Naked Hero - The Journey Away

behind. That was a good sign: a man that looked forward. He might just be the one.
    Suddenly Jim Murdoch felt his age, and at last reached out, then with a single gulp, embraced the burn, and welcomed the numbness it brought.

Chapter 17
    A burn of a different type was happening to Lee Porter as he completed his final set of shoulder presses in the Astra Leisure Centre. He was one of the afternoon regulars now, having joined up immediately on arriving in Sydney. It was ideally situated, just ten minutes walk from the apartment where he and the lads were staying , and being located just off Oxford Street it naturally had a big gay clientele. The others in the troop also used the gym but tended to come later in the day. That was fine for Lee, he preferred to work out on his own without distractions, and it also meant that they had a presence at the gym over a longer period of the day. It was important that they got noticed.
    Lee was certainly being noticed, as he always was when he worked out. In a gym like this men would constantly be looking at him. He didn’t object, but rarely responded to any of the looks when he exercised. Dedication had been essential in order to develop the body he now possessed, and just as important to maintain it. The fun and games could come at the end of the session, but not during the workout.
    Late afternoon was the time he preferred for training. It was quieter with most people still being at work. That would all change come six o’clock, but Lee would have gone by then. It had been a pattern of his life for the past ten years: at least three days a week, more often five. He loved the isolation that he created for himself during the two hour sessions when his mind rarely wandered from the task in hand. And he loved the rewards that the work had brought: the body, the men, and the success.
    It was the possibility of more success which spurred him on today. The trip to Sydney was still not justifying itself financially and Lee needed to turn things around. But as luck would have it, an opportunity had at last presented itself. Lee had increased his costs for the trip even further the previous weekend, with the photo shoot at Bondi Beach. The photographer he had hired was one of the best in the business. Expensive, but the results were well worth it. He knew that the portfolio he had now added to the website was his most impressive by some way, and would certainly counter any claims, that at thirty-one, he was perhaps past his best, and no longer worthy of his unofficial position at the top of the gay glamour model heap. That in itself was sufficient justification for the investment, but Lee had also speculated with his choice of swimwear for the shoot... He had speculated with HIM.
    HIM Clothing was a Sydney based company who had originally specialised in top of the range male underwear and swimwear then branched out to encompass a much wider range of sportswear, aimed at both men and women. They had been very successful in Australia, and had penetrated the Asian market to a small degree, but they knew that the real opportunities lay in Europe and North America. The photographer Lee had used for his shoot had contacts within the company, having worked for them on several occasions. He had acted as a go-between, and as a result of the shoot had generated sufficient interest in Lee for the company’s marketing director to request a meeting which was scheduled for the following Tuesday.
    As he finished the workout, Lee’s thoughts turned to the meeting and the potential business that it could offer. A modelling contract with such a prestigious brand name would certainly be very lucrative, and the knock on effect potentially huge. A sponsorship deal was also on the cards. He already had in place several sportswear deals, but this could be the biggest by some way. HIM Clothing was definitely aiming at the gay market, and Lee Porter had a big influence on that market in the UK. He was sure that they would see the potential in doing business with him.
    But that lay in the future, and he had plenty of time to prepare for the meeting. It was the present that was now of more interest to Lee. He became conscious of the gazes from several of the men in the gym as he towelled himself down having completed his workout. It was more by instinct than anything else that he surveyed the admiring throng. So easy to just look in one direction, then with a nod, head off to the changing rooms where sex