"Hey, Kevin! Who are you here to see?," Madison, the hostess, asked him as soon as he walked in the door.

"That obvious, huh?," he grinned at her.

He was dressed in a simple white button down, green silk tie, black sports jacket, khakis, and his Doc Marten boots. It was to code for Tony's dinner hour, but also sharp on a guy who's usual get up was track pants and tshirts.

"Duh, dude. A guy like you is rarely in a place like this unless it's for a date," the petite hostess smiled as she grabbed a couple of menus. "Booth or table?"

"Actually, I think they're already here. Did anyone named Danté come in?," Kevin asked as he leaned on the hostess stand. It was only 735PM but he couldn't be sure how much a stickler for time Danté as this was their first interaction outside of the comic book shop.

Madison cocked a brow. She was only two years behind the cul-de-sac in school, so she knew about Kevin's shenanigans, but Danté was neither Bridget nor Marcie.

"Yeah, he is. He's one of our regulars," she said as she put the menus and gestured for Kevin to follow her to the patio. "How do you know him?"

"Met him at the comic book store," Kevin shrugged.

"Didn't think he'd be your type, Kevin," Madison said, a wary smile on her face and a judgmental glint in her eye.

"Takes all kinds, Maddie," he grinned as he clapped her on the back and waved to Danté who was seated at his regular outdoor table in a secluded corner of the patio.


Danté tapped his watch as Kevin sat down and the redhead rolled his eyes.

"I'm here, aren't I?," Kevin asked as he gave him his most winning smile and Danté grew shy.

"I suppose. But for a first date, you have to admit it's a bad look, Kevin."

"Or maybe I like to make an entrance?," Kevin grinned as he grabbed a menu and waggled his eyebrows at him behind it.

The incredulous look the man gave him as he waved their waiter over made Kevin laughed out loud.

"K-Kevin?!"

Kevin looked up to see that Jimmy was their waiter.

"'Sup, Jimmy! I didn't know you worked here," Kevin grinned at his old friend.

"Just for the summer, then I head back into the city. I'm surprised to see you here, though," he said quietly as he pulled his notepad out of his apron.

"I like food, dude. What's good?"

"I'm partial to the shrimp alfredo," Danté said.

"With the Cupcake Pinto Grigio, right?," Jimmy asked as he jotted down the order.

"Exactly. Kevin, would you mind splitting a bottle of wine while we wait?"

Kevin bit his lip as Jimmy hid behind his notepad.

"I'll take that as a no, then," the Italian smiled. "I will have Pappa al Pomodoro to start, though, and just bring me a bottle of the Cupcake Pinto."

"And I'll take a Dr Pepper and the bruschetta."

"Got it! I'll be back with your Dr Pepper and the wine in a bit, but I'm gonna need to see some ID, Danté," Jimmy grinned as Danté rolled his eyes and pulled out his wallet, dug out his driver's license and handed it to the blond boy, who's now perfect grin was smirking and annoying the hell out of Kevin.

When Jimmy left, Kevin turned to Danté and hissed, "How old are you?!"

"35. How old are you?!"

"20," Kevin sighed as he ran a hand down his face and grinned as he shook his head. "Dude, you don't look it."

"Thank you, Kevin." Danté smiled as the sommelier poured his wine. "Bathing myself in the blood of my enemies has served me well over the years."

"And who would be stupid enough to cross little old you?," Kevin grinned as he put his elbow on the table and his chin in his hand.

"I'm gay man in interior design. You tell me?," Danté smirked back.

"Whoa," Kevin said with wide eyes. "So all those design shows are true?"

"Somewhat," Danté sighed as Jimmy brought their appetizers and Kevin's Dr Pepper. "There's truth and lies in all stereotypes. In some places, things are chill as you Americans put it. Other places are indeed, cutthroat."

"You cut anybody, yet?," Kevin asked with a cocked brow as he looked the menu over.

"I cut fabric and I cut people off," Dante replied as he stole one of Kevin's pieces of bruschetta and dipped it in his soup. "Cutting people gets blood on my fabric and that's a bitch to deal with so I try to keep it to a minimum."

"How is it?," Kevin asked as he eyeballed his bruschetta in Danté's soup.

The Italian double dipped the bread and grinned as he said, "Say, 'ah.'"

Kevin said, 'ah,' and then moaned at the flavor explosion Danté put in his mouth.

"This is good, man."

Danté just gave him a sly grin.


Danté got the shrimp alfredo and Kevin got the chicken parmesan and dinner went well.

Until she showed up.

"Kevin Anthony Barr!"

And Kevin wanted to cut her.

"Bridget."

"Who's you're friend?," she damn near sneered.

"Danté, Bridget. Bridget, this is my date, Danté."

"Oh."

"Uh huh."

"Seriously though, Kev?," she said as she turned to face him after blowing off Danté's outstretched hand. "He's a guy. This is low, especially for you."

"How is this low?," Kevin asked, confused as to how she thought him telling her he had a date tonight when he ran into her yesterday afternoon would escalate into him being low.

"What if he wants more? Just stringing a gay guy along to blow me off is low."

"I ain't stringing anybody along, Bridget," Kevin said coldly.

"You're gay?!," she hissed at him.

"Half. But I'm on a full date and you're being rude."

Jimmy standing behind Bridget with their to go containers and groaning gave Danté the moxie to give what he really wanted tonight a shot.

"Voglio uscire di qi?" (You wanna get out of here?)

"Absofuckinglutely," Kevin grinned at a horrified Bridget after Jimmy shoved her out of the way to hand them their containers and their bill.

Kevin boxed up their leftovers, paid the bill, and nearly drug Danté out of the restaurant.

"Where to?"


They got gelato at the candy store and walked over to Peach Creek Square.

"Who is she?," Danté asked once they sat down on a bench in front of the courthouse.

"Bridget?"

Danté nodded.

"Worst wanna be ex girlfriend ever."

And Danté laughed until he damn near cried.

"Since when?," he asked once he calmed down.

"Freshman year."

"College?"

"High school."

"My word!"

"And everyone else's," Kevin sighed as he shook his head.

"Have you ever?"

"Not with her."

"But all of the other girls?," Danté asked with a smirk.

"Just her best friend," Kevin grinned.

"KEVIN!"

"I know, I know," Kevin snickered. "I'm a terrible person."

"I'll say."

"You do that," Kevin smiled as he stole a bite of Danté's gelato, ignoring his sigh.

"But you said you're half."

Kevin heard the apprehension in his tone.

"Couple of guys here and there," he shrugged.

"Out?"

Kevin sighed.

"None that I could get."


While they took a bit of a walk after finishing their dessert, Danté's phone lit up with messages from his design team and worried customers. It got to the point that Danté had to cut things short.

"It's only 10!," Kevin whined.

"Do you not have work or school tomorrow?," Danté asked, wondering if the very young man in front of him was another baby attached to mommy and daddy's pocketbooks.

"Graduated in May and I have tomorrow off. Plus, it's summer. I'm just getting started, dude," Kevin grinned as he grabbed his hips and pulled him close.

Danté thanked God that his phone case had a rubberized grip on it or he'd dropped it when Kevin tugged him into his strong body.

"I'll say. But slow your engine's there, cowboy. I still have some work to do before I can play and it's looking like I may have to go home first."

"I'll come with."

"WHAT?!"

Danté looked horrified and Kevin's grin grew devious.

"You can show me what you do and we can watch a movie or something. Nothing big," he said as he gave him his most easy going smile.

But standing in Big Red's embrace made Danté want to take all the big leaps he'd been thinking about since he first laid eyes on the redhead.

"Ok, Mr Big," Danté said as he sent a quick text, "follow me home and we'll see what we can get into."

Kevin released him and kissed his cheek to wipe the pout off his face Kevin's letting go placed there as he said, "Lead the way."

The way was in the city. A nice prewar warehouse building had been converted into gorgeous condos with open floor plans. Danté's was on the sixth floor of the 12 story building and the view was spectacular. Windows faced the north, east and west so sunlight flooded the place with warmth everyday. It had two bedrooms and a study, a fireplace, a powder room as well as two full baths, gourmet chef's kitchen, terrace off the dining room, and a den off the kitchen.

"Dude, can I live here when I grow up?," Kevin asked after Danté gave him a tour and poured them both a glass of a sweet red wine.

"Work hard and you can live wherever you want," Danté said as he cocked his glass in Kevin's direction.

Kevin returned his mini toast and took a drink of the sweet wine.

"I plan on it."


Danté let Kevin in on a few of his new projects that were asking for his time that evening and then Kevin stepped back as he watched the designer go to work.

Colors and patterns he wouldn't have dreamed of pairing together were blended with seamless mastery. Plain rooms were brought to life on his computer and became homey refuges and entertainment galleries. The man was a virtuoso and the world was his playground.

But he soon called his work day complete and told Kevin he was game to play.

They perused Danté's Hulu collection and caught up on a few episodes of a show that they were both a season behind on. And they flirted the whole time. But Kevin was ready to call it a night when Danté fell off the couch from laughing at one of Kevin's lame jokes and hit his head on the coffee table.

"Are you ok?," Kevin asked as he kissed the bump on the Italian's head and pulled him into his lap for a cuddle.

"I am now."

Oh, boy.

"Ok, we are both not in any shape to make any decent decisions," Kevin said with a yawn as he stretched, and then wrapped his arms around Danté again.

"Actions speak louder than words, Kevin," he said as he looked up at him.

Kevin just sighed and put his chin in his head.

"How long has it been?," Danté asked quietly.

"Too long."

"I don't share."

"Well, that kind nixes the whole kissing thing," Kevin snickered.

Danté pulled Kevin's face down by his chin and took his lips into his own. The kiss took Kevin's breath away, but sparked up an ember that had been simmering since Eddward left them.

"Who're you gonna share that with?," Danté asked lowly when he broke the kiss apart.

"Just you," Kevin whispered.

"That's what I thought," Danté said before kissing him again.


Kisses led to touches. Touches led to shirts being shed and Danté's hand down the front of Kevin's pants.

"Are you sure you wanna go there?," Kevin asked him as he grabbed his wrist.

"Tell me something, Kevin," Danté whispered as he gripped him harder. "Do you want me to stop?"

"No."

"Well, then."

A split second later, Kevin was carrying Danté down to his bedroom, their lips dancing a tango Kevin had missed like a cool shower on a hot, dry day. He was a desert and Danté was the rain.

They tumbled into the bedroom and on the bed with Danté giving him quick instructions as to where his condoms and lube were as he undid the redhead's pants.

When they hit the floor and he saw what Kevin was packing, he said, "The road has risen up to meet me."

"And I'm about to put you on your back," Kevin said as he gave him a wicked grin, tossed Danté on his back and tore his pants off.

"Caro Dio, mi aiuti," Danté sighed as Kevin slipped a slicked up finger inside of him. (Dear God, help me.)

Every movement of the redhead's hand just sparked Danté's Inferno. The Italian wasn't like anyone Kevin had ever been with.

Expressive, passionate, in charge.

Danté was only on his back as Kevin prepped him. Once the redhead slipped inside and Danté adjusted to the stretch, he flipped them over and started a ride that blew Kevin away. It was so passionate, so sexy, so fucking sensational, Kevin was very sure that when they were done, he wouldn't be able to walk in the morning.

Kevin held onto his hips as Danté rode them through his inferno to the other side where an afterglow he has needed for two years resided. Danté grabbed his headboard as he came, groaning Kevin's name.

Kevin just screamed.

"Holy fuck, man. That was amazing," Kevin sighed once he calmed down. "I need a cigarette."

"Nightstand, bottom drawer," Danté drawled as he pulled off of him and collapsed next to him.

"You smoke?," Kevin asked as he found the cigarettes.

"Marlboro Reds. Noice!," he thought as he pulled two out of the box, along with the ashtray and lighter.

"I like dick and tobacco," Danté said as he grabbed the tissue box next to the bed. "Sue me."

"Naw, I'd just rather fuck you again," Kevin grinned as he kissed him.

They took a smoke out on the terrace instead.