“And that’s why I knew you were different. When it comes to my personal life, I don’t mix business with pleasure. And being with you would be pure pleasure.”
“You barely know me,” Chess forced out, trying hard not to let the sensuous, pretty words of the man make him do something stupid. “Maybe I’m the same or different as anyone you’ve met before.”
“I know. And I’m rarely wrong.”
Chess wondered if André would ask him to come home with him and what his answer would be. “I guess we’ll have to see.”
“I’m not fond of waiting. Another of my bad traits.” His smile gleamed white in the dim light of the restaurant, which had begun to empty out. “It’s getting late.”
“It is.” Chess met his gaze.
“I won’t deny how bad I want to take you home with me, but my attraction isn’t only physical. You…intrigue me, and I’d like to see you again. Have that chance to wind you up.”
An unfamiliar tangle of emotions spread through him. He’d never known anything but getting naked with another man. No talking of hopes and dreams because he’d had none. It was easy to lose oneself in desire and sex. To close your eyes and will the pain away with temporary pleasure.
That wouldn’t be possible with a man like André Webster, whose piercing eyes ripped through his walls to find a place no one else had been able to reach. Chess was certain that if he were ever to be loved by André, there’d be nothing left for any other man.
“I’d like that too.”
“This weekend? We could do brunch at The Boathouse in Central Park. It’s beautiful this time of year.” A waiter slid the check in front of André, and he laid his credit card on top, but his focus remained on Chess.
“I’ve never been.” They hadn’t so much as touched, but Chess felt consumed.
“Then it’s a date. I’d like to be your first.”
“I think you already are.”
The weight of the ring on his finger was as heavy as the secrets he held in his heart. “You’re the only man I’ve ever loved. The only man I ever wantedtolove.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Chess saw Dottie slip out of the room with a smile on her face.
André’s hand was warm in his, and his thumb played over the wide band now encircling his ring finger. “Love. You know I call you that so you’ll never forget how I feel about you. You’re the one person I look forward to coming home to. The only one I’ve ever been myself with. I can’t picture my life without you, and I hope I’ll never have to.”
“You won’t. As much as you love me, I love you more for making me believe again.”
“Believe in what?” André lifted his hand and kissed his fingers, warms lips playing over the ring and up to his knuckle.
“Life. Love.” Chess rubbed their entwined hands over his cheek. “Myself. I didn’t plan to ever fall in love.”
“Why? You have everything going for you—youth, brains, beauty. You’re a professor—an educator. What could be more important than that? Any man would be lucky to have you. It’s why I made you mine—so no one else could steal you away.”
A pretty package can hide the ugliness within. And Chess couldn’t allow himself to be unwrapped to the point of revealing it all.
“Not likely to have happened, but I couldn’t be happier.”
André dipped a spoon in the creamy soufflé and slipped it inside his mouth, and Chess lost himself in the sensual movement of André’s tongue sweeping across his lips.
“Can I ask you something?” André set his spoon on the table.
“Of course. But first I’m going to eat my soufflé before it falls.” He scooped out a generous amount and moaned around the spoon. “Oh God, I’ve never tasted anything so good.” He took another serving, letting the chocolate melt in his mouth.
“Why don’t you ever talk about your parents? Is it still too painful? If it is, I’d understand, but I’d love to know something about them, since they gave me the most important thing in my life. You.”
The sweetness of the dessert turned to dust. “I-I don’t know. It’s been so long…”
“I know. And it hurts me to think you were on your own when you were so young. How did you manage? You never talk about it. If I didn’t know better, I’d say your life started at college.” André stroked his hair, but with the numbness spreading through him, he barely felt touched. “You know you can tell me anything.”
He hated lying to André. It wasn’t right, but nothing in his childhood had been. There were no relatives for him to turn to when his mother passed away. His father wasn’t listed on his birth certificate, so the courts couldn’t force him to do anything. He was all alone.
