Chapter 4

This place was lux,and it seemed everywhere Quentin looked was another show of wealth and class. It was the kind of place he’d never stepped foot inside, even though he only worked up the road because he figured the doorman wouldn’t let the likes of him through the door.

Next to Kaine, it seemed he could go anywhere, and no one blinked twice. Which made him wonder how much power Kaine had. He sure as hell wasn’t just security when he knew how to case a building. It also meant he probably wasn’t a serial killer, though, with enough power and money, all kinds of things could disappear. The people blackmailing him had made that very clear.

While his father didn’t gossip about the castle, he always said that money corrupts. And that those who have lots of it, expect more of it. And that they expected those who worked for them to obey without question.

Much like the staff in the hotel when they saw Kaine.

Because he came here for work. To make sure it was suitable for the clientele.

Quentin couldn’t imagine turning up to a fancy hotel and then demanding changes because some prince or prime minister demanded it. Who behaved like that?

The lift opened, and Kaine ushered him in.

Quentin sucked in a breath and felt himself staring. Oh my God, even the lift was fancy. All mirrors and gold and soft lighting so as not to offend rich eyeballs.

Usually, when he hooked up, he was like a six out of ten nervous, with ten being standing up in front of a crowd of people and talking. Right now, he reckoned he was an eight. Mostly because of the hotel.

Because Kaine was so far out of his league, he wasn’t sure why Kaine had agreed. It wasn’t as though he’d been sitting in the bar having dinner, scrolling for hookups. For a moment, Quentin wished he’d kept his mouth closed.

Not that he was very good at that, either.

Kaine gave his hand a squeeze. “You okay?”

“Yeah.” Just gobsmacked that he was about to spend the night in this place. With a man like Kaine. Fuck. He wasn’t sure if his life was going really well or about to skid off the rails.

Be cool; it’s a one-time thing. Make the most of it.

However, no one had ever described him as chill.

“Wondering why you said yes.” And went to all this effort. For him.

His birth had been an accident, but his father had done the right thing and married his mother. She had tried to do the right thing. They moved around a bit while his father was in the army, and she’d always found a bit of work singing or performing. By the time he was thirteen, their marriage was over. They’d lived together for another two years, dating other people, before his mother got a job as an entertainer on a cruise ship. He’d seen her a few times since and spent two weeks after finishing school on holiday with her, travelling around, and she’d been a different person to the woman he remembered. She’d been so full of life. So vibrant. It had been one of those moments where he’d been so happy for her, and yet it had cut him deeply that his existence made her so miserable.

It was soon after that he’d been diagnosed with ADHD and started meds, which had improved his school grades quite a bit. Enough that joining the army was no longer his only option.

Kaine studied him in the mirror, his dark eyes taking everything in and no doubt finding every flaw. It would not take long, a few weeks tops, for Kaine to realize he was too much.

Too much talking.

Too distracted.

Needing too much reassurance. Which he’d just asked for again.

Kaine turned to face him. His hand cupped Quentin’s cheek, and then his lips were on his in the softest kiss, as if they had all the time in the world, and there was no need to rush.

There was a part of his brain that was telling him to rush. To open his mouth, to deepen the kiss, to reach for Kaine’s fly, and rub his dick. To get on with it before they were interrupted.

Heat flared in his blood, and all he wanted was more. As if nothing mattered but getting naked with Kaine.

Kaine drew back to look him in the eye. “Because you’re cute, clearly smart, and bold enough to ask, and because I wanted to.” His thumb brushed over Quentin’s lower lip as if he wanted to kiss him again.

If shaking Kaine’s hand had been the first taste to get him hooked, the kiss was his first full dose, and his head was spinning. Nerves tangled with lust, and he was sure his heart was going to explode or break free and fly away or something. He’d turn into one hundred butterflies and scatter on the breeze.

He knew what lust was, and it had never felt like this.

Kaine’s eyebrows drew together, as if he saw something he didn’t like in Quentin’s eye. Then the doors opened.

At that point, Quentin wouldn’t have been surprised if they had ended up in the penthouse. He wasn’t sure anything would surprise him now.

Kaine stepped backward out of the lift, drawing Quentin with him. And he followed because there was nowhere else he wanted to be. They reached the end of the corridor, then Kaine reached into his pocket, pulled out the key and swiped it over the lock.

The door clicked open, and Kaine stepped over the threshold.

He could release Kaine’s hand and run away, get back into the lift, and go home.

That was safe. He knew how to run home. He knew how to have furtive hookups in bathrooms. He did not know how to do this. In a fancy hotel.

But if he didn’t step in, then he’d never find out, and he’d regret that for the rest of his life. Because he was sure there wouldn’t be a second chance. He drew a breath and stepped in, shutting the door behind him.

Kaine reached past him and put the catch on.

His heart was going about a million miles an hour. He expected Kaine to kiss him again. When he didn’t, Quentin took the chance. He leaned in, needing another taste.

Kaine pressed him against the door, no more hurried than he had been in the lift. His tongue flicked over Quentin’s lip, and Quentin opened his mouth to taste him. But even that wasn’t enough. He undid Kaine’s jacket and slid his hand beneath. He gasped, and his hand stilled when his fingers brushed metal. It was a gun. He knew that without any further exploration.

Kaine made a noise and stepped back. He pulled off his leather jacket, revealing the pistol and holster.

Not even all the cops carried guns in Mont de Leucoy. Regular citizens didn’t carry. Quentin lifted his gaze. “Any other weapons I should know about?”

“No…because you don’t need to know,” Kaine said with a smile, but he wasn’t joking.

Right. Cool. He was in a high security, fancy hotel with an armed man. He was either in the safest place or the most dangerous place in the country. Either way, his dick had not got the memo because he was the hardest he’d ever been.

He swallowed, his brain scrambling for an excuse to go to the bathroom so he could pull out his phone and look up who the fuck Kaine Lenoir was.

“Do you want me to have a shower or something so you can disarm in private? I mean, I smell like spilled beer anyway, so it’s probably a good idea. Plus, um…” Shit, they hadn’t even discussed preferences and such. Usually, he had that conversation before he got this far.

Kaine kissed him again, harder this time, as if his control was slipping and the hunger was coming out. His hand slid over Quentin’s hip and gripped his ass, tugging him close to grind against him. “If you feel more comfortable having a shower first, then do so. If you also want me to shower, I am happy to do so. If there is something you want, tell me.” The words were soft, but they were still an order.

What he wanted was Kaine’s dick inside him. He wanted to be pinned to the wall like a fucking butterfly. “What do you want?”

Kaine gave a low laugh. “I asked first.”

Damn it, he had. Fine, it wasn’t as though he wasn’t used to saying what he liked from a man, but in his experience, tops made it clear early on. “I like to bottom. So I’m really hoping that you like to top.”

“You’re in luck…though it has been a while since I’ve slept with a man.”

Quentin’s eyebrow lifted before he could stop it. “You’re not married, are you?”

Because that was a line he wasn’t willing to cross for anyone, no matter how hot and no matter how horny he was. He did not want to be responsible for the destruction of another marriage.

“No, and I am offended that you?—”

Quentin kissed him. “I didn’t mean to offend, but some guys. Well…they marry a woman and think if they sleep with men, it’s not cheating.” Some thought it wasn’t cheating if they were on holiday. He had a rule not to sleep with tourists. “So I had to ask.”

“I could’ve lied.”

Quentin held Kaine’s dark stare. “You could have, but at least I asked.”

Kaine nodded and stepped back. “Have a shower. I’ll be in in five, and then we can start clean and end up dirty.” The words came out as a low purr that went straight to his dick. He was sure there was already a damp spot on the front of his briefs.

Kaine opened the bathroom door for him and held out his arm so he could step through.

The bathroom was so fancy, he didn’t want to use it and mess it up.

There were several soft lights pretending to be candles. Rolled-up white towels, which wouldn’t be crunchy or small. A bathtub you could have an orgy in and a shower with one of those fancy heads that made it feel like standing in the rain.

He caught his reflection in the mirror.

People like him did not go to places like this.

“Problem?”

“Admiring the bathroom. You might be used to this, but I am not.”

Kaine slid his hands around Quentin’s waist and kissed the back of his neck. “I don’t live like this, but everyone should have a little luxury every now and again. I’ll give you an extra two minutes so you can admire.”

From the way, Kaine was looking at him in the mirror, and the way his hand slid over the front of Quentin’s jeans, it was clear Kaine was doing the admiring. It would be far too easy to get used to Kaine looking at him like that. As though he were something rare and precious.