Page 152 of Seal the Deal
“He won’t like you anyway.”
“Wow, thanks,” Andrew snorts.
“He doesn’t like anyone who doesn’t benefit him.Ilike you, which is all that matters.”
“Okay.” Andrew taps his thumb.
Nicholas kisses the side of his head. “Would it make a difference if I told you not to be nervous?”
“Nope.”
Nicholas lifts Andrew’s hand, slipping it under the open collar of his shirt to settle it over his heart. More than once, he’s noticed Andrew seeking it out, counting the beats under his breath or laying his ear against Nicholas’s chest to listen at night. Within seconds, the tension in Andrew’s shoulders loosens as he spreads his fingers wide, tapping Nicholas’s chest in time with the beats of his heart. He can’t imagine what good thing he must’ve done in a past life to be worthy of being Andrew’s safe space.
“Tell me when you’re ready to go inside,” Nicholas says, prepared to stay here in the entryway as long as it takes for Andrew to settle and hold his head high where it belongs.
Andrew is quiet, catching Nicholas off guard when he moves in front of him and kisses him right there with everyone watching in a rare display of public affection. Andrew tastes faintly of toothpaste still, crisp and fresh, and Nicholas suddenly wants to carry this man out of here and back to their hotel room so he doesn’t have to share him tonight.
Fuck the party, fuck his father, all he wants is to kiss Andrew. Unfortunately, Andrew pulls out of the kiss, giving Nicholas a soft smile.
“I’m ready now.”
“Give me a second,” Nicholas grunts, trying to adjust his now rock hard dick.
“Why Mr. Whitmore, you’re hard from a single kiss. How scandalous.”
“Getting sassy, princess. I like it.” And he does. Andrew being comfortable enough to tease and play with him is fucking glorious.
“I could watch you later,” Andrew says quietly, drawing his nails down Nicki’s throat. “I don’t think I want to…you know, not tonight. But you could put on a show for me.”
Pulling Andrew into a frankly indecent kiss, Nicholas groans into his mouth, trying to convey even one tenth of his desire. This perfect man is going to be his undoing, as is kissing him in public if Nicholas doesn’t want to come in his tux, which he doesn’t. He did that once at his father’s party a few years ago, the photos splashed across gossip sites. That’s not the kind of attention he wants to bring to his princess who would likely be mortified. Nicholas can be a good boy for one night, or half a night.
Once they get back to their hotel room later, all bets are off.
“I’ll take it that’s a yes,” Andrew laughs breathlessly when Nicholas ends the kiss before things get too heated. As it is,several people are staring, and he curls an arm around Andrew possessively.
“Fuck yes.”
“Someone is coming this way,” Andrew says, straightening his shoulders. The expression on his face shifts, the softness gone. He’s still smiling, but it’s not the same smile that he gives Nicholas.
“My father,” Nicholas sighs, not bothering plastering a fake smile on his own face.
“Nicholas,” his father intones, quiet enough the people around them don’t stare but loud and sharp enough for Nicholas to feel like a chastised child. “You’re on time. I’m shocked.”
“Andrew doesn’t like being late,” Nicholas explains.
His father turns his eyes on Andrew, and it takes everything in him not to scream. He might be standing in the middle of a gilded, gold ballroom but in his mind he’s in a rage room. It’s been so long since he saw his father in person, he somehow forgot how it felt.
“Mr. Whitmore, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Andrew holds his hand out politely and his father actually takes it, giving him a firm shake.
“A man with manners, what a breath of fresh air.”
Nicholas tightens his hold on Andrew. “Andrew is amazing.”
“I wouldn’t know, my son here didn’t see fit to tell us about you. Imagine having one child, giving them everything in the world, and having to find out they’re seeing someone through the media. His poor mother was beside herself.”
“I’m sure she was,” Nicholas replies as dismissively as possible.
The only thing his mother cares about more than gold is gossip, being deprived of sharing the news herself must’ve really been a blow.
