In Bed With The Boss Page 0,9

he didn’t want to cross the man. The hard look in his eyes had told Christian he’d beat the crap out of him if he messed with David.

The cab arrived at his building, and Christian got out, paying the driver and then heading inside. In the apartment, he opened a bottle of wine and sat in front of his windows in one of the large chairs, watching as the lights twinkled in the night, mulling over his behavior and what he thought he wanted. As he stood up, the room swayed and spun slightly. Christian walked slowly to the bathroom, cleaning up as best he could before undressing and falling into bed, having decided nothing except that he was going to have one hell of a hangover in the morning.

* * * * “Christian,” David said softly, and he slowly cracked his eyes open. “A packet just arrived by messenger, and you have an appointment in an hour.”

He sighed softly, his head pounding, and he made some sort of sound that in his head was a perfectly clear “fuck off” but must have come out as gibberish, because he felt the side of the bed dip, and David pulled back the covers.

“I have some aspirin for you.” David held out the pills, and Christian slowly lifted his head off the pillow, taking the pills and putting them in his mouth before accepting the glass of water. David took the glass away when he was done, and Christian burrowed back under the covers. He knew he had to get up, but his head still hurt and his body felt like crap. After giving the medicine a chance to work, he slowly pushed back the covers and forced himself out of bed.

To say that Christian felt like crap was a vast understatement, but he kept his eyes cracked open enough to shave, and then stepped into the shower. The warm water helped soothe away some of the aches, and when he stepped out to dry off, Christian almost felt human. After dressing, he padded into the kitchen to the scent of fresh brewed coffee. “You’re a godsend,” Christian muttered without opening his eyes too much, since the sun was streaming through the windows and he was so not ready for that yet.

“Your appointment is in fifteen minutes, and I put the messengered package in the studio for when you’re ready to review it.” David sounded subdued, and Christian cracked his eyes open further, noticing that the wine bottle, glass, and the remains of last night’s dinner had all been cleaned up. The apartment was immaculate. For a second, Christian gazed at David trying to figure him out, but he seemed nervous, and Christian’s mind wasn’t working so well, so he let it go. Picking up his mug, he walked back to his closet, slipped on his shoes, and headed into the studio.

The lighting was subdued and Christian felt so much better. Opening his eyes he wandered to the desk and began reviewing his plan for the morning.

Sitting at the desk, Christian studied his schedule and groaned, holding his head in his hands. “David,” he said without looking up, “please reschedule the session to this afternoon. Hopefully I’ll feel more human by then.” Lifting his gaze, he saw David’s disapproving look, mixed with something he didn’t quite understand but also didn’t have the energy to figure out right now.

“Of course,” David answered softly before picking up the phone. Christian heard him quietly reschedule the appointment for two in the afternoon before returning the phone to its cradle. “You shouldn’t do that to yourself,” David told him with surprising gentleness, and Christian heard him walk behind him. Then hands settled on his shoulders and began to move, massaging his muscles and instantly making the worst of his headache begin to fade. It took about two minutes for the throbbing to subside and for the warmth in David’s hands to soak through his shirt and into his skin. David’s hands felt good, and Christian let his head fall back as he let his mind float on a calm sea. It had been a long time since he’d been touched without sex being involved, and Christian was afraid to move for fear David would pull away, so he sat as still as he could and silently willed David not to stop.

He lost track of how long he sat like that, eyes closed, body relaxed, David’s talented hands on his shoulders, but he immediately missed the touch