Facade

relax. It wasn’t easy. Despite his professional demeanor, Nicky’s hands were all over him, stroking his sides, his back, his chest, grazing his nipples as Nicky smoothed out the cloth before fitting the seams. If Jonas hadn’t known any better, he would have thought Nicky was trying to arouse him, but Nicky’s apparent disinterest in him showed the contrary.
    Jonas was pretty good at controlling his bodily reactions but he felt the blood pooling in his groin anyway. He inhaled deeply, trying not to let his imagination run away with him. He wanted to do all sorts of things to the young man who had his hands all over him, wanted to pin him to the wall and fuck him into oblivion, but despite Façade
    23
    Chris’s open-mindedness, he knew he had to keep his hands to himself. Chris was his client here and lusting after another guy in his presence was just bad for business. He gazed over Nicky’s shoulder and saw Chris shift in his seat. The teasing smile meant they were doing a good job turning Chris on, but Jonas was happy that Nicky was standing between them because if Nicky didn’t stop touching him soon, no pair of perfectly cut trousers was going to hide the evidence of his arousal.
    Nicky moved into his field of view, and for a moment Jonas saw something change in the designer’s eyes. For a moment it was Nicky again, who only wanted to feel loved. In that moment, he dropped his façade.
    “Let’s move over here for a moment,” Nicky suggested, taking Jonas by the arm and pulling him into the dressing room, partially away from Chris’s eyes. Then a lot more quietly, “We’ll have to adjust the cut on these trousers at another fitting. Unless, of course, you intend to walk around with a flaming erection all the time.” Nicky smiled broadly, and then the mask was back. “We’re done, Mr. Hunter, you can take that off.”
    Jonas stepped out of the muslin garments as the designer walked away, careful to avoid the scratchy pins and delicate seams.
    He had barely discarded the trousers when Chris joined him in the dressing room, pulling the drapes shut behind him. Jonas felt a strong hand flat on his belly and the warm body of the slightly taller man behind him.
    “Now I have you where I want you.” Chris didn’t even bother to whisper as he moved his hand down. “And apparently how I want you as well.”
    Jonas braced himself against the wall and pushed his shoulders back against Chris’s chest. “Well, bring it on.” 24
    Zahra
    Owens
    TO JONAS’S considerable surprise, by the time he was back at his hotel room there was a message from Nicky on his voice mail. Was Jonas interested in coming to his house if he was free?
    Jonas took a quick shower and arrived less than an hour later, expecting pretty much the same routine as his first visit. To his surprise, it wasn’t one of Nicky’s minions who opened the door; it was Tanna herself. She was dressed more casually than that morning, heels less high, hair pulled up less tightly, but she still looked flawless and almost… innocent.
    “Mr. Hunter, we’re glad to have you here on such short notice.”
    She was smiling and speaking softly, stepping aside to let Jonas in. Jonas wasn’t entirely sure if he felt at ease. He still had no idea what Tanna’s function was in Nicky’s life, while Jonas had the distinct feeling that she knew exactly what was going on between him and Nicky. Not that it was much of a secret, but her use of “we” instead of “Nicky” made him slightly suspicious.
    “Nicky is waiting for you in his rooms. Would you like me to take you up there or can you find your own way?” Jonas looked at her and paused for a moment. Then he nodded.
    “I know the way.”
    She winked at him and then turned around to retreat to one of the side rooms.
    Jonas took a deep breath and walked up the staircase two steps at a time. He knocked on the door, but there was no answer and he wasn’t sure if he should enter, so he waited. He knocked again, a little harder this time. Tanna had told him to go right up and that Nicky was in his room, and now he didn’t answer. Jonas decided to be bold and opened the door slowly. The room was still fairly dark, but not completely. The small table lamp he’d lit last time was illuminating one corner of the room.
    As soon as he poked his head inside, he felt strong hands grab him by the jacket and yank him through, the door closing with a loud bang. Before he could react, he was pushed against the