Page 39 of Something Unprofessional

Daddy pressed his lips together like he was fighting a smile. “Ev,” he said finally. “This is important. It isn’t a decision I want you to make impulsively.” His fingers on Ev’s jaw loosened and slipped away, leaving Ev on his own.

Ev sighed. He got it. Grown-up decisions needed a grown-up mind-set, no matter how much Ev would rather let go and have Daddy take over the hard stuff. He straightened his posture and kept his hands, which had been roaming Daddy’s—Gabe’s—chest, to himself. “What’s your proposal?”

There was that flash of amusement again. Ev elected to ignore it. “Our chemistry is clearly strong. And our kinks seem to line up well. But you’ve been burned by relationships with assholes whom I refuse to call Daddies,” Gabe said, his eyes flicking between Ev’s, studying his reaction. “And honestly, I’m not looking for anything serious either. So, let’s take romanceout of the equation. My proposal is a kink-only arrangement. At work, I’m your boss and you’re my employee. Outside of work, we schedule times that are convenient for both of us to be Daddy and boy. If you feel uncomfortable, or you want it to stop, you safeword.”

Ev’s heart was doing something wild and painful in his chest, and he wasn’t sure if he was still breathing. “Just like that?” he managed to ask. He could have the best of both worlds, just like that?

Gabe chuckled, and it sounded a little raw. “No, not just like that. We still need to discuss boundaries and limits.”

Ev nodded. He’d played casually before. He knew how a scene worked. He gave Gabe a hesitant smile. “And punishments?” he asked hopefully.

Gabe chucked him under the chin in a total Daddy move. “Of course.” He slid his arms around Ev’s waist, and Ev let his head drop back to Gabe’s shoulder.

He should say no. This had disaster written all over it, no matter how reasonable Gabe made it sound. But Ev also knew he couldn’t. He wanted this too much to deny it any longer.

“Green, Daddy.”

Gabe

Gabe hung up thephone and rolled his head from side to side to loosen the muscles in his neck. The day had been an endless string of calls, thanks to a client’s poor decisions. Gabe couldn’t complain, though. Deciding to be seen in an intimate encounter with an ex, when they were two weeks out from the wedding of the year, was what kept Gabe’s bank balance healthy. It made the day go by quickly too.

There was a knock at the office door, and Ev stuck his head in. “Beeeeeep. You asked me to be your alarm clock at five,” he said with a smirk.

Gabe chuckled under his breath. That wasn’t how he’d put it, but fair enough. “Thank you. I decided we’re having an early day. Pack up your things, Everett.”

Color rushed to Ev’s cheeks, and his smile turned shy. Gabe was getting addicted to that expression. The one that said Ev was looking forward to some time with Daddy.

As much as Ev objected to the use of his full name in most situations, it had become part of their routine over the last week or so. When Gabe called his boy Everett, Ev knew what he was asking. He could easily turn him down by protesting it, but that hadn’t happened yet. “Yes, Sir,” Ev said, an additional spring in his step as he returned to his desk.

An hour later, they were entering Gabe’s apartment with carryout from the Thai place on the corner. While Gabe would have been fine with anything his boy asked for, up to and including sippy-cups and dino nuggets every night, he’d been pleased to learn that Ev was a foodie and loved to try new things. So far, the only “nos” were any sushi that was too “slimy” and smoothies with seeds in them because Ev hated the way they stuck in his teeth.

Gabe set up their food at the kitchen peninsula while Ev ducked into the bedroom to change into comfy clothes. Gabe had surprised him the first evening after their trip with a small collection of PJ pants decorated with characters from the video game he was playing. Ev had stripped down to his underwear right there in the living room to change into them. It had been a struggle not to keep him half naked. The picture he made, dressed only in his dress shirt, tie, and briefs, his bare legs on display, was much too tempting. Gabe blamed his lack of restraint on the fact that they hadn’t had sex since before the trip. He’dthought it better to wait and let Ev settle into their playtime first, but now, he was second-guessing that decision.

As the days went on, it became clear that Ev, for all his open eagerness, wasn’t going to trust Gabe right away. Ev had spent nearly every night with Gabe for the last week but only had a toothbrush and his PJ pants at Gabe’s apartment to show for it. Each morning, he’d woken up when Gabe left for the gym and had gone home to change for work. It was a boundary that Gabe was determined to respect.

Ev returned from the bedroom in his PJ pants and an unzipped hoodie. Gabe met him halfway and slipped a hand beneath the hoodie to cup his ribs, tugging him close. Ev let out a small sound of pleasure and leaned into Gabe, head coming to rest against his collarbone. “Are you gonna change too, Daddy?” he asked, twisting Gabe’s tie up with his fingers and giving a tug.

Gabe smiled and dropped a kiss to his hair. “In a bit. I don’t want dinner to get cold.” He also enjoyed the way Ev looked at him when he removed his suit jacket and folded up his sleeves. His boy wasn’t subtle about his appreciation. Besides, Gabe had a feeling the clothing disparity turned them both on.

He led Ev to the counter and helped him push in the stool after he climbed up. “I freaking love this place,” Ev said, stabbing his fork into his Pad Thai noodles. “I could eat this every night.”

Gabe chuckled and sat next to him, starting on his green papaya salad and chicken satay. “Ah, to have the metabolism of a teenager.”

Ev wrinkled his nose at him. “Why do you worry? You work out alll the time,” he said, dragging out the word.

Gabe just shook his head. “I enjoy exercise. It keeps my stress under control, and it means I can still pick up naughty boys and toss them around when I need to. It doesn’t mean I don’t need to watch what I eat, especially with as much takeout as we order.”

Ev ducked his head, but Gabe still caught the way he bit his lip and squirmed on his stool. It wasn’t because of the healthy-eating conversation. “I’m not naughty,” Ev said, a question in his voice.

“No. You’ve been very good all week.”

Ev shifted again, his bare chest giving a heave and making his nipple piercings catch the light. “Do good boys get tossed around?” he blurted, glancing at Gabe from the corner of his eye.

“Oh, all the time,” Gabe teased. “And sometimes, if they’re extra good, they get even more than that.”

Ev grinned at his food.

Ev had settled inthe middle of the sofa with a soft blanket that he’d dug up somewhere when Gabe returned from putting away their leftovers and changing out of his suit. “Watch a movie with me, Daddy?” Ev asked, smoothing his fingers over thefuzzy material.

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