He pulled the band from his ponytail and threaded his fingers through his shoulder-length black hair, pushing it off his face. Lucas balled his free hand into a fist at his side. Andrei left one arm up behind his head and then slowly ran his right hand down his chest, sliding it across his stomach to rest at the button of his jeans. Lucas jerked his gaze up to Andrei’s and gave his head a little shake. His glare was all warning, but Andrei just smiled before he gave the corner of his jeans a quick tug, pulling the first button free. He pulled another, showing a hint of dark pubic hair.
“Son of a bitch,” Lucas snarled in a low voice. “What?” He jumped, his frown carving deeper lines into his handsome face. “No, I’m not talking to you.” He turned his back to Andrei and shouted at the other person on the phone, as if suddenly remembering that he was attempting to conduct a meeting. But it was a losing battle. Lucas was distracted now.
A couple of minutes ticked by before Lucas turned back to his desk, moving papers around as if searching for something. His eyes darted up to Andrei for just a second, but Andrei took advantage of it. He shoved his hand down his pants and arched, putting his body on display. A soft moan escaped his lips and his eyelids lowered as he imagined that it was Lucas touching him.
And judging by the searing hunger in Lucas’s eyes, Andrei was going to have that very soon.
“Look, we’ve wasted two days arguing over this. My fucking offer won’t change. You take it or I walk,” Lucas growled into the phone, while his eyes remained locked on Andrei. “I expect your answer by nine a.m. Monday.” He ended the call and slammed the phone onto the desk.
Andrei bit his tongue, swallowing back the sarcastic remark. Lucas was pissed and there was no reason to make it worse. He was going to get what he wanted…eventually.
“What the fuck was that about?” Lucas bit out as he rounded the desk and walked toward Andrei. “I’ve been fighting zoning and city commission bullshit for days, trying to get the Price Hill project back on schedule. You couldn’t wait a few more minutes?”
Andrei watched his movements, slick and predatory. Lucas was a born hunter and never in Andrei’s life had he been so happy to be prey. Of course, he wasn’t about to go down easily. No, Lucas would never appreciate that. He liked a fight. He liked the chase. He needed an equal.
Andrei removed his hand from his pants, leaving it resting on his stomach, waiting. When Lucas was within reach, he swept his leg behind Lucas’s while lunging forward, shoving him in the middle of his chest. Lucas went down hard onto his back and Andrei followed him. Straddling his waist, Andrei captured his wrists and pinned them beside his head.
“What the fuck—”
“We need to have a meeting, Mr. Vallois,” Andrei interrupted. He leaned close, rubbing his lips along Lucas’s jaw, relishing the prickle of soft whiskers. Beneath him, Lucas went utterly still, but there was no missing the tension humming through every muscle in his body. Andrei had his full attention. “I get that in your quest to rule the world, work will intrude. That you will need to cancel plans,” he continued, his voice staying low. Andrei pulled back so that he could look Lucas in the eye. “But when you say you’re with me, then I want you with me.” Andrei paused, a frown tugging the corners of his mouth. “You said you wanted to give this a go. Have you changed your mind?”
“No, of course not.”
“When you find time for me, I’m not sharing you with work.”
“I understand.”
Andrei chewed on the inside of his cheek, staring down at the man who had the power to cause this uncomfortable ache in his chest with just a smile. “Do you?” The two words escaped him on a breath. But now that they were free, more words tumbled forth as if finding the same crack in the wall around Andrei’s heart. “Do you understand how you’re turning my life upside-down? I thought I knew what I wanted, but now I don’t know. And I find myself wondering what people will say if we…I was to tell them. Everything…everything is so…”
He let his voice drift off as his throat tried to close up around his words. When he was with Lucas, it all made sense and felt right. When they were apart, he’d get stuck in his head, with hundreds of uncomfortable questions dancing around and no easy answers. But worse than worrying about how other people, or even his parents, would react, Andrei had begun to wonder what it would feel like when Lucas decided he wasn’t worth the time. Fuck, he wished he could steal that stupid question back. This heavy shit wasn’t part of their agreement, but he’d had way too much time to sit on his ass and think during the past weeks.