PROLOGUE - NICK REED
FEBRUARY - EIGHT MONTHS AGO
“What the fuckhave you done, Mr. Reed? You can’t serve that goddamn shit tonight!”
I looked down at the less-than-appetizing variety of children’s fare I’d plated for the dignitaries attending tonight’s dinner. My heart pounded in my chest as I stared at my culinary disaster. I was gonna fucking fail my final exam. I’d have to tend bar for the rest of my life. Ten years from now, I’d be living in my parents’ basement, drinking cheap beer, and playing video games with my online friends instead of traveling the world like I’d planned.
When I looked up into the dark brown eyes of my super hot culinary instructor, my dick gave a twitch. He leaned across the counter on his muscled arms and a faint hint of the cologne he wore assaulted all of my nerves. I closed my eyes to savor the woodsy fragrance before he scared the shit out of me when he slammed his hand down on the stainless steel counter, making me jump.
Holy fuck, what had I done? Macaroni and cheese, cut up weiner, and applesauce. That wasn’t Kobe beef on the plate.
My eyes snapped up at his harsh words. “Good to know you’re fucking prepared to work in a goddamn elementary school cafeteria. Step away from the counter and go to my office. Now.”
My eyes widened as embarrassment washed over me. I had to make some kind of excuse for my failure to cook the designated menu.
“I don’t know…”
I shut the fuck up when he once again leaned across the counter and fixed his eyes on me. His pupils were dilated and the tendons in his neck stretched up to his chiseled jaw and gritted white teeth. “Get the fuck into my office. Right now,” he growled in a tone that sent shivers running across my body.
Nodding, I dropped my head and headed down the hallway. Stepping into his office, I stood with my head hung and my hands clasped behind my back. I’d successfully fucked up my entire life.
The hair on the back of my neck stood up to alert me when he quietly entered the room. The smell of his cologne wrapped around me like a warm blanket and did dirty things to my body. All I could do was close my eyes and wait for him to explode.
The chef closed the door and circled his desk to sit in the oversized leather chair. I couldn’t look at him because there was no fucking excuse for what I’d done. We didn’t even have a children’s menu.
“Mr. Reed.” The deeply seductive tone of his voice made me shiver.
I swallowed, still examining the tiles on the floor. “Yes, chef?” I managed to get out.
“Look at me when I speak to you. You’re not a fucking child, are you?”
I shook my head and met his gaze. “No, chef. I’m not a child.”
He studied me a little longer, holding my gaze like a snake eyes its prey. “There’s no excuse for what you’ve done tonight. You’ve completely destroyed your final exam and embarrassed me and the Culinary Institute.”
I had no idea what to say. “I don’t know what happened, chef. I guess I was confused. Is there anything I can do to make up for it?”
A low growl rumbled from what I imagined was a hairy, muscular chest. “For the dinner, no. But for me…”
His hesitation caused me to look up into the swirling brown irises that made my dick twitch when they were aimed at me. There was something there, and I instinctively pushed down on my growing erection.
His eyes flared as he took in my hand.
“Have I made you hard, Mr. Reed?” His velvety delivery oozed over me while his eyes held me pinned in place. “Don’t lie to me, Nicholas.”
I stared into his eyes and slowly nodded my head. “Yes, chef. You do.”
A wicked smile stretched across his face. Pushing his chair back, he stood and held my gaze as he began to unbutton his chef’s whites, exposing the exact hard, muscled chest covered in dark brown hair I’d dreamed about, and abs I wanted to lick.
I watched in fascination as his hand went to the button of his pants and flicked it open. Like a moth to a flame, I watched him drag the zipper down, tooth by tooth, with every beat of my heart.
When his lower abs came into view, I whimpered at the absence of underwear and the hint of dark pubic hair slowly coming into view.
Swallowing thickly, my eyes widened and my breath hitched as his hard shaft pushed against the fabric, begging to escape from its woolen prison.
My heart pounded as he pulled his dick from his pants and began to stroke it. A single grunt drew my gaze back to his eyes. “Think you can take care of this and not fuck it up, Mr. Reed?”
“Ye-yes, chef.”
