Page 6 of The Apprentice
Tears of frustration welled in my eyes and I blinked, trying to force them back. I wouldn’t cry in front of Sloan, yet the unbearable shame wasn’t easy to ignore. I couldn’t remember a time when Sloan had gottenthisangry at me.
“Don’t cry. For fuck’s sake, Fionn. Don’t.” Sloan didn’t wait for me to say anything else. He slipped past me and walked toward the hallway.
When I heard the back door slam open and close—causing me to jump—I dropped my head and let the tears slip down my face.Fuck. I was a Company man. I couldn’t cry. Yet all the years of hard work and emotional pain had finally caught up to me. What would I have to do to make Sloan happy?
More footsteps had me rubbing the tears away from my face. I turned, sighing when I caught sight of Daire standing at the top of the split staircase. The white steps gleamed under the chandeliers, giving him an angelic glow like he was my savior. That’s all I needed. More reasons to be ashamed. Daire had never seen me cry, and now here I was, eyes red and cheeks stained by tears.
Daire took each step slowly, his hand skimming the black handrails until he hit the bottom. He stopped when he stood in front of me and reached out to rub his thumb over my cheek.
I stiffened, the warmth of Daire’s skin creating a ripple of pleasure that cannonballed through me. I couldn’t remember the last time Daire had touched me affectionally outside of the bedroom.
“You’re okay, boy,” he whispered, smiling. “He’s been in a bad mood this week. It’s not you. He’s worried about everything happening with the Reyes Cartel.”
I nodded, unsure what else to do, but I didn’t have a chance to consider Daire’s touch before his hand snapped back to his side.
“Meet me here at eight tomorrow morning. We have business.”
“Wait.” One word and it was barely whispered, the hint of hesitation in my voice making me flinch.
He stopped and glanced back at me.
“Tonight? I could really... use you.” I ignored the shame that curled inside me, but my hunger for him and the need for comfort took control. I craved more, so much more with Daire, but I’d take what I could get. Even if it was only getting fucked by Daddy Daire.
My Daddy was a completely different person from the Daire that I worked with. He gave me exactly what I needed and tookcare of me, while also fucking me until there were no anxious thoughts in my head.
“I’ll be back in four hours.”
Then, he was gone, out the front door, probably to go home.
I laid my hand on my cheek where Daire had touched me and sighed. I couldn’t remember the last person who’d made me feel this good. He brought all my emotions to the surface. When we were together, I could let go of my shame and anger.
I sighed and dropped my hand. Who was I kidding? He felt sorry for me, just like the rest of the crazy assholes in the Company. They all thought of me as weak.
Fuck them. I would prove them wrong.
2
FIONN
My heart thumped under the hand I’d placed on my chest, a sturdy beat that reminded me of a song Dad once sang to me as a kid. I didn’t remember the lyrics anymore, but I knew the tune, and it seemed like the muscle in my chest did as well.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Steady. Strong. Fast.
I was nervous. Why? Daire and I had fucked plenty of times, and once we were finished, he left without a word. There were no lingering kisses or promises of something more. He’d made it clear when we’d first begun this—it was purely sex.
He didn’t want arelationship.
What was so wrong with me that he couldn’t stand the idea of dating me? That was the question I pushed out of my head. In the end, it didn’t matter because he’d made his choice, and I wasn’t it. I was only good enough to fuck.
A knock made me straighten from where I stood near the wide square window in my bedroom. Taking a deep breath, I centered myself before I headed toward the door. I turned the knob and opened it to find Daire on the other side, his broadshoulders taking up the threshold. He was still dressed in his black suit, but his tie was missing and a few buttons were undone around his neck.
He didn’t smile or say a word as he walked forward. I matched his steps by backing away, and he shut the door with a sharpclickthat echoed around the room. My heart resumed its strange beating, and my breath caught in my throat as he moved into my personal space. Once the back of my knees hit the edge of the bed, I had nowhere to go, but I didn’t want to escape.
The thing about having sex with Daire was that he didn’t speak a lot. Other than “yes, boy,” dirty talk, compliments, and blunt directions, he hardly said anything. I’d been fine with that before because I could havehim, but now the missing words were weighing on my soul. I neededmore. I didn’t want to be merely a body for him to come inside of; I dreamed of being his partner.
“Daire—”
