“Welcome to my world,” Ethan said. “You don’t have any kind of longevity in show business if you don’t learn to be media savvy. I’ll be the first to admit my life is different and sucks at times, but it gives me a platform. And now, Kira will have this platform, at least for a few days.”
“Interesting,” Kira said. “I’m going to talk to the partners about this strategy before I jump into this.”
The three chatted for a few more minutes and devised a game plan for the next couple of days. After they hung up, Ethan quickly emailed his publicist asking her to stall all interview requests. He promised to call her in a few days to schedule a more formal announcement. He then spent almost an hour responding to the litany of texts he received while talking to Kira.
He glanced over at Blayne and saw his eyes were closed.He is pretty damn cute. But, after all this, I seriously doubt he’d ever consider me anything but a friend. Oh well. Such is life.
He put his phone down on the table, doing his best not to disturb Blayne. He sat there for a few minutes, watching as Blayne’s chest went up and down with his breaths. Blayne’s shirt had ridden up slightly, showing the treasure trail. Ethan felt himself stirring down south, so he lifted Blayne’s legs gently.
“Oh, sorry,” Blayne said, waking up. “I must have dozed off.”
“Only for a few minutes.”
“I guess, I should head to bed, but I don’t feel like moving.”
Without thinking, Ethan bent over Blayne and hefted the other man into his arms.
“Whoa,” Blayne said in shock. “Damn, you’re strong.”
“Put your arms around my neck,” Ethan replied. “I don’t want to drop you.”
Thankfully, Blayne did as he’d been told and rested his head against Ethan’s chest. Ethan lifted Blayne a little higher than necessary to keep his dick from poking the other man in the back. He walked around the coffee table and across the room. He shifted Blayne’s weight when he got to Blayne’s bedroom door, so he could turn the doorknob. Ethan turned sideways and carried Blayne into the primary bedroom, crossed to the queen-sized bed and laid Blayne down.
“That was fun,” Blayne said. “We should do it again some time.” He barely got the words out of his mouth before he yawned loudly.
“Maybe we will,” Ethan said. “Good night.”
Ethan turned to leave the room. Blayne reached out and grabbed his hand. “I don’t… I don’t want to be alone.”
Ethan took a deep breath before turning around. A pleading look on Blayne’s face melted Ethan’s heart. “In all honesty, I don’t want to be alone, either.”
Blayne moved to the other side of the bed as he got under the covers. Ethan lowered himself behind Blayne. “I’ll sleep on top of the covers. I tend to run hot, anyway.”
He laid down on his side, stared at the back of Blayne’s head and ran his gaze down his body to Blayne’s runner’s ass.What I wouldn’t give—
Blayne had scooched closer to Ethan’s body, so Ethan settled in behind him and snaked his arm across the man’s chest. Blayne let out a contented sigh. Ethan rocked his hips back to keep his erection from impaling Blayne accidentally and laid there stiffly for what seemed like an hour.
Ethan knew the moment Blayne had drifted asleep. Only then did he relax behind Blayne as he allowed himself to close his eyes and let the darkness of the night wrap its embrace around them.
* * * *
Dr. Hennigan
Dr. Hennigan was ushered into the dining room by an attendant and told that her dinner host was running behind and would be with her in a moment. She’d been in the room once before, but she’d been a young girl at the time, and the room had been renovated since then.
She took a minute to take in the decor while she was waiting. The wallpaper was vertical stripes of light and dark green. Two giant windows stood on the far wall from the door, framed by opulent red and gold drapes. She looked out of the window and couldn’t see much past the security lights sweeping across the front lawn.
She turned and noticed someone had lit a fire in the fireplace. Above the glowing flames was a mirror running all the way to the top of the twenty-foot ceiling.Where does one even find a mirror that large? Clearly, it’s custom-made.In Washington, DC, the October weather was already chilling, so the fire made for a pleasant addition. Opposite the fireplace was an armoire filled with various knickknacks the First Lady had brought back with her from multiple trips abroad.
“Dr. Hennigan, it’s so good to see you again,” Cleo Barnes said as she entered the room, walked over to her dinner guest and grasped Dr. Hennigan’s hand.
“Cleo, dear. Call me Phillipa. We’ve known each other forever,” Dr. Hennigan responded with a fake smile.
“Please, sit,” Cleo said, gesturing to one seat at the table. “Cocktail?”
“Vodka, please.”
Cleo smiled and went to the small bar area in the front corner of the room. She pulled out two cocktail glasses from the bar. “Ice?”
