Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 58397 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 292(@200wpm)___ 234(@250wpm)___ 195(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 58397 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 292(@200wpm)___ 234(@250wpm)___ 195(@300wpm)
He laughed, clapped me on the back, and headed out the door.
He’d been with me too long. No one respected me anymore. I chuckled to myself and joined Peyton and Julia in the living room. It was going to be a good weekend; I could feel it.
“Wheu’s Cathryn?” Julia asked.
“Next door. She’s just going to unpack, and then she’s taking you—” I poked her belly “—to the pool.”
She grinned tiredly. “Okay, good. No nap today. I wanna swim.”
“Yeah, you don’t look sleepy at all,” I laughed softly.
She shook her head furiously.
“Well, I’ll go unpack our bags.” I leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead, at the same time sneaking in a small touch at Peyton’s lower back. Then I headed for the bedroom.
That evening, I had Peyton make reservations in the hotel restaurant for only the two of us. I met him outside after I’d printed out my proposal in the office.
Gossip traveled quickly, and everyone on the premises in a Westwater uniform appeared to know I was staying here. We were shown to a table in the outdoor seating area of the cantina-inspired restaurant, overlooking the blossoming fields to the north. It was the second most popular time of year to visit Northern California, so the establishment was fairly packed.
The thought struck me when I spotted all the flickering candles on the tables that this was a couples’ resort. Which explained why Julia had complained about the lack of children at the pool earlier. Technically, I’d known this before. It just hadn’t meant anything until I sat down with Peyton across from me.
Heaters, thick blankets, and wine kept everyone around us warm, and I wasn’t the only one picking up on the romantic atmosphere. Fuck, it hadn’t been intentional. Peyton cleared his throat and glanced at the couple closest to us, then shifted in his seat and opened his menu.
I decided not to say anything, not to make any excuses. It was only dinner.
Wine. I needed wine.
We listened to the recommendations of the chef and the sommelier, and we received our drinks instantly. I suspected one of the servers would have their eyes on us the whole time.
It made me wish for privacy.
There were a select few couples Peyton was watching more than the others. Gay couples.
“You’re thinking hard on something,” I noted.
Peyton flushed and took a sip of his wine. Curious reaction. “Sorry. It’s very beautiful here.”
He didn’t want to share. Fair enough.
“I wanted to discuss our contract,” I revealed. “Rather, a different contract.”
“Oh? I thought we already…”
I nodded. We had finalized the details for his employment with the company as well as his private employment with me for watching Julia.
“This one would between you and me,” I said. “A set of…requests, if you will. Rules.”
“Rules,” he stated quietly.
I tucked my napkin under the table and smiled faintly. “I think you can guess I have some unconventional interests.”
I didn’t think he could get sexier, but the candlelight did it. The shadows enhanced the pink flush of his cheeks in the most exquisite way, and his green eyes took on a fiery glint.
“I want your signature on the contract,” I told him, “but it would be symbolic. You can back out anytime you want.”
He licked his lips nervously. “Can I see it?”
“Of course.” I pushed down my own nerves and reached into the inner pocket of my suit. It was something I’d worked on during our flight up here. “It’s pretty straightforward and short.”
“Nothing about you is straightforward and short,” he muttered, accepting the piece of paper.
I grinned into my wineglass. This, I had to see. Him, reading my wishes, and then, hearing his response.
I’d listed five items. Five things I wanted to do, or I wanted him to do, and that was all. I wouldn’t push him beyond that. Instead, I was hoping he’d come to me. I was hoping he’d be so desperate that he couldn’t help himself anymore. Because I wouldn’t budge an inch.
“You—you wanna dress me?” He looked up from the paper, eyes wide.
“Yes.”
He swallowed hard and read from the draft. “You wanna dress me every morning, you want me to kneel at your feet once a day if privacy can be guaranteed, you want—wait. You wanna put sunscreen on me?”
“When we’re in the Caribbean.” I nodded slightly.
I needed my hands on him.
“I, uh…” He coughed and squirmed in his seat. “You also want me to sit across from you whenever we fly private.” Which we would be doing when we went to the Caribbean. If it weren’t for the new environmental policy Westwater went public with last year, we’d fly private more frequently. “And you don’t want me to ask why you want all this.”
“In fact, not a single word of it,” I emphasized. Because words were a valve. Valves released pressure. I didn’t want anything released until it was my cock buried balls deep in his ass. “You either agree, or you don’t. Completely your choice. If you say yes, you will take a journey with me. If you say no, anything else still stands. This doesn’t affect your employment with me whatsoever.”