“What the hell are you talking about?” Aaron finally asked, and Brad actually chuckled softly, leaning toward Aaron over his desk.
“You’re the Justin Timberlake. The Beyoncé. You know what I’m talking about? You’re the one that could go on to do great things, to have a far bigger career alone than you could have with the Lost Boys.” Brad smirked a little at him, as though sensing his disquiet. “You’re single, for one thing, the only one of the Lost Boys that still is, and that makes you attainable. I’ve been watching concert videos, and you have the best total package in terms of your talents.”
Aaron frowned and shook his head. He got by, sure. He had been in dance for his whole childhood, but so had Ken. And his voice was distinctive, perhaps, but Jamie had the more classically beautiful, trained one.
“More than that,” Brad continued, as though oblivious to Aaron’s wordless objections, “You’re still mysterious to the fans. You never talk about your personal life, and you only give interviews when you absolutely have to. People are curious about you. We can capitalize on that.”
“What exactly are you suggesting,” Aaron managed because seriously, this was all as surprising to him as if Brad had told him that they were going to be doing a concert tour of the moon.
“Easy. Sign with me for at least a couple of years. Go on this tour,” Brad sounded excited, didn’t he? He was really serious about this, and Aaron was positive suddenly that he was getting an offer that none of the other Lost Boys had. “Then we’ll launch you as a solo star. I’ll manage you. You can stay with the Lost Boys for another year or so, but put out a solo album. In a year or so, you can leave the band entirely.”
Growing up, Aaron had had dreams about this sort of thing. About being a solo star, about his name all in lights, about fame and fortune. What kid hadn’t had dreams like that? But in a way, this was a dream come true.
But what about Ken, and Lance, and Jamie? What would happen to them? And more than that, what would happen to Leah, stuck in that group home for troubled teenagers? What would happen to her while Aaron went haring off after his dreams of glory and riches?
“No,” Aaron spoke the one word bluntly, and he saw Brad’s faint recoil. This wasn’t a man who was used to being told no, was it? Well, it was a fine time for him to learn. “Not interested.”
There was a brief silence as they both tried to deal with the enormity of what Aaron had just turned down. It was the sort of thing that many people in his position would kill for, and that wasn’t a secret to either of them.
Brad got up and went to perch on the very edge of the desk, towering over Aaron now. Probably done for psychological effect, but it wouldn’t change anything. Aaron had more to think about than himself, which was something that he didn’t think a man like Brad could even understand.
“You would get a raise,” Brad finally said, and Aaron sighed and rose to his own feet, which brought him to a level just slightly above the other man, who was perched on the desk. Brad was usually quite a bit taller than Aaron, and it was sort of nice to be at more or less the same level.
“I’ll tell you what I’m willing to do,” Aaron forced his voice to be as calm and businesslike as he possibly could. “I will sign a continuation of my current contract for the duration of the tour. Which I’m guessing is going to be about …” he let his voice trail off, and Brad obliged him.
“Five months.”
“Right.” Aaron nodded. “So I’ll sign an extension for six months.”
Brad stared at him like he thought the force of his gaze could change Aaron’s mind. And for a lot of people, that probably worked. Brad struck Aaron as the sort of man who was used to getting his way, but this was one time when he wasn’t going to.
Brad stood up then, and Aaron was once more shorter than him, not that it mattered. It didn’t change anything. Still, Aaron had to catch his breath, because this close it was obvious that Brad wasn’t just taller. He was massive in general, and, unfortunately for Aaron, that was exactly the sort of thing that he found irresistibly sexy.
“And then what? Six months and then what are you going to do?” Brad asked, but Aaron kept silent. He had already been over how he didn’t go into his personal life, and Brad should remember that. “You’re going to waste your potential. You could be big. Huge. Or do you have so many other offers that you can turn this one down?”
Aaron looked up into those golden eyes, glimmering with irritation, and shook his head. Brad was so close, so very close. Aaron could almost feel the heat radiating through them, and all of the tension which had been there, just under the surface of their negotiation, burst free then, something that Aaron couldn’t deny.
“Potential? I find it hard to believe that you really think I’m as talented as all that.” Aaron narrowed his eyes slightly at Brad, but the other man didn’t look away, as Aaron was used to and had half expected. “Maybe this had nothing to do with my potential. Maybe I’m just your type.”
Something crossed Brad’s face then, just the briefest flicker of uncertainty, of hesitation, something that most people probably wouldn’t have noticed. But Aaron did, and at that moment, he realized something.
He was right. Maybe not about everything, but any wondering that Aaron had been doing about whether Brad felt the same things that Aaron had, if the tension was coiled as tightly in the pit of Brad’s stomach as it was in Aaron’s, it was all resolved then and there.
Brad wanted him.
Just a step or two, Brad backed off, alarm in his eyes, but at the same time, his hands settled on the back of a chair and gripped it so tightly that his knuckles turned white. There was a tension in his jaw that hadn’t been there before, a clenching, and it was obvious to Aaron that he was around someone who was very tightly, very carefully, keeping themselves under control.
The funny thing was, if Brad had done what Aaron did, Aaron would have probably stalked right out of the room. Or would he? It was hard to know, but what he did know was that it was suddenly just not something that he could resist. He leaned in, closing the short distance between himself and Brad, and pressed his lips lightly against the older man’s.
What was the point of it? Why had Aaron gone for it? He honestly couldn’t say. Maybe it was just to try to shock Brad or to show that Aaron wasn’t the sort of person who could be manipulated. Whatever the reason was, he never, not in a million years of trying, could have imagined the forces which would jolt through his body, centered on his lips but shooting straight for his cock and balls.
It didn’t help when Brad let out a soft gasp, one so quiet that Aaron felt it against his lips rather than heard it. Still, even that was remarkable, feeling Brad lose even that much control made Aaron more confident.
He had maybe a second to enjoy that confidence, a second when Brad hesitated, and Aaron had no idea which way he was going to go. Most likely, Brad would push Aaron away, and Aaron would let him. It had been a stupid idea to kiss him in the first place.
Brad’s large, strong hands settled on Aaron’s shoulders, and Aaron braced himself, sure he was about to be thrust away. But Brad didn’t push. Instead, he tugged Aaron closer, so that their bodies were pressed flush against each other, and the kiss, which had been meant to be light and brief and more testing it out than anything else, quickly changed.
It seemed that Brad had a specific way that he kissed, and Aaron had little choice but to give in to it. His mouth was pressed open, and a hot tongue swept into his mouth, and Aaron’s knees went a little bit weak as his mouth was plundered.
