Chapter 6 #2
“Yeah. I know. I hate it. I think if we could shrug that off and be as entitled as those born with it, we’d probably get further faster.”
“I believe you’re right, but then, we’d be like them. And I swore that no matter how much I had, I’d never be like that.”
Luka smiled at him, and again he was struck. He knew what a gift that was, a smile from the man who wore a perma-frown. So determined and focused as Luka was, he didn’t have the time or thought to smile.
Or the reason too Benson knew. The life he salivated for seemed terribly far away from where he was.
“Luka, I don’t want to buy you, but I would like to help you. I’m not expecting you to ask, so please don’t. I just want to hold your hand and help you up that ladder that is…terribly long, and each rung is slippery.”
Sighing heavily, Luka stared down at the shining mahogany floor.
“I think I might lose it before I ever get to the point where I can do what I want. I truly do hate acting, but I’m good at it.
I feel like Ron Howard. I mean, I don’t even know if he really hated acting, but he left it pretty fast when he could, so I’m assuming. ”
“He did what he had to do, to do what he truly wanted to do. Like us. I could right now leave my company to others and do what I want, but…somehow, I don’t.”
“You’re afraid they’d mess it up?”
Benson thought of his assistant and some others she’d helped to hire.
“Yeah. I do things in a way that…makes people under me nervous. I am too permissive, and I give a lot more than I have to. Paid vacations, and maternity leave, all the things other countries have in their laws. But, I’m not in here to get on a soapbox. ”
“No, you’re remembering where you came from. You had people all around you who couldn’t afford a day off if they were coughing up blood, and couldn’t afford the doctor if they took the day off. My uncle, he had cancer for years but ignored it and kept working. He died when he didn’t have to.”
“I’m really sorry, Luka. That’s awful.”
There were tears in his eyes. “It’s why I will not stop until I never have to worry.”
The steel in his eyes, which were swimming in tears, was a testament to the people that Benson had known. Strong, determined, but underdogs. Always underdogs. Those who played the lottery with their lunch money just to keep some hope in their lives.
“Maybe you can help me think of some other ways to spend my money. Where to spend it to help the most people.”
“I’d like that.”
“So would I.”
They talked all night. It was the first time Benson had done that in years. Not once did they so much as kiss, but they did laugh. A lot.
Falling asleep together, on top of the duvet, neither had planned it, of course, but they woke at the same time, each with a shy smile. “Morning,” Luka said.
“I’d say more like afternoon.”
“Ugh.”
“How about we each shower, and then order up some breakfast? I have this suite for another few hours. Then I’ll take you home, and…hope desperately that you give me your number so we can spend some more time together.”
“Oh, you’re getting my number, and then, after a few dates, I expect to go to the real Greece.”
“Oh, yeah?”
Luka laughed and said, “You offered last night.”
“That’s right. I sure did.”
Two men in thick robes ate the breakfast, looking at the incredible view of the Chrysler Building. They laughed and tried each other’s meals, and when it was time to leave, Benson felt like hell. He found he never wanted to be apart from Luka.
“The car will be here in twenty minutes.”
Luka nodded but ducked his head a little. “Oh. Good, I guess.”
With two fingers, Benson lifted Luka’s chin so he could stare into those amazing steel-blue eyes. “I need to see you again very soon, Luka.”
“Is tonight too soon?”
“Are we being crazy? Are…we being reckless?”
Luka nodded and pushed his hand away, throwing his arms around Benson’s neck. Against Benson’s lips, Luka whispered, “I don’t care. Be reckless with me.”
Before he could say a word, or even think, he was being kissed with a passion that he hadn’t expected but was gleefully accepting. Those lips against his, the closeness of the man, it made him forget all his worries.
They could be reckless. They could throw caution to the wind and just let their hearts and bodies decide their fates. Luka was soon wrapped in Benson’s arms, and the kiss lasted, growing deeper and more passionate, until his phone went off, signaling their ride was waiting.
They got into a packed elevator, and Luka was the one blushing. “You had your chance,” Benson whispered to him, making him blush more.
“Hush!”
“Not a chance.”
In the car, Luka kissed him again, but once they neared Luka’s apartment building, he pushed away from Benson and asked, “Call me? Later today, even if we can’t make plans.”
“I will. If I can wait until later.”
“Oh, and now that I know the producer, and I know how much he’s got, I want a raise in my weekly pay for the show.”
Benson smiled and said, “Base rate is less than three grand a week, Luka. So…three, five?”
“You wish. For this, you’re gonna pay dearly.”
With a wink, he was gone, and Benson laid his head back on the seat, sighing, laughing, and reliving each and every moment they’d shared.
“Dammit, Luka, I finally have someone to spoil, and you bet your ass, I’m going to spoil the hell out of you.”