bad guys weren’t hiding beneath it?”
Max reached over and flicked Ethan’s nipple. “He asked me if I’d consider leaving The Elite Poole and taking up a position as his personal bodyguard.”
“Uh huh. Guarding his body. Personally. This guy picked up all his moves from the movies. I guess he wasn’t suave enough to pique your interest.”
Max’s eyes darkened. “He wasn’t intriguing the way you are, no. He wanted from me what I want from you. Surrender. Submission. A beautiful body to possess at any time. It was all surface for him, though.”
“How would you know that?”
“I saw him at events later, accompanied by different young men.”
“Decked out in diamonds like harem boys?” Ethan joked.
Max just smiled. “I won’t judge a relationship between consenting adults. Everyone has their price. I’m fortunate that yours was so low.” Max ran his finger down the center of Ethan’s chest. “Make you moan, make you gasp—that’s enough to keep you satisfied, isn’t it?”
Ethan felt like squirming, which played right into Max’s rhetorical question, so he made sure he controlled himself.
“Think what you like, Max. I have high standards. If you weren’t up to the job, I’d be out there looking for jewelry store owners.”
“None would spank you as well as I do,” Max said knowingly.
Ethan struggled against the need to squirm again. “Was that guy the only one to make a pass at you?”
“Possibly.”
“Talk about dodging the question, Max. Alright, fine. What about later, when you took over running The Elite Poole? Did you ever give an agent the double-take?”
“Only one, as you should be well aware.”
“Are you being honest or are you being my husband?”
Max chuckled. “Who says I’m not being both? You seem to have forgotten how sternly I insisted that work and pleasure be separated. Once upon a time, Ethan, I preferred celibacy over engaging with men at work. Once upon a time, I wasn’t the pushover that I am now.”
Ethan leaned forward and kissed him. “You’re perfect now. I corrupted you just right.”
“So it seems.”
“If I’d been working during those first months when you’d just joined the agency, I probably would have asked you on a date. Or at least flirted with you.”
“I would have suggested to my uncle that you be let go for unprofessional behavior.”
Ethan swallowed his laughter. “You would have done that, that’s true. And I would have deserved it. Even now, I’m less than professional.” He recalled how they’d gotten on this subject in the first place. “I don’t think I can get away with treating Theo Smith like a toddler, even if he’s bratty.”
“Is he that difficult to work with?”
“No. Not really. If I’m honest, I think part of what bugs me is that I can tell he’s lashing out because someone hurt him. Maybe it’s Loren, or maybe it’s the general public. I want to feel sorry for him, or just sympathize with him, but he’s snarky and insulting and that puts me off and then I feel bad for being uncharitable when I know he’s going through something—” Ethan sighed. “Listening to myself right now, I realize I need to let it go. This guy’s problems aren’t mine. Once the assignment is done, he’s gone.”
“What has he said to insult you?”
Leave it to Max to pick up the detail Ethan should have kept to himself.
“It’s nothing. Really it wasn’t.” Ethan quickly drank the rest of his port and set the glass aside. He shifted to sit on Max’s lap and drape his arms over his shoulders. “I don’t want to bring work home. You’re home, and that’s the only thing that matters to me.”
“Don’t hide your problems from me, Ethan.” Max rested his hands on Ethan’s back and stroked soothingly. “I can easily switch you to another assignment.”
“He said he and his agent chose me specifically.”
“That means little to me if he’s making you uncomfortable.”
Ethan considered it, but shook his head. “I want to stay with him. I’m curious about why he wanted me. There’s something deeper happening here. I want to know what it is.”
“Famous last words.”
“Don’t I know it.”
~~~~~
Ethan poured himself a glass of watermelon juice before sliding the carafe to Max while yawning.
“You didn’t sleep well?” Max asked him.
“Off and on. I already feel like I need a nap.” Ethan cut into his white egg omelet and quickly speared a piece. “Didn’t affect my appetite, though.”
“Your schedule with Theo Smith has you downtown, at the grand opening of the Shades for Life pop-up store. After the photo-op, you’ll take him to