9. Cory
CHAPTER 9
Cory
I’d had men on their knees in every corner of this place. Tied up. Tied down. There wasn’t a kink I liked that I hadn’t entertained within these walls. Countless men had come before Reese and all of them were faceless.
Nothing.
They weren’t even notches on a bedpost. They were temporary in every sense of the word. Both in setting and in memory.
Reese looked up at me and in his eyes was a look that made my heart feel like feathers. My blood feel like warm sunshine sliding through my veins. I combed my fingers through his hair a few more times, then bent at the waist. His mouth tasted like whiskey. Like me.
“Come on,” I said, my mouth brushing against his. “Let’s finish that tour.”
Reese made an amused sound and I helped him to his feet. When he was upright, I swept him close to me. Pulled him tight against my body. Our cocks still had yet to be tucked away, but I could tend to that in a moment. First?—
“Thank you, Reese. You were so good for me.” I cupped his cheek and brought his mouth to mine once more. Okay—twice more, then stepped back. I passed the empty glass off to an employee and then tucked Reese back into his briefs and fastened his pants. Unfettered joy surged through me when he allowed me to take care of him like that. The way a dom might care for a sub. It was a baby step, but it mattered.
I put my cock away and grabbed Reese’s hand. I tangled our fingers together, holding hands like I hadn’t done in years. Not until I met Reese.
“Come on. You haven’t seen the balcony yet,” I told him as I led him out of the playroom. The demo had ended and many of the spectators had moved on. The space was quieter now, less sexually charged, but still energized with the promise of more.
High above street level, the balcony wasn’t a place that a lot of guests enjoyed. Many patrons were just as happy to stay inside and enjoy the view from behind the safety of the glass.
“If you’re not comfortable, we don’t have to go out there,” I said to Reese when we reached the upper floor.
He merely waved me ahead.
“I don’t come out here a lot,” I shared as I approached the railing. The height was dizzying, and it freaked a lot of people out to be up this high. Even with a railing.
Reese seemed unbothered and he leaned against the rail. “That seems to be a theme this month. You doing things you don’t normally do.”
Licking my lips, I thought about how much Reese had shown me of himself and how little I’d given back. It was easier to open up to him here on my home turf where things felt more familiar.
At least they had. But I found that the more time I spent with Reese, the more familiar it felt to be with him, and being away felt strange. Coming home to New York after my last trip to Chicago, right before Reese’s arrival, had felt weird. Like I was a stranger to the city.
“I don’t know where to begin.” I flashed Reese a half smile, excited but nervous about opening up. “What do you want to know about me?”
“The truth. Whatever parts of it you’re comfortable telling me.”
I exhaled and stared out at the city. “My last boyfriend was during college. We met when we were freshmen and after a bit of bribery, we convinced the RA to let us switch dorm rooms so we could be share. There were signs from the start that I was more invested than he was, but I was young and hopelessly in love with him.”
I wished like hell that I’d stopped for another whiskey on the way out. It would’ve warmed me against the biting wind and from the chill of my past.
“What happened?”
“I was looking for forever. He wasn’t. We had plans to move in together off campus for our sophomore year. But right before he was due to move in, he told me he was staying on campus. That the whole domestic thing wasn’t what he wanted. I was completely blindsided.”
“I’m sorry.”
Reese slid closer and I welcomed the gesture. “I haven’t had a boyfriend since. At first because I was heartbroken, and then because I was discovering kink. And then because I was working and travelling so much. So no, I don’t bring men home, and I don’t bring men here, and that’s why everyone’s been looking at you like you’re the most surprising thing they’ve ever seen.”
He let out a quiet laugh. “I’d wondered.”
“The fact is that you’re important to me. I’ve been breaking my rules for you since we met.” I blew out an exhale and slumped against Reese, burying my face in the curve of his neck so I could breathe him in. Curling my fingers into the fabric of his shirt, I dragged my mouth against his throat, leaving a trail of kisses. “Come home with me.”
I didn’t want to talk anymore, but I knew more questions would be coming. And I certainly didn’t want to be here anymore. Not on the balcony or at The Black Door. My time with Reese was short, as always, and it made me greedy for him. I wanted to be alone with him. To lock us in a room for the duration of our time together and do nothing but bask in all the ways he made me feel. “Please, Reese.”
He squeezed me tight. “Call one of those fancy cars of yours.”