Boyfriend for Hire(23)

I pop a couple of ibuprofen and down a glass of water. I have to kick whatever’s going on with me. I’m not normally like this, not the kind of guy who gets taken out by a fucking headache. And definitely not the kind of guy to get hung up on anyone, especially not a client.

Honestly, I wish feelings were as easy to get rid of as headaches. Then at least I could take a couple of pills and be done with it.

I like her, actually like her, and it’s a position I haven’t found myself in in a very long time. Years. It’s new, and honestly, it’s refreshing.

I decide to hit the gym anyway, even if I’m not heading to work later. Running will probably make the headache worse, but I think swimming a few laps might help. Something about the water always makes me feel a little better.

I throw a pair of trunks into my gym bag and hop in the car. A workout will be good. Clear my head a little.

But even with my body gliding through the cold pool water, I still can’t shake these thoughts about Elle. It’s like she’s worked her way into my bloodstream, and it feels like no matter what I do, I can’t stop thinking about her. There’s something oddly cathartic and ironic about this situation—and Elle, if I think about it.

Maybe the problem is simpler than I originally thought. Maybe the fact that I’m keeping myself from her is making this whole situation seem a lot more exciting than it really is. I spend time with beautiful women who want to fuck me all the time. The only thing that makes this one any different is that I won’t let myself have her.

So maybe that’s what I have to do. Ask Elle out, sleep with her, and be done with it. I should know better than anyone that anticipation makes cocks harder and panties wetter.

That’s what I have to do, then. Set up a proper date, one I’m not getting paid for. If it’s not work, then all bets are off. No rules, no policies to keep in mind. Just two adults acting on the natural chemistry between them. And once the mystery of what Elle Alexander is like in bed is broken, I’ll be free of her, free to move on with my life and go back to business as usual.

Problem solved.

At this epiphany, I stop swimming and climb from the pool to towel off. Right then, I grab my phone and consider shooting off another text to Case. I don’t like the idea that he’s pissed at me. Yeah, he’s my boss, but he’s also a friend.

Unsure what I’d even say, I stuff my phone into my bag and head to the locker room to get dressed. Once I’m changed and on the drive back home, my mind drifts back to when I first started working for Case.

It’s been a crazy six years, and he’s always trusted me, always believed in me—maybe even when he shouldn’t have.

I remember the week I started working at Allure. I didn’t know it at the time, but the motherfucker set me up to find out how talented I was (or not) in the bedroom. I should have seen right through this, but I was twenty-two and horny, and basically, I fell for it hook, line, and sinker.

Case, Ryder, and I went out to a nightclub together one night. It was a typical Friday for us, and there was nothing out of the ordinary—except for the fact I’d just started working for him.

We each ordered a whiskey and sipped them while Case and Ryder entertained me with stories about some of the women they’d met in this line of work, and all the crazy shit that was in store for me.

As we talked, I noticed an attractive woman at the bar watching me, bringing her straw to her lips and giving me bedroom eyes. At first, I was hesitant to leave my new boss to go approach her, but Case only laughed and shoved my shoulder, telling me to get my ass over there. He said he intended to keep me so busy that this might be the last time I had sex with a civilian for a while.

The woman was beautiful, about ten years older than me, and said she was in town only for the night on business. It was my first time being with an older woman, and there was a lot I liked about it. She knew what she wanted in the bedroom, was confident and charming, and we had a great night together in her hotel room.

The next morning, Gia, who turned out to be a friend of Case’s, reported every vivid detail of our encounter to my new boss.

“You suck at sex, dude,” he said when I entered his office the next morning.

“That’s not what your mom said,” I joked.

“Gia emailed me this morning with a very colorful critique.”

My eyebrows darted up. “What are you talking about?”

I’d had a couple of steady girlfriends and a handful of casual encounters with women I’d met on dating apps over the years, and as far as I knew, not a one had ever complained about my performance.

He only smirked. “You didn’t think I’d send you out there without some field-testing first, did you? Can’t have some lousy lay ruining the reputation I’ve built my company on.”

“You talked to Gia?” I blurted, sinking into the leather chair in front of his desk.

He poked a finger at his screen and scrolled through a rather lengthy email. “You thrust too fast, your kisses were sloppy, and your foreplay needs to last longer. Oh, and the vagina is sensitive, dude. You don’t just ram your fingers or tongue right in there. You’ve got to tease her, build up to it, make her want it first.”

“Seriously? She said all that?”

He nodded. His face was impassive, and he didn’t look the least bit surprised.

I had no idea what this meant. I remember being worried that Case was going to fire me. And just generally feeling like shit because I thought she’d had a good time.