Alluring Passion: A MM Contemporary Bundle

by Peter Styles

  And despite his unicorn-ish nature, and the fact that already some of that glitter was starting to appear on his own suit, Chris still felt that same instantaneous attraction and fascination with this young man as he did when he first saw him at the park. And now that they were closer together, he could see even more.

  Jeremiah’s eyes were as dark as his hair, and his skin ran in a shade of tan that the sun couldn’t emulate. Asian ancestry, Chris guessed, and it worked for him. He looked solemn and studious, with the sharp facial lines of his heritage mellowed out just enough by whatever other backgrounds he had. If not for that, he might have been intimidating or cold-looking. Although, it was hard to look cold when one’s face was heated in a blush.

  Other than his handsome face, the unicorn was in possession of a slender body with slightly broad shoulders. He was not frail, but certainly delicate.

  “So, how have you liked your first time? A bit boring, isn’t it?”

  Jeremiah glanced away slightly, his blush darkening a tad in coloration.

  What? Oh. First time? He’s shy.

  Shy and cute.

  “I guess so,” Jeremiah answered. “It… uh… hasn’t been really what I was expecting, you know. I thought there would be a lot more discussion.”

  Chris picked up the drink menu so that Jeremiah would stop looking at it, and he toyed with it in his hands. “There is earlier in the night. You might have missed that though, since it tends to die out pretty quickly. But, tonight just isn’t a really good night for it. You should come again a few more times. I’m sure you’ll get to see some more action and it might be a bit more exciting.”

  Jeremiah glanced down at the menu Chris held, looking as though he was on the verge of snatching it away so that he could hide his face behind it again. Chris had no intention of letting him do that, however. He liked actually being able to fully see who he spoke to. “I don’t know if I will be coming back though. I think I have all I needed.”

  “I’m not sure how you were able to spy on anyone,” Chris chuckled. “Not dressed like that.”

  Jeremiah reddened again, mouth opening and closing a few times as he searched for something to throw back. At last finding none, he glanced down at his hands and lapsed into silence.

  Silence wasn’t something Chris was going to stand for. He gestured with the wine listing. “Want anything to drink? I’m certain something must be left.”

  “I’m not much of a drinker. Dessert wine is about the strongest I get.”

  “Sweet tooth?”

  “More like a sensitive stomach,” Jeremiah quipped back. “I wish I was able to handle more. They say red wine is good for your health.”

  “They say the same about dark chocolate,” Chris replied. Despite himself, his interest sharpened. “Do you know much about wine, even though you don’t drink?”

  I might be playing with something dangerous here.

  Luckily, it seemed as though Jeremiah didn’t have the tragic past that Chris feared. The beginnings of a slight smile played on his lips, lighting up his whole face. It was fascinating to see, truly. “Well, I read a lot. I also just like to know things.”

  “To impress others, no doubt.” Chris nodded, he could relate.

  But Jeremiah shook his head. “No, no. I don’t ever really have anyone to talk to about some of these things. And why would I? It’s boring. People don’t want to know that experts can’t tell the difference between aged wine and the stuff in a bag. They don’t want to think about people stepping on grapes with their sweaty feet. And why should they? I like to know just to know.”

  “Fascinating,” Chris whispered.

  If anything, Jeremiah’s blush only deepened. He stood up abruptly, pushing his chair beneath the table. “I think I should go. It’s late.”

  Chris narrowed his gaze in on the delicate V-shaped patch between Jeremiah’s legs, accented by the sharp cut of that ridiculous suit. Then, as Jeremiah lurched around to hurry away, he was treated to a mouth-watering eyeful of supple, round ass that strained at the fabric.

  “Wait,” he said and stood to hurry after the other man. He noticed with some amusement that there was a trail of glitter across the floor. “Jeremiah, hold on a moment.”

  Jeremiah did, his back stiffening as Chris approached. With a bit of surprise, Chris noticed that they were almost the same height. It was all that slouching and folding in on himself that made Jeremiah seem shorter. “What is it?”

  “Here, take…” Chris shoved his hand into his breast pocket and brought out his business card. The design was slick and perfect, commissioned by a local artist, but all at once it seemed simply inadequate. He flipped it over to the back and jotted down his personal cell number in the corner with a pen he always carried hooked onto the same pocket that held the cards. That done, he held it out to Jeremiah. “Call me sometime, why don’t you?”

  The other man didn’t say a word, but he did accept the card before leaving as though a pack of wolves nipped at his heels. Chris craned his head as he had done that day at the park, wishing he could see where Jeremiah was headed, but at that moment a voice called out his name from behind. Grimacing and then smiling as he turned around, Chris put his back to the fleeing man and focused on the reason why he was there at the party in the first place.

  I really hope he calls.

  Chapter 6

  Jeremiah hurried away from the party, glad for the cooled night wind blowing on his red face. He could hardly believe what he’d just done. It was absolutely humiliating to have to do that, and the whole time all he could think about was how disloyal it felt.

  The business card in his pocket practically burned him through the fabric of his shirt. He was far too aware of it, and also of the fact that he had managed to get absolutely no other information about Chris Finley. Was this night a success or a failure then?

  “Mr. Bird!”

  Jeremiah spun around to his left, catching a glimpse of a man in a hat waving at him from behind a car. Markus’s company car, to be exact. Which meant that the man was his driver, and Jeremiah’s way home.

  He hurried over to the car and dove into the passenger seat. “Let’s go home right away,” he said.

  The driver nodded. Jeremiah suddenly realized that he didn’t even know the man’s name. “As you wish,” the driver said, putting the car into drive and carefully pulling away from the parking lot. “Are you sure you don’t want to stop along the way somewhere? No ice cream?”

  Ice cream is my weakness. I should want it.

  However, his stomach just felt knotted with tension. “Maybe next time.”

  “I hope so.”

  That was surprising. Jeremiah glanced over at the other man, harsh orange lights passing over their faces to briefly illuminate the interior of the vehicle. “You do?”

  The driver let out a low chuckle, coming to a gentle stop as the streetlight turned from yellow to red. “Of course, I do. I made driving my career. It’s soothing to me.”

  “Huh.” He hadn’t thought of it in that way before. “It’s just stressful to me. I can’t imagine doing that as my career, and definitely not in one of the busiest cities in America.”

  “Oh, you get used to it. You can get used to anything if you can find a pattern.”

  I just got the number of my boyfriend’s arch nemesis and now his driver is talking to me like some sort of monk. What sort of weird night is this?

  He didn’t say anything else through the long rest of the drive home, and the driver didn’t seem particularly inclined to talk. Back at the apartment building, he headed up the elevator and down the hall to their apartment. He opened the door with his key and stepped inside, eagerly shedding the vest and tossing it on the couch. An enormous puff of glitter made him almost immediately regret the action, but there would be time to clean it up tomorrow. Why not just continue to make a mess, then? With that in mind, he felt liberated enough to toss the rest of his clothes onto the couch until he was standing there in only his underwe
ar… which was also covered in glitter.

  He had his thumbs under the waistband and was tugging them down over his hips when the door suddenly crashed open hard against the wall.

  “Dammit, Markus!” he swore, spinning around to face his dark boyfriend. He planted his glittery hands on his hips, glaring.

  Markus grinned at him, slamming the door behind him and stepping forward to plant his hands on Jeremiah’s hips, covering his own hands. “How’d you know this is what I wanted?” he purred.

  Jeremiah swatted his hands away, still glaring. “That was the most humiliating night I’ve ever had.”

  “But hopefully a useful one, right, babe? Tell me what you got.”

  Frowning, Jeremiah went over to the couch and picked up his suit jacket to fumble around in the pocket.

  “You really should have hung those up, babe. They’ll get ruined like that.”

  “If we had matches here, I would have set it on fire,” Jeremiah grumbled and handed over the business card. “That’s his personal number.”

  Markus looked pleased, which was surprising. Jeremiah thought he would be furious that he hadn’t managed to get more. “Good! Now you can call him and ask him out on a date.”

  Jeremiah’s heart sank. “Do I really have to?”

  “Yes!” Markus spread his hands, eyes glowing. “And you have to do it quickly before he loses interest, while you’re still fresh in his mind. But not too quickly, or else you’ll seem too eager. You’ll get it figured out, I’m sure.”

  Markus patted his ass and then headed past him in the direction of the bedroom, but not before suggestively wiggling his eyebrows. Even though he didn’t want sex, Jeremiah sighed and followed along anyway. He’d hoped to be done with all of this strategy and guessing stuff when he graduated from high school, and especially once he’d entered into a committed relationship; however, everything was all right back at that quintessential stage of awkwardness and uncertainty. Clearly, some things never changed.

  Chapter 7

  Chris looked out the window of his office building and sighed. Another beautiful day, only this time he wasn’t even anywhere he could vicariously appreciate it through the actions of others. While it wasn’t exactly the Empire State Building, it was three stories of pure business and that meant his office windows didn’t open and the walls were soundproofed. All he could see were the overheated sides of other buildings, gleaming hotly in the sun, and a rainbow stream of cars passing slowly through the crowded streets. No children playing, no cool wind and no attractive bodies.

  Letting out another sigh, he turned away from the window and looked down at the desk blotter calendar before him. Every single day had several events listed, and that wasn’t including his personal calendar that listed his daily schedule. He had five minutes before his next meeting and it wasn’t even lunchtime yet. He felt like he might go insane, trapped and motionless behind these steel walls.

  Suddenly, his pocket buzzed. His right pocket, the one that held his personal cell, and not the left with his business cell. At any other time, he would have ignored the call but he couldn’t help but to remember the last person he gave his number to. Hoping against hope, he grabbed the cell from his pocket and answered it.

  “Hello? Chris Finley speaking.”

  “Uh…”

  Chris closed his eyes, relieved that he’d answered. Even after hearing that voice only once, he would have known the sound anywhere. Words rose up in his throat but he held them back, knowing better than to talk over the quieter man.

  “Hi, Chris,” Jeremiah said. “Uh… are you busy?”

  Chris glanced at the clock again. “I have a few minutes before my next appointment. Did you need something?”

  “I… uh… just wanted to ask if you were busy tonight. Or… um… maybe tomorrow. I just… uh…”

  He held back a chuckle. “Let me check something, okay?”

  “Sure.”

  He looked down at the desk blotter, but what he saw didn’t please him. And a look at his schedule for the next few days was equally disappointing. Of course, he’d made that schedule on his own but he hadn’t planned on wanting to do anything else. Then, he straightened up and shook his head. He was the boss here. Finley Real Estate belonged to him and he could do with it whatever he wanted, no matter the advice against it.

  “I’m not free tonight but I can definitely do dinner or something tomorrow. Listen, I have to go so why don’t I text you the details tonight? Or… early tomorrow morning, depending on when I…”

  When I can get my secretary to reschedule all those appointments for me.

  He never got to finish what he was saying because, just then, Jeremiah interrupted him. “That sounds good to me. No rush. I’d best let you go. Talk soon.”

  An abrupt click told him that he’d been hung up on.

  Chris sighed and dropped his head into his hands, wondering how he was meant to go about having a business and a personal life. Really, he hadn’t planned on anything personal with anyone, but Jeremiah was different somehow. Jeremiah was an intellect. Attractive too, but more than just a person to bang and part ways with half an hour later.

  Well, I guess I’ll have to play things by ear for a bit, but now I can start planning out a schedule that includes time for dating.

  If, that was, they were at all compatible. Chris had a feeling that Jeremiah was going to be one tough nut to crack. He seemed like the private sort.

  “Maybe I should read a book or two,” he muttered.

  His office door opened and his secretary poked her head in through the door with a mischievous glimmer in her eyes. “I suggest you start with your calendar because you’re supposed to be in the meeting room right about now.”

  “Dammit,” he swore, pushing up from his chair. “Why didn’t you remind me sooner?”

  She didn’t say anything, only moved back out of the doorway and held the door wide open for him. Only when he passed did she mutter under her breath, “Not only did you tell me to quit rushing you, you also instructed me to never interrupt you while you were on the phone.”

  Chris sighed. “How many other conflicting things have I told you?”

  “Basically everything, Mr. Finley,” she said, handing him a stack of papers that he was obviously supposed to have prepared for himself. “But don’t worry. It’s my job to keep your job under control.”

  Well, pretty soon I’m going to need you to help me keep my personal life under check too. Hope you’re up for that.

  Chapter 8

  Jeremiah had never been to a restaurant where wearing a suit was a requirement. Even standing out on the street and looking in the large windows was intimidating. The décor was somewhat cluttered, as was normal for a tavern, but clearly expensive and placed in just such a way as to make use of every inch of cluttered space. The lights were bright, illuminating Gramercy Tavern’s split dining area and bar.

  Jeremiah clutched at his jacket cuff, eyes sliding across what he could see of the patrons within. They were businessmen and professionals, the lot of them, who wore their outfits like a second skin. And here he was, clearly out of his league.

  At least Markus was serious this time when we went shopping.

  As much as it was difficult for him to imagine a dining establishment with a dress code, he found it surprisingly easy to imagine being kicked out of one if he wore that ridiculous silver costume. The suit he wore now was dark grey, nearly black, and still just a bit too form-fitting.

  Managing to tear his eyes away from the Tavern’s front, he scanned the bustling streets in search of Chris. This was where they were supposed to meet for a late dinner and, although the sky looked quite nice at dusk, Jeremiah was very aware of the fact that he was a sitting duck if someone tried to mug him.

  Suddenly, something hard pressed lightly against his back. He stiffened.

  “Give me all your money,” a familiar voice murmured. Hot breath rolled against his ear.

  Scowling, Jeremiah wheeled
around and glared at Chris. The company manager was grinning, clearly pleased with himself, but as the look on Jeremiah’s face registered, he slowly held up his hands between them. “Okay, okay. Peace, alright? Don’t kill me.”

  “Don’t scare me like that!” Jeremiah snapped, anger getting the better of him and pushing his fear away. “It’s not nice.”

  Chris blinked a little, a slow look of contemplation crossing his face. It occurred to Jeremiah that he hadn’t ever looked so long and hard at the other man until now. It was easy enough, with the bright lights spilling through the restaurant windows. He was darkly tanned, with blond hair full of lighter streaks no doubt turned pale due to all his time in the sun. While clearly muscular, he was nowhere near Markus’s level of athleticism.

  Then, Chris nodded as if agreeing with something that had been said aloud. He leaned over and grabbed Jeremiah’s hand, pressing the back of it to his lips. “You’re right. It wasn’t nice and I apologize. Do you still want to have dinner with me?”

  Jeremiah glared at him for a moment but he couldn’t hold onto his anger any longer. No one ever kissed his hand like that before. It was a romantic gesture, and Markus was a bit lacking in that area.

  “No,” he said, “but I do want to have dinner because I’m hungry.”

  He hadn’t eaten all day due to nervousness but now it seemed like a lot of that had been due to anticipation. He was starving, and he had a wallet full of money that Markus gave him as an allowance. Well, it was more than he was usually given as his allowance due to the fact that these were extenuating circumstances. He was expected to spend some of it on Chris to get on his good side. And if that didn’t work… he had been given permission to do whatever it would take.

  Jeremiah would call the whole thing off before he let it get that far.

  Chris didn’t look the least bit put out by the jab thrown in his direction. If anything, his grin seemed to spread. He relinquished his grip on Jeremiah’s hand and moved off towards the Tavern. “You’re going to like this place a lot. Very top of the line.”