The Better Side of Me - Jerry Cole Page 0,2

been the out-spoken, center of attention, can do anything he pleases, confident in his own ability kind of guy. He was always the brain, the quiet clever type that achieved under the table, rather than standing on top of it shouting from his lungs. That had been his way, and where it was fine from an individual standpoint, it was awful for dating.

Kirk took a deep calming breath. He could feel himself begin to panic. His brow was almost certainly dripping from sweat, so he gave it a wipe and took a few more calming, slow breaths. The empty glass of water sat in front of him, he could see his reflection in the glass, so he chose to take a quick look at himself, just to make sure everything was as it should be. But that soon turned into a huge mistake also.

Why, oh why did he do that! Kirk knew what he looked like. He’d looked that way his whole darn life! So why would tonight be any different. If anything, the confirmation only made it worse! He caught one look at himself, gasped, slammed the glass down and shoved it away from himself, lest the reflection jump out of the glass and start attacking him, screaming insults and putting him down.

Kirk wasn’t ugly. That had to be said immediately, because he just wasn’t. If anything, he was ‘cute’ and maybe even a little cuddly. Standing at a little over 5 foot 9 inches, he was tall enough to get by, but was in no way intimidating. His frame was skinny, his legs and arms were gangly and he had less muscle on him than a can of string beans. As to his face, where it was actually reasonably symmetrical and square in a way that might even be considered handsome, it was hidden under a pair of thick black-framed glasses that were paired with a very boring, ‘supercuts’ haircut. Jessie liked to joke that he looked like a bizarre version of Clark Kent.

Again, Kirk was forced to snap himself from the rabbit-hole and pull himself back into the restaurant. He was on a date with a man that had been described as ‘hot as lava’ and had a penis that made Kirk’s leg vibrate. All Kirk had to do was be nice, be funny, and most importantly not do anything stupid or silly or embarrassing and he just might get a chance to see it.

The restaurant was reasonably quiet that night, which was why Kirk had no trouble picking his date out the second he walked through the door. Honestly, even if he hadn’t been paying attention, or if the restaurant were packed to the rafters, he would have noticed the guy. To not notice him stroll through the door like a literal male model would have been akin to not noticing the sun shining in the sky.

Time stopped dead when Clint Taylor walked through the door, and call Kirk a romantic, but he could have sworn he actually heard angels sing out in verse. Standing at well over six feet tall, with shoulders and a back so broad it looked like he could carry a darn horse, Clint had to duck and turn as a means to walk through the restaurant’s narrow entrance. His chin was square, his smile was big and white, and his eyes shone from across the room.

He spotted Kirk almost immediately... or at least he spotted the little man sitting alone staring dumbstruck at him. He then smiled a breathtaking smile, waved and strode across the room with such strength that one would think he owned the place. Indeed, the tables themselves seemed to part for him.

“Kirk?” his voice was deep; a rumble like thunder on the horizon.

Kirk’s bottom lip quivered. “Clint?” Kirk stood and held his hand out to shake. Clint’s meaty paw wrapped around Clint’s tiny hand and crushed it with a mighty grip. “Nice to meet you,” Kirk winced.

As the two settled into their chairs, Kirk could tell almost immediately that something was wrong. It was nothing major... but that was the point. Clint was obviously confident in himself and everything he did. Yet the moment his perfectly formed cheeks hit the seat, he clamped up. His eyes ran up and down Kirk, he offered a tight-lipped smile, and then reached for the menu.

“What looks good?” Clint asked, more to himself than anything as he drilled his eyes into that menu like his life depended on it. “Have you