Page 111 of Say It Again
Aaron stood and brushed his pants off, then settled in next to him.
Marco twisted to face him, resting an elbow on the back of the sofa, and sighed as he rubbed an eye. “I’m due a vacation. I haven’t taken one in three years.”
Aaron snorted. “Shocker.”
Marco chuckled, which was a nice change of pace after the stress he’d been through. “I think you could use one too. A sandy beach, a drink in your hand. You’ve been working so hard. How would you like to come with me?”
Aaron licked his lips. “What’s that now?”
Marco’s expression was a bit amused. He reached out and brushed a few fingers through Aaron’s hair, which was such an unusually intimate gesture for their dynamic that he almost flinched. “Antigua, maybe. St. Bart’s. I’d pay for the whole thing, of course, and I’d compensate you for your time. You could just relax.”
Aaron sucked in a tight breath. A vacation. Even if no-vacationing-with-clients wasn’t one of his rules, he struggled to imagine any kind of trip without a curly-headed little dancer beside him, bitching about the wind being too windy or whatever.
Marco’s brow kneaded together. “You hesitate.”
“No, I….” He didn’t have an argument. He was hesitating. “Overnight trips aren’t typically something I do.”
“Overnight stays weren’t something you did either. And look. You survived.”
He chuckled. “True. But if I might just be honest for a second?”
“Please.”
“My partner. You met him briefly at the restaurant. He’d probably struggle with that. With a trip.”
“Ahh.” Marco nodded. “The partner. Well, for what it’s worth, he seems very… young. Young people don’t always have the best gauge on what’s most important.”
Aaron squinted. “Which is?”
“Security, of course. Making sure the choices you make improve your future. Now, I want you to please take what I’m about to say seriously.” Again with the hair touching, only he’d scooted in closer. “Can you do that for me?”
He glanced up at Marco’s hand in his hair. He nodded.
“I’d like to continue seeing you, Aaron. I’d like to see you once a month, give or take. You come to me in Santa Monica, or I come to you.”
Something about this was so different. Uncharted. “Oh. Uh. Let me think about—”
“I’d be willing to increase your rate by 20 percent.”
Aaron’s eyes widened, and his heart tripped over a beat.
“Which is a whole lot of money, Aaron, as you know. You could do big things if you invested it properly. I could help you.” Marco gently cupped his face—first one hand, then the other. “But one thing is for certain. You should come on this trip with me. You won’t regret it. I’ll make it worth your time.”
Then the strangest thing happened. Marco kissed him.
For the first time, other than a cheek peck in front of the clients, Marco kissed him, and Aaron allowed it. Why would he not? This was his job. His job wasn’t sending emails, hobnobbing with strangers, and securing deals. His job was to be a patient and enthused lover. He’d always dreamed about a client like this—someone polite, generous, and attractive. He should’ve been turned on as the kiss progressed deeper with Marco’s jaw working and his tongue mingling with his.
He should’ve been having fun, but he wasn’t.
For the first time maybe ever, doing this, doing his job… he felt sick.
THE NEXT night, Daniel clutched a pillow in bed while a true-crime documentary flashed images of some guy killing another guy with a tire iron. It wasn’t great for his nervous system, but he was locked in. What was also not great for his nervous system was the thud that thudded somewhere in the apartment. The living room?
“Aaron?” he asked, eyes wide as he grabbed the remote control. Why wouldn’t he grab his phone? Or Aaron’s baseball bat in the closet? If a psychopath with a tire iron was on their way to bludgeon things, all he’d be able to do was turn up the volume while he got murdered. “Aaron. Is that you?”
Another thud, followed by Aaron’s loud whisper-cursing. Daniel’s breath rushed into his body as he fell back into the bed.
Aaron suddenly stood in the doorway. Well, stood was a stretch. He swayed, held on to the doorframe, and grinned, all silly and blitzed. “Hey, cutie.”