Then James pulled his coat back on and straightened it. “Y-you’re right. You didn’t. Sorry.” His eyes flicked downwards.
“You made the arrangements,” Cal said. “You picked this place out and brought me here.” He folded his arms across his chest and raised his chin slightly. “Why?”
James’s Adam’s apple jumped. “You don’t want to be here?”
“I asked you a question.”
James glanced down again. “I wanted to bring you here. So we could . . .”
“In a hurry for me to fuck you?”
Closing his eyes, James released a ragged breath and shivered. “Yes. I want you, Cal. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about . . .” He paused. “After this morning, I just couldn’t wait.”
Cal struggled to keep that cool exterior intact. He wanted nothing more than to lose control and tear James’s clothes off and fuck him. Maybe not even make it to that massive bed on the other side of the room. Just drag him down to the floor and fuck him until they both had rug burn on their knees.
But he liked where this was going. James had set the stage and brought them here, but now he was waiting for Cal to make a move. He was right in the palm of Cal’s hand.
Cal raised his chin a little, holding James’s gaze. “I can’t fuck you without condoms and lube.”
James grinned sheepishly. “Already thought of that.”
“Did you, now?”
He nodded and reached into his inside pocket. “I always keep some in the car.”
Cal was already getting hard just thinking about all the things he wanted to do to James. The foil packets and that small clear bottle did nothing to help keep his thoughts on track.
The more controlled you are, the more it’ll frustrate him, but it’ll also turn him on.
“You keep those in there for the rentboys, don’t you?”
Colour appeared in James’s cheeks. He glanced at the condoms and lube in his hand. “I do, yes.”
“Hmm.” Cal eyed them, then shook his head. “I want you to go to the shops and get some specifically for us to use.”
James’s eyes widened. “But I—” His teeth snapped shut when Cal arched an eyebrow. “Okay. Sure. I’ll . . .” He set the condoms and lube on a gaudy table beside the door. “Any brand preference?”
“None.” Cal grinned. “Just make sure you get plenty of both.”
That seemed to be all the encouragement James needed to head out of the door. He was so eager he even forgot the key card.
Now, if James was clever, he’d just head to reception and let them deal with the “situation.” He could sit in the hotel café, drink a cappuccino, and wait for some lackey to handle Cal’s request. Cal himself had no idea where the next supermarket or Boots was—the rents right next to Hyde Park were sky-high—he’d only seen luxury hotels, penthouses, and restaurants along the street as they’d come here.
Or maybe James would get a cab and ask to be taken to the nearest such place. Somehow, Cal doubted very much that James, the alpha deal-maker, had it in him to wait. Maybe he knew Cal would ask. Maybe he didn’t want to risk Cal’s quiet disappointment and the inevitable frustration that would follow. Maybe he’d follow the order to the letter because it was a game and it turned them both on.
And he wasn’t going to risk that fuck by cutting corners.
The power was absolutely heady. Cal walked up to the balcony, opened the doors, and stepped out onto it, to breathe some air and stare out over Hyde Park. He pulled out his phone and checked it for texts. Brought up Nick’s contact details and typed a quick message.
You’re a fucking genius, you know that - Cal.
He leaned out over the park and imagined James running around frantically trying to score supplies in this area. Bond Street wasn’t far away, but he wasn’t exactly looking for a diamond-encrusted cock ring.
Yep, I know. Genius at fucking, too. ;)
Cal laughed. He wrote back, He’s rented us a room at the Mandarin Oriental. Just sent him out to get “supplies.”
A few minutes later, the response came: Nice. Make him work for everything.
Cal was about to reply, but a sharp knock drew his attention back into the room. He pocketed his mobile, closed the balcony door, and went to the main entrance.
When he opened it, James was standing on the other side, his expression unreadable but the small bag in his outstretched hands like a divine offering. Cal stood aside. “Put them next to the bed.”
James swept past him. Cal casually closed the door and turned the dead bolt. Not that anyone would try to come in, or would have access anyway, but he liked the idea of caging the two of them in this room together. There was no turning back now.
James waited for him beside the bed, the bag sitting on the nightstand as Cal had requested. No, as he’d ordered.
You’re not asking him to do things, Nick had said. You’re telling him.