Page 4 of Xtasy

“Speak for yourself,” Ambrose muttered. “I hope he needs a place to spend the night.”

“He’s kidding.” Hawk said. “He thinks he’s being funny. Okay, erotic nudes. Have you ever had your photo taken in the nude before?”

“No.” Atlas realized he probably needed to stick with one-word responses, or he’d really make a fool of himself. His palms were already sticky with sweat. Worse than that, his dick was plumping again. The picture Ambrose and Hawk posed together made him jealous with envy and horny as hell.

“Been nude in front of a crowd?” Hawk continued.

“Locker room.”

Hawk looked at Ambrose and then back at Atlas. “Listen, it’s apparent that you are shy. Why are you wanting to do this? What’s your motivation? Things aren’t adding up.”

“I’m not desperate for money. I have a comfortable savings account and my job is secure.”

“And that didn’t answer my question, did it?”

Fuck. “I want to be something I’m not. I’m a bore. Predictable. I’m tired of my life being that way.”Yep, he should have stuck to one-word answers.

Hawk laughed. “There’s nothing wrong with being predictable and I seriously doubt you’re a bore. Don’t let insecurity push you into something you aren’t comfortable with. Be yourself, kid.”

“I told you not to call me that.” Atlas snapped, feeling his face burning with embarrassment.

“And I obliged when I thought we would be working together. Now we aren’t. Anyway, there’s nothing wrong with being called kid, little man, or boy. It’s a compliment in mine and Ambrose’s lifestyle.”

Atlas knew there was no lifestyle where those words would be complimentary. They were fucking with him. Again. “Thanks for your time. Can you please open the garage for me?” He stood up. “I’ll be on my way.”

He hadn’t taken one step when Ambrose said, “Stop. Turn around. Remove your clothes and show me if you have what I’m looking for. I own several BDSM clubs and I’m planning to open another one in Dallas that will be exclusively for gay men. The photos will not show your face, but they will be explicit. Bondage will be involved, so you’ll need to be willing to allow Hawk to touch you in ways you might not be comfortable with. Oh, and when I say explicit, I meanexplicit.” Ambrose smiled. “You’re still dressed. Did I scare you?”

Atlas was trembling as he reached for the hem of his shirt.BDSM? Was this what he wanted? Could he do it? He folded his shirt and placed it on the couch. Toed off his Vans and, without thinking too long and hard about it, removed his pants and underwear at the same time. When he was completely naked, Atlas forced himself to raise his eyes defiantly to both men. What he saw there, was shocking. Both men stared at him like a predator would stare at prey. Yet, he didn’t feel threatened at all. It made him feel powerful.

Atlas had never felt powerful in his entire life. It was intoxicating.

“You are absolutely gorgeous, Atlas.” Ambrose said. “You’ll be perfect if you want to take a chance. Hawk is the best out there. He’ll take very good care of you.”

Fucking intoxicating.

CHAPTER TWO

Fucking terrifying.

What in the hell had Atlas been thinking? He couldn’t take his clothes off and let a complete stranger touch his junk or tie him up into strange positions…no matter how gorgeous the man was. He simply couldn’t do it. Atlas was too unworldly. Hawk would toss him out on his ass within the first fifteen minutes.

All those thoughts and many more raced through Atlas’ head as he waited in front of Hawk’s building…waited for the garage door to open. By the time it finally slid open, he had almost talked himself out of it. He was biting his bottom lip when Hawk stepped outside and motioned him to come in. The very object of all his fantasies over the past three days was right in front of him—fully dressed, unfortunately. Today he had on comfortable looking jeans, a black shirt, and black boots that looked like they’d been in his family for several generations. In other words, hot as fuck. Hair was hanging free today. Fucking sexy. There were leather braided bracelets on his tanned arms and a long necklace around his neck. No rings. Too bad, Atlas liked rings. Well, he liked wearing rings…or the idea of wearing rings. He never wore jewelry of any type. There was a really good chance he should have started with wearing jewelry as a way to take a tiny step out of his comfort zone instead of just launching himself straight over the Grand-fucking-Canyon. Yes, jewelry would have been much more in tune with his level of taking a walk on the wild side.

Atlas jumped out of his seat when a hard knock to his window interrupted his thoughts. Dazed, he turned to see Hawk standing next to the door, motioning for him to roll the window down. With shaking hands and a red face, he obliged.

“You okay?” Hawk asked. “You realize you don’t have to do this, right?”

“One-hundred percent. I understand. I want to. I just got…distracted for a second.” Atlas looked up at Hawk and thought about swooning just like he’d read about in his grandmother’s old historical romance novels. “Just pull into the same spot?”

“Yeah. I’m sorry I kept you waiting before opening the door. I thought we’d said eight o’clock.”

“We did. I’m early. I’m always early.” He put the Prius into gear and eased carefully into the garage. The Rolls was missing. Atlas guessed Ambrose must be out. Maybe he left to give Hawk privacy when he was working? No, that was stupid, he’d never be at home if that was the case. He had spent some time researching Hawk Pentress. The man was a god in the art world and in very high demand.

“That could be a problem.” Hawk answered as Atlas climbed out of the car. “I’m always late. I’m sure you’ll be ready to kill me before this is over. I get easily distracted.”

A bubble of laughter burst from Atlas’ lips before he could stop himself. “I seriously doubt that. You look like you are in complete control of every situation, all the time.”

“Follow me. You’re right, I do like control.” He winked at Atlas. “As a matter of fact, you could call it my superpower.” He punched a button to access an elevator. “I had a rough workout this morning, so it’s elevator day. My work area is on the third floor. Ambrose sent some props over to help with the photos. I’m sure he’ll send more as we continue working over the next few days. He might act laid back, but he’s a perfectionist. He won’t settle until everything is perfect…in his eyes, of course.”

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