on the dance floor, mourning the loss of his touch. What the fuck is wrong with me? Before I could figure that out and before I could make myself move he was back and standing in front of me holding two shot glasses. He held one out and I took it instinctively. Zip lifted his and I mirrored the movement without thinking. "To...beginnings," he said carefully and then threw the liquid into his mouth. I followed suit and found him smiling at me when I brought the glass down.

"Another?"

No! That was what I wanted to say but my shoulder lifted instead and Zip disappeared, taking the glasses with him. He reappeared again with two more rounds and we quickly emptied them. Zip dropped the glasses onto a passing waiter's tray and then I found myself dancing with him again while his hands explored my abs, my hips and my arms. Between the margaritas I'd had at dinner with Stephanie and now all the vodka, I was nearly drunk, and that was the reason I was letting this seduction continue. At least that's what I kept telling myself, even as Zip took my hand and started pulling me toward the exit.

It was unbelievably hot outside and when he pushed open the door and the blast of warm air hit my skin, I had a brief moment of clarity. This was a mistake. I needed to go home and then I needed to find a different club to go to. Maybe one in New York. I didn't think he'd follow me all the way to New York.

"I'll follow you anywhere."

Shit. How much of that had I said out loud? I looked up at him and found his golden eyes glowing as feral as a cat's in the dim light of the moon above our heads. Zip spun me around until my back was pressing against the hard brick of the building. He leaned into me, holding me in place with his powerfully muscled chest and stared directly into my eyes. The challenge was clear. Kiss me or make me leave.

My heart thundered in my ears as he waited for me to decide. This was it, all I had to do was push him away and it would be over. I didn't need this in my life. I didn't need him or anyone and I wished he would leave me the fuck alone.

"Hector." He breathed my name softly and my ultimate resolve crumbled into dust. I wrapped my hand around his neck and smashed our mouths together. His lips were soft, so fucking soft and I easily lost myself in the velvety smoothness as he took over, coaxing, teasing and finally demanding a reaction.

And I gave him one - a hot, wet, deep mating of lips, teeth and tongues as he thoroughly devoured what I'd been denying him for so long. I countered every bold stroke and we soon found a rhythm where even our heartbeats seemed to synchronize.

The sensual assault was filling something in me that I hadn't realized was missing and I found myself never wanting it to end. Inevitably it had to and I almost whimpered in distress when Zip finally separated our mouths.

He touched his forehead to mine as he tried to catch a breath. "Hector?" It was all he said but I knew what he was asking. I was going to regret it in the morning but right now I didn't care. I never wanted anything more in my life and for once I wasn't going to deny myself.

"Let's go," I said and for the first time tonight, maybe the first time in a long time, I took control. Grabbing his hand, I led him to my truck before I could talk myself out of it.