Prologue
Ian
The latch of Ian Brand’s office door clicked against its setting, then, with a crisp metallic note, slotted into place. Ian diverted his attention from the hefty stack of paperwork in front of him and looked over the high back of his leather nailhead-trim office chair. The noise hadn’t been his imagination—the door, once left ajar, had closed.
Ian set his pen down, then reclined in his chair and ran his fingers through his strawberry-blond hair. The slow-building malaise that had plagued him since he’d excused himself from dinner and returned to his office to work wore off like dry-erase ink beneath persistent fingertips—while the bulk of it was wiped away, faint smudges of it were left behind. He did his best to rinse the discoloration from his soul, then pushed all the air from his lungs and stood.
The door hadn’t closed of its own accord, and that meant that somewhere in his estate, a visitor was waiting. Ian didn’t need a crystal ball to know who it was—the other’s presence sang in his soul and reverberated in the marrow of his bones, as essential to him as the air he breathed.
It was an impossibility, of course, but it was Ian’s, and he wouldn’t trade it for the world.
It was a quick trip across the office’s meticulously maintained Khorassan rug to the room’s paneled oak door. Ian set his hand on the crystal doorknob, but before he turned it, he paused to count the seconds.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
On five, he twisted the decorative knob and left the office for the hallway.
As he emerged, the bedroom door at the end of the hall clicked shut.
Ian brushed a nonexistent wrinkle from his plain white Oxford shirt, then headed at a leisurely pace to investigate the source of the disturbance. The click of his shoes against the wood floor marked his steps. When he reached his destination, he rolled his shoulders back, angled his chin upward the slightest bit, and stood with improved posture. Then, as cool and confident as he could be, he opened the door and observed a nude Geoffrey Drake, facedown and ass up, on his bed.
“You’re late,” Ian observed casually as he stepped into the room. He closed the door with his foot while he undid one of his cuffs, then the other. Geoffrey had turned on the overhead light, giving Ian an ample view of his body. Smooth, pale skin. Dark, lustrous hair tamed with gel. A full, lush ass begging for Ian to devour it. Compared to Geoffrey, the gleaming treasures contained within the display cabinets to either side of the bed lost their appeal. Not even masterfully cut gemstones, Roman Province coins, and fine jewelry both ancient and modern set on crushed velvet displays could rival Geoffrey’s handsome features.
Ian wished to see those coins spilled over Geoffrey’s body and a fat, priceless topaz gem nestled in the dip of his navel.
In time,the dragon within him thought, stirring alongside Ian’s arousal.In time.
Geoffrey said nothing when Ian entered the room, so Ian moved to the foot of the bed closest to where he was positioned and ran a hand over the tight, delectable globe of Geoffrey’s pale ass. His skin was strangely cool, which gave Ian a moment’s pause. A frown tugged at the corners of his lips, but it was short-lived—Geoffrey, usually so obedient and placid, lifted his head to look back at Ian, and Ian read in his expression what Geoffrey’s lips dared not speak.
Please.
There was nothing Ian could hope to do against a look like that.
“I noticed that you’ve already submitted your quarterly clan report,” Ian said as he undid the buttons of his shirt, then cast it from his body in the direction of his hamper. His belt came undone next, then the fly beneath it, until he, too, was nude. “Liu Min and I were looking through it earlier today—it really is exceptional work, Geoff. Well-written, succinct, and a thousand times more transparent than the word-salad that Min drafts up on Liu Wei’s behalf in an attempt to inflate Gold’s financial relevance. Skills like yours are enviable. I couldn’t be more proud.”
The mattress dipped as Ian set his knee upon it, moving up so that he was crouched behind Geoffrey. From here, Ian was treated to an uninhibited view of his lover. The glorious rounds of his ass led downward to hairless, narrow thighs and upward to a svelte abdomen and torso. The dip of Geoffrey’s spine drew Ian’s gaze to the back of Geoffrey’s dark, gel-slicked hair, never a strand out of place.
“You inspire me,” Ian murmured, dipping his head down so that his lips brushed the curvature of Geoffrey’s ass. He placed a tender kiss there, making Geoffrey shiver in delight. “That big, brilliant brain of yours is stunning.”
Kiss by kiss, Ian traced his way down Geoffrey’s ass to his thigh. Once he’d arrived, Ian pressed a hot kiss to each, savoring the softness of Geoffrey’s skin.
“A man who works as hard as you do deserves a reward, doesn’t he?” Ian smiled indulgently, closing his eyes. Geoffrey’s body was an old song—something sacred he knew by heart and carried knowledge of no matter what stanza he was given. When Geoffrey presented himself as he did, and looked at Ian as he had, Ian knew what notes to play, and which to avoid. He would orchestrate their evening with the finesse of a master composer—and as he did, Geoffrey’s body would sing for him, and only for him. “He deserves to be cherished and praised.”
Geoffrey didn’t speak, but he made a tiny, gasped sound of anticipation. It encouraged Ian to move inward, letting his lips explore his guest’s body, until, at last, he arrived at the valley between Geoffrey’s cheeks.
“Others might not recognize your brilliance,” Ian whispered, allowing each of his words to act as a caress, “butIdo.”
With one hand braced on either of Geoffrey’s cheeks, he parted Geoffrey’s ass and ran his tongue along the smooth skin of his taint until he traced over his tight hole. Geoffrey squirmed and made another delighted sound. As he did, Ian noticed the tension start to leave his body.
Ian licked again, and this time, Geoffrey moaned and slumped onto the bed so that only his ass was elevated—Ian’s to do with as he pleased.
So he ran his tongue over Geoffrey’s hole again.
