My Prince by Anna Martin

guessed Doug was digging to find out if his and Alex’s stories matched.
    “Well, we hooked up about six months ago. Just met in a bar and he took me back to a hotel for a fuck.”
    “Which hotel?”
    “Does that matter?”
    “Absolutely.”
    “The Scotsman,” George said.
    “Hmm. Go on.”
    “Are you going to tell me what that means?”
    “No. Go on.”
    “Okay. Well, we didn’t exchange numbers or anything. Then I ran into him at a work thing a few weeks ago and he asked me out.”
    “Have you fucked him again?”
    “Yeah.”
    “How’s the sex?”
    “Really good.”
    “Why Alex?”
    “What do you mean?” George asked, confused.
    “He’s got a whole shit-ton of baggage. Why bother with him? What do you have in common?”
    George felt like he was probably being grilled. He took a moment before answering. “Alex is hot,” he started and enjoyed Doug’s annoyed huff. “He is. He’s funny and bitchy too. I have a feeling we’re on the same wavelength despite all our differences.”
    “Go on.”
    “I don’t know him well enough to find out what’s underneath it all, you know? I’m not sure if Alex is the sort of guy who would tell someone all of that up front. He’s pretty guarded, and I am too. But we have a good time together.”
    “I like you, George,” Doug said, rolling his head sideways to look at George critically.
    “Thanks.”
    “When did he tell you? About his family, I mean.”
    “I found out myself. Saw them on TV.”
    Doug grunted. “Ouch.”
    He cocked his head and shrugged. “I didn’t think I’d ever see him again at that point. It was a bit of a shock, for sure, but no big deal.”
    “And now?”
    “I’m not sure. It seems the more that happens between us, the bigger a deal it’s going to be.”
    Doug nodded. “Alex hasn’t ever found anyone who had the balls to deal with his family.”
    “Is that a challenge?”
    “Maybe. Like I said, I like you. He got me to take you out partly to scope you out, to find out what makes you tick. Maybe to find out if you’d act on all the people blatantly cruising you since you’ve been here.”
    George frowned and looked at Doug quizzically. “What does that mean?”
    “Lord,” Doug laughed. “Watch.”
    He pointed at a man walking through the room toward the door. He was tall, in his late thirties, George guessed. He had dark hair and a moustache, neatly groomed. After he’d passed the group in the tub, he looked back over his shoulder, meeting eyes with one of them. The man in the tub waited a moment, then excused himself and followed the dark-haired man out of the room.
    “Are they going to have sex?” George asked, maybe a little too loudly.
    Doug laughed. “Yes.”
    “And people have been doing that to me?”
    “Since you walked in, hot stuff.”
    “Is this going to get me in trouble? With Alex?”
    “No, but it’ll probably get me in trouble.” Doug sighed. “Do you want your dick sucked?”
    “Always,” George said easily.
    “Me too. And the firecrotch in the tub has been cruising me for at least ten minutes now. Do you mind if I leave you….”
    “Yes,” George said. “No fucking way am I letting you go off on your own if all these guys are ‘cruising’ me, and I can’t even tell when they do it.”
    Doug sighed. “I had a feeling you were going to say that. Oh well. Come on, then. I need to deliver you back to van Amsberg by seven.”
    George frowned. “We don’t have plans tonight.”
    “Oh, did I fail to mention that?” Doug said, his voice delicately light and airy. “How forgetful of me.”
    George huffed a laugh. “Right.”
    They changed quickly, nodded their thanks to Angus, and walked back up to Grassmarket in companionable silence, appreciating the weak sunshine attempting to break through the clouds. George got the impression Doug was going to be a force to be reckoned with. That was okay—he could handle a challenge.
     
     
    A LEX WAS in the pub George had met Doug in