Page 2

ANDERS

At some point, men all started to look the same to me.

It didn’t matter if they were blond or brunette, short or tall, thick or rippling with muscles, they all looked at me with identical stares of detached hunger, like ravenous beasts salivating for a meal.

I wasn’t a man they felt passion and desire for, I was a lamb, and they were wolves…

at least that’s how they see it. I grew numb to it years ago.

I wrapped cynicism around myself like a cloak and learned to look back at them with the same kind of detachment, to see them as nothing but a paycheck.

They can’t use me or hurt me because I’m the one using them.

They might put their hands on my body, but they can never touch me.

The man standing in front of me, his slacks and white button-up both clearly tailored rather than the off-the-rack trash worn by everyone else in the club, might be well dressed, but he’s no different from anyone else.

For half a second when our eyes first met, I thought I saw something there—interest that went beyond lust for my body.

But silly fantasies like that are better left for when I’m alone in my bed at night dreaming of a different life.

Only a few more weeks .

Twenty days, to be exact, and then I’ll be free. The fucker won’t have anything left to hold over my head, and I’ll be able to walk away and never look back. I eye the gold Rolex on my date’s wrist again, guilt and desperation warring in my chest.

He looks up from his phone, turning the screen around to show me the confirmation that his payment went through.

The username along the top says LucaM. I lick my lips and force all thoughts about the future and what it would feel like to be seen by someone into a familiar box in the back of my mind, locking them up tight.

“Thanks, Luca,” I purr. “Or do you prefer I call you something else? Sir maybe? Daddy ?” I’ve had years of practice hiding the way bile rises in my throat at the latter suggestion.

He drags the soft pad of his thumb along the edge of my jaw so lightly that it sends a shiver down my spine. “Luca is fine,” he says. “Although we might have to talk about what I can call you, because Anders just doesn’t do you justice.”

I shrug, putting my hands on the smooth, sticky surface of the bar top, preparing to hop down. “Call me whatever you want. It’s your dime.”

A curious expression flickers over his face, but he doesn’t say anything.

His hands land on my hips and I open my mouth to tell him that he needs to take me to a hotel room before he gets handsy with me.

But, to my surprise, he doesn’t go in for a kiss, he doesn’t slide his hands down to grope my ass, he doesn’t press himself up against me and make a lewd comment about the hardness of his cock.

No, LucaM with the multi-thousand dollar watch and tailored suit helps me off the bar, keeping his hands on me just long enough to ensure that I’m steady on my feet before he lets me go and slides them back into his pockets.

I let out a surprised laugh and then stoop down to pick up my tattered messenger bag, looping it around my neck and tilting my chin in the direction of the exit.

“Lead the way.”

I brace myself for him to wrap his hand possessively around the back of my neck, digging his fingers in just a little too roughly, testing the limits of my self-control as I fight off the urge to elbow him in the ribs and put a little space between us.

It’s always a prelude to a night of fucking that goes exactly the same way—too rough, too bruising, numbing all the parts of me that want to bite back.

But Luca doesn’t grab me, at least not like that.

He rests his hand against the small of my back, using just enough pressure to let me know he’s there and not about to lose me in the crowd as he leads me through the sea of people churning all around us to the hypnotic beat of the music.

His touch is warm, possessive without being aggressive, and exactly the way I used to dream that a man would touch me back when I was naive enough to dream.

My ears ring with the sudden silence as we step out onto the street, the doors swinging closed behind us to lock the humidity of body heat and the thump of the bass away where they belong.

The bouncer, Rabbit, nods to me as we pass, arching one eyebrow the way he always does when I leave with a client.

When I first started coming here, I thought he was judging me, but now, as crazy as it seems, I think he’s checking that I’m okay leaving with whoever I’m with.

What would he do if I wasn’t? The thought is fucking laughable.

Not a big, beefcake bouncer coming to my rescue, although that’s funny in its own way, but the idea that my opinion of any of the men I leave with matters even a little bit.

I give Rabbit a flickering smile of reassurance and let Luca lead me down the street, away from the club.

As the neon glow of the sign fades behind us, I glance over at him in the darkness.

He’s an objectively attractive man, with a classic Roman nose and full, soft looking lips.

I’ve always been a sucker for dark eyes and olive skin, too.

It’s been fucking ages since I’ve bothered to give any consideration to my own preferences, but if it mattered at all, Luca is exactly the kind of man who would catch my eye all on his own. At least I think he is.

“Where are we going?” I ask when we reach the end of the block.

“Would you object to a short drive? I know there are a couple of motels within walking distance, but I’m not sure my tetanus shots are up to date.” His lips twitch at his own joke.

I don’t bother to answer, assuming it’s a rhetorical question.

He paid, so if he wants me to get in his car then it’s not worth arguing about it, especially not out here in the dark, in the part of town where no one would bat an eye if he were to get violent with me for refusing him.

My heart beats faster at the thought and my jaw ticks with a flicker of the defiance in my soul that the numbness hasn’t managed to snuff out yet.

“Anders?” He says my name softly.

“What?”

“Is a short drive okay?” he repeats.

I frown, opening and closing my mouth a couple of times in surprise before giving a sharp nod. “Yeah, that’s fine.”

A slow smile spreads over his lips. Even more shocking than the fact that he was actually asking my permission for something is the fact that the smile is strangely… sweet. Fucking hell, twenty days might not be soon enough if I’m starting to lose my grip on reality like this.

The crosswalk light changes and I follow Luca across the street.

I want to ask why he parked so far away from Wonderland, but most men who pick me up aren’t really that big on small talk, so I bite my tongue and enjoy the stroll.

At least it’s a nice night, the distinct smell of spring dancing on the air just under the scents of exhaust and garbage that are present no matter what part of the city you’re in.

Between one block and the next, cracked sidewalks are replaced with even ones, brick buildings covered in graffiti turning into sleek high-rises with large windows that peer into expensive lobbies.

Luca slows to a stop and the lights flash on a sleek silver BMW parked near the curb.

I bite my lip and that same mix of desperation and guilt tugs at my insides again.

Wherever Luca got his money, it’s obvious he has plenty of it.

No one thinks Robin Hood is the villain of the story for robbing from the rich to give to the poor, so why should I be?

Just because I’m “the poor,” does that make it any less of a worthy cause?

He strides over and opens the passenger door for me. I slip inside and set my bag between my feet on the floor.

LUCA

Anders gives me a flicker of a polite smile as I close the car door, and discontent squirms in my chest. What do I have to do to see that spark of defiance in his eyes again?

How can I bring back the glint of almost disdainful confidence that drew me to him like a moth to a flame at Wonderland?

He’s breathtakingly beautiful either way, but sweet and polite aren’t what I’m looking for.

“Put on whatever you like,” I say, nodding towards the XM radio display that lights up as soon as I start the car.

“I don’t really care.” Anders shrugs, his voice sounding hollow as he settles back in his seat, his face turned towards the passenger window.

My fingers twitch around the smooth leather of the steering wheel and my jaw ticks with irritation. After a minute, when I haven’t pulled out of the parking spot, he turns his attention back to me with a curious frown marring his full, pouty lips.

“I’ve changed my mind,” I bite out the words, not sure if I’m coming across as more of a dickhead or a petulant child, and not caring much either way.

Anders isn’t what I thought he was. Maybe it was a trick of the lights at Wonderland or a desperate fantasy I projected onto him in the few seconds it took me to decide I wanted him.

“What?” His eyebrows pull together. “You changed your mind?”

I nod sharply. “Keep the money.” I wave a hand dismissively, pressing the button to make sure his door is unlocked.

Anders doesn’t move. For a few seconds I don’t think he even breathes, and then it’s back, that fire in his eyes, the mutinous set of his jaw, venom dripping from every inch of his gaze.

My cock jerks to attention all over again and the heat under my skin rekindles.

“Fuck you. I’m not some fucking charity case,” he spits, every bit the coiled viper I first pegged him for.

“What? Are you just now realizing you’re too good for trash like me?

Now that you’ve seen me contrasted against the pretentious backdrop of your overpriced car, you can’t bring yourself to stoop as low as fucking me?

” He twists in his seat to face me, leaning over the center console to poke me in the chest. “You don’t even know me.

Maybe I’m the one who’s too damn good for you.

A pretty face and an expensive watch don’t make you better than me, Luca, and fuck you for thinking they do. ”

His chest heaves as he rants and my heart thunders with excitement.

“There it is,” I murmur, lunging for him. I grab a fistful of his tank top and yank him towards me, smashing my lips to his.

His tirade dies on a gasp against my mouth, but that doesn’t mean his anger is gone.

His lips soften just long enough for me to slip my tongue between them, and then he’s all fury and bite, nipping roughly at my tongue and controlling the kiss, setting a brutal, punishing pace.

My cock throbs and I happily give myself over to his rage, letting it batter me like a hurricane.

Our tongues tangle and my lips sting with every beautifully placed bite.

The little jolts of not-quite-pain stroke my cock one by one until I’m trembling under his touch and leaking a steady stream of precum down my own thigh.

Anders breaks the kiss with a forceful shove to my chest. His eyes are wild, and his lips are damp and swollen. I groan and reach down to adjust myself.

“Fucked up head games get you hard, Luca?” he asks with a hoarse edge to his voice, settling himself back into his seat with a hint of uncertainty shining in his eyes.

I shake my head slowly and reach up to drag my fingers over my tingling lips before finally putting my own seat belt on.

“Not head games, no.” I check for traffic, then pull out of the space. “I wasn’t jerking you around, I just didn’t want to waste either of our time if I’d read you wrong before.”

He scoffs, and out of the corner of my eye, I notice him palming the hard outline of his cock through his shorts.

“And what exactly do you think you read? Enlighten me, Luca, who do you think I am?”

“I think you’re a venomous snake waiting to sink your fangs into anyone who dares to tangle with you.

I think you’ve learned to fake the role of helpless little lamb, but deep down, you’re the predator biding your time until you’re ready to strike.

I think there’s fire in you, and I didn’t pay to blow it out, I paid so you’d let me stand close enough to get burned. ”

Anders’s breath catches, and I glance over to see him staring right back at me with wide eyes full of rage and terror and shock.

“Did I get you all wrong, my delicate viper?” I ask, daring to watch him for another moment before returning my attention to the road ahead of me.

“No,” he answers in a whisper that sounds like a shout in the stillness of the car. “You didn’t get me wrong.”

“Good.”

I take the next turn and pull into the circular driveway of an upscale hotel.

I drag my tongue over my bottom lip, tasting a slight tang of blood there along with the lingering flavor of Anders’s mouth.

I’ve barely had a taste of him and I’m already sure one night won’t be enough, but at least it’s a start.