...“Wait!” Brett insisted. “Can I—can I ask for one more thing?”

Ryan looked from Brett to Dar, and back again. “I guess so.”

“Would it be too much for me to ask you to kiss me?”

“Yes, it would,” Dar interjected roughly.

Ryan felt the blush climb his face. He was supposed to be a well-known romantic lead for standard male and female roles. There was nothing in his cinematic work that suggested he’d be down to kiss another man.

Was his sexuality obvious, or was Brett just that much of a fan that he’d ask him for a leading favor? He was hoping the latter.

“He’s not gay, Brett.” Dar seemed inclined to answer for him.

Ryan thought fast. He wouldn’t mind kissing Dar, but Brett? Not that he was bad looking, but he wasn’t the kind of guy Ryan went for. Still, if he gave Brett a kiss, he could reasonably kiss Dar, too.

It would kill his career if it got out.

But he wanted to kiss Dar.

He wasn’t sure he could trust them. He shouldn’t trust them since he’d barely met either of them, he reasoned.

But Dar seemed…different. Surely he wasn’t that bad a judge of character.

Dar was dragging Brett backward. Only his reluctance had kept them from reaching it already.

“A kiss?” Ryan asked, stalling. “I’m known as being a guy’s guy. It would really screw things up for me if someone reported that I was kissing men in my trailer.”

“I won’t tell a soul!” Brett blurted out.

Ryan shrugged. “Who would believe you?” He pretended to think about it for another minute, but he’d already made up his mind. “Okay. Keep it to yourselves. I’ve kissed female fans before. I can kiss a couple of dudes, too, I guess.”

“You’re shitting me,” Brett breathed.

Ryan walked to Brett first. He wanted to savor the kiss with Dar, wanted it last on his lips, so he would have to kiss Brett first.

Ryan leaned in.

“Do it like you did for Selene?” Brett pled.

Dar made a strange strangling sound beside him. Ryan didn’t dare look at him, or Dar would see exactly how much Ryan wanted to kiss him.

“Like Selene,” Ryan repeated. He shrugged again, playing off with nonchalance what was actually a really erotic suggestion. “You got it.”

Ryan grabbed that back of Brett’s hair. Brett was taller, so it wouldn’t be the same, but he dragged Brett to him. He took Brett’s lips, kissing with the same fervor he’d kissed Selene. It was a stage kiss. No tongue. Just like he’d done with Selene.

When he backed away, Brett grinned madly. Not giving Dar a chance to reject a kiss, the way he’d rejected the autograph, Ryan switched his focus.

Dar’s eyes dilated when he realized Ryan’s intent. He even blushed a little, making his freckles disappear in a wash of pale pink. Ryan grabbed the shaggy fall of soft brown hair at the back of Dar’s head and reeled him in, hard against his chest.

It worked better with Dar, their heights in better alignment. Then folding his other arm around Dar’s back, Ryan descended, pausing a fraction of a second before their mouths touched. Dar’s eyes stayed wide open, his lips parted on a surprised breath. Ryan captured it, pressing the soft exhale between their mouths as he laid claim to Dar’s full lips.

Unlike with Brett, there was no stage kiss this time. Ryan smiled at the tentative movement of Dar’s mouth beneath his. It was still parted from the gasp and Ryan took full advantage, slipping the tip of his tongue inside.

It had been so long. So long since he’d kissed another man. For the sake of fame it had been worth it. Until now.

Dar tasted like sweet coffee and cream. Ryan tried to duplicate the kiss he’d had with Selene, but with Dar, he couldn’t. He needed to taste and feel and explore. Dar leaned heavily against him, his fingers clutching the shoulder of his tee, much the same way Selene had. He wondered if Dar was playing a part, too, or if he actually needed to hold on.

Ryan did. His knees felt weak and his belly fluttered with hot anticipation. He needed air. God, he was so light-headed from such a simple thing as a kiss. Ryan drew back, breaking their kiss, but stayed close enough that their foreheads still touched, their noses still pressed.

Dar’s gaze woke slightly, meeting Ryan’s. Their quick breaths matched for speed. And in that second Ryan saw awareness.

Dar knew Ryan had enjoyed that kiss. He knew it and it was written all over his face. If he wanted to destroy Ryan, he could. His career would be all over in an instant. Thrown away because Ryan had failed to resist the charm of a man he’d just met.