The instinct when cradling a tankard of German beer, Josh considered, was to blow the froth off the top and quaff it at a single go before slamming it back on the table. A revelling in cultural stereotype, perhaps, or a display of bravado for all the young serving-frauleins bursting out of their frilly corseted tops. Either way, he resisted the urge to do so when his uncle set down the two heavy glasses. They made a satisfying ‘thunk’ on the tabletop.

“This is your idea of a good night out?” Gavin inquired, settling himself opposite and glancing around at The Oktoberfest Pub’s Germanic trappings. “A thigh-slapping night of Bavarian excess in south London… Or are you thinking of serving up wiener schnitzel in your own place?”

“It’s not my own place,” Josh reminded him. “Not yet. Come on, this mightn’t be the type of restaurant I open in the future, but it’s fun. Beer’s good, plates are full, lots of cleavage on display… what’s not to like? Cheers.” They clanked their glasses together and he drank through the foam, wiping his upper lip clean. “Not everywhere can have the Blue Nile’s sophistication,” he pointed out.

“You’d no problem with its level of sophistication the night of your birthday.”

“True, I didn’t.” At the mention of his twenty-first birthday celebration, Josh’s memory rioted like an erotic carnival. The whole evening at the venue co-owned by his uncle seemed now like one extended lucid-dream. He shook his head in wonder.

“Good, wasn’t it?”

“Fucking hell.” He broke into a smile like a kid being handed candy-floss at the fairground. “I didn’t think life got that good.”

“Oh it can, regularly,” Gavin assured. “If you seize the opportunities.” The grin they shared was as satisfying as a high-five. Josh’s pulse flickered at the thought of life’s untapped potential. It was always that way when catching up with his uncle—a sense of the knowledge to be gleaned from a man who had attained all Josh still sought in life.

How’s the lovely Clarissa?” He inquired, head still full of that crazy evening, months past. His uncle’s sexy employee had accompanied her boss to the Blue Nile, unaware that she would end up starring in the club’s erotic cabaret.

“Behaving herself. I keep her in line and she tries not to give away how much she secretly loves it.”

“And her sexy friend from that evening?”

Gavin supped his beer and smacked his lips with particular relish. It appeared he had a soft spot for the Blue Nile’s premier cabaret artiste. “Darling Clementine. So sweet it defies belief. Oh, she’s fine.” He set the beer down. “But enough about carnal delight for now. Tell me more about your grand career plan.”

Josh made to answer, but a pretty blond-haired waitress, her bosom plumped by the bodice she was wearing, interrupted to take their order. He opted for bratwurst, his uncle for the schnitzel, and they observed the girl as she returned to the bar, skirt and pigtails swinging. “I’d serve her some serious bratwurst,” he said. His Uncle Gavin was one of the few people in the world with whom he’d have shared such a blunt sentiment.

“Play it well and you might get to before the evening’s through,” Gavin said. “But you were about to tell me…”

“What? Oh yeah.” He diverted his eyes from the waitress. “The head chef at Renard’s got poached about a month back and they decided to promote from within.” He allowed a moment’s basking in pride.

“Which makes you one of the youngest head chefs in the country.”

“At what’s still a small restaurant.”

“But making a name for itself,” Gavin reminded. “As are you. Fuck modesty, it doesn’t suit you—you’re far too much like me. Tell me, how does your dad feel about it all? Is he any more resigned to the fact that ickle Joshy isn’t going into the family firm?”

Josh revelled in the comparison his uncle had drawn between the two of them. “He has to now, doesn’t he? I’ve proved it’s more than some flaky notion based on watching Jamie Oliver on TV, so he’s had to eat his words along with some of my mango shrimp. Didn’t seem much impressed, though. At the shrimp, I mean.”

“My big brother wouldn’t do you the favour of seeming impressed,” Gavin told him. “He’s envious of anyone who takes risks and gets away with it, and that includes his own son. Wasn’t always that way, but now that he’s made his bed…” He made little effort to disguise his contempt, as he swigged from his tankard. “Decent beer they serve here, I’ll give them that. Good for you on the promotion. Damn well done.”

Gavin’s praise induced a quiet reverie and contemplation of glories yet to be achieved in the restaurant trade—along with all the rewards that might follow. A sparkling voice, however, succeeded in breaking through his trance.

“Josh, you decided to come here! I told you it was great, didn’t I?”

Josh looked up, as did his uncle, to view the girl. She was an arresting sight. Her shaggy blond mane was shoulder-length, not quite long enough to plait into pigtails should she have tried for a job at The Oktoberfest. Everything else, however, seemed in keeping with that establishment. Her mid-height curviness was elevated with high-heels, pronounced bosom shown off well by a blue wraparound dress that only wrapped around so far. Her pretty features were made up with carefully-pencilled precision. Josh had never seen the girl looking so fuckable and his cock swelled at her sudden presence at their table. In conversation with Gavin, it had almost slipped his mind that she’d be showing up here too.

“Christina. You’re here for your school get-together.”

“Like you’d forgotten,” she said with a brief coquettish grin. “Having fun? Hope you’re not eyeing up the waitresses.”

“Tonight I’m allowed to,” he said, returning her grin. “Gavin, this is Christina. She waitresses at Renard’s—has the privilege of serving my spectacular dishes to the paying customers. And I never eye her up when I’m working. I mean for what possible reason would I do that?” She smirked and dropped her gaze, abashed by the weight of suggestion in his words. “Christina, this is my Uncle Gav.”

Christina glanced at Gavin, her eyes lingering an instant before she uttered a polite but nervy, “Hi.” Gavin’s rather severe good looks could do that to a girl. His smile in response was civil, eyes subjecting her to mild scrutiny.

“The rest of your group here?” Josh inquired.

“I’m guessing they’re around somewhere. It’s our German class. Our teacher’s taking us out as a reward for having done well in our July module.” She directed the final part to both of them, as though justifying her presence in the place to Gavin. “She’s made us promise not to get drunk and let her down, though I’m guessing I can talk her into buying me a cocktail.” She gave a pronounced burst of laughter like she was countering embarrassment, her face all blue-eyed glint and white-toothed grin. “Look, I’d better go join them. You have a nice night. Good to meet you.” She directed the final phrase at Gavin but held Josh’s stare a gratifying instant longer than necessary.

As she turned to leave a hand was already reaching from beside her to touch her bare shoulder. “Christina, sweetheart—we’ve got a table. Right over there.” The newcomer was a striking brunette—Josh judged in her early thirties—a hair taller than Christina in similar heels and her equal in curviness. Her jeans were designer, and a leather jacket was slung over a white vest that showed off the upper contours of a mouth-wateringly impressive rack. Rather daring for the school-teacher he assumed her to be. She glanced at the two men to whom her student had been speaking and passed herself with a polite “Hello,” her gaze flicking a second time to Josh’s uncle. The double-take was only to be expected. It amused Josh to watch his uncle casually soaking up the attention.

“I’m coming,” Christina told the older woman with a warm smile, and Josh considered how much he’d like to see the blond girl do that very thing. “See you later, Josh. Gotta go join the others. Bye.”

Teacher and student departed together, the joint retreat of their asses a pleasing picture. Oh, to be three years younger in that school…

“Now I get the attraction of The Oktoberfest,” Gavin said, amusement in his tone.

“Well, she did mention that her teacher was taking them all out here this evening,” Josh admitted with a further wistful glance after the pair. “I said I was meeting you for a drink and she recommended it. Seemed a shame not to take her up on it.”

“So it’s not any of the waitresses on whom you’re setting your sights. I approve your choice—she’s maturing into quite the young woman. There’d be good sport with that one.”

“There would be if she wasn’t saddled with a long-term boyfriend she’s never done mentioning.” Josh’s glance strayed to the corner table with its group of lively students and their teacher. Christina had been immediately caught up in the banter, though she directed at least one glance back to where he and Gavin sat. So did her teacher for that matter.

“Nothing holding you back from a little casual intervention,” Gavin said. “Why haven’t you asked her out?”

“I already have. No dice.” It pained Josh to admit the failure to his uncle. Staying friends with Christina on the off chance that she might change her mind did not feel like any course of action Gavin might adopt. “She shot me down very prettily of course, but it amounted to the same thing.”

“And yet she let you know she’d be here tonight. Josh, you surprise me.” He was struck by the rigour in his uncle’s tone. Gavin set down his beer and fixed him with a stare that brooked no argument. “I never thought I’d hear that ‘if only’ bullshit from my nephew. The one who put himself through chef school and is on the verge of culinary greatness—who’s had his share of girlfriends along the way. What happened to King Kong?”

Josh grinned at the allusion to his spectacular success as part of the Blue Nile erotic cabaret, but Gavin was not done with him. “I’m serious. There’s some take-charge attitude lacking here. She clearly wanted you to be here tonight and to hell with her boyfriend. You knew that and that’s why you suggested this venue. Only question is—do you want to fuck her?”

“Well … I mean, of course I …”

“Let me rephrase that. How much do you want Miss Teenage Tits-and-Ass over there bouncing naked on your cock?”

The image tapped into everything Josh was craving at that moment. “That’d be a lot.”

“Of course it would. If I were a young man like you again that’s precisely what I’d want. Problem is, you’re fannying around hoping that it’ll happen, when what you need to do is accept without reservation that it will and act in that knowledge. I saw how she looked at you and the obstacle isn’t her. You’re good-looking, charming, resourceful, and you can cook. So treat it like you would any other goal. Answer me—are you going to run your own restaurant one day?”

“Yes,” Josh said without missing a beat.

“And—are you going to own that girl’s naked ass?”

Josh grinned. This was why he loved hanging out with his Uncle Gavin. It was truly why he had suggested The Oktoberfest. “Yes, I am.” He believed it too, having soaked up the alpha-male conviction of man sitting opposite.

“Good. Now you can get on with damn-well making it a reality. Speaking of which…” Gavin has been distracted by someone passing the table behind Josh. He allowed himself a smile as he rose from his seat. “Turns out I’ve got business of my own to attend to. Another beer?”

“I haven’t finished this one.”

“I’ll set up another. Bavarian courage for the man on a mission.”

Josh observed as Gavin proceeded to the bar, ensconcing himself beside none other than the comely teacher who was chaperoning Christina and her fellow-students. There was warm greeting and instant rapport between the two and Josh wondered if he’d missed some non-verbal interaction after she left the guys’ table.

His uncle drew the woman in with ease, causing her first to smile and then to break out in laughter. She appeared to be scolding him at one stage, turning away as though pleasantries had been terminated, only to surrender a moment later to the same impulse as before, letting herself be drawn back into conversation. It was a joy to watch Gavin at work—relaxed good-humour and deftly calibrated innuendo, all delivered with that gravelly sophistication. Not a word was audible to Josh, but he imagined it all.

It should not have surprised him when Gavin produced a card from his wallet, scribbled on the back with a pen and slid it into her slim fingers, but Josh still laughed at the audacity of the move. She took on a business-like aspect as she took it, secreting it in her purse like contraband. Gavin poured one or two more words into her ear like he was administering sweet poison.

She paused on leaving the bar, a cocktail in each hand, and spoke in response to whatever he had said. He answered succinctly and held her gaze longer than made her comfortable, for she dropped her eyes and turned away swiftly towards the tableful of laughing sixth-formers. The expression on her face was part outrage and part panic—but probably more gratification than either of the other two.

The bratwurst and wiener schnitzel had arrived by the time Gavin returned with further tankards, but Josh tackled the issue before his uncle could take a first bite. “So are you going to own the hot teacher’s naked ass? How’s Gav McClain’s confidence bearing up after that sudden encounter?”

Gavin laughed, a forkful of schnitzel poised at his mouth. “That I deserve. It’s only fair you call me on it.” He ate, literally chewing over the thoughts playing out in his mind. “Based on her response when I first caught her eye,” he said, having swallowed, “I’d have said the odds were in my favour. You need never work from a cold-start if you know how to read the signs. That great diamond rock she’s wearing, however, rather sways things against me.”

“It would.” Josh set about his meal, eyeing his uncle with amusement. “But you’re not one to let a little thing like an engagement ring get in your way, right?”

“Absolutely not.” He pointed the tines of his fork at Josh. “Plus I can’t go lecturing you and then not show the courage to back up my convictions. So… I propose a wager.”

“Go ahead. I’m listening.”

“I fuck the teacher before you fuck the student.”

Josh laughed. This was why nights out with Gavin were so damned entertaining. The man could give any situation a deviant twist. “What are the stakes?”

“I’ve got a business contact arriving from the US in a few weeks. You’ll serve up a fucking Michelin-level four-course private dinner for my guest and me if I land the lovely Amanda.”

“You’re on first-name terms already,” Josh noted. “I should be cautious. What’s in it for me?”

“My Mercedes Benz SLS.”

Josh made to laugh again and stalled at Gavin’s expression. The bullet-sleek magnificence of the car flashed across his mind. “You’re shitting me.”

“About cars and sex? Never. Come on, Josh, you’re already quids-in. Tonight was my one shot and it left the ball squarely in the teacher’s court. There’s no saying she’ll ever use that number. Meanwhile, the blond bombshell’s lovely tits are as good as bouncing in your face.”

“What, so you’re giving your car away?”

“Oh, I wouldn’t say that.” Gavin chewed a while, relishing the pub’s food more than he had suggested he might. “She’s a natural flirt who loves a frisson of danger, that much is clear. Consummate professional at work, no doubt, but she’s still down-with-the-kids as a sop to her younger days. It’s no small risk, taking your students out for cocktails while they’re still your students, after all. Especially when you’re dressed as sexily as any of them. And she’s not impervious to temptation of the right kind. I’d say it’s a fifty-fifty shot. Whereas all you have to do is poke the cheeky student behind her boyfriend’s back.”

“Which I will do.”

“Which you will do.” They shared a grin. “So it’s only a matter of whether you sink your cock before I sink mine.”

“Wager accepted,” Josh said. “And you’re willing to accept my word on the outcome?”

“Honour among seducers,” Gavin assured him. “Plus I can tell the difference between phoney macho bragging and the genuine satisfaction that comes from a well-delivered fuck. Having said all that, you might choose to make it more interesting.”

“And how would I do that?” Josh’s heart sped under his show of outward calm. It had been the same when Gavin offered him the opportunity to act with two girls in one of the Blue Nile’s erotic stage scenes and join him in snaring a third in a devious and sexy trap. The evening was about to take some further wicked twist.

“Documentary evidence,” Gavin said. “Capture the moment. I have a friend who can rig up your apartment and mine very discreetly so that all amorous activity is caught on camera.”

“Jesus.” For a moment Josh was stumped as to his response. “Isn’t that…”

“Illegal? Yes. Unethical? Of course it fucking is. Are we going to do it? That’s your call.”

Josh glanced over to where Christina’s teacher was speaking above the bar’s noise into her ear, the student laughing uproariously at the older woman’s remark. Neither knew that they had become objects in a wager, one that was becoming more despicable by the moment. The young chef looked back to his uncle and smiled, his heart beating apace. “Call your friend. Let’s do it.”

Gavin smiled. “I thought that’s what you’d say.”

The rest of the meal was consumed in near-silence; a few comments passed either way on Gavin’s new American venture, with attention mostly fixed on the Bayern Munich/Borussia Dortmund football match playing out on the pub’s big-screen TV. Josh’s mind lingered on strategies other than the sporting type, however.

While Gavin dealt with the bill, he strolled over to the table where Christina was chatting animatedly with her teacher and five female school-friends. The blonde was flushed from her cocktail and giddy with laughter. Her breasts were quivering from her hilarity. She looked up, smile broadening at his approach. Several of her peers were also registering interest in the newcomer. She had outpaced them all, Josh noted, in the sprint to adulthood. Quite the young woman. “Just checking you aren’t all going to outdrink the Germans and trash this place,” he said to the group at large.

“That’s my job, to make sure they don’t,” Christina’s buxom teacher assured.

“No, it’s not, you threw this party,” the blonde reminded her, giggling.

“And I’ve a feeling you could teach this lot a thing or two about partying.” The students, Christina included, found Josh’s remark massively funny. Teacher Amanda shot him a wry look like he’d hit on some dangerous truth.

“Josh is head chef at the restaurant where I work,” Christina explained for the benefit of the table. “He’s a genius. He’s going to be the next Gordon Ramsay.”

“Ooh—do you have a temper like Gordon Ramsay?” One of her friends inquired, picking up on the allusion to the volatile TV chef. “Don’t go dropping any f-bombs in front of Miss.”

“It’s okay—I save my filthy language for the kitchen. Well, most of it.” His gaze locked with Christina’s after he’d said it. She looked taken aback but amused nonetheless.

“I hope my nephew isn’t forcing his drunken presence on you ladies. I can’t take my eyes off this rogue for a moment.” Gavin’s words sent further ripples of mirth through the students; they didn’t seem to know who to look at now that the handsome older guy had arrived at their table.

“Oh, I’m sure he’s no more a rogue than his uncle,” the teacher said, her cool stare lingering on Gavin.

“You may be right, but then you’ll never know, will you?” He held her stare and Josh could sense the evaluation going on in her mind. His uncle was working her as her class looked on. Giddy though the students were, they were picking up on the moment. To the teacher’s clear relief Gavin cut it short. “Got to go. Nice meeting you all.”

Competitive spirit flared within Josh. This thing was for real. “Have a great evening,” he said to the whole table. “Christina, see you Sunday.” He turned away, but then went back as on an afterthought, tapping fingers on her shoulder. His heart was thundering. When you were in a contest with Gavin, you had to do no less than channel him. Christina looked up at him smiling, her friends having returned to the conversation with their teacher. “Hey, I’ve got some ideas for a new menu I think you’ll love,” he told her.

“You do? That’s great.” Her voice quavered at his sudden proximity. He inhaled peppermint from her breath.

“And I’d love it if you were the one to try them out first.”

“You would?”

“I would, in fact, I insist on it.” You’ve no idea how much you’re going to try out with me, girl—a whole fucking smorgasbord. “You’re going to be my taste-tester.”

He was sure she was blushing under the dim lights, right down to her perky cleavage. “Well if you put it like that …”

“That’s exactly how I put it. We’ll talk Sunday and arrange a tasting. It’ll be fun.” His fingertips brushed the back of her neck. “Bye.”

He left and went after Gavin, leaving girlish chatter about the hot chef and his sexy uncle in his wake, along with a stricken look on Christina’s face.

Game on, Gav. Game fucking on.

TO BE CONTINUED