Read Online The Square Peg by Jane Davitt, Alexa Snow - Free Book Online

strained and complicated as it was. Giving in to an arousal that was probably
    more to do with a recent dry spell than with Benedict himself would be stupid.
    Plus, he’d most likely get turned down, and that would be hell on his ego.
    He nodded and smiled in reply and gestured to Vincent when the lad glanced
    over, holding up two fingers.
    “I’m driving,” Benedict said.
    “Hope you parked your car around back, or it’s probably minus its tires by now.”
    “What? Seriously?”
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    Shane grinned at Benedict’s yelp of alarm. “Relax. Though you can move it if you
    want. Leave it there overnight and get a cab home. It’s Friday night, mate. Let’s get you
    hammered.”
    “I don’t understand half of what you say.”
    It was Shane’s turn to lean in, the atmosphere around him making him reckless,
    the beer he’d drunk making him randy as any of the kids in here, barely legal some of
    them. “Want to see you with a beer or two inside you, Benedict. See your wild side.”
    Their pints arrived, the glasses cold enough that ice was forming on the outside,
    sliding down the glass, fragile shards destined to melt within seconds. The bar was hot,
    the bodies crammed into it raising the temperature nicely. Most of the customers were
    male. This was Friday. Friday and Saturday people knew not to come in unless they
    belonged or were willing to look the other way.
    Shane liked looking. Liked seeing the way people relaxed as they walked in, the
    way they got brave enough to get close. Liked it when a man walked by, his T-shirt
    hanging from his back pocket, bare skin on display, sweat-shined and hot. Liked the
    knowing glances, the silent communications going on, coded glances, questioning
    touches.
    He wasn’t running a brothel here. He caught someone fucking in a stall, and they
    were out on their ear, but he didn’t go in there to check all that often.
    Benedict seemed to like watching the crowd too, which was convenient because it
    meant Shane could study him at the same time. The bar wasn’t comfortable to lean
    against—one of the reasons Shane spent so many hours in the office—but Benedict
    didn’t seem to mind.
    His eyes were a rich chocolate brown under normal lighting. In the dim glow of
    the bar, they were so dark they were almost black. His throat moved enticingly when he
    swallowed, but he set his glass down again to focus on the people surrounding them.
    The song on the speakers had changed to something a tiny bit louder, so when he
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    Jane Davitt & Alexa Snow
    leaned in to speak in Shane’s ear again, his lips were very close. “What about straight
    couples?”
    What about them? “Sure. Not so many on the weekend, though. Drink your beer.”
    Benedict picked up his glass again. “You’re a bad influence.”
    “Ah, but I sell beer for a living,” Shane told him. “I’m meant to be a bad
    influence.”
    It would have been the perfect opportunity for Benedict to remind him he’d been
    doing a shit job selling beer, but he only looked into Shane’s eyes searchingly for a long
    moment.
    A man passed behind Benedict, jostling him so that for a moment, Benedict was
    leaning against Shane, his hand gripping Shane’s upper arm, his lips close enough to
    kiss.
    Shane froze, his lips parting, ready for something he was certain he wanted and
    equally sure he shouldn’t have. The man, no one Shane recognized, tapped Benedict’s
    shoulder in a wordless apology and continued on.
    Benedict straightened with a jerk, his eyes wide, a flicker of discomfort showing.
    He took a hasty gulp from his pint, draining it, and signaled to Vincent for another.
    Message received and understood, Shane thought. He watched Vincent slouch
    over to take Benedict’s glass, a rare smile softening Vincent’s angular features.
    Suspicion and a pang of loss struck Shane like a blow as he watched the two of
    them chat. No. Not Vincent. Vincent didn’t sleep with anyone, shrugging off