Sweet Sensations

Chapter Six

Dominick

I sat on my couch, a few cartons of Chinese delivery on the coffee table and the night skyline stretching out across the city. There were no clouds that evening, and the stars were out in fuller force than they ever were in the light of Manhattan.

"What about this?" Zachary asked, his face larger than life on my television screen. "I liquidate those properties I bought upstate and use the cash to fund a couple of the startups we've had our eyes on."

As he talked, Zachary drew a blade across his face, scratching away his stubble and flinging the shaving cream into the sink. His phone was set up at an awkward angle, giving me a full view of the bottom of his chin.

"Do you talk to all your former business partners while you're getting ready to go to the bar? Or am I just the lucky one?"

"Former business partner, is it now?" he said, stretching out his mouth to get the spots near his lips. "I'll make sure to tell the firm."

"Anyway, I'm done with those startups. It seems like all anyone in New York cares about is startups anymore."

"You know how much money there is when one of those things blows up," he pointed out. "And it's a light workload."

I shook my head, tossing my chopsticks onto the counter. "Keep your investments upstate," I said. "I've got some other ideas for projects when I get back anyway."

"Now I'm listening."

A message blipped across the top of the screen, one of the nonprofits inquiring about some numbers my team was supposed to pull together. I grabbed my phone and swiped it away, then turned back to Zachary, now rubbing his face with a fluffy white towel.

"The past seven years in New York have been kind to me, and I've loved shooting up the ladder. But since I got to Denver, I keep thinking about Tokyo."

"Tokyo?"

"And London. Shanghai a little bit, too."

The image on the screen started bouncing around when Zachary picked up his phone, carrying me out of the bathroom. When he set it down again, I saw that he was standing in a pair of boxers in his bedroom, his outfit for the night spread on the bed. "Okay, okay," he said appreciatively, turning to the camera. "You're thinking global."

"Starting to," I said, that familiar hunger rising up inside me again. "It used to feel like the sky was the limit in New York. Now I'm wondering if I might need a bigger fishbowl to swim in."

"Sharks don't live in fishbowls," he corrected, shoving his legs in a pair of pants. "Damn, man, how much money do you need? You trying to buy yourself an island or something?"

"You know it's not about the money," I said, lifting my bourbon from the table and taking a sip. "It's about building something of my own. Something that will last."

"A fortune."

"A legacy," I corrected. It sounded a little silly to say, but it was true. And the idea of leaving a global legacy got my blood pumping like I was twenty-one and needing to prove myself again. My focus on cross-industry green development and urban revitalization would be valuable across the world, and my pet projects with Zachary had allowed me to build contacts with a wide range of rising stars.

I knew I wanted something more than what I had, and thinking big was the way to get it.

Zachary began to button up his shirt and turned back to face me. "So what, you'll leave New York? Ditch me and the firm?"

"I'm already more of an independent contractor than anything else. You know I like my freedom. Hell, they'll just be happy for another chance to brag about their wunderkind." I sighed, remembering how easy it was to take people by surprise, back when I was some anonymous kid. "Anyway, I'll still be in New York half the time. I'll just travel a lot to build up those global ties."

Zachary sat down on his bed, frowning at me. "Just don't land some major Tokyo deal and leave me in the dust. That will piss me off like you wouldn't believe."

I laughed, remembering Zachary's competitive edge. "Trust me, I would never dream of it."

"Speaking of pissing me off," he continued, throwing a tie around his collar, "I ran into Charles the other night."

My palms went clammy as I thought of my most recent ex, running around my old social circles with a bit of gossip that could devastate my reputation. "Did you talk to him?"

"Just briefly. He swooped in and grabbed the development team I was looking at for that app project, so I had to make a few snide comments while I had the chance. He threw a few pointed jabs your way, but he seems to be keeping his mouth shut." Zachary finished with his tie and smoothed it down against his chest. "Not that I understand why you're so paranoid about people knowing you're kinky anyway. It's practically expected these days."

I let out a puff of air. "Even if that's true, I don't like every shark in town knowing my business. It gives them an advantage over me."

But I didn't say the other part. I'd let Zachary assume that by "kinky" I meant whips, rope, and the kinds of sexy toys that were fitting for a high-powered young executive.

"That's part of the reason I brought it up," Zachary said, grimacing. "Charles was there on a date with Elliot Daley. The gossip columnist?"

I put my head in my hands, my fingers curling into my thick hair. "Are you serious? He literally lives off of spreading around other people's business." I groaned, thinking of how judgmental they each were. "I knew I should have kept my life compartmentalized. I knew I shouldn't have tried to bridge my business world with my private life. Maybe I should stay away from Manhattan for two years instead of one."

"Or maybe you should just get laid in Denver. You need to relax, man."

I shrugged, taking another sip of my bourbon. "I've got a date to the gala on Friday night. I doubt it's going to get physical, though."

"The Colorado guys not sexy enough for you?"

I thought of the way Xavier's puffy pink lips trembled when he looked at me and the sweet but nervous energy that made me want to unwind him. "The guy is very sexy," I said. "And I'm very confident he's not into the same things I'm into."

"How are you so sure?"

Not wanting to share much more with Zachary, I waved my hand in the air. "Trust me. He's the kind of guy who flees as soon as something kinky gets mentioned. But the company will be nice."

The screen flickered, and Zachary leaned forward, picking up his phone and punching a couple of buttons. "Aw shit, man, I have to go."

"No problem," I said, downing the last of my bourbon. "I should get back to work anyway. Tell Manhattan I said hi."

"She says come back soon and that no one cares you're a sex freak," he joked. "Enjoy Denver."

I sat on the couch for a minute, still gazing out the window and marveling at the stars. I pushed aside the anxiety of having Charles dating the gossip columnist and let my mind linger on Xavier instead.

He might not have been kinky, but there was nothing to stop me from fantasizing about him. And from the way his pants clung to his bubble butt, there was plenty to fantasize about. Some guys got off on dominating powerful men or tying up muscular brutes. But I'd only ever wanted to dominate guys like Xavier.

Pretty guys. Tender guys.

A guy who would whimper and beg while my hand landed against his ass, feeling the tender curves of his cheeks and the warm blush across his skin.

I shoved my hand down my pants, feeling the stiff length of my cock. I wanted Xavier to be a guy like that. I wanted to discipline him, and control him, and to drive him wild with pleasure and desire.

I tightened my fist around my shaft and groaned as I thought of him, dropping his pants and grabbing his knees. I didn't expect more than a little flirty conversation at the gala, but at least he was giving fuel to my fantasies.

I knew what I wanted, even if I hadn't yet figured out how to get it.