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  But the combination of Hailey’s cock sliding smoothly over his prostate and his hand, nicely slick with lube and gripping with just the right force, distracted him from thoughts of any man beside the one in his bed. Hailey sped up his thrusts. His balls slapped audibly against Mac’s ass, and the hot squelch of lube and Hailey’s rough breath in his ear combined to take Mac under.

  It was good, all his buttons being hit, inside and out, and Hailey had him pulled tight against him, so much skin-on-skin contact, that warm rush of breath, the soft noises coming from him. Mac could tell Hailey was getting close, and it brought him close too. He closed his eyes and focused on that new spot inside of him, on the glow of pleasure that kept expanding outward, growing bigger and more overwhelming with every moment.

  He heard himself moaning, a low, desperate sound of encouragement, urging Hailey on. Fuck, this was good. Just taking it, not having any responsibility except to enjoy. Hailey pleasing him in this most intimate way and himself allowing it, allowing Hailey to own him and drive him and use him. The hand on his cock tightened fractionally, and he pushed into it hard and all the emotions bubbling inside him rushed out in a fountain of come.

  The first splash painted a stripe straight up his chest to his chin. The second merely covered Hailey’s hand. After that Mac lost track as his orgasm seemed to extend beyond his ejaculation, dragging him down into darkness, to a place inside himself he’d never been.

  He could hear Hailey panting close to his ear, hear his own heavy breaths. His pulse raced so fast he didn’t dare move beyond covering Hailey’s hand with his own, letting his come ooze between their joined fingers as Hailey pulled him back tighter against his body.

  “Did you come?”

  “Not yet.” He could hear the tension in Hailey’s voice, sense the vibrations of a body holding itself back.

  “Why not?”

  “Your prostate can be really sensitive after you come. I don’t want to keep railing on it. Not for your first time.”

  “Not my first time.”

  “I don’t think that other time counted.”

  “Yeah, no.” Now that he’d had a real first time, Mac intended to forget about that other one. He didn’t know if he would ever want someone besides Hailey to fuck him, but he didn’t want to think about that either.

  “Want me to blow you?” He’d find the energy somewhere.

  Hailey pulled out and stripped off the condom. “How about I just jerk off onto you.”

  “Sure. I’m a mess already.” He rolled onto his back and presented himself as a target, lazily enjoying the way Hailey’s eyes flickered over him and the easy stroke of his hand over his cock. That cock had been inside him. And he’d liked it. Maybe even loved it. Maybe even loved…. Well.

  When Hailey’s come joined his on his stomach, Mac welcomed it. Another first—enjoying being spewed on. He dragged Hailey down on top of him to share the mess. This time when Hailey tickled him, he didn’t try to suppress the giggles that bubbled up. Whatever happened Monday, this here now was good and necessary. He’d find a way to not let Monday ruin it.

  Chapter Eight

  Mac woke up Saturday with the idea of spending a lazy morning in bed. Hailey’s warm, smooth skin put him in the mood for morning blowjobs and waffles at brunch, maybe watching a postseason baseball game with Hailey in his lap.

  But Hailey spoiled all that imaginary indulgence by leaping for the shower the moment Mac nuzzled him awake. Apparently the store opened at nine on Saturdays. Since Mac couldn’t argue with the practicality of being open during prime shopping hours, he only made a few attempts to convince Hailey that another half hour for blowjobs wouldn’t make much difference to his bottom line before resigning himself to driving him back to Ball’s End.

  “Want me to drop you at the store or at home?” he asked once they were buckled in.

  “Where exactly do you think I live, Greg?”

  “No idea.” Someplace within biking distance of the store, obviously.

  “There. I live there.”

  “Wait.” He pulled up to the mechanical arm that blocked the exit from the garage and looked over at Hailey, who was more rumpled and therefore even more delectable than he’d been the night before in that translucent purple shirt. “You live in the back of the store?”

  “You’ve slept in my bed. You’ve used my toothbrush.”

  “You can’t live in the back of the store.”

  “Why not?”

  Because… for a million reasons. “You don’t even have a television” was the one his mind lit on first.

  Hailey burst out laughing. It was admittedly not the most important one. “Do you even watch television?” Hailey asked him.

  “Not often.” Thoughts of Saturday afternoon baseball games notwithstanding, he rarely found time for it. “But I could. That’s not really the point.”

  “I know.”

  The point was that Hailey slept on a futon on the floor, that he cooked on a hot plate, that he brushed his teeth in a customer-accessible bathroom and showered… where, exactly?

  “Yolanda’s,” Hailey admitted. “Don’t tell. I know I shouldn’t be up there anymore, but there’s really nowhere else, and I don’t cause any trouble.”

  “I won’t tell,” Mac mumbled, too numb from the shock of learning that Hailey was essentially homeless to care about what might happen to the building. It answered the question of how Hailey was managing to support himself—he wasn’t—and added another dimension to his reluctance to move out. Mac would have to figure out not only where to relocate Hailey’s Comic, but where to relocate Hailey too.

  Hailey’s long weekend hours meant they didn’t spend any time together over the weekend, which was totally reasonable considering they’d seen each other three nights in a row, but the few text messages they exchanged weren’t enough. By the time Monday morning rolled around, Mac was having a hard time concentrating on anything other than Hailey’s impending arrival.

  “Mr. MacPherson?” The temporary receptionist appearing in the doorway to Mac’s office reminded him that Elisa would be in for an interview that afternoon. “Your ten o’clock is here.”

  Unable to wait for Hailey to be shown in, he headed for the lobby, nearly colliding with Declan in his hurry. Hailey looked windblown, his cheeks bright red and his hair in an extra messy pile on top of his head, his haphazard appearance at odds with the neat cream-and-navy accents of C&G’s dark-paneled lobby. Declan’s presence stopped Mac from gathering Hailey into his arms like he wanted to, but he caught his chin for a quick kiss.

  “Can I use the restroom to put myself back together?” Hailey asked when Mac released his mouth. “It’s wild out there.”

  “I thought you were going to take the bus.”

  “I was, but it’s so nice out.”

  “You just said it’s wild.”

  “I know, that’s what’s so nice. The air’s full of Halloween. I just made it before the rain started. Hi, you must be Declan.” Hailey stuck out his hand. Mac finished the introductions, then pointed Hailey toward the men’s room.

  “Not what I was expecting.” Declan threw himself down across the settee in the lobby, using it like a lounger.

  “What were you expecting?”

  “Someone more like us. This is the ruthless businessman who’s managed to keep C&G at bay for three months?”

  “More from a stubborn adherence to his principles than any business acumen, I think.”

  “Exactly. He’s so not your type, Mac. Not in your class, not in your league. I can’t even imagine him in your bed. Develop a sudden taste for the femme, did you? Don’t get me wrong, I can see the appeal, but you’ve never tended that way, not even in women.”

  “It’s not about his appearance.” Though he’d have liked to put his hands in that messy pile of hair on top of Hailey’s head and tumble it down around his shoulders. “I wish I could explain what it is. He’s just… he’s got a good soul.”

  Declan laughed.
“Not really, Mac? Come on.”

  “I think I’m falling in love, you ass. Are you going to be happy for me or give me a hard time?”

  “Probably both. And maybe worry about you a little. This is hard and fast and coming out of nowhere. I wouldn’t be a friend if I weren’t concerned.”

  Mac granted that with a shrug. “He’s like you in some ways.”

  “How so?

  “Relaxed, easy in his own skin. I’m more….”

  “Uptight?” Declan grinned when Mac bristled. “Yeah, maybe he’ll be a nice change. I never saw you kiss Lauren at work.”

  They hadn’t been a publicly affectionate couple. Public affection was so… sloppy. But Mac’s fingers itched for Hailey to get back from the restroom so he could touch him again, and when he reappeared, Mac took his hand to lead him toward the glass-walled conference room where Audra waited for them. He could almost feel Declan’s smug disapproval trailing along behind them, making him wish he hadn’t invited Declan, after all.

  “Hailey, this is Audra Ching, vice president of community relations.”

  “I love that hairband,” Hailey said as he shook Audra’s hand. Hailey had refastened his hair into a tight ponytail caught by a simple elastic.

  “Thanks.” Audra reached up to touch the paisley strip that held back her long black hair. “I get them from an Etsy store. The woman who makes them does amazing work.” She glanced over at Mac, and her smile dimmed. “Anyway, welcome to C&G. Go ahead and take a seat where you can see the screen.”

  Hailey sat in one of the matching leather captain’s chairs that surrounded the mahogany table as Audra dimmed the lights. Mac took a seat farther down the table to avoid the temptation of touching him.

  “I’m going to let Audra drive,” he explained. “She’s got the details at her fingertips, but speak up if you have a question.” He’d expected Hailey to be nervous, but he sat naturally with an expression of pleasant anticipation, somehow not looking out of place despite being dressed in the same slacks he’d had on Friday night, much better suited to a bar than a boardroom.

  His shirt was a plain white button-down, the least-colorful thing Mac had ever seen him in. Declan acted as if they couldn’t have common ground between them, but Hailey was young, not stupid. He could be anything with some grooming. Not that Mac wanted to tame the color out of him completely.

  Mac listened to Audra present the slides they’d prepared. He didn’t need to be here, except that the outcome was too important. Hailey showed a lot of interest in the floor plans for the renovated housing units, but he didn’t seem sold on them.

  “So you’re going from ten units per floor down to six.”

  “Right. That’ll allow us to add extra living space in all the units and give the two-bedrooms a second bathroom in the enlarged master. As you can see—”

  “Sorry, not to interrupt, but I assume the rent will be proportionally higher.”

  “We’re actually going co-op here,” Audra said. “Let me just call up—there. As you can see, the initial buy-in is—”

  “A lot higher than what anyone living in that building would ever be able to afford.”

  “We can’t know the financial situation of all our tenants, of course, but the goal isn’t to repopulate the building with its previous inhabitants.”

  “Where are they supposed to go, then?”

  Audra looked over at Mac with a puzzled expression. “They’ve already gone somewhere, haven’t they? We’ll be bringing fresh faces to the neighborhood, who will in turn bring increased revenue. Though the number of residents is expected to decrease, total spending should increase. As a business owner, you’ll want to see these figures on mean income.”

  “Not really. Sorry. I don’t mean to derail your presentation.”

  Mac leaned forward to stop Audra from going further down the wrong road. “Show him the community stuff, Audra. Just skip through these slides about the residential units.”

  “All right. Well.” She paged forward a few slides. “Storefronts will similarly increase in size. There are five units now, as I’m sure you’re aware. Plans are for either two large stores or one anchor store and two subdivisions. We’ve got strong interest from Wilson Foods. Based on early projections, we should be able to bring them in when the building’s about half-occupied.”

  “Where are people supposed to buy their groceries until then?”

  “There will obviously be some slight inconvenience until then, but it’s not hard to stop at the store on your way home, is it?”

  “If you have a car.”

  “Oh, speaking of cars,” Declan said from his spot farther down the table, where he’d been mostly playing with his tablet. “You remember that church you asked me to look into?”

  “Church?” Hailey questioned. “The one next to me?”

  “Sounds right. We put an offer in and the diocese snapped at it. Needs a whole new roof, probably lead abatement. But since we’re tearing it down, I guess we don’t care about its structural issues.”

  “You’re tearing down St. Theresa’s so you can build a parking garage?” Hailey’s alarm triggered Mac’s own.

  “That’s not a sure thing. Declan, let’s talk later. Audra, the community stuff.”

  “Right.” She flipped forward a few more slides, launching into their community relations spiel like the consummate professional she was—plans to add streetlights along Main Street, a repaving project including new brick sidewalks, all the urban renewal points they’d negotiated with the city planning committee.

  “And there’s a community center in the works, isn’t there? Hailey’s store is functioning as an ad hoc one at the moment.”

  “In Phase II,” she confirmed. She pulled up the mock-up of the planned Phase II renovation, which featured shared community space on the first floor.

  “That’s the building with the patisserie,” Hailey pointed out to Mac.

  “Exactly which building we’ll use hasn’t been finalized,” he hedged. He could argue that the patisserie could relocate, but they both knew how unlikely that was. But damn it, every building had tenants.

  “What about the one farther down the street on the other side?” Hailey asked, proving him wrong. “The one that’s empty.”

  “We already looked at that one,” Declan said without glancing up from his tablet. “983 Main Street has been condemned. The demolition cost means the payback would be years. 710 is the better choice.”

  “But 710 is full,” Hailey protested. “You’re going to evict a whole other building full of people. Don’t get me wrong, this looks great. All of it looks great—the playground, the community center, the restoration—but a neighborhood is more than a series of street addresses. A neighborhood is people.”

  Audra glanced over at Mac, waiting for him to give her some direction.

  Hailey grimaced. “Sorry. I realize you’re not the one who designed this, Audra.”

  “No, that would be me,” Mac admitted. “Audra, I think Hailey’s seen enough. Thank you for pulling this together for him.”

  “Yes, thank you.” Hailey rose with her and walked around the table to shake her hand. “Sorry about getting so heated.”

  “It’s a subject people feel passionately about,” she said with a tight-lipped smile. She nodded to Mac and gathered up her things to leave, wondering, no doubt, why they’d made such an effort to impress a single disgruntled inhabitant of a place like Ball’s End, which wasn’t something Mac was going to be able to explain since he didn’t fully understand it himself.

  All he knew was that it’d been important to convince Hailey that C&G would do right by Ball’s End so that Mac could have him in his life and in his bed. And he was pretty sure, as he watched Audra close the door to the conference room behind herself, that he’d failed.

  Declan uncoiled himself in a slow rise to his feet, but rather than leave Mac alone with Hailey as Mac would’ve liked, he challenged him. “You seem to think you could do this better.”<
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  “With more kindness, maybe,” Hailey answered with a smile.

  “Kindness doesn’t pay.”

  Mac looked between them—the man who’d been in his life a long time now and the man he wanted in his life for a long time to come, both fully assured of their position. Declan didn’t doubt that profit trumped all, and Hailey didn’t seem to think money should matter.

  Mac hovered between them, both literally and figuratively. He’d never questioned profit as the bottom line before because that was what a company did—it made a profit. Projects had investors who must be paid. Without investors, nothing happened. Hailey might prefer to knock down a derelict building and erect a new one, but no one was going to finance that unless it could be made to pay at a rate commensurate with the risk involved. Kindness didn’t take down buildings.

  “There are a lot of factors,” he tried to explain.

  “Which Hailey is never going to understand,” Declan said. “This was a waste of time. You can’t explain a project of this size to someone whose business experience consists of running a three-hundred-square-foot used bookstore.”

  “And who has degrees in economics and urban planning from Columbia,” Hailey said. “I’m not new to the principles of urban renewal. I just don’t embrace them.”

  The revelation of Hailey’s credentials surprised Mac even more than it surprised Declan, because Mac had seen Hailey’s Comic and Declan hadn’t. Someone who’d graduated from Columbia ought to be able to do better, even with a small bookstore in Ball’s End.

  Declan shook his head. “You’re not going to change his mind, Mac. Careful he doesn’t change yours.” He pushed out of the conference room, allowing the door to bang shut behind him. Temper was unusual from Declan. He usually preferred sarcasm because it could be applied from a seated position.

  Mac was left with Hailey in the conference room—alone at last but not the way he’d been looking forward to.

  “That didn’t go well,” he said, stating the obvious.