Call Me Boy Read online

  “Yeah, I hope you weren't.” Raid frowned pre-emptively as he sat gingerly on the couch.

  “No I like my sleep.”

  Raid smiled. She was such a good kid. He fished the envelope out of his pants and opened it. The sight of fifty dollar bills lined up in a neat row made him feel a lot better about things. “You still need money for those books?”

  “Yes please,” Esther nodded.

  Raid pulled a few bills out of the envelope and gave them to her. She took them with a wide smile. “Thanks.”

  “No problem, anything for you,” Raid winked as he stood up. “I'm going to go get some sleep.” His ass didn't exactly hurt anymore, but sitting on it provided a tingling reminder of his encounter with the Englishman he'd rather not have. Hopefully sleep would dull the memory.

  “Okay,” Esther agreed. “I'm going to the library.”

  “Really, the library?” Raid raised a brow at her. He was just busting her chops, but he did worry about the amount of time she spent unsupervised. It was easy for a girl to get into trouble. She was eighteen now, she could do what she wanted, but it was a difficult adjustment for him. He'd grown all too accustomed to looking after her like she was a child.

  “Yeah, I'm going to see if they have any jobs going,” Esther explained.

  Raid frowned. “You don't have to do that. I've got us covered.”

  “Hey, I have to work sometime,” Esther smiled. “Right?”

  He shook his head at her, feeling very proud indeed. He didn't do much right, but he seemed to be doing okay with Esther. “Where did you get that work ethic from?”

  She grinned, her smile a genetic echo of his own. “From my workaholic brother.”

  He groaned. “That's what I was afraid of.”

  “Don't worry about me, you worry too much,” Esther skipped over to him and kissed his cheek.

  “Okay, have a good day,” Raid said. He was tired. Bed was calling him. He made his way to the bedroom, kicked off his pants and laid down on the covers. The last thing he heard before sleep claimed him was the front door slamming shut a little too enthusiastically as Esther made her way downstairs.

  ***

  When he woke it was dark again. There were voices in the lounge. Esther must have had friends over. A masculine voice made him take note. Pushing up from the bed, he pulled the mesh shirt off. He'd say hello, make sure that there weren't any unsavory types in his home, then take a shower. He sure as heck needed one, but it could wait until he'd vetted Esther's gentleman caller. Scuffing down the hallway half asleep, he stopped mid-yawn when he saw who was in the lounge. It wasn't one of Esther's friends. It wasn't a boy at all.

  It was a man.

  A familiar man.

  Eric.

  Eric was the last person Raid had expected to see and his heart rate picked up as he saw that the man was just as handsome as he remembered him. He was large, not in the fat sense, he was just built along bigger lines than most men. When he smiled, his face was transformed by the warmth into a handsome and appealing visage one would have to be stone dead not to appreciate.

  “You.” Raid spoke flatly, hiding the tumult of emotions rushing through his body. Surprise. Fear. Arousal.

  “Hello Raid,” Eric smiled as if they were old friends.

  Raid glanced over at Esther. Why had she let him into the apartment? He'd probably lied his way in. “Could you give us a bit, Es?”

  Esther took the hint. She was good like that. With a sweet smile she retired to her room.

  “Nice girl,” Eric noted when she was gone.

  “What can I do for you?” Raid asked cautiously. He wanted to turn the asshole out of his apartment, but the previous evening's events had taught him some caution where Eric Darwin was concerned.

  “I came to ask you out to dinner.”

  Raid crossed his arms over his chest and cocked his head at the older man.“You couldn't have come up with a creepier way of doing it? Why not shimmy through my bedroom window next time?”

  Eric smirked. “Well I was just going to knock on the door and wait for you to answer, but your lovely sister asked me in.”

  “Shit,” Raid shook his head. She was too damn trusting.

  “Yes,” Eric agreed, picking up on the thought. “I suppose she missed the lesson on stranger danger.”

  Raid gave him a hard look. He did not care for this man. He was devilishly attractive, but what he'd done at the club was as unthinkable and unacceptable. “I don't think so,” he shook his head.

  “You don't think she missed the lesson, or you don't want to go to dinner with me?” The smirk was back on Eric's face. He looked entirely at ease, sitting there in Raid's favorite spot, one leg crossed over the other.

  “The latter,” Raid said, folding his arms over his chest.

  Eric's brown gaze moved slowly over his body, lingering on Raid's shoulders then lowering to the point where his torso met the waist of his jeans. “I think you should reconsider.” There was something intimate in his voice, something that attracted Raid as much as it repulsed him.

  “Why is that?”

  “Because you'll enjoy yourself,” Eric said.

  Raid coughed through his laughter. “I very much doubt that.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  The answer was obvious, but Raid sure as hell wasn't going to say it. He wasn't going to go out with a guy who thrashed him in front of a crowd.

  A slow smile spread over Eric's face. “It's because of that little incident last night, isn't it. Tell me you're not a sore loser, Raid.”

  “I'm not,” Raid defended himself. That wasn't what this was about. What Eric had done went beyond winning. “It's about the methodology.”

  “You would have preferred I punch you back?” Eric tutted, shaking his head as he rose in one fluid motion. “No, that would never do.” He walked to Raid and gently cupped the younger man's face. “To strike a beautiful body like this in anger would be a crime.”

  Damn him. He was being charming. Very charming. Raid was not immune to compliments, in fact he thrived on them. He felt his resolve slipping away as Eric's hand fell from his face. “Please Raid, I would be honored if you would accompany me to dinner.”

  “Fine,” Raid agreed.

  “I'll pick you up at nine,” Eric smiled.

  “Great.”

  Their arrangements made, Eric did not tarry. He turned from Raid and flowed out the door casually. The man moved through the world as if nothing were an obstacle for him. That alone made Raid curious. Eric was clearly powerful in some way, but where his power lay was yet to be revealed. One thing was for certain however, the charisma that Eric exuded was subject to fading quickly.

  The moment Eric left, Raid was no longer sure why he'd agreed to go out with him. The man had spanked him for chrissakes. He'd agreed now though, so for better or worse, he was in for an evening of Eric's company. Best case scenario he'd work out why Charles was so afraid of the tall British man. Worst case, well, they'd end up in a fist fight because there was no way in hell Raid was letting Eric treat him like a boy again.

  Chapter Three

  Eric had chosen a nice restaurant, not too over the top with diamond draped dames and men in top hats like Raid had expected, no it was an intimate hotel restaurant with low lights where the waiters swept between the tables almost noiselessly, introducing themselves with self effacing deference. So this was the world Eric liked to immerse himself in, a world where every man knew his place.

  Eric and Raid were seated at a private table a reasonable distance from the other diners. They made polite small talk about the weather over starters, but Raid was certain that Eric had more planned for the evening than just small talk. Eric didn't seem like the sort of man who did anything without good reason. As a result he was guarded, keeping his replies to Eric's questions short and to the point.

  It might have irritated a lesser man, but Eric seemed happy to allow Raid his reserve. Gently twirling his wine in his glass, he fla
shed a warming smile at Raid. “Your sister lives with you?”

  It was a safe topic, far away from bars and dealing and spanking. Raid nodded, resting his elbows on the table. “Yeah, she's lived with me since my parents bailed. It's been seven years now.”

  “Really?” Eric's brows rose with surprise as his gaze softened. “So you've been acting as her parent since you were eighteen. That's a heavy burden.”

  “No,” Raid shook his head emphatically. “She's a good kid, she's always been easy.”

  A more genuine, less charming smile established itself on Eric's face. “You're nothing that I expected you to be Raid. I'm surprised and I'm not often surprised.”

  “Oh yeah?” Raid sat back, smirking with pleasure. He liked that he'd managed to catch Eric unawares. That made him feel more powerful. “What did you expect?”

  “Honestly? A scrapper and petty criminal.”

  The words were harsh, and Raid bit back a defensive retort, mostly because there was a note of truth to them. Not that Eric needed to know that. He forced a smile onto his lips. “Why on Earth would you want a date with a petty criminal, Mr Darwin?”

  “A good question,” Eric chuckled. “I have to confess I had an ulterior motive for this dinner.”

  Raid had known it. “And what was that?”

  “I make it something of a mission of mine to keep an eye on some of my old submissives. Charles has always been attracted to the darker sides of life.”

  So he was a dominant. That made sense. There were plenty of dom / sub couples in Raid's circle of friends and acquaintances. It wasn't anything he'd ever been into himself, but he knew the lingo well enough to recognize it when he heard it. “Well that's nice I guess,” he said, shifting uncomfortably.

  “You don't approve,” Eric said.

  Raid shrugged. “Does it matter what I think?”

  Eric sipped at his wine. “I'm interested in your opinion.”

  “Okay,” Raid shrugged. “It's not my thing. I don't mind if it works for other people, but it wouldn't work for me.”

  “Because you're too independent.” It was probably a question, but Eric made it a statement.

  “I guess,” Raid said, shrugging.

  “I think independent men can make for the best submissives. Strength and intelligence are assets, not liabilities in my book.” Eric continued speaking as a waiter delivered their salad. Either he was not at all ashamed of the subject at hand, or he regarded the waiter much as he regarded the tables and chairs, just another object there to serve him.

  Raid shrugged again. “I just don't see what I'd be getting out of it.”

  “Better sex than you've ever had, for starters,” Eric purred the words. A shiver ran down Raid's spine. Looking into the older man's eyes, he believed him. Sex with Eric would be intense. Hell, just conversing with the man was intense.

  “But it comes with limitations,” Raid pointed out, using the tines of his fork for emphasis.

  “Sometimes,” Eric admitted. “They're usually ones tailored to the submissive.”

  “And obedience,” Raid was on a roll now, remembering conversations with some of his friends. “I don't do obedience.”

  “You'd learn to,” the deep purr was back in Eric's voice.

  Raid smirked. “I wouldn't.”

  “You wouldn't have a choice.”

  “There's always a choice.”

  A look of triumph gleamed in Eric's eyes. “Was there a choice when you were over my lap last night?”

  Raid flushed at the memory and gritted his teeth. “That doesn't count. I wasn't expecting it.”

  “No, you were expecting to get into a fist fight with someone twice your size.”

  “You're not twice my size.”

  “I may as well be.”

  The tension between the two men could have been cut with a knife. Eric was still in a relaxed pose, but his eyes, those magnetic eyes were still locked on Raid. Sitting bolt upright in his chair, every muscle in Raid's body was tense.

  “You want to prove otherwise, don't you?” Eric said softly. “You want to test your strength against mine.”

  Raid nodded, a low growl starting in his throat.

  “But what if you lose?”

  “I won't.”

  “Very well,” Eric laid down his salad fork. “Shall we adjourn upstairs?”

  Raid shook his head to clear it. This was madness. Eric was offering to fight him. Again. He wasn't that stupid. “You're trying to lead me into something,” he said, sitting back in his chair. “I'm not falling for it.”

  Eric laughed. “I'm not going to lie, Raid. I enjoyed having you over my lap last night. It was unexpected, but a pleasure none the less.”

  “So now you're fishing for a reason to get your hands on me again.” Raid relaxed, chuckling as he did. “You really think I'm that stupid?”

  “It almost worked,” Eric pointed out with a wicked grin.

  Raid smiled into his eyes. “I'm not saying I won't go upstairs with you. I'm just sayin' I'm not going up to get....” he trailed off, not wanting to say the word.

  “Spanked. I think that's the word you're looking for,” Eric said. “Spanked like a naughty boy.”

  “Don't,” Raid shook his head warningly.

  “You were a naughty boy. What other description can be used?”

  “Keep calling me boy and I'll re-evaluate my decision not to kick your ass.”

  “Either way, let us adjourn upstairs,” Eric suggested, rising from the table.

  Raid hesitated momentarily. It had been a long time since he'd gotten laid and his sex drive was running at an all time high. It clouded his judgment. Enough so that he found himself following Eric through the restaurant and up to the room as mildly as a lamb.

  “You're gorgeous,” Eric complimented him once the hotel room door was closed and safely locked behind them.

  “Thanks, you're not bad yourself,” Raid replied, seating himself brazenly on the bed and looking around. The whole place oozed understated class. There was nothing ostentatious in the room, nothing gilt, nothing gold, but the furnishings had a weight to them that spoke to their quality. The bedspread was like liquid silk beneath his fingertips.

  Eric stepped towards him, a movement that brought his crotch to Raid's eye level. The fact was not lost on either of the men, but Raid couldn't help remembering Eric's parting words to him the other evening. With a half smile he reached out and ran his hand over Eric's crotch. The beginnings of an erection were already there, he felt the older man's cock stir into further life at his touch.

  “Are you going to give me something to occupy my mouth?” Raid asked archly.

  Eric's eyes gleamed. “So you remember that little threat, do you?” He reached down and ran his fingers through Raid's thick dark hair. “Oh it would be so much fun to play with you,” he purred.

  “You can play, just don't expect me to play along. I don't submit,” Raid grinned. There was a certain pleasure in resisting this man's desires.

  “Is that so?” Eric's hand trailed softly over Raid's cheek. He put his hand against Raid's chest and pushed the younger man back onto the bed then laid over him, covering Raid's body with his own.