The Year of Us: May

1. Cory

CHAPTER 1

Cory

“Did you book the car?” I asked Jonas, my new assistant. I missed Margot dearly, but she’d gone on to bigger and better things. And now I had Jonas. He wasn’t the worst assistant I’d ever had, but I couldn’t wait for him to find his footing.

“The car will be here at four-thirty to take you to the airport,” Jonas responded as he tapped away at the iPad he used to keep track of everything. “Did you want me to make dinner reservations for you?”

“That won’t be necessary.” The minute Reese’s plane landed, I was taking him back to my apartment where I could ravage him. I’d stocked the fridge with enough food that we wouldn’t have to leave the loft for a month. Did I overdo it? Probably. Did I care? Not really.

As appealing as it sounded to lock Reese away in my loft, I was aware that this was the first time he was visiting New York and that his time here was going to be shorter than I’d like. He wouldn’t get a chance to do a lot of the more touristy things, but he’d shown me parts of his life, like Rapture and his apartment. And though I had yet to formally meet her, his best friend.

This trip to New York was important to me. I wanted to share the things that mattered to me. The places. The Black Door. My friends there. I wanted him to love New York. I wanted him to?—

My phone buzzed to life with an incoming call. Reese’s name on the screen derailed my thoughts.

“Hello there, shouldn’t you be boarding a plane right about now?”

“Somehow my flight was upgraded to first class. Would you happen to know anything about that?” Reese didn’t sound as happy as I’d foolishly imagined he would.

“You wouldn’t let me purchase the ticket. At least let me make sure you have proper leg room.” I leaned back in my chair and motioned for Jonas to leave the room. He scurried out of my office and shut the door.

“Cory, it’s too much.”

“Consider it a gift to myself because the things I plan to do to you when you land will go a lot better if you’re not tied in knots from cramming yourself in a seat in coach.”

Reese made a stifled sound, then dropped his voice to a whisper. “That’s not fair.”

“It’s perfectly fair.” I dropped my free hand down to my lap and pressed the heel of my palm into the base of my dick. I still had hours to go before he’d be here, but ever since I woke up it was like my dick knew that it wouldn’t have to suffer through another lonely jerk session.

“I wish you’d have talked to me first.” Reese sounded less annoyed than when he first called. “We’re boarding now. I have to go.”

“Travel safe. I’ll see you soon.”

“See you soon,” Reese echoed before the line went dead.

After the phone call, I tried to refocus my energy into work, but I’d cleared up most of everything I had to take care of in anticipation of his arrival. I’d booked a few days off to spend with him here in the city, and then when he flew back home to LA, I’d be on a train to Boston.

I turned my computer off and tucked it away in my bag then slung it over my shoulder. May in New York this year was a bit on the warm side, and I’d ditched the blazer earlier that day. Grabbing it from the coat rack in the corner, I draped it over my arm and stepped out into the small reception area.

Mostly I had the rented office space because, when I’d started out, I’d needed it to feel legitimate. A real consultant had a real office.

“Jonas, I’m done for the day. Forward all my calls to voicemail and I’ll go through them when I’m on the train in a few days.”

“Is there anything else?”

I thought about the easy friendship I’d had with Margot. Jonas was young, fresh out of college, and this was only one of his jobs, though I made sure to pay him well. It struck me that I knew next to nothing about him and if I wanted to have the same kind of comradery with Jonas, I had to make an attempt to do more than just boss him around.

“Did you want to grab an early lunch with me? My treat.”

“Uh, sure. Okay.” Jonas stood up from the desk. He was taller than me, taller than Reese. Jonas was tall and lanky, and sometimes he moved like he forgot how much space his body took up or how his legs were supposed to work.

“What do you like to eat, Jonas?”

He grinned at me as we stepped out into the street. “If you’re paying, I’m not picky.”

His cheeks flushed and he looked like he might be sick. “I mean?—”

By the time Jonas had tried to falter out an apology, I’d already started to laugh. “I could die for a burger right about now. What about you?”

He nodded mutely, still looking a little mortified, but also a little relieved.

“Can you ever go wrong with a burger?” Jonas asked, his tone tentative and careful.

“I don’t think you can.” I motioned down the street. “It’s a few blocks, but it’s worth the walk.”

He nodded and set off, falling into step beside me.

“So, Jonas, tell me about yourself.”