Monday dawned with a slight chill in the air. It was the beginning of Fall, and Justin could see all the colorful orange and gold leaves on the trees outside his hotel window. It was the second morning in a row that he had awakened to an empty room. His co-star, Jimmy, had obviously already found a hook-up for the shoot. Justin wasn't disappointed. He enjoyed the solitude. Especially now, while he was busily trying to make some sense of his jumbled up feelings for the movie's ad man... one Mr. Brian Kinney.
Three days... that's all it took for the self-assured man to turn Justin's well ordered life upside down. Last night, Brian had forced memories out of Justin's closet that he had believed were long since buried. He started to remember little things that he had refused to think about for over a half dozen years now. He remembered how very much he had liked his drama club classmate Tad, and how much he had wanted the teen to spend the night with him. He had told himself it was only so they could work on scenes from the upcoming school play together, but it had devastated him when his father had gotten so angry. It wasn't as if they couldn't practice at school often enough. But Justin had refused to delve into why he avoided his friend after his father's tirade, so he was never forced to delve into why it had hurt so much.
Justin remembered the uncomfortable feeling he got the day that Daphne, who had been his friend for what seemed forever, wanted to get a little closer than usual. They had gone to a skating party together in their Sophomore year, and she had tried to kiss him on the mouth when he walked her to her door. He had allowed the kiss, making sure it was brief. He told himself it was because her parents could have opened the door at any time, but somehow he knew there was more to it than that. Strangely, she never was that forward again even though they continued to date all through the remainder of high school.
Justin began to think about the very attractive young actor who had given him a heads up on the cheap apartment available in West Hollywood when he first moved there. The young man, whom he couldn't name any longer, had tried hitting on Justin unsuccessfully. Justin could only remember how sorry he was when the fella disappeared from the scene just a day after Justin moved into the apartment. He had enjoyed being with him and talking about acting. His reaction to the rebuff had a lot to do with why Justin avoided all his neighbors after that. It didn't occur to him that he might be avoiding the lot of them, which were very much predominantly gay, just so that he wouldn't be tempted to feel an attraction to any of them.
And now, despite his valiant efforts to suppress any other feelings, besides the need to be an actor, he found himself most definitely attracted to a man. And not just any man, oh no... this was a man that refused to be denied. But he had to be, Justin told himself. Justin had come back to Pennsylvania for only one reason... to make a name for himself. He wanted to be respected in the business. If he mixed business with pleasure, he was bound to mess up. He had to shake this feeling. He would go to the studio, get his instructions for the day, and do his job. With any luck, he wouldn't even see Brian Kinney.
****************************************************
The first day on the job turned out better than Justin could have hoped. There were no surprise visits to distract him and things ran smoothly. He received the revised copy of his script from the script girl and visited wardrobe. The fittings moved along easily for him, but he had to feel sympathy for the tall good looking actor playing Rage and Jimmy. Their costumes were tighter than a virgin's ass, and it was obvious that they were uncomfortably hot in them on top of everything else. 'Better them than me', he thought to himself. The rest of the day he spent reading lines with his fellow actors. The film was going to be shot almost in sequence so that they could get as many outdoor scenes in the can as possible. The very earliest shots in Rage's Lair before the bashing and after, with JT, would be the final scenes to be filmed. Justin was relieved. He wanted to get to know Dirk, the actor playing Rage, much better before any love scenes were filmed.
The one person who was conspicuously absent the entire day was Brian. Not that Justin figured he needed to show up. The filming hadn't even begun. The ad man wasn't necessary right away, but for some reason Justin was disappointed. He caught himself looking for the tall figure several times during the day. It was getting a little irritating because he didn't want to get distracted like this. He even caught himself picturing Brian's face as he read the scenes that were between Rage and JT. He overheard Dirk telling Jimmy that Justin certainly put a lot of feeling into his scenes. Justin could feel his face warming from the slow blush that spread at that comment.
The actors were just being dismissed for the day by the assistant director when Justin saw Brian standing in front of his Jeep, as if waiting for someone. He stepped out the door of the studio being used for indoor scenes and crossed the street. Brian leaned against the side of his Jeep, a slow smile forming as the blond beauty approached him. Brian had been unable to concentrate all day at work. It was definitely a first for him. He kept remembering the look on Justin's face when he had joined the young man in Lindsay's bathroom.
Brian had seen enough cocks in his day to fill a football stadium, but he had never seen one more attractive than young Justin's. The urge to rest his own impressive tool against the young man's was almost too much to resist. The sad thing was that he could tell that Justin had the same urge, even though it clearly disturbed him. Justin was definitely a late bloomer but Brian had absolutely no doubt now that he belonged in Brian's world, and there was nobody better than him to show the actor the way. In the beginning, he had thought the young man was simply deep into the closet but now Brian felt that Justin truly didn't know who he was. It was going to be Brian's mission to open his eyes. He looked forward to teaching Justin more.
Justin stepped up in front of Brian, who gave him a wicked grin in greeting.
"Did we have a date that I forgot about?" he asked Brian.
"I don't date," Brian returned with his tongue poking the side of his cheek. His grin spread wider. "I just figured you might be hungry after your busy day, and I thought you might want a little company for dinner. Debbie asked me earlier if I was going to bring you to the diner tonight. She's on duty. Apparently, she's taken quite a liking to you. She doesn't hand out nicknames to very many folks, you know."
"I like her too," Justin responded. "She's quite a character, but I can see that she loves her family, whether they're blood or not."
"You don't know the half of it. If it weren't for Debbie and Vic...and Michael too, of course...I'm not sure I'd still be alive. My family would have stepped right over my body if I was lying in a gutter dead, but whenever things got too rough at home I could always escape to Debbie's. I lost count how many times she and Vic rescued me from the old man."
Brian was surprised at how much he had just revealed to someone he had known for such a short time.
"Anyway, are you interested in another visit with our favorite red head?"
Justin didn't have to think twice. "Sounds good to me. Just let me stop at the hotel and get changed. I'm all sweaty," he said, trying to sound casual.
Brian fought the urge to let Justin know he liked his men sweaty. Instead he told Justin to hop in, and then turned the Jeep towards the hotel being used by the movie's production staff.
*********************************************
It was a toss up between which man had controlled himself the best after Brian and Justin reached the hotel room. Once Justin entered the cramped room, he threw off the light sweater and tee he was wearing and tossed it onto the growing pile near his night stand. Brian couldn't help thinking that the room had the feel of a dormitory space, with Justin's things scattered on one side of the twin beds and Jimmy's on the other. In the next moment, his thoughts became distracted by the smooth hairless chest of the young man in front of him.
Justin was by no means muscular, but neither was he soft or feminine. He had skin the color of alabaster, with a faint glow to it in the room's soft lighting. His belly was flat with a deep naval that Brian longed to tickle with his tongue. He turned his back to Brian to remove his jeans. Brian drew in a deep breath. Justin had to have the most perfectly rounded bubble butt he had ever seen. Not an ounce of fat, but plenty of cushioning. His slim waist only added to the beauty of his rear. It took a lot of restraint for Brian not to grab on to that ass and play with it. Brian wondered if Justin knew what he was doing to his libido.
The moment the jeans had joined his other clothes on the floor, Justin headed for the bathroom, grabbing a large towel and washcloth from the dresser on his way. Brian sat on the edge of Justin's bed and did his best not to picture the blond naked in the shower, soaping his body and letting the water flow over him. If he hadn't been worried about scaring the kid off too soon, he would have been stripped and in the shower minutes after the door closed. But Brian had the sense that Justin wasn't to be rushed. He was now convinced that Justin truly didn't know who he was but was beginning to, and Brian REALLY wanted to be there when that happened.
Meanwhile Justin stood under the steamy water doing his best not to call out to Brian to join him. Brian had no idea how far along the young man had come in self-discovery in just a matter of days. Brian Kinney had awakened something in Justin that refused to remain quiet any longer. He wasn't convinced it was a good thing yet... these feelings inside him... but Justin was no coward. He wasn't going to run from the emotions that Brian stirred up in him, but he wasn't about to plunge in head first either. He felt frightened one minute, exhilarated the next, whenever he thought of getting close to a man... no, not any man, just Brian Kinney. He wasn't one hundred percent sure yet of which way to go with the ad man. In the meantime, he unconsciously ended up jerking himself off... again... while soaping his privates and thinking of Brian.
Nearly a half hour passed before Justin opened the bathroom door letting a cloud of steam escape into the outer room. He stepped out looking fresh and smelling even better. His blond locks were darkened and damp against his scalp. He looked good enough to eat. Brian approved of the bulge that poked out from the tightly wrapped towel around his middle.
"I was beginning to think you were scrubbing your skin off in there. Do you always take such long showers? A man could starve waiting on you, you know."
"Sorry. I told you I was all sweaty. I wouldn't want to stink up Debbie's diner... not after she was so nice to me," Justin shot back at Brian. "Look, why don't you go down to the Jeep and I'll join you in just a few. I promise."
Brian got the hint. It was obvious that the young man wasn't prepared for Brian to get a full view peek at all his goodies. He gave the boy a wicked grin and said, "Sure, see you down there. Don't take all day."
Justin was relieved. He knew he couldn't handle standing naked as a jaybird in front of the man. Not yet, if ever.
*****************************************************
It was totally silent inside the Jeep on the ride back to the hotel after dinner. Justin was still smarting at some of the things he had heard at the diner. Those guys were Brian's friends... apparently his best friends... and several of them couldn't wait to give Justin the scoop on what a cold son of a bitch he was. Why the fuck did they hang around him if he was such a bastard? Even Debbie had offered a warning of sorts. And it had started out so nice.
When they first got to the diner, everyone greeted Brian enthusiastically. A couple of connecting booths were filled with Brian's circle of friends, minus the girls and young Gus. They had left room on one side of a booth for Brian and Justin to slide in. Seconds later, Deb arrived with pad in hand to take their orders. There was a lot of good-natured ribbing going on throughout the meal. As the gang were wiping their mouths and cleaning the last bites from their plates, Debbie brought over a platter of the house specialty, homemade lemon bars, for the men's dessert.
"On the house, in honor of our 'soon to be famous' guest," she stated.
A few of the men grabbed a bar while a few others refrained, including Brian. Justin could smell the pungent lemon fragrance and decided it would be rude to refuse such a nice offering. As he bit carefully into the tangy treat, his lips puckered up in a tight purse.
"Now those are lips begging to be kissed," joked Emmett.
Justin turned a cute shade of pink again. It was becoming a habit since arriving in Pittsburgh. Not long after that, Brian got up to visit the little boys room. The minute he stepped away, Michael leaned over to warn Justin not to get too tangled up with Brian. He announced that once Brian finished his job of helping Justin with his role for the movie, he would drop the young man like a hot potato.
"Oh my yes, sweetie," echoed Emmett. If you get too attached to our Brian, he'll break your heart. He's a decent enough guy... I mean he's loyal to a fault with his friends, and all... but he has no intention of ever becoming serious with anyone. As he has told us countless times over and over again."
Ted added his two cents, when Justin turned to look at Brian's second-in-command.
"They're right, Justin. He's the world best boss. He treats everyone with respect. But he's a tomcat in the love department. He may be loyal, but his dick knows no such boundaries."
Justin's chest began to feel tight. "I don't know why you're telling me all this. There is nothing between Brian and me except a job he's doing. He's agreed to give me some insight into the part I'm going to play for a movie that he will be representing. That's it... nothing more."
Debbie caught the last of the conversation and bent over to refill the water glasses. She gave Justin a sympathetic smile and added her words of warning.
"The boys aren't trying to scare you, Sunshine. They just want to give you a heads up... just in case. I love Brian like a son but I wouldn't want my son having romantic thoughts about the man." She turned a knowing glance on Michael, who had the decency to look guilty.
"Well, I appreciate it Debbie... everyone... but I can assure you that romance is the last thing on my mind where Mr. Kinney is concerned."
He did his best to sound convincing. Luckily, Brian appeared at the end of the diner aisle and returned to the table. Brian knew right away that the atmosphere had changed slightly from when he had left, but decided not to pursue it. The whole gang then went on to Woody's where they enjoyed the rest of the evening. After a couple of hours, Justin informed Brian that he had an early call so he needed to get back. Now he was lost in his thoughts sitting in Brian's Jeep. He didn't even realize it when they had reached the hotel and Brian parked in the darkened hotel lot, turning off the engine.
He looked up as Brian spoke. "Okay, give it to me. What happened when I left to take a leak, and don't tell me nothing. You're not that good an actor."
"Well, thanks," Justin answered, trying to make light of things.
"You're welcome. Now answer the question."
Justin paused, considering whether to say anything. Finally he realized Brian wasn't going to drop it until he was forthcoming.
"I'm just wondering why your so-called friends are so harsh about you... even Debbie."
"What are you talking about, Justin?"
"I'm talking about the things they said about you. Practically every one of them warned me that you couldn't be trusted. Don't get me wrong. They didn't say you were bad, exactly. They even said you were loyal to your friends. They just said that if I was dumb enough to fall for you, that you would really hurt me."
"But you're not interested in a relationship with a man, or so I was led to believe. Am I wrong, Justin?"
"No...I mean yes...I mean no. Oh, fuck! I don't know what I mean. I don't know how I feel any more."
Justin sounded so defeated. Brian felt sorry to see the kid suffering.
"Justin," he asked the young man in the darkness, "do you feel something for me?"
Justin turned to Brian. He could clearly make out the man's handsome face with the aid of the security lights above. There was none of the wolfish look to his face now. There was a gentleness in Brian's eyes that warmed Justin and made him feel safe.
"I... I think I do. I..."
Brian gathered Justin's small frame and pulled him into his arms. He raised Justin's face up to his and lowered his lips onto Justin's. Again, the young man felt himself responding. But this time he had no desire to pull away or get out of the embrace that was making him feel so good. The kiss deepened and lingered. After what seemed hours, Brian released Justin, who was finding it hard to breathe right.
"Justin, I want you to go up and get a good night's sleep. I also want you to think about what you really want. This isn't a movie Justin. It's your life. You have to choose, for yourself, how you want to live it. Do you want to be who you really are, or do you want to please others and live a lie? Its your business. I'll pick you up at the studio tomorrow after work. We'll... talk... then."
"You have to leave?"
"I have things to take care of, but I promise to see you tomorrow. You have my word."
For some reason, Justin believed Brian. He reluctantly got out of the Jeep and headed for the lobby entrance. He looked back as he heard Brian rev up his engine and peel out. If he had seen the man's face he would have known just how pissed Brian was. He didn't need to worry. Others would be hearing from Brian tonight. Justin touched his lips with his fingertips. He could still feel Brian there. He didn't have to think about what he wanted. He knew now. He wanted Brian... warnings or no warnings.
To be continued...........