Page 71 of Due Dilligence (Takeover)
So it seemed. “Maybe I should have stayed overnight.”
Todd chuckled. “Would’ve meant more leather for you.” He put the car in park but didn’t turn it off. He unbelted and opened the door.
Fazil could’ve gone for that. And those office chairs were going to look so different tomorrow. He got out of Todd’s car and retrieved his bag from the backseat. When he shut the door, Todd was by his side.
“I’m going to be thinking about that all day tomorrow.” Todd stepped close and pulled him in for a kiss. Hot, demanding, sensual. It curled Fazil’s toes, and he responded without thought, nearly dropping his bag.
When Todd let him go, he was breathless and hard, which was unfair since Eli wasn’t far away.
“You did that on purpose.”
“Mmm-hmm.” Todd had that grin again. “Say hi to Eli for me.” Another quick kiss coupled with a hug. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Fazil didn’t want to let go, but he did. “Tomorrow.”
Todd nodded and got back into his car. A moment later, he was gone and his absence ran through Fazil like a cold breeze. Life had changed. Everything remained the same. He didn’t know which.
He looked up to find Eli and the blond man watching him. Both had curious and calculating expressions. His own must be a mess, like it was the end of the world, having your boyfriend drop you off after a weekend together.
Boyfriend.
Some things didn’t change, it seemed. Fazil headed to the hotel entrance. The blond pushed himself off the car and gave Eli a friendly hug before making his way to the driver’s side of the car. “Give Justin all my regards.”
Eli huffed a laugh. “I certainly will.”
A moment later, the blond and his expensive car were gone and there was only Eli and the hotel. Eli nodded at the glass doors. “Shall we?”
“I guess so.” Not that he wanted to, but that was life. The curse of Sunday nights.
They didn’t speak on the elevator ride up, nor when they got to the room. Fazil set down his bag on his bed and stared at the crisp, impersonal bedding. A glance at the clock told him it was eleven thirty. Way too late for a drink. “Care for a beer?”
A quiet chuckle. “Please.”
On the ride down, Fazil studied Eli. “Did you have fun?”
Eli’s look became distant and his expression hard to read. But he nodded. “You?”
That was a damn hard question to answer. “Yeah. Mostly.”
Eli tilted his head, inviting more, but the elevator door opened. When they ordered beers and sat down at the booth that was rapidly becoming theirs—Fazil answered. “I had a good time. The best.” He stared at the top of his beer bottle. “Except for the part where I learned that I was an utter asshole as a teenager. The villain of my own story.”
Eli leaned back, beer in hand. “So you two had very different memories of the past.”
“Same memories. I’d... embellished them, I guess.”
“Are you sure?” Concern in Eli’s voice and in his frown.
Fazil nodded. “All the times I thought Todd was pushing me away, he was giving me space because I was being adick. I also believed every rumor of him fucking around, withoutasking.” He snorted. “Some best friend. Turns out, none of it was true.”
Eli took a drag on his bottle in a very un-Eli-like fashion, as if he weren’t some rich finance guy. Fazil’s gaze landed on his own bottle. Then again, he was an overeducated, well-paid software engineer.
Eli put his bottle down on the table. “Fuck the work stuff for a moment—I’m going to ask this as a friend. Are you okay, Fazil?”
He met Eli’s gaze, understanding dawning. “Yes. He’s not brainwashing me or anything. I had this history built up. It was a fixed thing, but it was built on lies.” He shook his head. “Todd’s a lot more forgiving than I am.”
“Ah, I see. It’s self-admonishment.” Eli grabbed his beer. “You look a little beat-up around the edges.” He took a swig.
“Well,that’sprobably from all the mind-numbingly rough sex we had.”
