Not For a Billion Dollars - Not in a Billion Years
 

Brian and Justin were settling themselves in front of their fake fireplace. Justin seemed more than a little nervous and Brian was able to read that easily. Maybe he knew why and maybe he didn’t….

“OK, Taylor,” he addressed the kid as they got comfortable – or as comfortable as Justin was able to get. “You’ve been in New York almost a week. Here we are finally sitting down together in front of our fireplace and you act like you wish you were someplace else. Like maybe – New York?”

“That’s the last place I’d want to be, Brian,” Justin told him. “And I don’t think I’m ever going back there again unless you come too.”

“Well, Baby,” Brian said, “you know you had to be there for that gallery opening and then you wanted to meddle in the New York guys’ business – and I had some heavy stuff back here….”

“I know that, Bri,” Justin replied. “But now I gotta tell you something and I don’t want to and….”

“So don’t tell me, JT,” Brian tried to solve the problem. “Maybe I don’t need to know everything. And maybe it’s not as important as you think.”

“It isn’t important, Brian,” Justin admitted. “Not at all – really. What happened isn’t important – but it is important that I tell you – so I gotta tell you.”

“OK, Young Man,” Brian tried to act matter-of-factly. “Why don’t you just tell me then?”

“Well, you know,” Justin took the advice. “You know most of the gallery stuff was at night so I was able to watch the soap opera tapings during the day. There’s like a mad guillotiner in town on the soap and both Rick’s character and Shawn’s character are threatened. It’s really exciting – and scary too.”

“Geez, Baby,” Brian broke in, “I hope you’re not going to be telling me that the mad guillotiner was chasing you. I don’t think – from what I can see – that he got you if he was chasing you.”

“Cut it out, BK,” Justin told him. “I know you’re trying to make this easier for me – but I don’t think you can – and it was not the mad guillotiner who was chasing me either.”

Brian instituted a pause in the discussion at this point – trying some other means to make it easier for Justin. Maybe it worked and maybe it didn’t but the story had to go on.

“You know who else was at the taping, Bri,” Justin moved along. “Dave – that blond billionaire….”

“The one who owns the network the show’s on,” Brian correctly deduced the proper blond billionaire. “He’s kinda hot.”

“That’s the one, Bri,” Justin was able to confirm. “But he doesn’t like just - own the network. He owns the multi-national mega-corporation that owns the network. He made billions of dollars on some software applications and decided to become a businessman.”

“So you couldn’t resist flirting with him a little bit?” Brian laughed. “He’s supposed to be gay but I don’t think he ever had a regular boyfriend – so you couldn’t pass up the opportunity…..”

“See, Kinney,” Justin pointed out. “That’s why I didn’t want to tell you this. I knew how you’d be…..”

“Sorry for the interruption, Baby,” Brian said. “Please go on with your confession.”

“You know what, Brian Kinney,” Justin complained. “You were trying to make this easier for me and that didn’t work – so now you’re trying to make it hard for me – and you’re making it easier. There was no flirting at the studio. None at all.”

“So where did the flirting take place?” Brian continued his apparently successful attempt to make things easier for Justin.

“Dammit, Brian,” Justin rose to the bait. “Dave’s like – old – maybe as old as you – and maybe I would be interested if you hadn’t trapped me a long time ago – but like – we got introduced – and he asked me if I was the Justin Taylor from Rage comic books….”

“Which you happily admitted?” Brian presumed.

“Like I should lie about it, Kinney,” Justin retorted. “Anyhow, he said he liked Rage and had been thinking about a movie – or maybe a TV series – and he asked me if I’d have dinner with him to discuss the possibility.”

“And he whisked you off to the best restaurant in town, I guess?” Brian guessed.

“Nope,” Justin grinned at him – apparently proving to Brian that he had eased the situation for the kid. “He whisked me off to his New York pad – thirty-two rooms at the top of some neat building in the mid-seventies on the East Side – three terraces with great views. Ricky told me later that Dave paid 65 million for it – and that he had never taken a date there at all.’

“So this was a date then?” Brian grinned. “Funny how easily some business meetings can turn into dates….”

“It was not a date, Kinney,” Justin objected. “And it never became a date either. But some paparazzi were standing around his building – there are some other important residents – and Dave like – grabbed my hand – to help me avoid them – and another one appeared out of nowhere.”

“And got the picture of my boyfriend and the blond billionaire, hand-in-hand – heading into his New York pad?” Brian laughed. “And he’s shopping it to the tabloids.”

“Yeah,” Justin seemed relieved. “Dave is pretty important and he thinks he can squash publication but like – you never can tell….”

“So the whole thing was completely innocent,” Brian assumed.

“I’m not finished, BK,” Justin countered. “While we were eating, Dave like – told me he was getting romantically interested in me. I told him I had a boyfriend and all – and he told me that I could like – have my own Rolls-Royce - and my own private jet – and could cruise around whenever I wanted on any of his three yachts.”

“Doesn’t sound like that great of an offer to me, Babe,” Brian allowed. “So what did you tell him?’

“I told him like – not for a billion dollars – not in a billion years – that I was crazy in love with you – and that I’d rather be poor as a church-mouse with you than filthy rich – even if Dave is like – a pretty nice guy too.”

“So he didn’t want to talk about Rage after all?” Brian presumed.

“Wrong, Brian,” Justin disagreed. “He was really interested in Rage but I thought it might be touchy working with him after….”

“So what about Mikey?” Brian wondered. “He has to give up his big chance at success because you flirted with the billionaire?”

“I called Mikey and explained the situation to him, Brian,” Justin explained. “Dave said we could work with somebody on his staff and never have to see him at all – but Mikey said we should wait. I think he thought I might actually get interested in….”

“So Mikey doesn’t have as much faith in you as I do?” Brian mused.

“And I don’t want him to either, Brian Kinney,” Justin told him. “And I’ve told you the whole story now – every damn bit of it.”

“Well you might have missed just the one part of it, Kiddo,” Brian pointed out. “The part where he gave you his most secret cell number and his private e-mail address and told you to contact him if I ever got too obnoxious.”

“How did you know that, Brian?” Justin seemed as upset as he had been at the beginning of the night’s conversation. “The only ones who knew that were him and me….”

“Must have been him then,” Brian reasoned. “Since it definitely was not you.”

“I threw that stuff out, Bri,” Justin informed him. “I didn’t want it.”

“Figured he’s famous enough that you could find him if you wanted to,” Brian laughed. “Dave got my number from Rick and called me, Baby. He told me that I was a lucky guy and wished he’d seen you first. He gave me his numbers too. In case I ever throw you out, he wants to pick you up at the front door.”

“And I hope you threw them out,” Justin told him with pseudo-righteousness. “Like I did….”

“Nope,” Brian said, “But I put them into both our computers in case we need them – but I’m not worried. Not in the least. And – even if we are poor as church-mice, Sweetheart - I have a ‘welcome home’ gift for you, Baby – knowing how much you must have missed me. Wanna guess what it is?”

“That’s easy, Brian,” the kid smiled. “Only one thing it could be. Like – a private jet – a small one though since we’re so poor.”

“Or maybe a guillotine?” Brian squeezed the kid a little.

“Not in a billion years.” Justin insinuated himself closer to the big guy next to him.

And that finished the discussion for the night – but things in the loft had – to the complete satisfaction of both the residents - definitely returned to normal.

 

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