Page 22 of Pandora's Pain
The two men gave quiet nods to one another.
“Zav wanted to know if you and your friend wanted to come hang out for a while before dinner. My friend just got to town, and we didn’t want to cancel, but we didn’t want to ditch him either.”
“Yeah, that sounds great.”
The elevator ride up to Ashton’s room felt cramped. It felt chaperoned. Only the chiming of the little numbered floors sounded through the small space.
“What do you do for a living?” Alex looked to Ashton as if he really had no idea.
A smile that could melt hearts tilted Ashton’s face. “I’m in the entertainment business.”
I shot Alex a menacing look, but he promptly ignored me and my little scowl.
“Really? I don’t think I’ve heard of you. It’s hard to hit mainstream though. Give it a few years, it’ll take off before you’re thirty I’m sure.” He nodded to himself while Ashton’s confused attention shifted to me for a moment.
Mainstream? Why are you being an ass?I glared at him in the shining metal reflection of the elevator doors.
Just making polite conversation. Just because he’s won five awards this year doesn’t mean everyone’s heard of him. Artist of the year isn’t that big of an accomplishment, Dora.
I exhaled a sigh of annoyance, and as the doors pulled open, Ashton slipped his fingers through mine. The warmth of his hand calmed me, and suddenly I wasn’t aware of the insufferable god trailing behind us at all.
My heels clicked nicely against the glossy tile, and with a flash of his key card, Ashton pushed open the door to the largest hotel room I’d ever seen.
It was like a small house rather than a room. White furniture filled the space, and Zavier sat at a shining desk. His serious features tipped up into a small smile when he saw me, but he continued with his phone call.
And there, against the far wall, was something I was not expecting.
A man with lines of hard muscle cutting across his body soaked up the dusty evening sunlight. A woman knelt on the floor with a camera tilted up to the beautiful man’s perfect features.
He. Was. Completely. Nude.
And you said I had to wear clothes.
I smirked up at the glowering god. He creased his brows as he looked quickly away from the naked man and his glorious… cock.
I, on the other hand, took a slow inventory of every inch of his body. His pale hair was tied back from his face. Piercing eyes looked into the heart of the camera. His broad shoulders leaned against the glass window in a lazy look of sexual exhaustion. And there, just below his narrow hips was a fantastic sight I had yet to see during my time back on Earth.
This. This was the welcome home party I’d been expecting.
At least someone knew how to greet a lady.
“Brock, this is my friend, Hope.” Ashton waved a hand between the two of us.
I met his intense eyes, and a posed half smile tipped his lips. His teeth were perfect. Not a single flaw graced his body.
“Why is there a naked dude in your room?” Alex seemed to be the only one questioning the luck I was having right now.
“Um,” An awkward smile filled Ashton’s face, “Brock’s a model.”
Ashton paused as if there was further explanation but then he simply walked away.
“He’s a model, Alex. Makes perfect sense. Remove the stick from your ass, and maybe we’ll all be naked tonight.” The idea of Alex being naked caused a strange feeling to tangle through my fluttering stomach.
“That’s not going to happen, I can assure you.”
Zavier jotted down another note before ending his call. He passed his naked friend before making his way toward me.
“I’m so sorry my friend’s … fucking naked right now. He wasn’t naked ten minutes ago I swear. I wouldn’t have asked you to meet him if I knew his dick would be out.”
