Speed Dating the Slow Way - 1

Speed Dating the Slow Way

By Chris Owen

"Fred Flintstone."

Reed tilted his head to the side and looked at the man sitting across the narrow table from him.
"Fred Flintstone was your childhood hero?" That was not an expected answer.

The guy -- a nice looking man who appeared to be just over thirty and not obviously insane --
shook his head and grinned. "That's not what you asked," he pointed out. "You asked me who I
wanted to be when I was a kid."

Reed nodded absently. It was true; he had asked the question that way. That was how it was
written on the index card, and he'd taken the question from the list of suggestions. He'd just
interpreted it differently, he supposed, but so had the other people he'd asked. Most of the
answers had been actual comic book superheroes or heroic figures from movies or books. Reed
hadn't thought that speed dating would have nuances, but there he was. Nuanced. "So, Fred
Flintstone."

"Uh-huh." The grin was back, flashing straight, white teeth at him. It was a pretty fantastic smile;
Reed couldn't deny that at all. His current date for five minutes was toned and fit and completely
fine in all the ways Reed liked. He seemed to be a few year older than Reed, but not too old, and
he looked healthy and happy, his brown hair short and his eyes bright. The last guy had been half
drunk, and Reed had willed that five minutes to be over like he hadn't wished for anything in a
long, long time.

"You know," Reed said thoughtfully, "I think I've heard that one before, Jack." He had. He knew
he had; there was a little tickle of deja vu going on at the back of his mind. Something to do with
laughing a lot, so hard it hurt his sides.

"Nah. I've been saying it for years and no one's ever heard it before." He winked at Reed, which
was usually something Reed loathed because it often came off as smarmy, but from Jack it
merely seemed self-deprecating, like he was letting Reed know that Fred Flintstone wasn't
terribly original at all and he knew it, too. "I used to come home from school at lunchtime and
there he'd be, on my TV while I ate a tuna sandwich or soup or macaroni and cheese."

Something to do with boys -- a lot of boys. High school? Close. Not right, though. Reed
remembered sun in his eyes and his hair long enough to be in his mouth when the wind blew it.
That had been years and years ago.

"Every single day, Fred would be messing up and lying to cover his butt, and every single day
his pet dinosaur still loved him so much he bowled Fred over at the door. His wife still let him
think he was in charge, even though we all knew Wilma was way too smart for Freddy, and he
still got those scary big ribs for dinner."

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 2

Summertime. Summer job? The summer he had worked packing groceries at the market. No.
Reed studied Jack's face. He didn't look overly familiar, and he didn't sound it, either. His face
was nice enough, but didn't have any scars or anything that Reed would have remembered, and
his voice was normal and average.

Reed had been younger. A lot younger. Besides, he'd ditched the long hair for that job,
specifically, so he had to have met Jack before then.

"He was leading a charmed life, and even getting himself into messes by lying, by being a
misogynistic jerk, by trying to take the easy way through life didn't slow him down or inflict a
lasting trauma. So, I wanted to be Fred." Jack finished up with a satisfied smile and sat back, one
hand flat on the table next to his drink.

"Have we met before?" Reed blurted. "I know I've heard that whole story, front to back."

Jack stopped grinning and peered across the table at him, his head cocked to one side, mirroring
the way Reed had looked at him. "I don't think so," he said slowly. The grin came back. "And I'm
very sure I'd remember you if we hooked up."

Reed smiled back at him, acknowledging the compliment. "It was summer and we were young. I
thought maybe a summer job?"

"I was usually at camp in the summers during high school, and I want to college out of state--"
Jack's eyes went a little wide. "Camp Silver Pines?"

Reed had totally forgotten about summer camp until that very moment, and suddenly there it
was. Archery, swimming, canoes, bugs and sunburn. "The baseball field!" It had been named
Jackson Field, and Jack had claimed it as his own, because of his name. The silliness of the claim
and the extensive family history he made up to go along with the story of how he conquered the
field was what had made Reed laugh so hard all those years before.

"God, that field." Jack nodded, laughing. "Right!" He put out his hand again, as he had done
when he sat down. "Jack Fields. And you were Reed Scales. Well, still are, I guess. Not in my
cabin, though?"

Reed shook his hand, not sure if he was incredibly amused or merely stunned at the coincidence
of meeting a camp counselor again at a gay speed dating event that the local AIDS Awareness
group was holding as a fund raiser. "Not your cabin, no. But I remember you -- you were nice to
me, that first horrid week. You got me out on the water, too, and gave me my nickname for the
summer."

"Sails!" Jack laughed again and sat back in his chair. "Dude. Look at you now. All grown up and
not fourteen anymore."

"Not by a long shot." Reed looked back at Jack. "That was half my life ago, and we've both done
a lot of growing up in the last fourteen years." Jack looked good. Fit and bigger than he had been

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 3

at eighteen, with the cut and built kind of body that came from long hours at the gym or constant
sports. "I like the adult version."

Jack inclined his head and picked up his drink. "Dude, we're running out of time on the clock."

"Oh, crap." Reed looked down at his two stacks of cards. "Awkward."

"I'll make sure you have my business card." Jack chuckled and didn't give him any more help
than that. Or, maybe he did.

The two stacks were a compromise of sorts since the planning committee had run into more than
a few people complaining that a speed dating evening was going to turn into a device to facilitate
hook ups and casual sex. Most people on the committee had replied with a resounding, "So?" but
there had been one or two people who saw the value in making things a bit more classy. The
result was two completely different sets of sample questions that people could choose to use, if
they didn't want to rely on their own (lack of) imaginations.

Purple cards were about character qualities, hopes and dreams, relationship-oriented fact finding.
Religion, politics, kids or not, pets and allergies.

Red cards were all about tastes, kinks, movies for background noise, dilemmas that centered on
who had the condoms and lube.

The intent was that people could pick and choose, mix them up, send out all kinds of signals. The
effect was that Reed had to suddenly decide what he wanted from Jack, who was undeniably hot
and funny and flirting with him. Jack, who wasn't giving anything away as he sat across the table
and watched Reed looking at the cards.

"All right, then." Reed scooped up both stacks and shuffled them together. "How much time do I
have?"

Jack grinned. "Just over two minutes."

"Loads of time." Without looking down to see if the cards were evenly mixed or not, Reed
started reading questions, one after another, as they came up. Within two minutes he found out
that Jack owned a house, that he had two bikes, and he could come for hours if there was a
tongue in his ass. He liked citrus scents, he didn't wear anything to bed, ever, and he'd once had
sex on a motor bike, though it hadn't been running at the time. He wanted to do it again.

He liked Italian pasta, and he usually skipped lunch in favor of a meal at ten-thirty or eleven and
another one at two in the afternoon. He'd skip any meal for a fast fuck on the couch, if he was
promised extra dessert or more sex.

When the buzzer rang Jack stood up and handed Reed his business card. They were both smiling.

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 4

"I'll try to talk to you later on," Reed said, waving for one of the waiters to bring him a beer. "Do
you know if there's an open time slot when it's your turn to be sitting?"

"I think I'm full up." Not a surprise. "But you've got my card. Call me anyway, okay? We'll grab
lunch or something if you work downtown. And I'll be around later, if you don't find the man of
your dreams."

Reed nodded and watched him walk away, then reached down to adjust himself. He wasn't about
to say anything so cheesy as, "I think I just did," but if either of the two guys he had left to date
weren't precisely his type, he thought maybe he'd go and find Jack, for sure.

Three drinks and two dates later, however, Reed was following a perfectly lovely young man
named James out of the big ballroom where the event was set up. He'd only asked red questions
and all the answers have been well worth the price of the ticket and the bar tab. He had hopes
that James would be worth the price of the room upstairs. He was tall and lean, had hair so dark
it was almost black, and his eyes had flashed every time he'd grinned.

In the elevator James had him pinned to a wall, and Reed was sucking on James' tongue, their
hips fused together, when the door opened on the second level and people got in with them. Reed
thought about stopping, decided he was drunk enough not to really care, and merely pulled his
hand out of the back of James' jeans as a nod to being in a public space.

James made a sound of disapproval and moved against him, tempting Reed to put his hand back,
immediately.

Whoever had gotten on the elevator laughed, and two voices whispered to each other while
fingers pushed buttons that made the door close -- or not, since Reed had read somewhere that
the close door button in most elevators actually didn't do anything -- and then James' hips shifted
just a little to the side, and Reed had to gasp.

"There?" James did it again and Reed groaned.

"Wait, just a couple of minutes." God, he wasn't going to start humping in the elevator. He wasn't
that drunk. His cock was hard, though, and James was right there, grooving on him, and the
elevator was pretty fast. Maybe just a little humping. The voices had stopped whispering, that
was good.

James ground against him again, bending his knees and thrusting up, like they were fucking
against a wall, and Reed's second gasp was way closer to a moan. He wanted to get his legs
around James' hips and ride him like a mechanical bull. He slammed one hand against the wall of
the elevator and pulled his mouth away from James'. "Stop. Jesus, we need to be on our floor
now."

James laughed against his neck and very slowly and carefully backed away an entire quarter
inch. "It's all good." He turned his head and looked around. "Oh, hey. Sorry." He didn't sound
apologetic and he didn't back any farther away from Reed.

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 5

"Don't stop on our account. Hey, Reed." Jack was grinning at them, his chin resting on the
shoulder of the guy he was with. They were standing with Jack in back, the other in front, chest
to back. Jack's hand was down the front of his friend's open jeans.

"Hey." Reed laughed breathlessly. "Found some fun? This is James. That's Jack."

"And this is... What did you say your name was, honey?"

"Eric. Hey, y'all." Blue eyes, blond hair, and a sunny grin. Pretty.

James nodded. "Friends?"

"Yeah, we go way back." Reed licked James' neck. "Our floor is next."

"Cool." James looked at Jack and Eric, his gaze going to where the head of Eric's cock was
poking up every other stroke or so. "Wanna come play with us?"

Eric nodded, the door opened, and that was that. James was pulling Reed along by one wrist --
not that Reed was resisting at all, other than a pause to get his key card out of his pocket and
remember his room number -- and Jack was crowding Eric right along with them, his hand still
in Eric's pants.

There was a fair amount of stumbling involved as they made their way down the hall and into the
room.

Reed pushed all three of them in and ducked into the bathroom as the room door closed. "Make
yourselves at home."

"Hey, where are you going?" James followed, but Jack and Eric were heading right to the big
chair in the corner, tugging at each other's clothes and tripping as they got their shoes off. "The
bed is out there."

Reed snorted and grabbed a paper bag off the bathroom counter. "Lube, rubbers, poppers. I
though we might need some or all of this stuff."

"All." James pushed Reed up against the door and kissed him, one hand undoing Reed's jeans
and rubbing at his cock. "Do you care that they're here? Have you got rules about that sort of
thing?"

Reed shook his head and kissed him back. "Fuck me, okay? Just fuck me."

James shoved his hand into Reed's jeans. "At least twice," he promised. His fingers were hot and
strong, and he wasn't playing delicately. "Want to get off first?"

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 6

Reed shook his head, but he was moaning and moving anyway, pushing his cock through James'
fist. Reed's own fingers were clutching at the bag he held, the paper crumpling and getting moist
in his hand.

"We want to see!" a voice called, laughing. "I have a lapful of voyeur."

Reed moaned again, his cock giving up a tiny stream of fluid.

"I've got a handful of exhibitionist, I think," James called back. "That wasn't on any of them
cards."

Jack laughed, and Eric made a soft noise. "But useful to know. Are you going to come out and
show him off?"

"Came out years ago," James said to Reed, but Reed was too busy riding two cosmos and a
couple of beers to care. "Okay, with me. Come on." James tugged his hand free of Reed's jeans,
and they went out into the main room, still managing to grope as they walked.

The room only had one bed, a big king size that was covered in a deep blue spread and a
mountain of pillows. Reed headed to there, still holding the bag of treats, and pulled the cover off
and to the floor. "Sorry there's no stereo," he said, reaching for James' shirt and pulling him
close. "But you can turn on the TV if you want."

"I think we're good. At least, we're hoping for a better show than anything on there." Jack was
sitting in the big chair, Eric on his lap. Eric's jeans were undone again, but Jack's hand was
petting Eric's belly, not his cock, both of their shirts shoved up for contact. Reed couldn't tell if
Jack's jeans were undone or not.

Eric giggled and nodded at him. "C'mon," he said softly, his voice a smooth drawl. "You're real
pretty, both of you. Show me just a little?"

James' hands were already on Reed, tumbling him onto the bed. There didn't seem to be any need
for a reply; Reed was more than willing to keep doing what he'd intended to do since James sat
down across from him. He didn't care if he had an audience; he didn't care if they joined in, as
long as everyone had fun.

James' kisses tasted like sweet booze and fruit, a hint of salt chasing strawberries, and Reed
feasted on his mouth while James took care of pesky issues like Reed's clothes. Their skin was
hot where it touched, shirts gone, both alcohol and friction making their temperatures soar.

Reed's legs parted as soon as his jeans were off, his ankles hooking around James' thighs and
pulling him close. He didn't care that James was laughing softly at him, telling him to wait until
James had at least shed his own pants. "It's hard to fuck you when I'm still covered up."

"Hurry, then." Reed arched against him, his cock so hard it was like a living, painful thing that
only existed to capture every bit of his attention and hold it there, demanding to be the sole

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 7

reason for his existence. The only two things that vied for Reed's attention were his awareness of
Jack watching him, and the way his own ass was just as needy as his cock.

And Eric, he reminded himself. Not just Jack.

James pulled away and took off his jeans, his mouth leaving sucking kisses along Reed's
stomach, the two of them always in contact, even if his hands were busy with buttons and zippers
and denim.

"Hurry," Reed said again. James was lying over him and Reed couldn't even stroke himself off;
denial made his ass clench. "God."

James bit him, just once, and flipped Reed over onto his belly. "Demanding, aren't you?"

"Uh-huh." Reed let James thrust pillows underneath him, two of them and then a third until his
hips were high and his shoulders were pushed into the mattress. He spread his legs wider, knees
tucked up so he was totally exposed, his ass raised and ready for the hard prick he could feel
sliding along his thigh.

Smiling, already panting, silently begging for it, Reed turned his head so he could watch Jack
and Eric in the chair. They were still sprawled with Eric leaning back against Jack's chest,
though Jack's hand had moved lower to fondle Eric's erection. Eric's eyes were unfocused, either
with arousal or something else; Reed didn't really care.

Jack was looking right at him, though, his eyes bright and quick, and Reed's attention narrowed
to a fine point. He felt like he was a compass, only able to point one way, but moving around
rapidly, trying to find magnetic north. His ass, or Jack's eyes?

James settled the question with a flurry of movement and sound. Rustles, tears, pops and liquid
splutters, and then Reed's focus was utterly and completely on his own body. He kept his eyes
open, but he was staring at nothing, seeing not a thing, as his core was invaded.

There wasn't one thing gentle or tender about James, thank God. He was perfect: wild and just a
little too rough, the angles of his fingers just a little wrong, a little too bony. He laughed when
Reed sucked in air and tried to ride back, and put one heavy hand on the small of Reed's back.
"Stay there."

Reed shook his head an eighth of an inch and lifted his hips.

"Can you see?" James asked politely, his tone making it plain to Reed that he was being ignored.

"Yeah," Eric drawled. "You should see his face, man."

"Don't care about his face." James' thighs brushed up against Reed's, then pushed close. The wiry
hair on James' balls tickled at Reed's ass as he rubbed up and down, taunting.

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 8

"Please." Reed thought he might have been whispering without meaning to, without wanting to
be soft. He wanted to be heard, understood.

Jack's eyes were blue. Blue like summer skies.

"Please?" James was crooning, rocking back and forth, riding Reed's ass. "Okay. Please is good."

Reed's prick was pushed into pillows. He could feel the slippery damp spot he was making.
"Fuck me." That was better. Louder.

The rubber on James' cock made crinkling sounds as the lube got tacky. "That's what we all
want," James said reassuringly, his fingers probing again. The friction of his knuckles was
making Reed's hole tingle and zing. "You're not going to last long, are you?'

Reed shook his head and blinked slowly, his eyes dry as dust. "No. But that's okay. Fuck me as
long as you want."

That made James jerk a bit, his fingers curling and twisting. Eric moaned when Reed cried out,
and even Jack seemed to twitch.

"I will." James' fingers pulled out, too fast and rough, and then he was plunging in with his cock,
going in and in, filling Reed's ass with a long, hot stab that erased the world.

Reed knew he yelled. He knew his hands had balled into fists and his eyes had closed, and he
knew it was perfectly, horribly, awfully intense. Like disturbing art, he wanted it to happen
again, but he shied away from it, his body trying to move with James instead of against, unable
to look away from the paintings that were just a little bit wrong.

"Oh, fuck," Eric breathed, and the world snapped back into place.

Impaled, full of hard cock and harsh, hot air, Reed watched as Eric stared back and Jack
masturbated Eric's cock, his hand angled as if Jack was jerking himself.

Reed wanted to see Jack's dick. He wanted to feel it, touch it, taste it. He wanted to see Jack's
eyes and go down on him and have him.

"Here." James shoved something at Reed. "It's open."

Reed inhaled and the world lurched again, drums starting inside his head playing out the
pounding thrum of his heartbeat. "Oh, yes." The poppers hit his system fast, relaxing his body
and magnifying sensations. His ass felt fantastic, his dick felt huge, and air was a glorious thing.

"There we go." James crooned again, his voice almost pretty as he started to move, thrusting in
and out in long slow strokes. "God, what a fucking gorgeous ass."

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 9

Reed rocked, trying to meet his thrusts, trying to get James' cock to hit the right spot. "Fuck me,"
he whispered, meaning to this time. He was looking at Jack.

Jack's hand worked Eric, Eric writhed, and James fucked. Reed's erection rubbed on the pillow,
the friction significant but the material harsh, and jolts of electricity hit his balls and curled there,
making his body hum and vibrate.

"He's close," Jack said, watching.

"Which one?" James was breathing hard, his cock pounding into Reed's ass. His hands were on
Reed's hips, probably leaving bruises.

Jack laughed softly. "Both. Watch Eric's cock."

James groaned, and the sound played in a loop until Reed realized that he'd picked up the sound
and was moaning and groaning, not James. "Oh. Oh, oh, oh!" So close. Right there, perfect and
sharp and just out of his reach. He needed harder and faster and deeper, a jolt of something,
anything.

"Yes," Eric hissed. His body jerked. "Make him come for you."

James grunted and pulled out, leaving Reed empty and yelling for more, then slammed back in.

"Yes!" Reed's vision fractured and he had to close his eyes as he came, his body curling up and
clenching tight around the rod in his ass. Perfect. Absolutely, brilliantly perfect.

Distantly, he heard someone groan, felt James still fucking him, and the bed was moving. Then
hands were clamped on his arm and Reed opened his eyes to see what was going on, even though
merely breathing was at the far edges of his consciousness.

Eric had a hold of Reed's forearm from where he was draped over the edge of the bed, and
behind him was Jack, bent at the knees and shoving his erection against Eric's ass. The angle was
wrong to see, but the bed rocked and Eric grinned and bit at his lower lip, and even Reed, fucked
out and fuzzy around the edges, could tell that Jack was finally in the game.

"Nice," Reed slurred, his eyes closing as James stilled inside him, cock throbbing. "Oh, fuck.
Yes."

"He wants more," Eric said, laughing.

Jack groaned and Reed smiled to himself. There was a lot of night ahead.

***

It was almost a month later that Reed found Jack's card in his wallet. He was at home, the TV
playing something about sharks, and the pizza he'd ordered was just about gone. Picking up his

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 10

wallet to put his change away, he realized that there was a lot more business cards and receipts in
there than bank cards and cash, so he did a little cleaning.

The card had been put into the billfold, and he stared at it blankly, not recognizing the name for a
few seconds, then felt his face flush hot.

"Oh, right." He looked over to the left and the big easy chair in the corner. "I messed this one up,
Charlie."

Charlie stretched, his tail twitching for a moment before he yawned and went back to ignoring
Reed. Charlie didn't really care much about Reed's love life and only got involved with Reed's
sex life if his spot at the end of the bed was suddenly inaccessible.

"This one," Reed told his cat, pointing to the card, "could have been something other than a hook
up. So what did I do? I'm asking you, so please stop yawning at me and acknowledge my
existence."

Charlie licked one paw half-heartedly and clearly decided that grooming could happen after a
nap.

"Thanks, Charlie. I really appreciate your help here." Reed rolled his eyes and fell back in the
couch. On the television sharks were slamming their bodies into a cage, trying to get at the bait
inside, and then past it to the camera. Reed flicked the business card between his fingers and
thought about exactly what it had been that he'd done.

He'd picked up someone else. He'd gotten a bit drunk. He'd been altogether shameless and, while
it wasn't exactly the first time he'd had a night like that, it wasn't the impression he'd intended to
leave Jack with. He'd intended, once he'd met James, to give it a week or so and call Jack, ask
him for coffee or something.

James had been for fucking. Jack had been filed into that odd section of "get to know and then
decide if he's for fucking or dating". But then Jack had been there in the elevator, and Reed had
just gone with it, gone with James and been a willing participant, a whole-hearted and knowing
participant in some really, really great sex.

Jack hadn't touched him.

James had stayed the night. Eric had been in the bed, the three of them had gotten off together at
least once, but Jack had kept his distance. There had been kisses shared between Jack and Eric,
Jack and James -- hell, Jack had climbed right on top of James when Reed had been watching
James suck Eric off -- but Reed hadn't been on Jack's agenda.

They'd looked at each other a lot. They'd stared, they'd communicated, but Jack and Eric had left
the room before Reed could figure out what the deal was.

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 11

A month later Reed had put the night behind him without much thought. It had been fun, but
James and Eric and even Jack had faded from his mind, everything distilled into a few images to
be pulled up when he was jerking off.

Blue eyes. Blue like sky, never looking away.

Reed looked at Charlie, who had sprawled a little more, and to all appearances was sound asleep.
"So, I'm thinking," he said, wondering if talking to a sleeping cat was sign that he needed more
friends, "I'm thinking that if I had avoided being a slut and called him up a few days later we
might have had a good time -- or at least a decent cup of coffee."

Charlie didn't even twitch.

"I'm also thinking that since I instead had a lot of sex in front of him that he might think I'm a bit
of a goer. Which, not exactly false." He shrugged. "Dunno, man. What if that's all he wanted
anyway? But then, he didn't climb on when he had the chance. Maybe I'm not his type?"

The sharks were circling again and there was a housefly on the pizza crust.

"Okay, ew." Reed got up and dumped the remains of the pizza in the garbage, then got himself a
glass of water. When he went back to the living room the cat was still asleep, the sharks were
gone for a commercial break, and Jack's business card was still there.

Name. Degree. Numbers. Generic e-mail address. No position description or even a company
name, which was odd, Reed thought. It seemed to be more of a calling card than a business card.
He gave Charlie a pet and showed it to him. "Master of Social Work. Not bad, huh?"

Charlie opened one eye and looked unimpressed, though that was likely at Reed and not at Jack's
education.

"So." Reed petted Charlie again and weighed his options. "Nothing ventured," he finally said as
Charlie got up and hopped off the chair. "That's right, you just walk away from me and my
dilemmas. See if you get tuna flavor next week." He would. He always did.

Charlie's tail swished and he left the room, clearly unconcerned about Reed and whether or not
he was going to make a fool out of himself or not.

Reed picked up the phone and dialed Jack's number, assuming that there would be an answering
machine or voicemail. That way he could leave a message instead of sending an e-mail; e-mail
always seemed so distant to Reed and he preferred not to use it when trying to actually connect
with someone new.

To his surprise, a human answered.

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 12

"Jack Fields." He sounded like he was ready to give his full attention to whoever was calling,
too, which was a little disconcerting. Given the time of night, he should have been eating pizza
and watching TV.

Reed quickly muted his own TV and said, "Hi, Jack. This is Reed Scales."

There was a short pause and then a soft laugh. "Reed Scales. How're you doin'?"

Reed closed his eyes and blushed. "At this exact moment I'm feeling pretty foolish. How are
you?" He left the innuendo out of his tone, though he dearly wanted to play. Jack made it easy to
want.

"I'm fine, thanks." There was a hint of laughter still in Jack's voice, and he was definitely
smiling. "What can I do for you?"

Reed rolled his eyes at himself as a half-dozen options scrolled through his imagination. "How
about a cup of coffee?" he said, ignoring the five naked scenarios. "Whenever you have time -- I
thought I'd get voicemail, honestly, so I don't mean right now. Unless you're free, of course."

"Coffee would be cool, but if I drink it now I'll be up all night."

Reed had no idea what that meant. Was that a yes or a no? A hint to suggest something else? He
looked around his apartment. "Yeah, I can't take the stuff after five, myself," he said, not
knowing if it was true or not. He didn't drink coffee after about lunchtime, but that was just a
taste thing, not a sleep issue. "How about on the weekend?"

"The weekend is cool." Jack sounded agreeable, if not absolutely ready to have orgasms at the
mere idea of seeing Reed on the weekend for coffee. "I was just about to head over to Rogan's.
Do you rollerblade?"

"I'm able to," Reed said cautiously. "It's been a couple of years, though. I thought Rogan's was
courting the kid demographic now. Like, twelve to sixteen?"

"They are. It's work related." Jack either closed a door or slid a drawer into place, from the
background sounds. "Meet me there. We'll skate, talk a bit. It won't be as lively as a coffee date,
I'm sure, but it'll be public and reasonably safe."

"Reasonably?" Reed's eyebrows shot up. Rogan's was in a pretty good section of town, very
suburban.

"I'm not gonna throw you down with a bunch of kids watching." Jack hung up on him, laughing.

Reed put his phone down and stood there for a moment. Apparently he hadn't entirely messed up
by being himself. "Charlie, I'm going out. Where are my rollerblades?"

***

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 13

Rogan's was a multi-level complex of ramps and rinks to suit most bladers. It had been planned
to be even bigger, with jumps for skate boarders, and both indoor and outdoor elements, but
when the community saw how big it was getting and how much of their park it was going to take
up, they'd petitioned the city to amend the plans. There had been a large dust-up involving
private and public money, contractors, parents' groups, a loose organization of skaters and
bladers, and the city council. It had gotten messy, but the bottom line had come down to the park
being funded, managed and supported by the community. If they wanted it to be downsized; it
was going to be downsized. City property, city rules, city government being elected.

As far as Reed could tell, no one had suffered in the ten years since the park had been built. It
had gradually become the domain of the youth, and the sports enthusiasts who had been lobbying
to use the space as an exercise park had moved to trails and bike lanes. Reed assumed they were
still not happy about the lack of safety on the streets, but the youth seemed to appreciate having
the park as a designated safe place.

There were certainly there in big enough numbers.

Reed parked his car and grabbed his skates, already looking around for Jack. Just looking for
"the tall guy" wasn't going to cut it; apparently fifteen-year-old boys were getting a lot bigger
than he remembered them being when he was one himself.

He hadn't seen Jack by the time he got his skates on, so he left his shoes in a locker and took to
the pathways, staying on the primary level while he got his balance and waited for his muscle
memory to kick in. When he got up to speed and managed to take a corner without either killing
himself or slowing down, he headed up.

A girl gave him a long look and then grinned at him as he sailed on past. "Not too shabby," she
said, her braces flashing at him. They had hot pink rubber bands that matched the streaks in her
black-as-night hair. She had an eyebrow ring, too, and he thought she was probably laughing at
him.

"Hey," he called back as they passed each other again, him going up and her going down on the
ramp next to him. "Know a guy named Jack? Old, like me."

"Oh, sure!" She didn't seem surprised to be asked, and was possibly even a little relieved that
Reed had a real reason to be there. "He's up on the top, in his corner. Go easy, though, I think
someone's with him."

Reed nodded his thanks and kept skating, doubling back and forth on the winding ramps. He felt
like he was skating forever just to go up eight feet to the top, and he was grateful that he wasn't
totally out of shape. Even the small incline was making his thighs ache by the time he reached
the top.

There were fewer skaters up there, since the track simply made one wide loop and then headed
back down, but there were still enough little groups of kids that Reed had to look around for a

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 14

few moments until he spotted Jack. As the girl had said, he was sitting on a bench in the far
corner of the structure, talking with a boy who seemed to be about fifteen or sixteen. They were
both leaning forward, elbows on knees, heads close together.

Reed watched for a moment, not sure if he should approach or not. He decided that as they
weren't laughing and joking around that it would be wise to give them their space -- and the girl
had told him to go easy. So he skated very slowly, doubling back a couple of times and trying
not to look like a creep who was preying on young people.

It was harder than he'd thought it would be, since he had no idea what a predator would look like
and thus had no clue how not to be that. Reed had to assume he was doing okay when none of
the kids looked at him more than once, and none of them went fleeing in terror.

A few minutes later, a small eternity of about three minutes, Reed was leaning on a railing and
watching Jack's corner when the boy Jack was talking to suddenly got up, nodded and skated off,
yelling back a quick, "Thanks, Jack!"

"No problem. See you, Mickey." Jack waved at him and then turned his head to look unerringly
at Reed. He lifted a hand and gestured Reed over with a crook of his fingers.

Reed went, of course, skating over and putting himself in the place so recently vacated by
Mickey. "Hey."

"Hey. Sorry for the wait." Jack smiled at him but didn't get up to skate or give any indication at
all that they were to do anything but sit there.

"It's not a problem." Reed looked at his feet and pointed. "These haven't been out of my closet
for far too long, and honestly? The skate up to here was probably enough to break them in."

Jack laughed, nodding. "Yeah, the incline can wear you out if you're not fourteen, that's for
sure."

"And yet, here you are." Reed looked at him curiously. "The kids seem to expect you to be
around, or they don't mind you at least."

Jack lifted one shoulder. "It's work. This is what I do."

"You hang out at skate parks and talk to kids?"

"Yep." Jack grinned at him and leaned back. "Well, no. Partially."

"Thanks, that's very clear." Reed smiled and shook his head. "It doesn't matter. Although I gotta
say -- as a venue for chatting and trying to regain lost ground, this isn't what I would have
picked."

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 15

"Actually, it's perfect for that. That's why I picked it, and it does matter." Jack met his curious
look with a half smile. "Here's the thing. Flat out, I wouldn't have suggested someone like, say,
Eric meet me here, if you get me."

"I... really don't," Reed admitted. "Is that good or bad?"

"Good." Jack smiled at him again, his face open and friendly. "It means I care what you think
and how you react in this sort of setting." He gestured around them, then turned partially, his arm
resting along the back of the bench. If they were sitting closer he would have been able to put his
arm around Reed's shoulders. "A few years ago I was working for the city in the Parks and
Recreation department. I was in charge of youth programming -- you know, setting up day
camps, hiring the older kids who would run the games, booking venues for things like city-run
art camps."

"Cool." Reed nodded. "That sounds right up your alley, given what I can remember from Silver
Pines."

"Uh-huh. And with my degree I was able to bring different elements to it, not just keeping the
kids busy, but making sure they were engaged as well. I didn't like the admin end of it, but
there's no actual position for 'have fun with kids and take care of them and paint all day while
getting them to play dodge ball', you know? It was close enough."

Reed rolled his wheels on the smooth ramp, feeling the ball bearings slide. "So what happened?"

"I was doing a lot of volunteer work on the side. Youth athletics, some coaching, a bit of
counseling and outreach work. I was finishing up my Master's degree, doing what amounted to
two jobs, and I narrowed my volunteer focus down to work with gay kids."

Reed found himself smiling. "Jeeze, you sound like a freaking hero."

Jack flushed, fast. "Nah. Just a guy with a passion."

"Uh-huh." Reed kept smiling. "Dude. I'm going to come right out and say I'm impressed."

"Yeah, well." Jack looked away, clearly uncomfortable with the praise. His cheeks were pink and
he wouldn't meet Reed's eyes, but he was smiling. "Anyway. The city didn't like that all my
volunteer work was geared that way, or they didn't like that I was out and working with kids, or
they didn't like that I was working so much on school and volunteering, or something. It got
political and a bit messy, since no one actually did anything or said anything officially. It just got
hard to do my job. So I finished up that season, made sure that the youth programs were in place,
and left. Put my energy into school and volunteering." He did look at Reed then. "Moved back in
with my parents to do it."

Reed snorted. "People have moved home for far worse reasons. Some never moved out in the
first place. Plus, you've got your own house now, so it's not like it matters."

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 16

"True." Jack nodded. "True enough."

"So, what are you doing now?"

"Youth programming, a bit of counseling." Jack shrugged. "This. I've sort of carved out a place
for myself. I work as a consultant, so my income is a bit... uh, free range. I have a steady gig at
the YMCA, and I work at two privately-owned after school centers every other week, setting
things up, and planning programs. One of the local PFLAG chapters pays me on a fee-per-
service basis to come and talk to them and also to make myself available to youth who are
coming out. And I spend a lot of time on the streets, out where the kids are. Playing sports,
talking to the adults in the area, talking to the kids. I'm not exactly a lifeline, but I funnel a lot of
kids toward lifelines."

"God." Reed had no idea what to say, not really. "That's huge. That's so much."

"It's important."

"God, yes. Incredibly important. How do balance your life?" It sounded emotionally exhausting
and endlessly challenging.

"Well, a couple of things." Jack looked down again, his teeth catching at his lower lip. "I don't
put in official office hours, not routinely. If I need a break, I take a day or so and just turn off the
phone, read comics. Well, after sending out voicemails to everyone."

"Sort of planned mental health breaks?"

"Yeah." Jack nodded. "I try to give a few days warning. Once, I had to bail after a long night
helping someone; I was emotionally wrecked, took a whole week off. But everyone I work with
understands that sort of thing and, as most of what I'd been doing was trying to involve people
with a lot more training than me, people were sympathetic to how helpless I'd felt." He blinked
slowly. "Okay, that was more than I'd intended to reveal when I suggested you meet me here," he
said with a wry laugh. "Sorry."

"Don't be." Reed wanted to pat his hand or hug him or something. "This is important; it's you. I
appreciate that you're sharing it with me."

Jack lifted his chin. "Yeah, okay. Cool."

Reed's hand somehow moved closer to Jack's thigh, and he turned a bit more on the bench. "So,
taking breaks whenever you need them. What else?"

Jack looked around them, but not as if he was trying to avoid Reed's gaze. "See this? Me, here,
talking to whoever wants to sit with me for a while? This is balancing. It's work, yes, but it's
good and healthy. It makes me feel good. Mickey? He was telling me that his marks have come
up because he asked his dad to take him fishing on the weekends. His dad didn't think Mickey

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 17

wanted to spend time with him, and Mickey thought his dad didn't like him. Now they're hanging
out for a couple hours on the weekend, and Mickey's feeling better. That's balance."

"Okay." Reed nodded. "It sounds fantastic. It really does. How often, though, does the good
nights like this outweigh the ones where the kids come and sit and talk about the fights they're
having with their parents, or how no one understands them, or how school sucks?"

"Actually, the nights I sit right here and get ignored would be the highest." Jack laughed and
shrugged again. "They say hi, they talk, they fill me in sometimes about who broke up with who,
who's smoking, who's suddenly doing drugs. In other places, playing ball or something, I can
kind of see trouble happening by who's skipping games or coming in late or slacking off. My real
point, though, aside from balancing my life, is that this is my life. All the time, really. I don't
work eight hours a day, Reed. More like fifteen. All the time."

Reed thought about that, trying to make his way through what Jack was saying and, more
importantly, why. "I'm going to go out on a limb and admit I'm feeling dense. I honestly hate
that." He rolled his eyes at himself. "However, I learned a long time ago that trying to pass
myself off as understanding everything when I know I don't get it is a sure sign that I'm about to
be in a world of trouble. So. What aren't you telling me in actual spoken words?"

"You have no idea how many points you just scored." Jack leaned forward and kissed him. It
wasn't a long kiss, it wasn't filled with passion, but it was a gift and it was unexpected, and Jack's
lips were perfectly warm and welcome.

"Oh." Reed blinked, refusing to look around to see who had seen them, what attention they were
drawing from the teens. "I guess that being dumb is good?"

"You're not dumb." Jack's smile was bigger and warmer than it had been, and it hadn't exactly
been dim. "I like you. I like you a lot. And I wanted you to know, right from the very beginning
of what could be friendship, what could be more, that I'm always -- always -- working. Even if
we're out walking or at coffee or a movie, if someone I know pops up and needs to talk, I'm
going to hold your hand and listen to them, even if it's just to set up an appointment for later. If
you want to hang out, and I've promised to be down on Washington teaching kids to shoot hoops,
you can come and play before we move on to our thing. But you need to be prepared for that."

Reed was both taken with surprise that he'd be included in those things and blown away by the
amount of thought that Jack had put into the possible scenarios. Then the penny dropped.

"You've had guys not been willing to deal, huh?"

"I've had boyfriends not believe me when I told them. I've have boyfriends who tried to change
my priorities. I've have boyfriends who deserved more of my time than I could give them --
those were the ones I truly regret losing, but they're also the ones I'm still close friends with."

Reed nodded slowly. "It's a thing, isn't it? Walking in, already knowing that while you can be
number one romantically that doesn't mean number one overall."

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 18

"It's a lot to ask," Jack agreed. "I know. And yet, I ask it."

Reed looked around them. There were two or three groups of kids skating, a few more talking.
No one was staring or pointing at them. "Would you like to have coffee with me on the
weekend? I do work eight hours a day, and I have weekends off." He looked at Jack and smiled.
"I can work around your schedule for coffee, anyway."

"I'd like that." Jack smiled at him, and then they were holding hands.

Reed was already formulating a series of questions, but they could wait until there weren't a lot
of kids around. While they didn't need to hear about casual sex and speed dating, Reed needed to
talk about it.

He needed some answers if he was going to step into this life.

***

Charlie was not a happy cat, but Reed really didn't care. He didn't care if Charlie stayed or left; it
wasn't like Charlie was being booted from the end of the bed by company, after all. Just Reed
restlessly kicking the sheets down to the footboard, his hand wrapped around his cock, and his
hips lifting high.

That seemed to be enough for Charlie, though, and he sat by the bedroom door, pointedly not
watching.

Reed ignored him right back and moaned, the dildo in his ass shifting as one of Reed's feet
slipped on the sheets. He hadn't meant to move, but he liked the effect so he did it again, his hand
stroking faster.

He'd been working for this particular orgasm for a while, the one in the shower being fast and
easy after work. Then Reed had enjoyed dinner, settled in to read for a while, and taken himself
off to bed for a nice, long fuck. Alone.

He wanted it out of his system before he met Jack for coffee the next morning.

The thought of Jack had Reed reaching down between his legs to jiggle the dildo. "Oh, fuck."
His eyes went wide and he froze in place, his hips stilling as his cock throbbed. His orgasm was
right in front of him, too soon and too big. With a growl Reed realized he wasn't going to hold it
off, so he rolled onto his side, held his cock in a loose fist and fucked himself hard with the toy.

Over and over he pushed it into his ass, hitting his gland repeatedly until he was crying out, his
hips moving without him trying, fucking his fist. His cock was slippery with lube and pre-come,
and then he was shooting, coming hard enough that he was grateful he was lying down.

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 19

The phone rang and he ignored it, his lungs hurting from the air he was dragging in, and his ass
hurting from the dildo, now too big and too ribbed.

Charlie seemed to be utterly disgusted with him.

Laughing softly, Reed slid the toy out with a groan and took a few minutes to clean up and
change the sheets. He thought maybe he needed another shower, but he was sleepy, so he went
back to bed, taking his phone with him.

The missed call was Jack, which made him smile. Then he blushed, thinking about what he'd
been doing and what would have happened if he'd been able to answer the phone. Explaining the
post-sex heavy breathing could be very embarrassing, especially if it was inspired by the
unknowing person on the other end of the line. The only thing more embarrassing would be
picking up and having to explain to one's mother.

Reed tucked himself in and watched Charlie make himself at home, then called Jack back.

"Jack Fields."

"Hey, it's Reed. How are you?"

"Hey! I'm good, I just called you."

Reed looked at Charlie. "Yeah, I know. Caller ID, man. You should look into it. New-fangled
invention."

"Nah, hate it. I just answer my phone and people talk."

"You don't screen for telemarketers?" Reed had been screening his calls for so long it was second
nature. First nature. He never, ever picked up without knowing who was on the other end.

"I love telemarketers!" Jack laughed. "Seriously, they're like shiny little bright spots in my day.
Always so happy to talk to me."

Reed narrowed his eyes. "You torture them, don't you?"

"Yep!" Jack sounded delighted with himself, or possibly that Reed understood him. "Anyway, I
called. My timing must be a little off to miss you by only a few minutes."

"I was here," Reed said without thinking. "Um. I couldn't get to the phone. Or rather, I could
have, I just wasn't really able to talk."

There was a longish pause and then Jack said, "You know, I can actually hear you blushing over
the phone. That's amazing."

Reed giggled. He couldn't help it. "Sorry."

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 20

"No, no. No sorry. But you do have to tell me what you were doing that you could get to the
phone but weren't able to talk. Watching porn?"

"You have to tell me why you're calling first," Reed countered.

"Tricky. I like it." Jack barely paused. "I was calling because I had a sudden hole in my schedule
and wondered if you wanted to get together."

Reed looked at Charlie, hanging out at the foot of his bed, where he was all tucked in for the
night. "Start coffee a bit early?"

"If you're willing. What were you doing?"

Reed shrugged. There didn't seem a lot of point in being coy, given that Jack had already
watched him being fucked and heard him beg for it. "Getting off. When the phone rang I was just
coming."

This time there was a pause, though not a long one. "What were you doing?" Jack's voice didn't
exactly drop in pitch, but it definitely sounded like Reed had his attention.

Reed allowed himself to smile. "I was jacking off and using a dildo. It was good, too -- thus the
breathlessness and not being able to speak."

"Oh." Reed could hear Jack swallow.

"Interested?"

"God, yes. Can I come over?"

"I have some questions, actually." Reed, after all, was two orgasms in for the night and while he
was pretty sure he could entertain Jack with something more than merely adequate results, he
wasn't above taking care of business first.

"Yeah?" Jack sounded amused. "Go ahead. Is it like a test? I test well."

Reed laughed. "No, not a test. I'm just curious about some things. Well, one big thing. You do all
this great work, right? You're self-sacrificing, dedicated, likely to burn out before you're forty,
and you're putting the good of a lot of people ahead of everything else. It's very, very admirable
and makes me want to climb you like a tree and hump you like... well, like I do. So, how come
you're going to speed dating--"

"Charity event!"

"--and picking up people like Eric, who you wouldn't invite to work, and going into hotel rooms
to watch me fuck around with Michael?"

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 21

"James. His name was James."

"I know." Reed smiled.

"Nice." Jack chuckled. "You're tricky. Why did you use the wrong name?"

Reed decided that Jack sounded more curious than defensive. "I wanted to know if you
remembered a guy you'd probably never see again and, also, if it was important enough for you
to call me on it."

"I see," Jack said thoughtfully. "And what did you learn?"

"That you remembered, and that even a casual trick was important enough for you to take note
of."

"The two of you were noteworthy."

Reed nodded, once. "You're straying from the question. Wasn't that whole night out of character
for you? Or, at the very least, potentially damaging to your career?"

"No, and not really." Jack cleared his throat. "I'm self-employed. I was at a charity event, I'm out
and proud, and no one actually saw the four of us. It was what it was. I'm hardly averse to safe,
casual sex. You aren't either."

"No." Reed nudged Charlie with his foot. "I'm definitely not averse to safe, casual sex. In fact, as
I'm a serial monogamist, any sex I have between boyfriends is, by definitely, casual. And I play
safe."

"Mmhmm. Question."

"Shoot."

"Heh." Jack cleared his throat. "How long was your longest relationship?"

Reed nodded, approving of the question. "Three years and four months. He moved out of state
for a job; we're still in touch."

"Still in love?" That one came with a piercing tone.

"No."

"Hmm. How long ago did your last relationship end?"

Reed grinned. "Mr. Fields. Are you declaring your intentions?"

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 22

Jack laughed, loudly. "Probably. I like you, Reed. And you're sexy as hell. You're funny, and I
like that you haven't tried to play me or smooth talk me, and that you have reservations. That
means you're sane. You don't have sex hang-ups, you talk straight, and you handled yourself
really well at Rogan's. You didn't come over and interrupt, you didn't stare, and you didn't freak
out the kids. I want to... to... yeah. I'm stating my intentions. So. How long have you been on the
free market?"

Reed eyed Charlie and wondered if he'd wake up to ruined shoes, making the cat move twice in
one night. "Long time. Months. Come on over."

"I'll turn off my phone."

***

"That's Charlie."

"He hates me."

"Yeah. But he doesn't like me much, either." Reed had put on sweatpants and T-shirt, and had
made an effort to put some food together while Jack was en route, but it seemed that Jack had
other things on his mind. "You're not backing me toward the kitchen," he said helpfully. "There's
sliced fruit. And cheese. Some crackers."

"Where am I backing you to?" Jack took another few steps, crowding Reed down the short hall.
"Not the bathroom, I hope. Although, now that I think about it, shower sex is good."

Reed tugged Jack's shirt out of his jeans and petted his abs. "I asked you the questions at speed
dating. I know what you like."

Jack's eyes went dark, and he shoved Reed into the nearest wall, conveniently located just
outside of Reed's bedroom. Charlie was long gone. "And I saw you. Watched you. I know what
you like."

Reed could feel the hard line of Jack's cock pressing against him. "Been thinking about it a lot?"

"Yes. You know I have."

"No." Reed shook his head and arched his back a little so he could rub on Jack's erection. "I
didn't know. But I'm glad of it."

Jack attacked his mouth, kissing him hard, his teeth sharp where they pressed against Reed's lips.

Reed groaned and rubbed harder. Jack knew what he liked.

When he pulled away, Jack's eyes were dilated and he was breathing hard, his chest pressing
against Reed's. "So, we're clear on the want?"

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 23

"Clear. Bedroom's right there."

Jack didn't waste time, and Reed was done with questions. The only thing he had left to decide

was where to start. Jack was built, his body strong, and Reed just wanted to touch him. Jack
didn't object.

Naked, they rolled on the bed, hands and mouths exploring, until Reed could maneuver them
around to have Jack sprawled, legs wide spread. Kneeling over Jack, Reed paused to enjoy the
view, one hand caressing Jack's cock in a lazy stroke. "God, you're more beautiful than I
remembered."

"You didn't get a good look. You didn't touch."

"You kept away."

"I wanted to be sure."

Reed nodded and stroked him again. "I get it. Thank you."

"Thank me with sex." Jack beamed at him and lifted his hips. "Please."

Reed laughed, but he was already moving down to lick at Jack's cock. "Do you want to fuck
me?"

"Do you switch?"

Reed nodded, which resulted in his head bobbing while he sucked on Jack's dick. Jack's hand
was heavy on his head, his fingers pressing.

"Then you do me. Please." The last word was a gasp, Jack's cock throbbing against Reed's
tongue. "I know you already had a special moment with your toy tonight. I don't want to hurt
you."

Reed rolled his eyes and came off of Jack's cock with a pop, then replaced his mouth with a
hand. "Is that really why?" he asked, starting to lick wetly at Jack's balls.

"N-no." Jack groaned and spread his legs more. "I just want to feel you in me."

"Awesome." Reed looked up at him and winked, then went back to licking. Jack was one of
those guys who groomed well, and Reed loved soaking nice skin like his. He licked and nuzzled,
then sucked on one nut before going lower to lick over Jack's tight little hole.

"Fuck! Yes!" It was a predictable, though wanted, reaction; Jack had been honest when Reed had
asked about what did it for him.

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 24

"Find the lube, it's under the pillow," Reed ordered, then he went back to rimming Jack's ass,
pushing and tugging and licking like mad, scrubbing his tongue over Jack's hole.

Jack was going wild, moaning and writhing, pulling his legs up and holding himself open while
Reed licked. The lube and rubbers got tossed to the end of the bed and Reed gloved up without
stopping. He plunged his tongue, and then wet fingers into Jack's ass, pegging his gland with one
long finger and making Jack yell in response.

"I think you're ready," Reed said, grinning as he loomed up over Jack's body, pushing his knees
back and holding them there as he lined up his cock. "Yeah?"

"Yes!" Jack's eyes were huge and he rocked up, so the crown of Reed's cock pushed in. "Reed.
Please."

Reed nodded and pushed in, going slowly.

Jack, however, was having none of that. He rocked and moved and thrust against Reed, until they
were moving together, kissing each other hard and thrusting with nothing resembling a rhythm.
Reed reached for his plastic bottle and offered, but Jack shook his head, refusing the poppers and
Reed grinned, humping into him so hard they both swore.

"God, you're tight."

"God, you're huge."

Reed laughed, Jack swore, and Reed balanced himself on one hand long enough to reach for
Jack's cock. He stroked twice, his whole body tight, and then Jack came. Long ribbons of spunk
coated Jack's belly, but Reed was only peripherally aware, since his cock was being milked by
Jack's ass.

"God. Oh, God, yes." Reed closed his eyes and went with it, pumping into Jack's body for a very
few strokes before coming for the third time that night. "Oh, nice."

"Uh-huh." Jack was breathing hard, panting almost, but he was also pulling Reed down on top of
him. "Really, really nice." He took a long, sloppy kiss. "Nice."

Reed smiled, curling in. It was nice. Jack was nice. Jack was possibly too good for him, really,
but Reed was going to do his best to live up to being chosen.

Speed dating. Fred Flintsone. Hot sex and declared intentions.

"My life is so weird," Reed told Jack, nuzzling his jaw. "But I'm really glad you're in it."

"Back in it." Jack nodded. "Me, too." He kissed Red again, and they lay there, just looking at
each other for a while.

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 25

Blue eyes like summer skies. Reed decided that they were the nicest eyes he'd ever known and
that if speed dating wasn't precisely a perfect way to meet people, speed dating the slow way was
working just fine.

~end

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 26

Speed Dating the Slow Way
Copyright © 2009 by Chris Owen

All rights reserved. No part of this eBook may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever
without written permission except in case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or
reviews. For information address Torquere Press, Inc., PO Box 2545, Round Rock, TX 78680

ISBN: 978-1-60370-814-2, 1-60370-814-6
Printed in the United States of America.
Torquere Press, Inc.: Single Shot electronic edition / September 2009

Torquere Press eBooks are published by Torquere Press, Inc., PO Box 2545, Round Rock, TX
78680

Speed Dating the Slow Way - 27