Ansel gripped Lucio’s waist tighter when the word boyfriend once again fell out of his lips. It was such a silly way to feel, really, he realized that. Although Emerson’s jibe had been uncalled for, Ansel had to admit that there was a tinge of truth to his ex’s words. Lucio did make Ansel feel younger, more impassioned, stronger, and sexier. As a man who tried to run away from his own mortality, Lucio inspired something in him that made him feel like a love-struck teenager again. In that moment, Ansel felt there was nothing that he wouldn’t do for Lucio, nothing that would keep him from spoiling him in every way possible. Ansel decided that he would need to plan something special for Lucio once this night was over, a date that would involve absolutely no input from Lucio at all. His independent lover would just have to sit back and let Ansel take care of him for once.<br/><br/>The professor leaned into the kiss without hesitation, once again feeling an unsatisfied lust for Lucio when the younger male pulled away. “Yes, I suppose it would be inappropriate for us to stand here and make out all night, as attractive as that option sounds.” He released Lucio for a moment to top off his glass of bourbon and laced his fingers with Lucio once more. “Shall we?” he said, a playfully morbid tone on his tongue as if he and his lover were about to step into a raging wall of fire.<br/><br/>The night continued on very much the same, with Lucio being introduced to lawyers, fashion designers, doctors, successful artists, all people with enough money to pay for the personal trainers and stylists they needed to keep them looking fabulous. While it was true that genetics played a very large factor in the attractiveness of Johanna’s guests, the money aspect certainly couldn’t be ignored. The von Essen siblings had managed to surround themselves with glamorous people who just skated by below the line of celebrity and rested comfortably at wealthy. Whether that was intentional or just a coincidence due to the siblings’ own success was impossible to say. The siblings had grown up very comfortably, but both had outdone their parents in terms of their own personal wealth. Ansel’s academic determination, plus a mixture of his charm and good looks, had helped him greatly; while Johanna, a brilliant doctor who had recently been named Dean of Medicine at a nearby college had no issue taking care of herself and her two boys, both of whom were currently with their father so that their dear Uncle Ansel’s party could remain minor-free. Save for Lucio, of course.<br/><br/>After about six glasses of bourbon, in between frivolous but amusing conversation, Ansel was beginning to relax, no longer too concerned about the amount of affection he showered on Lucio and anyone who might be watching. In fact, there was something very empowering about claiming Lucio in front of this particular group of people, individuals who previously only saw Ansel has a handsome but nonchalant intellectual who only ever gave into his inner hedonist behind closed doors. Watching him fawn over this pretty young man was shocking to some, amusing to most, and highly erotic to a select few.<br/><br/>Ansel and Lucio sat together on one of Johanna’s leather couches in the living room space, Ansel having pulled Lucio close to him so the younger male was snuggled up against his broad chest. Deandra, perhaps Lucio’s biggest fan thanks to both the alcohol and her inherent affection for gay and bisexual males, had found her way back to them and was giggling like a school girl as she piled question after question on top of them, a large number of others invested in the conversation and listening eagerly.<br/><br/>“Okay, Lucio, since it’s Ansel’s birthday, I think it’s only appropriate that we get to the bottom of something very important. A great mystery, if you will.” She poured a glass of champagne down her throat and gave the two men a large smile. “When we were in college, Ansel was known of being a bit of a playboy. A different girl on his arm every weekend. Of course, Ansel is absolutely the perfect gentleman so he would never kiss and tell, no matter how much we all begged.<br/><br/>“Now that we know that Ansel plays for both teams I am forced to ask: how good is he in bed? On a scale from 1 to 10. And be honest! This is his birthday so no going easy. If Ansel can catch both men and women I assume he’s doing something correctly but it could just be a fluke due to his dashing good looks.” Deandra giggled again, some of the others in the group followed her lead, but no one spoke up to change the line of questioning. Instead, they all looked at Lucio eagerly, as if the question had passed through all of their thoughts at one time or another.