Prologue - Zack

"Ididn't do that," I stated, my guts in knots and forehead dented with a deep frown. Leaning forward in my chair, I picked up one of the pictures Elite's gay branch manager, Sean Fox, had indicated atop his desk between us.

Being falsely accused of sexual assault as a teenager had gotten me kicked out of my foster home, and now having it happen while on the job as an escort riled shit back up. My stomach clenched to the point of nausea.

I remembered the night in the images from a few weeks earlier as clear as though it'd been yesterday. The guy had asked me to make it appear as though I was rough with him. Push him against the wall with faked intent to hurt him. Pretend to choke him out. He'd claimed he had a role-playing kink, and as an EEMM employee, I aimed to fulfill his fantasies in a safe environment.

Causing pain wasn't my thing—but there was one little asshole I wouldn't mind choking out until he begged me to let him live.

Whenever I thought of what happened fifteen years ago with him, my blood sizzled from righteous anger and lust alike. He deserved my rage in spades. But physical hunger? I hated that I still wanted him and that he still wouldn't leave me alone, no matter how many times I'd attempted to block him.

Well, fuck the asshole from my past, and fuck my one-time client Jackson Zerig, who was now going to throw me under the bus.

Teeth clenched, I looked at the second image of Jackson that showed a close-up of his neck where I'd supposedly marked him. Bruising appeared on his skin, but there was no way those were my fingerprints. He'd specifically asked me to not hold him too tightly.

So I hadn't.

Please the client—those were words we Elite Escorts lived by, and I tried to always keep the peace and stay out of drama.

"He's demanding two million in cash, or he'll leak these to the press," Sean stated, his voice shaken.

Blood drained from my face, and I jerked my focus off the images to meet my manager's troubled expression. "But I didn't do this! I barely put any pressure on his neck!"

Sean swallowed before assuring me he believed me. Promised I had nothing to worry about.

"Tell me what happened—every detail and word you can remember," Sean said, so same as always, I did as requested. In my book, honesty was the best policy.

Reliving that night twice aloud to make sure I didn't remember something wrong only caused my twisted stomach to worsen.

We went over the contract Jackson had signed along with his listed limits. He'd wanted to be wined and dined—his exact words—and seeing as how I was Elite's best at setting clients at ease, Sean had assigned me to him for the evening.

The fucker had set me up. Used me in the hopes of swindling money out of Elite.

"You're booked tonight then again on Friday, right?" Sean asked as I finally got up to leave.

"Yeah." I pulled my car keys from my pocket, half expecting him to suggest I take a few days off until shit got straightened out.

"Are they new or returning clients?"

"Returning."

Lips pursed, he nodded while gathering up the falsified yet damning pictures still strewn over his desk. "I know I don't have to tell you to be careful. Along with Drake, you're one of the best escorts we have. Rave reviews. Weekly requests. You've made quite a name for yourself, so fingers crossed this shit will only end up being a bump in the road."

Swallowing hard, I nodded. How long had it been since someone had my back?

My afternoon had been ruined, and my thoughts jumbled like a riotous mess that wouldn't allow me to consider much else as I exited the building.

Ever since I'd been forced to go off on my own at eighteen, I'd been living by the rules as much as possible. Doing whatever work I could find to keep my head above water. And now, some asshole hoping to make a quick buck had to go and drag me into unwanted drama.

I'd always feared being accused of something else. It was why I didn't trust people and had chosen to only look out for myself.

When the senator's son had done this to me while we'd been teens, I'd moved to another state and started over, heartbroken and aimlessly wandering. I'd recognized I had no one to rely on but myself. No family. No close friends.

But now?

Jaw clenched, I turned my car back toward Boston, the place I'd come to love. The rich suburbs were beautiful and all, but the city was my home. I'd found a quasi-family in EEMM, bound by our work that straddled legal lines. Before I'd left, Sean said he and his brother, who owned Elite Escorts, would take care of the attempts at extortion. I had no choice but to believe him, as neither man had let me down yet.

At least I had no record staining my past should the event end up going to trial. It'd been my foster brother who'd initiated the affair by stripping down and climbing on top of me, dragging me from sleep. He'd intended to gift me his virgin ass as a present for my eighteenth birthday.

He hadn't taken my refusal to break him in too well but hadn't given me time to explain that I did want him—once he came of age and I wouldn't get thrown into jail. I'd had no plans to leave our neighborhood once I'd graduated in two months, no thoughts of ever abandoning the kid who'd owned my heart.

And kinda still did no matter how hard I tried taking it back from his selfish grip.

True to himself, he'd thrown a nutty like the spoiled brat he was whenever he didn't get his way, not giving me a chance to assure him that I would claim his hole—eventually. His hollering and crying had drawn attention. His father, the senator, had crashed into my room, getting an eyeful of me trying to restrain his son from punching me for the fifth or sixth time.

It didn't matter blood ran from my broken nose or that I was innocent. I lay atop my foster brother, my hands wrapped around his forearms and pressing him to the bed.

The little shit's screams of rage that he never wanted to see me again were the icing on the cake for his dad to assume the worst.

The senator had sent his son back to his own room, and the kid continued to rant his hatred of me until his bedroom door slammed closed behind him. Rather than pressing charges and dragging his family into negative drama, the senator had told me to leave. I'd had a single bag of belongings and a grand in cash he'd given me. Probably to make him feel better for tossing me from his home after acting as a parental figure for the previous seven years.

Things hadn't gone well for me after I'd left Rhode Island.

I'd made do on my own, eventually escaping the streets thanks to a real job that allowed me to rent an apartment. It had taken me over a decade, but I'd risen from the ashes, and I prayed like hell some money-hungry asshole didn't fuck up the good life I'd managed to create for myself.

Body still tensed into knots, I pulled into the parking garage for my condo's building off Storrow Drive. A few months after starting at EEMM, I'd been lucky to get a steal of a deal that included a living room view of the Charles River. While not as high-end as Drake or Sean's condos, I loved my place. It seemed like a real home with its comfortable furniture and older appliances.

It was also within walking distance of the shelter I volunteered at, the place that had kept me out of the cold, rain, and snow for longer than I cared to remember. I donated cash too since I had more than enough to live a meager existence while those less fortunate went without. Giving back offered me a sense of satisfaction, and I hoped they saw my actions as proof someone cared. I sure as fuck hadn't felt the sentiment while I'd been homeless.

I trudged through the hallway to my condo, let myself into the dim interior, and went straight for my bathroom. A client had booked me for the evening, one of my regulars, someone I trusted not to call a bullshit foul against my character.

Rarely did I need help in pleasing clients, but after manscaping, showering, and trimming my permanent scruff, I popped a little blue pill. Better to be safe than sorry.

I shouldn't have worried though.

Jamie met me at the hotel's door, his country-boy good looks and muscles hot as fuck. And a white-toothed smile lit his blue eyes, stirring lust that would ease my mind for a time.

Nothingabout this night would be a chore.

The soft cushion of Jamie's lips met mine before I even kicked my shoes off, his hands greedy at my groin, making quick work of my button and zipper to get at my cock.

"Oh fuck, yeah," he groaned into my mouth as his hand wrapped around my thick length. "Been too fucking long, man. Need this dick."

"Whatever you want," I assured him as I did every client, but I couldn't have been more pleased to have him after the news I'd gotten earlier. Jamie never failed to meet me with hunger, an equal give and take that left me physically satisfied every time.

With a curse, he pulled away from me and yanked his shirt off, revealing ripples of muscle honed from years of playing football. He'd come down to Boston College on scholarship from some small town in the sticks of New Hampshire.

Other than that? I knew the guy could suck cock like a pro. Had a tight, hot hole he enjoyed having stuffed full. He also had a nice, thick dick for when the time came to flip.

Jamie's knees hit the floor, his hands pulling down my jeans mid-thigh.

"Jesus," I hissed, head tipping back as his wet mouth closed over my cockhead. "Fuck, did I need this."

He hummed in agreement, his short hair prickling my palms as I clasped his head, allowing myself to get lost in the feel of his slick tongue and suction.

When I'd first sold my body, I'd been the one on my knees. Upon signing with Elite, I'd expected the same but had been thrilled to find those willing to pay for better service than a back-alley blowjob tended to have all sorts of wishes and kinks.

The extortion issue slammed into my brain, and I gritted my teeth, pulling Jamie off my dick when I should have let him have whatever he desired, what he paid for.

"Want your ass, Jamie. Now."

Pupils already blown, he nodded up at me. "I'm not the only one needy tonight, huh?" he asked with a smirk while pushing to his feet. A quick shove sent his jeans to the floor.

He'd gone commando, same as always.

And his cock reached for his belly button, pre-cum welling at the tip.

"Fuck yeah." I moved in close, palming his erection, smearing my thumb through his slickness. "Wet for me already."

"Been too long." He spun before I could take his mouth, bending over the end of the bed, juicy ass on display. "Fuck me clear into tomorrow morning, Zack. Give me all you've got."

"Goddamn." I palmed both cheeks, jiggling them. "Fuck." A quick swat, and I fished a condom and lube from my pocket before kicking my shoes and jeans off. "Want me to eat your ass or get straight to the fucking?" I asked, rolling the rubber over my aching length.

"Just shove it in, Zack. Wreck my hole, then I wanna switch and fill you the fuck up."

Growling my appreciation of his perfect plans for the evening, I quickly prepped him with one then two fingers.

"Hurry," he demanded through clenched teeth, shoulders bunched, hands gripping the sheets.

"So impatient."

"Fuck yeah, I am. Give it to—" The words ripped from his throat as I thrust deep into his ass, sinking over halfway.

He cursed, rising onto his toes, and I clasped his hips to hold him steady.

"You good?" I checked in.

"Fuck yeah. I like when it hurts."

I pulled out and stabbed in again, my balls resting against his cheeks. "You took every inch of me, Jamie."

"Fuck." He gulped, chest collapsing onto the bed, hands fisting the blankets.

"So sexy." I slid my hand up his arched spine, worshiping his gorgeous body he'd honed to perfection.

"Fuck me hard," he begged. "Need to feel you clear into next week when—shit. I can't even. Don't hold back, Zack. Please."

Same as always, I gave the client what he wanted, taking my pleasure then switching places so he could double his.

And obliterating my mind into silence.