Greg is straight, but makes easy money offering his services to gay men online. He's inexpensive but has a few ground rules: never reveal his real name, never invite a client home, and never, ever, ever agree to more than three appointments with anyone. Ever. RC is handsome, loaded, and lives in a big house in a swanky neighborhood. Greg doesn't understand why such a guy needs to pay for companionship, but RC’s been burned by men who are interested in only his money, and paying someone takes off the pressure of maintaining a relationship. Their first appointment goes well, and they schedule another. But Greg is surprised when RC calls him a few days later just to hang out. Greg doesn’t pal around with his clients; it’s strictly business. But there’s something about the guy that makes him say yes. At dinner, RC introduces himself as Ryan, and Greg breaks his own rule and shares his real name, too. By the end of the evening, the lines between client and friend have begun to blur. Does this count as their second appointment even if they don’t have sex? By the time they meet up again, Greg is half in love with Ryan. Will this next appointment be their last, or will Greg embrace something he didn’t even know he was looking for?

Blurring the Lines

“I’m not into guys,” I assure him. “We just screwed around, there was nothing else to it. I mean, I had a girlfriend at the time. I date girls. I’m not—”


“Gay, I know.” Ryan sort of swirls his wine glass in one hand, as if telling me to continue. Before I can, he asks, “Wait, so your girlfriend’s okay with you doing what you do?”


Just then, the waiter returns with our appetizer, and I concentrate on spreading antipasto onto the toast to avoid meeting Ryan’s stare across the table. “I don’t have a girlfriend at the moment.”


He doesn’t say anything else for a long moment. When I have the piece of toast liberally coated with the tomatoes, I take a bite and look up to find him staring at me again. His eyes are so pale, they make even the most cursory glance seem intense. I feel as if he’s somehow looking throughme into my very soul. See? Nothing gay in here, I want to say, but the bread in my mouth keeps me quiet.


Chapter 6