Page 73 of Due Dilligence (Takeover)
Chapter Sixteen
Fazil glanced in the hotel mirror after his shower. There was something decidedlypurpleon his neck.
Shit.He grabbed a towel and wiped part of the mirror clear and stared at the sizable bruise on the side of his neck, right where Todd had bitten him.
Heat flowed to his face... and lower. That whole episode had been amazing, but this? He turned his neck. Not even a dress shirt would cover it.
Damn it, Todd!Though he doubted Todd had been thinking much when he’d chosen that spot.
He shaved, because going in with scruff and a hicky screamedI got laid this weekend, how ’bout you?Thank God they hadn’t talked about their plans. The only one who knew was Eli.
Eli. That mark had likely been there last night, too. He pulled on his jeans and exited the hotel bathroom.
In the mirror on the other side of the room, Eli was straightening his tie. “Legs less stiff now?”
“Did I stumble that badly into the bathroom?”
A flash of teeth. He tapped his one leg. “I have a reason to limp. You don’t.”
Fazil coughed. “Am I allowed to laugh at that?”
Eli turned. “Yes. If I’m deprecating myself, feel free.”
“Has anyone ever told you that you’re damned odd?”
That got him a full laugh. “Justin. All the time.”
Fazil snorted and dug around in his suitcase. “Shit.” Nope. Every shirt had a normal-height collar. No turtlenecks had appeared in his suitcase while he’d been showering. It was, after all, June.
“Something wrong?”
He let out a sigh and gestured at his neck. “We got carried away last night.”
“So I noticed. It’s quite pretty.” Deadpanned words as Eli slipped on a vest and buttoned his cuffs.
Dude.“Eli...” He shook his head. “I don’t want to know.”
A very small smile.
Fazil could only laugh. In any other company, everything he was doing with Todd would have him on the street without a job. He sobered. “What am I supposed to do? It’s not like I brought a turtleneck.”
“Did you enjoy getting it?”
Oh fuck yes.But those words weren’t getting past his throat. He nodded.
“Then own it, Fazil.” Eli buttoned his other cuff, then started on his vest. “It’s an honor, not an embarrassment.”
An honor. “It could get Todd into a lot of trouble.”
Eli’s fingers stilled. He looked up. “Did you tell anyone you were spending the weekend together?”
“Only you.”
Eli shrugged and smoothed out his vest before grabbing his jacket. “Then don’t worry about it. Over the years, I’ve discovered that sex is something that makes people uncomfortable. Most people won’t see that”—he waved at Fazil’s neck—“for what it is, and those who do will be too embarrassed to ask.”
“Youdidn’t ask.”
Eli raised an eyebrow. “Do you intend to wear a shirt to the office?”
