With that I walked out of the gate. I wasn’t going to let her have the last word because my point was still valid. She might be Mom’s friend and a dangerous lady, but that was no excuse, especially because she owned a brothel. She of all people should have respected consent.
* * *
Mark came home late that night, and I tucked him into bed after I helped him shower, like I had on Friday night. He thanked me with a small smile and went to sleep, and I watched him for an hour before I finally followed him into the land of dreams.
The following morning, I was up early and had breakfast started by the time Mark stumbled down the stairs with a yawny “hello.” I kissed him on the forehead.
“How was yesterday?” I asked because we didn’t have much time to talk the night before. He was barely able to speak one-word sentences when he stumbled through the door, let alone tell me about work.
The yawn he let out was so wide his jaw cracked, and I winced. He leaned his hip against the kitchen counter and scratched at the small amount of red hair in the middle of his chest. He wore nothing but my pajama pants again, and they hung loosely on his waist, giving me a perfect view of those gorgeous hip bones.
“It was horrible. It took us hours to come up with a plan, and Monday morning, people will be desperate to get to work. In spite of the fact we put up a sign with detour options, I’m sure no one will leave early enough to get to their jobs on time. We wanted to correspond with employers in the area, not that we can reach out to everyone, but it all had to be handled individually because no one pays attention to the damned news. Most of the people I talked to had the attitude that their employees had better not be late, no matter what. What kind of world do we live in?” He mumbled the last part as he pushed himself away from the counter and padded to the coffee maker, where he poured himself a cup of coffee. “These people are paid minimum wage and treated unfairly.”
I nodded as I flipped the pancakes in the frying pan. “It’s the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer.”
“I joined politics to change this city, help Ross…Vanemake it better. We’ve tried, we really have, but every time we take a step forward, something shoves us back a couple.”
Switching off the stove, I moved the pan to one of the burners not in use, then stepped over to him, curling my arms around his waist and bringing him against my chest. He placed the coffee on the counter before he came to me, burying his head into my chest and sighing.
“The world is a shitty place sometimes,” I murmured into his ear, brushing my hand over his red curls.
“Sometimes?” He grunted. “People are horrible.”
“They are.” I grabbed his shoulders and pulled him back just far enough that I could look into his eyes. I stroked my fingers over his cheek and down his jaw. “I’m sorry.”
“Why areyousorry?” His frown was adorable, with his eyebrows dipping low and his mouth curling in confusion.
I cupped his face with my big hands, which nearly enveloped his entire head. He was so small compared to me. “That first night… what I did.”
“Oh.” His frown deepened. “You didn’t know.”
“That’s no excuse. It’s been on my mind. I should have given you a safeword even if I didn’t know.” I kissed him, and he moaned, tilting his head back and leaning up into me. “I fucking wanted you badly, and I took what I wanted. I could have still done that while playing safely.”
“Well, you know what you did wrong now. You gave me a safeword.” He shrugged but winced anyway. “I… did sign a contract with Madam Winters.”
“Against your will.”
“Not really? I mean, Ididn’twant to do it, but I felt obligated? Is that weird?” He shook his head. “It does sound weird. But Vane’s my boss and Ross used to be, and they both went there. They thought it was funny.”
“They sound like assholes,” I muttered, wrapping my arms around his waist and dragging him against me so tightly that our chests were pressed together. “I don’t like them, and I haven’t even met them.”
He chuckled and patted me on the right pec. “It’s over. It’s in the past. As long as I don’t have to see that place again, I’ll be happy.”
I sighed and laid my forehead against his. “That was the first time I’d been there.”
He made a noise like he didn’t believe me, and I leaned back.
“I’m serious. Madam Winters is a friend of my mom’s, and I hadn’t had a date in a while. She knows… what I’m into.” My grip on him tightened, and fear that I’d lose him wormed its way into my gut. No one reacted as beautifully as he did when it came to sex. I’d never fucked anyone like him before. He was flawless. “She told me to come to the auction that night, that she had the perfect man for me.”
He blinked, and the uncertainty was there in his eyes, saying loud and clear that he still didn’t believe a word I’d said. I thought about telling him I hadn’t paid for him, but since he already looked so suspicious, I doubted he’d believe that, either. I shook my head. I didn’t know how else I could get him to trust me about this, other than take him with me to the Courtesan to hear it from Madam Winters’ mouth, but he’d said he didn’t want to see that place again, and I wasn’t going to torture him.
“Let me take you on a date today.”
“Date?” he echoed, eyes widening as he stared up at me. “Like anactualdate?”
“Yeah.” I smirked. “What do you like doing?”
He blinked a few times before shrugging. “I don’t get out much. I like reading and watching movies.”
