he tapped away on his phone. Day wondered if he was texting the big guy running the meeting because every few seconds the man would look at his phone and then give Wyatt a dirty look, which only seemed to amuse Wyatt.
Day longed for a relationship like that. He couldn’t imagine what it would feel like to be with somebody who loved him no matter what. Not some sappy greeting card love with hearts and rainbows and flowery speeches about unconditional love, but the ride-or-die love you have through cancer and missing limbs and fifty pounds of stress eating or finding out you didn’t qualify for a lung transplant… That kind of love. But Day didn’t think that kind of love was real. It was just some gimmick used to sell Hallmark movies. Real relationships came with all kinds of conditions, and Day didn’t think he’d ever find somebody willing to overlook his many, many flaws.
“You ready to go, Hollywood?”
Day dropped his phone as Jackson’s voice boomed from behind his shoulder. “Uh, yeah. Sure.”
Day turned to find Jackson wearing aviator sunglasses and holding a pair of keys with the Mercedes emblem on them. Day kept a death grip on his phone as he followed Jackson to the elevators, feeling like the entire office watched them both depart. Maybe it was just because Jackson was the boss. Day snuck another look at him where he leaned against the back panel of the elevator, ankles crossed as he stared straight ahead. Well, at least, Day thought he did. It was hard to tell with his dark lenses.
As they exited the elevator, Jackson’s hand settled at the small of Day’s back, warmth seeping through the layers of denim, making goosebumps rise along his skin. He led Day to a brand new Mercedes sedan, opening the passenger door for Day. “Thank you,” he mumbled.
Jackson closed the door before walking around to slide gracefully into the driver’s seat. “Seatbelt.”
Day followed Jackson’s command without thought. The engine purred as Jackson turned on the car with the touch of a button. A woman’s voice spilled from the speakers, and it took Day a moment to realize it was a book on tape. The woman had a crisp, melodic tone to her speech, reminding him a bit of Mary Poppins. Jackson went to turn it down, but Day reached out and gripped his wrist. Jackson stared at Day’s hand, and he quickly removed it. “Sorry,” he muttered. “I… You can listen if you want to. I-I like it.”
Jackson examined his face for what seemed like an hour before he gave a single nod. “Alright. I’ll start it over. We have a long drive ahead.”
Day gave him a smirk. “It’s LA. All drives are long.”
“You’re not wrong.”
“I rarely am,” Day said in a singsong voice, flushing when he earned another smile from Jackson. He had perfect teeth. He had perfect everything if Day was being honest.
“So, we need to discuss some ground rules.”
Day’s smirk disappeared, and he cut his eyes to Jackson. “Excuse me?”
“No strangers in my house. You can still perform your nightly shows, but you perform alone.”
Day bristled at his tone. “As opposed to the thousands of men I usually let parade in and out of my bed?” he asked, tone snippy.
Jackson raised his hand in a placating gesture. “I didn’t say all that. Jimmy said you were auctioning off your virginity. I don’t know when you were planning on picking a winner, but it won’t be while you’re on my watch.”
“Look at you, guarding my purity,” Day said, deadpan. “And they say chivalry is dead.”
Day stared out the window, skin hot, fuming. He didn’t know why it annoyed him that Jackson knew he was a virgin…at least in the most technical of terms.
“It’s a good gimmick.”
Day tossed another look at Jackson. “What is?”
“The whole virginity thing. I could see guys standing in line for the chance to be your first.”
“Thanks?”
“Is it real, though?”
“Is what real?” Day asked, genuinely confused and already wishing this conversation would end.
“Are you really a virgin? And, if so, are you really going to have sex with some random guy?”
Day coughed in surprise. “Have I ever had a dick in my ass? Is that what you’re asking me after having known me twenty minutes?”
“You have very delicate sensibilities for a guy who makes his living in sex work,” Jackson said, tone still conversational. “You obviously don’t have to answer. I’m just genuinely trying to understand.”
“It’s not like I’ve never fooled around with