Page 3

Chapter three

Miles

B efore I knew it, the weekend had arrived. My pressing work was done, all deadlines met, so I had no excuse for staying home. Cielo had finished my taxes the day before, and let me know I’d owe the state money, but I had a bigger refund from federal taxes. They got my permission to pay one with the other and I was happy to have a few hundred dollars headed my way.

They also reminded me about game night.

The idea of being around the established group of friends was a little intimidating. Cielo was only a couple of years older than me, both of us still in our mid-twenties, but I knew a lot of the others attending were decades older than us. I had my kinks and never shamed others for theirs, but these guys were hella kinky.

Still, I was too curious not to go see for myself. They wouldn’t break out the whips and chains on game night, right?

Cielo gave me the address of an industrial area of the Mission, and I thought I was in the wrong place when I saw a restaurant. A large sign read, “ Shepherd’s Kitchen ,” and I quickly searched it up for added details. The first article was from a San Francisco Magazine I’d done comics for and trusted their reporting, though it was more of a human interest piece than a news article.

“ Shepherd’s Kitchen is a concept restaurant, feeding the unhoused for free, as well as selling pre-made meals,” the first line read, making me nod at the cool idea. But it only referred to the owner and head chef as Shepherd, there was no other details.

A memory of meeting Cielo’s friends, Roman and July, pinged a memory when they talked about their partner: Shepherd . He was a chef! All three lived together over the restaurant and were roommates before hooking up. Sounded convenient to me, but the restaurant was closed…how was I supposed to get in?

“Miles?” Cielo’s voice caught my attention, and I turned to see him leaning around the corner. “Thought that was you down here. Come around to the side door.”

“Thanks for coming to the rescue.”

We hugged, and I followed them to a keypad-locked security door, the main door left open for us inside with a trash can. I could see going straight led to a door reading: “Kitchen entrance.” We made our way up a wide staircase that looked like it was also used as storage, with shoes and boxes tucked into corners.

“So, this is where Roman and July live with Shepherd?” I asked, to make sure I had my information right before meeting the hosts.

“Yep,” Cielo confirmed, reaching the top landing and pushing open the solid but ajar door at the top. “Welcome to the Factory.”

Revealing a wide-open space with high wooden beams and a large kitchen to the left, I could see how it had been a factory in the past. The wood floors were polished but showed stains and gouges from years of abuse, and I loved the loft feel. There were about a dozen people in the main space, some gathered around a sturdy coffee table playing a card game that had them all laughing.

“Let me show you around and introduce you to everyone.” Cielo led me to the kitchen for a drink, and I opted for a can of soda over alcohol. I didn’t see any cages or paddles on display, but in case those came out, I wanted a clear head. “You know July?”

“Hi Miles!” July grinned and waved before going back to his task.

We said hello to July, who was rocking a green, crushed velvet jacket that complimented his small frame, no doubt he designed and made himself. He was helping a taller person with a beard—who had a Daddy vibe, despite long hair and a skirt—plate hors d'oeuvres . I had a good guess this was his Daddy, and Cielo confirmed my suspicion.

“This is Shepherd. They’re the owner of the building,” Cielo explained with a twinkle in their eyes and a helpful cue on the correct pronouns for me to use.

Shepherd raised their thick eyebrow and sighed, “None of you are going to let me go long without you pointing it out, are you?”

Sensing an inside joke or story I wasn’t privy to, I decided to move on. “I’m Miles. Your restaurant downstairs seems like a cool concept.”

“It is,” July beamed at me before turning a proud eye on them. “Daddy is amazing.”

“Thank you, baby,” Shepherd kissed July’s head, and I felt like I was intruding until he raised his voice. “ Brat , where’d you run off to?”

Confusion had me looking around for a pet, until Roman bounded towards us and held his arms out for a hug, which I gladly accepted. Roman was a tall, fit man who also performed as the drag Queen, Gladys Over. He had pink hair but was otherwise without his exaggerated makeup, which made sense, since he was at home with friends. Still, he must have been dressed by his fashion designer boyfriend, July, since Roman had on expensive jeans and a silk vest as a shirt.

“Oh, hey, Miles! Glad you could make it.” Roman pulled back to smile at me before going around the kitchen island to give Shepherd puppy-dog eyes. Roman was an over-sharer, so I knew they did actual puppy play. Cielo did too. I didn’t think I was up for seeing that much kink. “Yes, Daddy?”

“Save it for later, brat.” Shepherd swatted his butt playfully and handed him a plate. “Go make sure our guests know there’s food.”

“It’s our place,” Roman rolled his eyes, but moved to do as he was told. “Of course there’s food.”

Two older men I’d met a couple times approached as Roman caused the card game to break up for snacks, and I was glad to see more familiar faces. They were Cielo’s Daddies, Q and A. I never did find out their real names, or if it was just a play on question and answer , since they called my friend C.

After catching up with them, I was introduced to a few others. As it turned out, I was the last to arrive. A big, intense guy who looked like a brick wall turned out to be the boyfriend of a small but somehow imposing person, both with Russian accents. They introduced themselves as Felix and Maksim. Definitely Russian. We shook hands and then I was turned to meet Holly & Charlie, a lesbian couple, and their friends, Sawyer and John. Flowers and Ash were new to me, a married duo with oddly conflicting names. I was getting the impression my assumption there would be all couples and partners was turning out to be true.

We made our way through the space to the couch, where a person my age was sitting between two Asian men. All three were gorgeous, and I was left to my own devices when Roman asked Cielo to help him with the first game.

“Hi,” the fit guy in the middle smiles and waves, “I’m Ant, they-slash-them, and this is Max with two exes.”

“Oh-kay…” This was kind of awkward. “Hi. I’m Miles. He, him or they.”

Looking toward the man they gestured to, who had his arm around Ant possessively. I frowned, trying to work out why I needed to know that Max hadn’t dated much. I glanced toward the other man and my mouth went dry. Great gods of gayness he was sexy. Broad shoulders were straining in a red, long-sleeved shirt, dark hair styled to perfection to highlight his eyes and high cheekbones, but it was his smile that caught me at a loss for speech.

“I was confused too,” he chuckled and stood to hold out his hand, “I’m Shane. Uh, he and him for me.”

Swallowing my lust, I took his hand, and mine was engulfed in Shane’s warm, callused grasp. A tingle raced up my arm like electricity and I snapped out of my daze to break out my flirtation. “Please tell me you're one of the exes and I’m not the only single one here?”

Shane laughed again, his eyes almost closing in mirth, and we still hadn’t dropped our hands. “I’m not one of his exes, since we just met tonight. But I am single.”

Before I could think of a witty reply—maybe something about teaming up for the night so I can sit beside him without the coffee table between us—Roman called out over the assembled guests, “Game time!”

Shane dropped my hand, and I felt cold at the loss. Everyone gathered around the couch area, and I ended up on an ottoman across from him. At least I got to sneak glances at him while we listened to Shepherd introduce the next game.

“As my brat so helpfully announced, we’d like to get the ball officially rolling,” Shepherd smirked at Roman, who preened like he was being such a good boy. “Not all those here know everyone, so we wanted to move from card games to a bit of an icebreaker,” Shepherd paused for dramatic effect, looking us each in the eye. “Truth or Dare.”

Some people groaned while others looked like they were concocting mischievous plans. Roman placed a glass bottle on the table, as if he was about to change up the game. In effect, he did, “Instead of targeting people we know, we’ll play spin the bottle for who you call out. You can ask for their truth, dare them to do something— consensually —or ask for a kiss.”

“Also consensually,” Shepherd added.

Sounded like a fun version, and gave people an out. Hopefully, whoever got me would either be cute or ask me something tame. Cielo was the only person there I knew well, but I wasn’t expecting them to go first. Maybe I should have, since Cielo wasn’t shy. The real surprise was when the narrow side of the bottle landed on me.

“Truth or dare? Or kiss?” They asked, Q and A on either side of Cielo, reminding me how taken they were. Still, I wasn’t shy either.