He shakes his head. “Like keeping you. Besides what I have with Ridge, I have never wanted to keep someone as close to me as I do you.”
“Ditto, but I also like what we have now, so let’s circle back to Arlo, since he’s my obsession this week. I’ve already figured out you and Ridge, but he is still a mystery I want to solve. Online he seems so confident but in person he’s shy. I watched him blush when someone told him he was doing a good job. How cute is that? I think I want to run that competition like you mentioned.”
“The one we’re rigging, so you can chase and fuck Arlo?”
I nod. “It sounds perverted when you say it like that, and we don’t have to fuck. I mean, I would be happy just to chase him.”
“Then it’s done. We can film something tonight and upload it, but know I will be there when it happens. Like you said, you’re not strong enough to hold a man down. While he has a clean record, I need to know you’re safe. Do you have any ideas for a backdrop? We can’t film at the house.”
I shrug—I hadn’t thought about it. “What do you think?”
“The carnival is coming to town. I could hook us up.”
I laugh because a carnival seems so cliché, but then again it could make for an interesting chase.
“Sounds like a plan,” I say, and he smiles. “How would Ridge feel about you fucking another man, if itcame to that? I’m all for pissing him off, but crossing boundaries is not something I’m comfortable with.”
As if his ears are burning, Ridge strides into the room like it’s his office.
“Speak about the devil and he shall appear,” I drawl.
Ridge locks eyes with me and his brows furrow. “Talking about me, stray? If I didn’t know better, I would think you’re obsessed with me.”
“In your dreams, big man. I’m just a decent human being and asked Zeland how you would feel about him fucking another man.”
Ridge blinks a few times, then stares at Zeland. Oh, hot damn, this was Zeland’s plan all along—he wants to make Ridge jealous. Using me worked to an extent, but I was never a genuine threat because I don’t have a cock.
I watch as Ridge crosses the room. It’s as if I’m not even here, and I wish I had popcorn.
He rounds Zeland’s desk and spins his chair until Zeland smirks up at him, so Ridge grabs his chin roughly, using it to push his head back. “Is my cock not good enough for you? Do I need to bend you over this fucking desk and remind you who you belong to?”
“Yes, please,” I whisper, and both men turn to face me. “Sorry, please continue.”
Zeland laughs. “I didn’t plan on letting him fuck me. My ass is reserved for you—unless Aspen wants to peg me, but I figured you wouldn’t get jealous of a plastic dick.”
Not once in my life have I ever thought about pegging someone, but with the image my mind justconjured up, I’m making a mental note to order a strap on. I’m one hundred percent going to fuck someone with it.
“Good,” Ridge states firmly. “If I find out any man has put his cock in what’s mine, he will be finished.”
“Sweet Jesus, can you be that possessive of me? Come on, Ridge, be a sport. Your voice when it’s like that fucking ends me. Poof, I combusted into dust.”
Ridge’s eyes find mine and he smirks. Holy shit, this man is lethal, and I don’t look away as he pushes off Zeland and stalks toward me. I swallow as my mouth becomes dry all of a sudden, and when he reaches me, he drags my chair and turns it to face him. He places a hand on each armrest and leans down so his eyes are level with mine. “You couldn’t handle a man like me—I would eat you alive and spit you back out. I don’t do feelings, and I don’t care about your needs.”
“Bullshit,” I whisper. My bravado has completely vanished while I’m stuck in his web. “You just proved you have feelings for Zeland, and you care about my needs—you just won’t admit it.”
“I don’t care. You could walk away today, and I would go about my day as normal.”
“You’re a liar, Mr. Ellington, but maybe you’re also lying to yourself. And it sucks to be you because I’m not going anywhere. Maybe I’m your salvation and I was brought here to save your grumpy ass from yourself because, as annoying as you are, you do fucking care. You checked out a stranger to make sure he wasn’t a weirdo to keep us safe, you gave him a job to further make sure hewasn’t a weirdo, you come home every fucking night, and even if it’s not for me, it’s one hundred percent for Zeland. You’re a good man under all that gruffness.”
“You’re wrong, stray. Everything I do benefits me.”
My heart gallops in my chest, and he doesn’t budge. “Prove it. When I do my next video and run the competition, don’t vet the man I choose and don’t follow us.”
His jaw goes hard. “You’re going to regret trying to get close to me, stray. But you forget, I care for Zeland. He is theonlyperson in this world I care about, and he seems to care for you, so that means you get all of me.”
I smirk. “All of you, huh?” I say, looking down. Even though I can’t see his package, he gets the point.
“I don’t fuck strays, but I have no issues watching.”