by Jana Denardo
“Thanks.” He knocked and heard a muffled “come in,” so he opened the door and walked into the room. Somehow, he was expecting it to be more decorated, though he couldn’t say why. Maybe because in his mind, rich men flaunted their money. All Arrigo had were a few stark black-and-white photos on the walls. Luc thought those might be ghost shots since that was part of the business. Arrigo’s mouth gaped slightly open, his deep brown eyes wide.
“Did I come at a bad time?” Luc saw about twenty flaws in his impulsive act of coming over unannounced. He shouldn’t have surprised Arrigo. It was a dumb thing to do.
The surprise faded from Arrigo’s face, replaced by worry, and he answered. “No, I’m working on some reports. Come on in. Is something wrong?” He flicked his fingers toward the door. “Lock that. Taabu has a habit of wandering in.”
“Sure. I shouldn’t be here long.” Luc locked the door anyhow. “I wanted to say something.” He looked over the office again, then back to Arrigo whose long hair was pulled into a sloppy man bun, exposing the diamond studs in his ears. Of course they could be fakes, not that Luc would know. Arrigo’s deep blue shirt looked like it could be expensive, but then again, to him Macy’s was pricey.
“Is something wrong?” Arrigo repeated.
“You work as a ghost hunter?” Luc leaned against the door, ignoring the question.
Arrigo nodded. “Yes, I do. Do you think that’s silly?”
“My da would, but we lived around New Orleans most of my life. Does it get any more haunted?” Luc shrugged. “I kinda believe in ghosts. Maybe.”
“But I’m guessing you’re not here to hire me.”
Luc snorted. “My da and Henri would take turns kicking me if I wasted money on that.”
A frown touched Arrigo’s face. Luc had done a good job of making Arrigo dislike people he didn’t even know. Well, meeting Henri surely helped. Luc wanted to make those full lips smile, even though a frown somehow suited Arrigo’s face. It made him look like one of those marble gods at Caesar’s Palace. Luc wanted to kiss those lips, the threads of why he was even there beginning to slip past his short attention span.
“Why don’t you sit down?” Arrigo swept a hand toward the slightly dinged-up and faded upholstered chair.
Luc nodded. The chair would make a point for him. He sat down. “You don’t have to pretend with me, Arrigo. I already like you.” Even though Luc wasn’t entirely sure why. He barely knew the man, but Arrigo seemed nice. And for someone he didn’t know well, he sure hadn’t had a problem with the guy sucking his dick.
Arrigo’s eyebrows wrinkled toward each other. “I’m not following you.”
“Like this chair or this place, you can’t make much money, can you? You don’t have to tell me you live in a big fancy place. It kinda scares me, actually.” Luc tapped a finger on a threadbare patch on the chair’s arm. “This ain’t rich.”
“Oh, no I suppose it isn’t, but you’ve got the wrong end of the stick,” Arrigo replied, looking a little sheepish. “This is Taabu’s place, not mine. I just help out. I really do live in Veer Towers. I inherited more than enough that I would never actually have to work.” He studied Luc, dark eyes full of mystery. “It bothers you.”
“Yeah.” Luc bobbed his head. “A little. It confuses me. If you’re rich, then what the hell do you want with me? I ain’t got a dime. You’re rich and handsome. You could have anyone.”
Arrigo sat back, templing his fingers. “True, I suppose. Honestly, I take people as they come. I don’t care about money. A lot of the habits of the truly rich make my skin crawl. I’m far more comfortable with anyone other than the idle rich. I didn’t lie to you about liking to help people because I have the means to do so. It’s the truth.”
Luc tried to find a lie hidden on Arrigo’s face, in his words, but he seemed so damned sincere. “I’ve never known anyone like you.”
Arrigo chuckled. “I don’t doubt that.” He rose, leaning across the desk so he could kiss Luc. He trailed his fingers along Luc’s neck, coming to rest on the cross under his shirt. “I want nothing more from you than you’re willing to give. It’s not a game I’m playing for amusement, if that’s what you’re worried about. I don’t set people up for a fall.” He crossed the office and shut the blinds on the window facing out onto the sidewalk.
“I didn’t think that. I thought maybe you thought you needed to impress me. Can’t say why, though.” Luc picked up a picture frame off Arrigo’s desk, studying it so he didn’t have to meet Arrigo’s eyes. He couldn’t tell what the picture was supposed to be other than of a room. There was a hazy something in a corner. Maybe it was meant to be a ghost. “I don’t have a thing anyone would want.”
“You have you.” Arrigo smiled, leaning against the wall. A hint of light filtering through the drawn curtain haloed his dark hair. “I admit it. I thought you were cute. That’s why I stuck around your dad’s bar.”
“His friend’s bar,” Luc corrected. “Guess that makes sense. It’s not a particularly nice place.”
“No, it sucks, especially in a city like this where clubbing is a fine art.” Arrigo bumped up the volume on his radio a bit. Classical music, how had Luc missed that? This guy was way too fine for him. “You’re cute, but I probably went too fast with you.”
Luc caught himself nodding his agreement even though he didn’t really want to. “A little. I ain’t gone that far before, but I liked it.” His cock twitched. He liked it a little too much.
“Did you come here to tell me it was too much too soon?”
Luc stood, turning so he could face Arrigo. “No. Maybe, but I’ve been thinking about that night in the bar. I didn’t even get to pay you back.” He frowned, remembering his father ruining the moment. Of course, it had been dumb to be doing that in the store room anyhow.
“Payback isn’t necessary. I could have picked a better time.” Arrigo closed the distance between them, pulling him closer. His lips closed over Luc’s, his tongue pressing its way into his mouth. Luc sucked on that probing, wet bit of flesh, his balls and cock feeling heavy. What the hell was he doing?
Arrigo broke the kiss, his tongue chasing around the shell of his ear. His hand shoved past the waistband of Luc’s jeans, stroking his hardening shaft. “I can teach you how to return the favor.” Arrigo’s voice sounded husky, richer somehow.
The feel of Arrigo’s breath against his skin made him shudder. Luc tried to pull away, but the way Arrigo’s fingers toyed with his balls felt too good. He couldn’t go out the door like this anyhow.
“You can’t mean here.”
“Why do you think I shut the blinds and turned up the music?” Arrigo smirked. “If we’re quiet, no one is going to know.” He rolled his fingers over Luc’s sac. “Do you want to?”
“Gotta be crazy-crazy,” Luc muttered, but he pressed into Arrigo’s touch.
Arrigo pulled his hand free so he could lead him around the desk. He undid Luc’s jeans, pushing them and his boxers down before lifting him up and setting him on the desktop. Arrigo kissed him again, rolling the thick pad of his thumb over the head of Luc’s cock, making it jerk. His pants slid down, hanging up on his shoes. What the hell was he doing on a desk, letting some guy feel him up? Doing what the fuck he wanted for a change instead of listening to the angry, hateful voices that had always filled his life. He squared his shoulders, smiling down at Arrigo.
Arrigo sat back down in his task chair and rolled forward. He caressed his fingers, featherlight, up the skin of Luc’s bared thigh. “You’ve wanted to do this for a long time, haven’t you?”
“Dieu,” Luc whispered, shivering. He let his eyes flutter close. “Too long, been too afraid.”
“Wish I could pull most of the fear right out of you,” Arrigo said, his warm breath curling around the head of Luc’s cock.
He could have sworn it got harder just from that. “Most?” His voice shook a little.
“A touch of fear keeps us sharp, but not so much in times like this.” Arrigo smiled
, then added, “This is a place to start.” He rolled his tongue over the area where the ridge of Luc’s shaft met the head, and Luc found no reason to argue. It was definitely a place to start. Pleasure wove through him. He spread his legs more to give Arrigo access.
He bit on his finger as Arrigo’s tongue probed his slit. That would never have occurred to him, and Luc could barely hold in the moan of delight. The flat of Arrigo’s tongue traveled down Luc’s cock, and the parts of his brain that should be learning how to do this didn’t have much blood going to them. Arrigo pressed his hand on Luc’s belly, and Luc leaned back a bit on the desk, taking his weight on his elbows as Arrigo pulled his hips forward more into free air.
Hooking one of Luc’s legs over his shoulder, Arrigo licked along his balls as if they were the best ice cream cone in the world. Arrigo alternated hands and mouth over his balls and cock until Luc had no thoughts at all other than he couldn’t be loud as much as he wanted to. Dieu, why had he ever listened to his family’s hate? If this was as close to heaven as he ever got, it was close enough.
Arrigo’s tongue flickered and teased under the head of Luc’s cock as his fingers rubbed a spot behind his balls. Luc was pretty sure someone in the lobby heard him then. He thrust up into Arrigo’s mouth.
“Gonna come,” he warned, but Arrigo, much like last time, didn’t stop. His fingers stroked that patch of skin again, and Luc shot. Arrigo’s hand joined his mouth over his shaft, milking him for all he had.
Luc flattened out on the desk, struggling to catch his breath. Arrigo rolled back and a zipper sounded. When his senses returned, Luc sat up, nearly toppling off the desk. Arrigo had his pants down to his ankles. Luc stared at what awaited him. Arrigo was bigger than he expected, fatter and longer than his or Billy’s cock for that matter, the only other one he’d ever handled. His confidence in being able to return the favor fled, but he could at least try.
Getting off the desk, he sank to his knees, taking a deep breath. “Never done this before,” he said, even though he’d already told Arrigo that.
“You can just use your hands if you want,” Arrigo said, leaning forward to caress Luc’s hair.
“I want to try.”
“Remember, the wetter the better,” Arrigo said, his voice more gravelly than before. He laughed shortly, the sound of it tingling along Luc’s spine. “I am going too fast. We could try this at my place.”
“It’s okay.” Luc kinda figured it wouldn’t taste great, and if he was smart, he’d probably wait until he could do it with those flavored lubes, but they’d probably be gross. He wasn’t smart, and Arrigo had sucked him off twice now. He could try. He wanted to.
He licked the pearls of fluid collecting on the tip of Arrigo’s cock. They were unexpectedly bitter. Arrigo having a foreskin surprised him too. He’d never seen one before. Luc licked the spot Arrigo had taught him to start, listening to him gulp for air. Luc smiled. That wasn’t so difficult.
He stroked Arrigo’s balls as he tried to get that chubby cock into his mouth. The tip wasn’t so bad, but he gagged as more of it slipped into his throat. Luc’s head snapped back.
He drooled a little and wiped it with the back of his hand. “Sorry.”
Arrigo ran his fingers through Luc’s hair. “It’s okay. You need to take it slow or lick your way up and down from the side.”
Luc tried the side thing, running his mouth along the warm hard flesh like he would fingers. That was easier. The contours and veins of Arrigo’s shaft brushed his lips as he passed over them. The sensation and the soft sounds coming from Arrigo’s throat made him bolder. Luc sucked the tip into his mouth again, tickling his tongue against the same spot that had made him come for Arrigo. He could have sworn Arrigo purred. Luc tried to take more of his magnificent cock into his mouth, but he gagged again.
“Concentrate on your breathing, deep breaths,” Arrigo said, rubbing Luc’s shoulder with his leg.
Easy for him to say. He obviously knew what he was doing. Luc considered it, like the time he had to go to the dentist after having a tooth knocked out. He’d gagged on the dumb X-ray film too. Breathe through your nose, that’s what the nice lady in the office had told him. It helped some there, as he learned. He could take more of Arrigo in but felt comfortable with tongue and fingers.
Arrigo’s tapped Luc’s head. “I’m close.”
Luc rubbed around Arrigo’s head, debating how he wanted to try this. He bent down, thinking he might seal his mouth over Arrigo again, but chickened out a moment too late. Arrigo’s seed caught him in the face. Luc squeezed his eyes shut out of reflex, falling on his backside. Some of it dribbled into his mouth, tasting like salty egg whites. Luc wasn’t sure he liked it.
“Sorry,” Arrigo said, but a chuckle accented that word.
He opened his eyes, wiping at his chin. Arrigo leaned over, opened a desk drawer, and snagged a box of tissues. He cleaned Luc’s face for him. “Sorry about that.”
“You warned me.” Luc shrugged. “It’s okay. Glad you had those.”
“My clients tend to cry a lot about their lost loved ones when they tell me about how they think granddad is haunting his house.” Arrigo caught Luc’s wrist, tugging him up. “Come here.”
He gathered Luc onto his lap. Arrigo’s damp, deflating cock brushed against his skin.
He wanted more. The thought nearly terrified him. He’d never been this close to anyone. He barely knew Arrigo, but he liked how he made him feel. He loved the way Arrigo’s mouth had worked him. He knew his own attempts to give back were pathetically clumsy, but he’d enjoyed the attempt. He clung to Arrigo, kissing him, hoping the man would say “Let’s go to my place.” Luc wanted to do more, to see Arrigo completely naked and have Arrigo teach him everything he knew.
Then the damn phone rang. Luc nearly fell off Arrigo’s lap when their moment of bliss shattered.
“Damn.” Arrigo steadied Luc.
Luc scrambled to his feet, nearly losing his balance. “You better answer. You are at work, after all.”
Arrigo did. “Hello, Giancarlo Ghost Investigations, how may I help you? Oh, Mrs. Holstein, good to hear from you… you’re parking? Okay, I’ll be ready for you. See you in a few.” He hung up, his eyes wide and a dazed expression on his face. “Shit. I totally forgot she was coming over.” Arrigo ran his hands over his face, like a man woken from a deep sleep.
“I better go, then.” Luc yanked his pants up. “I shouldn’t have bugged you at work.”
“As if I didn’t enjoy every moment of that distraction.” Arrigo redressed, looking far calmer than Luc felt. He went over to the bookshelf and took out a stick of incense from a wood box there. “And here I thought my partner was crazy to have this stuff stashed everywhere.”
Luc snorted. At least his office wouldn’t smell like sex once the stick was lit. “I enjoyed it too.”
Arrigo beamed, then opened the top desk drawer and took out a card. He scrawled something on the back. “I gave you this before, but that’s my cell on the back. Call me. I know it’s doing things a little backward, but let’s go on that shark feeding date, actually learn about each other.”
“That’s a plan.” Luc shoved the card in his pocket, wondering where in his room his snoopy family wouldn’t find it. They’d accept no excuses for wasting money on a psychic. “See you.”
Arrigo brushed his fingers over Luc’s cheek. “Wish you could stay.”
“It’s okay,” Luc assured him, but he wasn’t sure it was. He tried not to let that show.
“Bye,” Arrigo said, getting a folder out of the file cabinet.
Luc didn’t remember until he was out on the street he hadn’t mentioned the destroyed photo to Arrigo or gotten a replacement. He still didn’t know what Eleni looked like. So much for his whole reason to come there, but what did he care? He had never felt better in his life.
Instead of going home, Luc went to find a little guidance. He might feel great on one hand, but on the other all his old doubts and fears buzzed like
mosquitoes on the bayou.
Luc looked at the mural of the Our Lady of Guadalupe in her chapel inside the Shrine of the Holy Redeemer, tugging his cross free of his shirt. It was always so peaceful. He never went to mass anymore unless his father said they all had to go, which was growing rarer. Luc loved God and especially Mary. It was so hard to think God would hate him for being like he was. Still, when he was there alone, Luc felt no judgment or hate, not that he supposed a statue could come to life and hate on him.
Sometimes he liked to go to a church and sit and think, preferably a Catholic church so he didn’t have to lie to Da, because if Da found out it wasn’t Catholic, it wouldn’t end well. Churches were often quiet and made a good refuge from his family. If Da asked where he was, church was about the one thing that didn’t set him off—provided, of course, Luc wasn’t late to anything.
Concentrating on the mural allowed him to think. Of course, thinking about what he’d done was probably inappropriate for his surroundings outside of confession, and he hadn’t done that for years, not after what his priest back home had said to him.
He still couldn’t believe what he’d done with Arrigo. Mouthfuls of mints aside, he could still taste Arrigo’s cock, even if it was his well-pleased imagination conjuring the flavor. How long had it taken him to work up the courage to give a man a blowjob? He had no illusion he had been any good at it, but practice would fix that.
“Forgive me, Holy Mother,” he murmured. “I’m gonna practice if he still wants me.”
Luc didn’t know how he was going to get any sleep. All he’d be thinking about was Arrigo. It would be good… it’d be restful. He still had to go back to the bar and work until the wee hours of the night. He most definitely couldn’t think too much about today then. He couldn’t look too happy. His family would never stand for it. They’d know he was up to something and would look for ways to take it away. This time he wouldn’t give them that satisfaction.