Curiosity was clear in Roman’s words. “Your MBA?”
I nodded and shoved the fear that I was oversharing to the back of my head. If I didn’t open up to him, then I’d never figure out if he was really trustworthy. “Yeah, my family doesn’t exactly know what I do for a living or about the company, so the school stuff keeps them satisfied. And I don’t mind. I like staying busy.”
He thought things over, but instead of asking about my family, his question took the conversation in a different direction than I was expecting. “What do you mean ‘about the company’?”
In for a penny, in for a pound. If he was going to stay around, I wasn’t going to start things off with a lie. “I own it. Well, fifty-one percent. Preston does the hiring and…and well, firing…I don’t have that much to do with the day-to-day side of things. I veto new hires if they make me uncomfortable, but that’s about it.”
Roman was quiet while I spoke, so I quickly forced the rest of the words out before he could respond. “It wasn’t my idea to fire you, but he wouldn’t change his mind about it, and at that point, I didn’t know what to do.”
Roman was silent for a long minute and his hands stopped moving, which made me even more nervous. When he finally came back from whatever thoughts had pulled him away, he started the slow touches again as he spoke. “Did you start the company? I’m starting to think I should have done more research on you guys.”
“It’s not public knowledge, and you would have had to look to find me, but I kind of started it. At college, when I finally got enough freedom to explore who I was away from my family.”
That was a bit of an understatement, but instead of getting sidetracked, I kept going with the explanation. “They don’t even know about me being gay, much less everything else, and they wouldn’t understand it.”
At least, my best guess was that they wouldn’t understand it. My mother had nearly had a heart attack when I’d worn a pink tie to a party she was hosting. “Well, I was doing a blog about the lingerie stuff and really oversharing about what I was discovering about BDSM and things like that. It was fun, but not exactly a job. Long story short, Preston found out what I was doing and figured out a way to make it a real business. Since I started it and was doing all the modeling and blogging, he insisted that I have a majority stake in the company.”
Again, Roman didn’t take the path I was expecting. His hand just moved up to caress my hair and he gave me what felt like a hug. “It’s good he was looking out for you.”
Nodding, I snuggled closer so that I was pressed against his side, my cock now tucked close to his hip. “Yeah, he was a good friend from day one.”
“Were you two ever involved?” The curiosity in his voice was almost too cute.
Trying not to smile, I shook my head. “No, not really, goofy stuff but nothing serious and no sex. He likes sweet, quiet guys.”
Roman chuckled. “I could almost hear you rolling your eyes.”
Grinning, I nodded. “It’s so cliché.”
“What, the meek little sub that wants to be corrupted?” He laughed as I snorted at the question.
“Yes.”
His body moved, and it felt like a shrug, but I was too comfortable to actually look. “It’s cliché because it’s sexy and true.”
He’d better not want someone meek and sweet. “You don’t seem to want a simpering little sub to bring over to the dark side.”
Roman barked out a laugh. “No, I like brats who are already well entrenched in the dark side and need a spanking and a firm hand to help them remember how to behave.”
Smirking a bit, I nodded. “I’m glad.”
Finally comfortable enough to turn the conversation around to something harder, I spoke again. “And you’re sure everything else doesn’t bother you? What happened…the photos that we took and the ones I do for the website…just…everything?”
Long pause while Roman seemed to think about the question. I liked that he wasn’t rushing, but the silence made me nervous. When he eventually started talking, I was nearly holding my breath waiting to hear what he would say. “We’re both responsible for what happened before. Too many assumptions on both parts and not enough real conversations are to blame. Yes, I shouldn’t have lumped you in with my ex, and you shouldn’t have assumed I was just an ass because you’re a brat. It’s a bit raw if I’m being honest, but I’m not mad.”
The relief that coursed through me had my mind struggling to stay focused on the rest of his words as he continued. “I’ve never had an issue with the photographs or how sexy you look in them. I know I said some shitty stuff, but that was just an easy outlet for other emotions. I just took photos of you to show off how incredible you look when you submit, to show other people who want their picture taken. I’m an ass but not hypocritical.”
“I’ll agree with the ass part and withhold judgment on everything else for now.” The high from the stress that’d melted away was my only excuse.
Roman snorted but otherwise ignored my snarky remark. “We both have a right to be cautious…but I want you to know that I meant what I said. Now the same question for you…Does what happened bother you? Does the idea of me showing your pictures worry you, or does the idea of me taking other men’s photos make you uncomfortable?”
It wasn’t as hard to answer as I was afraid it might be. “Some of it still bothers me…I’d be lying if I said otherwise. But I don’t want it to fester between us…You want there to be an us, right?”
“Yes.” His voice was firm and the resolve clear. “I have no idea what it’s going to look like or how we’ll make it work, but I’m not a one-night stand kind of guy. I like commitment.”
That word could have a multitude of meanings in a relationship…and I’d seen some truly surprising ones, so I knew I had to press for more details. “Define commitment.”
It must have come out more skeptical than I’d intended because Roman laughed. “No fucking other people…I’m not going to do something crazy like tell you to keep your clothes on, Brat.”
