Pleasure Bound

He couldn’t stand how callously the guy was willing to treat Marie. As much as he didn’t want Zeke anywhere near Marie, he didn’t want to see Marie hurt.

He also didn’t want Zeke thinking he could even begin to make up for the pain he’d caused.

Zeke shrugged. “Whatever.”

God damn it, had he created a monster when he’d pushed Zeke to try the role of sexual Dominant so many years ago? Ty had naturally leaned to that role and found it very liberating. He’d thought that it would help give Zeke, who’d had so little control over his life, a sense of power. Ty never would have suggested it if he hadn’t believed Zeke respected his women, and that he’d understand the responsibilities of the role; specifically, to give his partner pleasure. In return, he got the sense of power that would help him get past his feelings of helplessness.

But now, it seemed Zeke might have gone astray.

He tugged a card out of his inside pocket and tossed it on Ty’s coffee table. “If you change your mind, call me.”

Ty’s jaw clenched tightly and he picked up the card and crumpled it.

“Not going to happen.”

Zeke’s olive eyes turned cold and he strode out of the apartment.

* * *

Zeke opened the hard saddlebag on the back of his Harley, grabbed his helmet and snapped it on, then climbed on the big bike. The engine roared to life and he zoomed out of the parking lot, then dodged around the traffic and headed for the highway, needing to feel speed.

Damn it. The thought of letting Marie go burned through his gut. The woman had definitely insinuated herself into his deepest desires. But not quite as deep as his desire to mend things with Ty.

Ty had done so much for Zeke. He’d kept him motivated to stay in school, allowing Zeke to make something of himself. Now he owned his own business, doing something he loved. Restoring vintage cars. But more, Ty had kept Zeke on the straight and narrow. Stopped him from winding up in jail. Or worse, dead.

The bond he had with Ty was

too important to let anything stand in the way. Even Marie.

He took the ramp onto the highway, then accelerated, roaring past the other traffic.

Twenty minutes later, he parked his bike in the parking lot outside Marie’s building and carried the bag of Chinese food, and an extra little surprise he’d picked up for tonight, to the main door. Once in the lobby, he pressed the call button for Marie’s apartment.

“Hello?” Marie asked over the speaker.

“Hi, babe. It’s Zeke. Sorry to take so long.”

A loud buzzing sounded, indicating she’d released the door lock. Three minutes later, he got off the elevator on her floor. When he got to her door and knocked, he was extremely conscious of the fact that Ty was only yards away, in his apartment down the hall from Marie’s, but he tried to overwhelm that with thoughts of Marie. He might be letting her go, but he still had tonight to make some memories he’d never forget … for him and for her.

The door opened and Marie smiled at him.

“I thought you’d run out on me.”

At the sight of her wide, sky blue eyes gazing up at him, the silky waves of dark brown hair brushing her shoulders, her full heart-shaped lips, he wanted to say never. But he couldn’t do that. Because this would be the last time he saw her. The last time he would touch her. Suddenly, his heart ached with a desperate desire to pull her into his arms and keep her there forever.

It had been so long since he’d felt this kind of connection to a woman that he’d started to wonder if he was just a loner … meant to live out his days on his own, without a partner. And then Marie had come along and made him realize how wonderful life could be with the right person. How could he even consider letting her go?

As she stepped aside and let him in, then closed the door, he realized this was insane. He’d only known her for a week. It’s not like he’d fallen in love with her.

Though as she took the paper bag with the food from his hands, her fingers brushing his, shooting a jolt of pure awareness through him, he wondered if he was wrong about that. If two people were right for each other, why wouldn’t they know it right away? Maybe it was only caution that made people wait to decide they were actually in love.

His jaw clenched. Not that love was an option for him and Marie. Because he’d told Ty he’d give her up. And he didn’t go back on his word.

“What’s that?” Marie asked, gazing at the black plastic bag he still held.

He grinned at the reminder of the special treat he had picked up.

“I’ll tell you after dinner.”