Nathan licked his lips and thought about what he wanted to say. "Shit... this is harder than I thought it was going to be. This isn't necessarily the environment for this type of conversation, if you know what I mean?"
"I'm not so fragile that I'll run screaming if you say something crazy," Bailey said, hoping to ease the man's mind.
Nathan smiled and nodded. "That's good. First, I really want to apologize to you for how I acted the last time."
Bailey smirked. "Is this when you tell me you don't normally behave that way?"
Nathan snorted and shook his head. "That's exactly how I behave when I want something. But I shouldn't have been disrespectful to you. I'll admit, when I want something or someone, I go for it."
"Do you take 'no' for an answer?"
"It's not my practice." Nathan was in the type of business where he heard the word "no" all the time.No, please don't kill me. No, I can pay you more.Shit like that.
"Oooh, so you're the type to believe where there's a will, there's a way?" Bailey asked, both eyebrows cocked inquisitively.
"I'm of the mind that sometimes you have to put in maximum effort for maximum reward."
"And am I supposed to be your reward after all of your effort?"
Nathan blinked, then looked at Bailey before smiling. "I like that in you."
Bailey laughed nervously. "What?"
"You're not afraid to speak your mind."
Bailey shook his head. "I've been through too much to be afraid to be honest with myself and others. I was never the timid type."
"I can respect that. Listen, I wanted to talk to you because I wanted to get to know you more. You really left an impression on me," Nathan said.
"Are you sure that's not the cum stain that was on your pants after our last encounter?" Bailey asked with a bit of tongue in cheek.
Nathan laughed and shook his head. "Well, there was a bit of that too. But no... it was how you handled me afterward and just the way you look. My God, you're gorgeous. I'm not usually the type to want to date. In fact, I don't date. But—"
"Let me stop you. The men who say they aren't usually the type to do this or that are the ones who normally disappoint you in the end," Bailey said. "I don't want you to do things you don'tusuallydo."
"What if you're the exception to the rule?"
"Why is it even one of your rules?"
"In my line of work, things can be complicated, and I just wanted to be upfront and honest with you," Nathan said, but he also wondered just how honest he was going to need to be to get Bailey to give him a chance.
"And all of that is why I think I should keep my distance," Bailey said with a cute smile. He had to learn to deliver rejection as nicely as he could in this business.
"Are you punishing me for being honest?" Nathan asked.
"Punishing you?"
"It seems like you're about to turn me down without giving me a chance," Nathan said.
"Let me ask you something."
"Okay?" Nathan sat up straight, waiting for the question. He was grateful that his arousal had calmed down and he was able to focus on every word spoken.
"Why haven't you dated before?"
"My career doesn't make dating easy."
"Why?"
