Cassian huffed a short laugh, too. “Incredibly middling.”
More time passed, and they continued to stare into each other’s eyes. Skin still on fire with a wonderful warmth, Cassian couldn’t evenbeginto comprehend what was happening to him. It was starting to feel like he wasn’t even connected to himself anymore,like he’d left himself back inTitanic’s First-Class Lounge and had floated up into the clouds and now who knew where he even was.
James’s tongue skirted out of his mouth, and he wet his lips.
“Cassian, I’m meant to be working.”
“But I want you here. With me,” Cassian said, so fucking intoxicated by whatever this something between them was that he couldn’t even control what words were coming out of his mouth anymore.
“And Cassian Penn Livingston always gets what he wants,” James said. “Doesn’t he?”
Cassian’s mouth twitched, his lips curling into a small, lopsided smile.
“He does.”
James let out a shaky laugh. He began to bounce one of his legs. But, still, he continued to hold Cassian’s gaze.
“Oh, God, I should leave,” he said.
Panic flooded Cassian’s veins. He couldn’t let James leave. Not yet. Oh God, not yet. Cassian began searching his mind for a solution. Anything that would make James Thomas Morrow continue to sit here with him.
“You promised me exceptional service, James,” he said slowly, finding the excuse as he spoke.
James’s next exhale came out with a tremble.
“And h-how am I meant to serve you?”
Cassian’s stomach swooped. He suddenly found himself imagining the most wonderful, beautiful things. Like James on his knees in front of him, looking up at him through those lovely lashes, Cassian standing there with his pants around his ankles, his member hard and leaking and begging to be touched, to beserviced. Oh, how he wanted that now. Heat pooled low in his belly, and his pants began to tighten.
Cassian shut his eyes. Fuck, they were in public. He and James were in public. They were in public and they were on the world’s most luxurious ship and—
Cassian’s eyes flew wide.
Ethel.
Dear Lord.
Cassian sprang to his feet, intending to flee, but then immediately remembered his erection and sat back down on the sofa.
“You need to leave.”
James blinked.
“I . . . need to leave?”
“Yes. Right now.”
James continued to stare.
“James!”
Scrambling to his feet, James spluttered, “Uhm. Yes. Right. Right now. I need to leave. And I will leave. Iamleaving. Right now. Because that’s... what you want.” He turned, raked his hand through his hair, and then whirled back around to face Cassian. “Cassian, whatever you’re thinking right now, whatever it is that you think I was trying to say or trying to imply—”
“James,” Cassian said, very pointedly. “Leave.Now.”
“Leaving.”
And then James hurried off, back toward the Verandah Café.
