“But—”
“Tony, did you like him?”
Max shrugged. “He was kind of boring, actually.”
Secretly I was pleased, but this wouldn’t do. Maybe I could badger Vic into meeting him, but my enthusiasm for that idea just wasn’t there. My phone rang and I wriggled it out of my back pocket. Relief battled with irrational hatred as I saw Zack Vicar flash on the screen.
“Hello?”
“I had time to think about—”
“Here, talk to him.” I shoved the phone into Max’s hand while he gave me a bewildered frown.
“Hello?” he murmured softly, putting the phone to his ear like it might be poisonous. I stood and stomped out of the room, only barely catching myself from slamming the door behind me. This was all for the best. But as usual I’d indulged my hubris, and now I’d have the image of Max kneeling in a suit in my playroom burned into my brain. I’d still have this memory when someone else was fucking him.
We all paid a price when we did things we knew we shouldn’t. I kept walking down the stairs, stopped long enough to tug on my boots, and went on outside to glare at the perfect mounds of freshly fallen snow and the cold, twinkling stars overhead. I took the shovel from beside the front door and started on the walk, trying really hard not to think about what Vic would say to Max, or tell him to do, or ask him to take pictures of and send.
I tried not to think about Max being excited for him. Moaning.Calling him Daddy.
Growling, I shoveled the first scoop of snow and flung it as far as I could to the side—and then kept going. My muscles burned with the exercise and sweat rapidly cooled on my back and left me shivering, but I didn’t stop.
8
Max
The voice on the other end of the phone was deep and scorching, but also nothing like JP’s. “Hello, boy. What’s your name?”
I thought I should have shivered at the way he called me boy, the same way I did when JP had, yet my body had no reaction. It could have been that I’d never met this man, or that I just preferred JP, but he’d made his position clear. His career was important to him and being with me in any capacity wasn’t an option.
I stared around the playroom, my gaze stopping on a wall of whips and paddles that had goose bumps rising on my skin. I imagined JP bending me over, my bare ass on display as he brought one of those paddles down on it, and I couldn’t decide if I’d scream or whimper in my fantasy scene. Probably both.
“Boy, are you listening to me?” The sharp question brought me back to reality.
“Oh, sorry, Sir. Yes, I’m listening.” I flushed as that wall drew my attention again and I couldn’t look away.
“What’s your name?” His tone softened.
“Maxwell.”
Only JP could call me Max, at least for now. I couldn’t hold on to the hope that JP would change his mind, and if I genuinely liked the idea of having a Daddy, I needed to get past thisthingwith him. It had only been one blow job, but he’d broken a wall between us that I hadn’t even realized was there, and now I wanted him so badly it hurt. I stared longingly at the door he’d exited and sourness churned in the pit of my stomach. How would he react if I told him I wanted to be with him?
I shook my head. He wouldn’t care. His career was everything to him, like it should be, and I’d already nearly destroyed Deputy Mayor Elwood’s, so JP didn’t trust me.
“Hello, Maxwell, my name is Zack Vicar. People call me Vic, but you can call me Daddy.”
I shuddered and bit down on my bottom lip hard. Gripping the phone tighter in my hand, I thought about telling Vic I wasn’t interested, but the fear of being alone after such a wonderful night stopped me. If JP didn’t want me, I’d find someone who did.
“Yes, Daddy.”
“Good. Now listen, I’m a busy man, and I don’t have time to waste on men who don’t want to be my boy. I’m the owner of club Triple X and time is limited. Is your interest in finding a Daddy a serious one?” His tone hardened again. Hedidsound like the kind of man I’d want to be my Daddy, strong and capable with no bullshitting around, but…. I stared at the door again. It wasn’t opening and JP didn’t come back in. His decision seemed final.
“It is, Daddy. I’ve… never been in the scene before. JP introduced me to it.”
He made a noise that sounded like he was pleased. “So you’re green. That explains a lot.”
I winced and let my gaze roam around the room again. I didn’t know what most of these contraptions were, but I’d never had vanilla sex, let alone anything kinkier. My curiosity was piqued.
“And what’s your relationship with JP?” he asked.
