Ten minutes later, Jonas was led into a darkened room by the charming Tanna.

"Sorry about the lack of light. It's how he wants it," Tanna said, her voice as subdued as their surroundings.

"And I don't suppose you ever do anything he doesn't want?" Jonas replied.

"He's our meal ticket, Mr. Hunter. It would be foolish to throw that away."

At least she was polite and not half as condescending as the others. "Would do him a world of good," Jonas murmured.

"Excuse me?"

Tanna interrupted his thoughts, and Jonas realized he had spoken out loud. What did he have to lose? This job? It was a favor for someone, not his meal ticket. "You look like the only one he would listen to, and I think it would do him a world of good to be grounded."

She sighed. "I take care of him, Mr. Hunter, and believe me, he needs taking care of. If I give him reason to hate me, then he has no one." She turned around and returned with a trolley filled with food. "Try to get him to eat something, and then... well, I don't need to tell you how to do your job."

His eyes now adjusted to the half-dark, Jonas saw the soft compassion in her gaze. He'd expected something else, not her understanding, and it unsettled him more than if she had looked down on him.

"I'll leave you now. Please be patient; he may take a while to get here. If he asks, you can tell him that I'll be in my room and all the others have left." With that she silently left the suite.

Jonas sat down on one of the sofas, grateful that it was comfortably soft, worn leather, nothing like the antique chair he had sat on downstairs that looked as if it had come straight from Versailles. He waited a few moments in total silence. The only light came from the street lights outside shining through the creases along the sides of the heavy drapes. He felt around the side table and flicked on the small lamp he found there.

"Turn it off, please," a soft, low voice coming from the other side of the room asked.

Jonas was mildly startled, wondering how long he'd been there. He looked in the direction of the voice but saw only a doorway with a long dark shadow.

"Your assistant asked me to make sure you ate something, and I don't think we can do that in the dark."

"She's not my assistant," Nicky answered quietly, still not stepping out of his darkened corner. Jonas thought at first he was going to add something, but he lapsed back into silence.

"It's a little difficult to talk with me here and you over there. Why don't you come here, get comfortable, have a bite to eat, and then...." Jonas didn't finish his sentence, figuring they were both grown-ups and fully aware of why he was here.

"You're not paid by the hour, so there's no rush. Besides, I don't eat." Nicky's voice sounded high and mighty again, as if he'd regained some of the arrogance he'd displayed when he walked into the house, but it waned quickly. "And I don't like strangers seeing me like I am."

Jonas's patience was growing thin. "Listen, I'm not judging a beauty pageant here. Believe me, there's very little that throws me off about a person. A man," he corrected himself. He hoped a little humor would help break the ice. "I draw the line at trolls and werewolves."

Nicky didn't laugh. "Just turn off the light."

"No," Jonas replied, determined. Instead he got up and walked to the trolley, where he lifted the covers off the plates. "This looks good, Nicky; you really should eat something, you know."

"You're not my mother."

The source of Nicky's voice had moved around the room. "No, I'm not, but I don't think you're just a spoiled brat either." He started putting a few things on the two plates, some scalloped potatoes, green beans, and a few strips of roast beef.

"Just fuck me, okay? That's what you're here for, and all you're getting paid for."

"Like you said, you're not paying me by the hour," Jonas replied calmly. "This is all part of the service. Besides, I think it was Tanna who hired me, and she was the one who asked me to get you to eat something, so I suppose I am hired for this as well. And one of your boys told me that you had requested dinner with me first."

"It's still my money."

Jonas abruptly turned around and saw him standing there, near the light. On the one hand, he looked like a boy, innocent, almost angelic, not a trace of make-up left and his long hair flowing around his face in ringlets. On the other hand, the sleeveless top and jogging pants he was wearing did nothing to hide his obviously lean physique. The clearly trained body, complete with nicely curved chest, washboard stomach, and narrow waist and hips, made Jonas's body react, a feeling he hadn't had in a long time.

"You're the boss, but Tanna will like me a lot better if she sees you've eaten." Jonas took the plates and some cutlery toward the coffee table and placed them on it, one near where Nicky was still standing and the other one in front of him as he sat down. When Nicky didn't move, he started eating, trying to ignore the tension in the air. Eventually the young man sat down and picked at the potatoes with his fork.

Jonas finished his plate. "You know you don't have to pretend with me. Anything that happens between us, that is said or done here, won't leave this room. If I'm renowned for anything, it's my discretion."

For the first time, Jonas saw a smile play round Nicky's mouth. "You're known for a lot more than your discretion."

"Well, that would be what I'd hope for, you know, in my profession," Jonas replied, raising an eyebrow while he ran his fingers over the side of his mouth.

Nicky chuckled and the tension in the air lifted a little. "So whenever I'm ready...?"

"Yeah," Jonas said, trying to sound relaxed, and nodded. "It would be easier if you just told me what you wanted. No need to be shy; if you can think of it, I've probably done it at one time."

He saw Nicky tense up again, and then the young man seemed to regain his self-confidence. "Nothing exotic. I just want to be fucked, from behind, hard and fast."

"Okay," Jonas agreed, thinking that for that, Nicky could have his assistant pluck a guy off the street. He had no idea why he would ask someone to come from London to Paris for just an ordinary fuck. Jonas didn't want to jinx things, though. He had learned a long time ago not to question a client's motives. Usually there was no way he could figure them out anyway. Maybe it was just that this guy was used to getting only the best, just like his champagne.

He watched Nicky move to the bed, unceremoniously kneeling at the side of it and pulling his jogging pants down.

"Condoms and lube are in the drawer," Nicky whispered, his voice a little hoarse. He waited patiently while Jonas took off his suit and placed it carefully over the back of one of the chairs.

Jonas tried not to stare at Nicky's nice ass sticking out and at his hand moving between his legs to touch himself. To his own surprise, he was half hard by the time he took the supplies out of the drawer. He admiringly ran his hands over the globes of Nicky's ass, slowly massaging them. He always made a point of making it good for his client, so he leaned over to murmur, "Do you want me to rim you?"

"No," Nicky was quick to answer, "just...."

"Okay," Jonas cut him off, knowing what Nicky meant. He moved his hands down Nicky's long, lean back and continued prepping him, slowly trying to get him to relax enough to allow himself to be breached. This took time and Nicky was not very patient, telling Jonas to get on with it.

"I don't want to hurt you, Nicky," Jonas said softly, trying to add a second finger to the first. He heard Nicky's pained breathing and moved his other hand around Nicky's hips to touch his cock. Nicky was barely hard, so Jonas started working on two fronts, trying to get the young man aroused enough to relax and vice versa. Anything not directly aimed at Nicky's groin was met with disapproval so Jonas used every trick in the book. Luckily he'd never had any trouble getting it up himself, because the sheer mechanical quality of this encounter was enough to turn any man limp.

"Just take me," Nicky pleaded after a while.

Jonas cocked his head and sighed. Almost automatically he fisted his semi-hard erection to life and rolled on a condom, applying ample lube. As soon as he lined it up with Nicky's entrance, the young man pushed back and reached behind himself to pull Jonas closer.

"Now stop wasting time and fuck me. Hard and fast."

Clearly a man used to dishing out orders, Jonas thought. "You'll need some time to adjust," Jonas suggested.

"That's for pansies. Now fuck me like a man. Or are you a pansy too?"

Jonas pulled back and plunged in again.

"Fuck yeah, that's it," Nicky grunted.

Jonas knew it must have hurt and hoped Nicky wouldn't bleed as he continued the onslaught, urged on by the young man. He could tell Nicky was trying to hide the pain clearly visible in the way he held his body and hoped that he simply got off on it and that it wouldn't last very long. The knuckles of Nicky's hands were white as he held on to the bedding, and then Jonas saw him push one hand underneath himself.

"Don't stop now! Harder! Please!"

That last word was drawn out and Jonas felt Nicky slightly pull away from him, so he stopped thrusting. He couldn't be sure, but he thought Nicky had come, although there were very few indications. Nicky had stopped urging him on, and when Jonas let his hand caress Nicky's back, Nicky pulled away again, this time pushing himself to his feet and pulling up his jogging pants. Jonas let himself drop to the floor. He leaned against the side of the bed as he watched Nicky walk a bit unsteadily toward what appeared to be a bathroom.

Jonas rolled off the condom and didn't bother tying it in a knot since he hadn't come. He simply discarded it in a small basket that was next to the bed and got up to pull his boxer shorts on again. He wasn't sure if he should wait here and give Nicky some privacy, or if he should just knock on the door and ask if he could freshen up a bit before returning to his hotel, but his train of thought was halted when he heard a thump and then a loud curse. Before he could stop himself, he had pushed the door open and walked inside the bathroom.

Nicky was sitting on the closed toilet lid smoking a cigarette. His long hair looked messy and he was shivering. The only light inside the bathroom was what reflected off the mirror from the other room.

"You okay?" Jonas asked as he turned around to wash his hands. Just as he noticed the broken glass in the basin, he saw Nicky wipe the hair out of his eyes, leaving a dark smear across his face. "What the...." Jonas patted the wall for the light switch and flicked it on, illuminating the room with light that was way too bright. There was blood on Nicky's face, arms, and chest. Jonas tried to stay calm. "What did you do?"

Nicky shrugged and looked at Jonas with narrowed eyes as Jonas took hold of his wrists and examined them.

"Watch it," Nicky said, looking annoyed as he pulled loose the hand that held the cigarette. He took another drag and blew the smoke away from both of them.

"Did you cut yourself?" Jonas asked. He grabbed a wash cloth and wetted it. "Boy, you really like to hurt, don't you?" he asked, more to himself than to Nicky.

"It was an accident, okay!" Nicky shouted like a child caught doing something he shouldn't have done. "I forgot about the broken glass and it was dark and...."

Jonas started wiping away the smeared blood and couldn't find any large cuts, not even on Nicky's wrists where he thought he'd find the wounds. Instead, there was a relatively small cut on Nicky's palm, still bleeding quite heavily. Jonas took a dry wash cloth and rolled it up. "Here, squeeze that. It'll put pressure on the wound."

Nicky complied, but he was shivering more violently now, and Jonas saw tears running down his cheeks. He hesitated for a moment and then pulled the young man up and into his arms. "Let's get you to bed, warm you up a bit, hey?"

"No, no bed." Nicky resisted, shaking his head and wiping his cheek with his uninjured hand.

Jonas took the cigarette stub from him and threw it in the sink, and then he pulled Nicky into the bedroom again.

"No, don't want to lie down, can't sleep anyway," Nicky protested, tensing up in Jonas's arms. "The cupboard. There's a duvet in there."

Jonas let him sit down on the larger couch and opened the doors of the cupboard.

"You can use the bathrobe if you want," Nicky said in a soft voice. "If you're cold too, I mean."

Jonas took Nicky up on the proposal and donned the soft robe that was hanging on a hook inside the door. Then he grabbed the blanket and draped it around Nicky's shoulders before hiking his feet up onto the couch and tucking them safely under the warm duvet.

"Better?"

Nicky was not shivering so badly now. He shrugged, but then a smile appeared on the young man's face and he looked fifteen again, innocent and shy. Jonas was intrigued by how Nicky was trying to hide behind this persona he'd created for himself but succeeding less and less as time passed. Despite the disastrous first impression, Jonas found himself curiously attracted to the young man.

"Thank you," Nicky whispered and cleared his throat. "Don't think this was part of your job description."

Jonas chuckled. "Well, you'd be surprised." He bit the inside of his lip. "Pretty much anything you can think of, I've experienced at one point or another. Having a client try to kill himself after sex with me isn't good for my reputation, though, let alone my ego."

Nicky sighed. "I didn't try to kill myself." There was annoyance in his words but not as much as Jonas was expecting.

Jonas reached for Nicky's injured hand and opened it, slowly removing the bloodied cloth. "Would be pretty stupid to try to kill yourself by cutting your palm." He pushed a wide leather band higher up his own left wrist. "It's much better to cut yourself there."

Nicky looked up from Jonas's scarred wrist into the older man's gray-blue eyes, not hiding his shock.

"I was sixteen and had just come out to my parents. No need to explain to you they were not impressed."

Nicky smiled compassionately. "I never came out to my parents. They still think it's because I'm 'artistic' and 'talented' and think this is the way I need to act because otherwise I won't be taken seriously as a world famous fashion designer." The sheer sarcasm in his voice wasn't lost on Jonas. "They'd probably go ballistic if they found out that their precious son likes to take it up the arse."

"There's a difference between liking that and what you made me do to you, though, isn't there?"

Nicky shrugged.

"I bet you won't be able to sit on a hard surface for a few days." Jonas knew he was trying to draw Nicky out of his cave, out of his safe place, but what did he have to lose?

"I like being sore like that," Nicky eventually answered after a pregnant pause.

"Sore like that is amazing if you've been fucked, slowly and thoroughly, for hours. Not after a three minute pounding." Jonas paused too, waiting for the words to sink in. "You know you can ask for anything you want. This is your time, you're paying for this." Again silence. "Seriously, if you can think of it, I've probably done it."

Nicky smiled, a hint of mischief in his face, and Jonas felt a surge of excitement hit him. He tried to hide it, not wanting to frighten Nicky and make him crawl into his shell again. The young man didn't speak, though, so Jonas continued. "Want me to make some suggestions?" Nicky didn't answer. "Just nod yes or no."

Nicky nodded. Yes.

"Do you want to be tied up?"

Nicky shook his head. No.

"Spanked?"

No.

"Want me to call Tanna in and ask her to join us?"

Nicky raised an eyebrow and then gave Jonas a mock indignant look and frantically shook his head. No way!

Jonas chuckled, enjoying this game of questions immensely. He wondered what else he could suggest to the young man. Nicky seemed surprisingly vanilla, not interested in the more exotic games.

"You want to be gently stroked with an ice cube."

Nicky shivered theatrically and pulled the duvet closer around himself, smiling nevertheless. No.

"You want a hand job? I have very talented hands."

Nicky hesitated, but then: No.

"Blow job? I have a rather renowned mouth too, you know. I used to have a client who wanted nothing more than to fill my mouth with whipped cream and then let me blow him."

Nicky laughed out loud and Jonas's heart jumped. But again: No.

"You want to be made love to, not fucked. Slowly, lovingly and you want to feel like there's no one else in the world but you and your lover."

Nicky's face turned serious, but he was looking straight at Jonas. "You can't do that. You can't pretend to be my lover. You can't make me feel loved."

Jonas wasn't put off. There was a reason why he was still making a better living at what he did than he could have ever done with a real job. "Want to bet? What have you got to lose? Really?"

Nicky looked skeptical and didn't reply. With Nicky lying on the couch and Jonas sitting next to it on his knees, Jonas's hand was slowly making its way into the bundle of blankets toward Nicky's feet. He reached them and slowly stroked across the toes and the bridge of the foot, expecting Nicky to pull away any moment. He didn't, though, and Jonas started wondering if it was his imagination or if Nicky was moving into the touch. Jonas enjoyed the feeling of the warm, smooth skin. He explored the bones of Nicky's ankle, the nice muscle of the calf. He moved his hand up to the knee, making Nicky jerk when he tickled the hollow behind it. All this time they were looking at each other, Jonas's face soft and accepting, Nicky's teasing and teased.

Nicky bit his lower lip when Jonas's hand moved even higher and his thighs parted, inviting Jonas to proceed. Jonas was almost completely stretched out now so he scooted a little closer, never losing contact with Nicky's leg. He slowly stroked the softest skin on the inside of Nicky's thigh and used his other hand to pull the duvet away from Nicky's chest, admiring the well developed muscles, nicely trained but still consistent with his lean physique. He couldn't resist running his fingers over the large, dark nipples and felt Nicky react.

Jonas wanted to say something, tell Nicky how beautiful he was, but was afraid of breaking the spell. He didn't want to hear Nicky put himself down again because it would defeat the purpose of making him feel loved. So he didn't say anything, didn't tell the young man that his presence was making him hard, couldn't tell him that he truly wanted a man for the first time in years. Instead he leaned in closer, nuzzling Nicky gently. To Jonas's surprise, Nicky turned his way, and Jonas felt his soft lips against his temple.

Jonas's left hand was still near Nicky's hip, touching the smooth, hot skin. He encountered the curly pubic hair and purposely avoided moving closer. He used his other hand to wipe the hair away from Nicky's face and then softly kissed him on the lips. To his considerable surprise, Nicky took over, deepening the kiss and moving a hand to the back of Jonas's neck. Nicky tilted his hips and his rock hard cock nudged Jonas's hand. As he started stroking it, Nicky broke the kiss.

"Please stop," Nicky whimpered. "You're going to make me come like a school boy if you don't."

Jonas looked away from Nicky when he realized he was blushing and sat back on his heels.

"Can you fuck me again already?" Nicky asked, not in the least bit embarrassed about his question. "I mean, I know older guys need more time in between and--" Jonas stopped him from saying more by kissing him again. He'd been happy he wasn't wearing a pair of his tighter boxer shorts for some time now and didn't need to look to reassure himself.

"How do you want to do this?" he murmured against Nicky's mouth.

For a moment, Nicky seemed to lose his new-found confidence. "I don't know. How do we do this? In bed?"

Jonas chuckled. "Let's never go there again." He kissed Nicky quickly. "Stay here." He got up and retrieved supplies from the bedside table, took off the bathrobe and his boxers, and then pulled Nicky to his feet and sat down in the middle of the couch. Jonas wasn't the type of man to be embarrassed about his nakedness, but Nicky staring at his erection while standing there with the duvet wrapped around himself did make him a little self-conscious.

"Can I...?"

Jonas cocked his head and spread his knees, making space for Nicky to move closer. A blowjob was a rare treat in his profession, and he was definitely not denying himself the pleasure. Nicky was hungry and certainly not a novice at this. Jonas held Nicky's hair back so he could enjoy the view. Seeing his cock disappear into Nicky's mouth was a delicious sight, but he didn't want to come this way. It just wouldn't do. A soft tug at Nicky's hair was enough of a hint for the young man to stop.

As Nicky looked up at Jonas, his eyes dark with lust, he let the cock pop out of his mouth. "Fuck, Mr. Hunter, you've got quite a tasty log there."

Jonas chuckled at the undignified term, but he didn't want to lose momentum. "Come here," he said, gesturing with his finger. "Straddle me." He hadn't touched Nicky's cock yet. "You're not so bad yourself."

"Flattery will get you everywhere," Nicky teased.

"I just want you to ride me," Jonas replied, and then he realized he was in no position to issue demands.

"Oh, you do?" Nicky asked, defusing the situation.

"Yeah," Jonas said, their bodies now close together. "I think it would be good for you too. You'll be in charge, do exactly what feels good."

He saw Nicky think about it. "Talk me through it."

"I'll need to prep you," Jonas said, happy that Nicky was still eager.

"I'll be okay, I'm pretty relaxed now." Nicky pulled the duvet around the two of them as he settled down on Jonas's thighs. "Nice and warm like this."

"You like that little bit of pain, don't you?" Jonas asked, almost rhetorically.

"Yeah, but I'm in charge, right? So allow me." Nicky ripped open the condom packet with his teeth and rolled the latex onto Jonas's cock, and then he added the lube, making Jonas inhale sharply as he spread the gel.

"You know what you're doing, don't you?"

Nicky smile was cocky. "Of course I do."

The young designer pushed up and reached between his legs to lift his tackle out of the way, giving Jonas a view of how he was impaling himself while Jonas steadied his latex-covered cock. Little by little, he felt Nicky's tightness sink around him and watched the young man's face for any signs of discomfort. To his surprise, all he saw was ecstasy.

When Jonas was totally inside Nicky, the young man slowly relaxed. "Fuck, I can't believe how well we fit together."

Jonas smiled and pulled Nicky closer, trapping the young man's cock between their bellies. They started kissing, slowly and sensually, and Nicky started rocking his hips back and forth. Jonas couldn't help stroking the long, lean back and kissing down Nicky's neck toward his chest and those enticing dark nipples. Nicky reacted to having them licked, just like Jonas had anticipated, and sped up his movements as he started riding Jonas in earnest. The duvet was forgotten as it fell around Nicky's back, and Jonas guided the young man's moves by resting his hands on his hips.

"Oh fuck, this feels so good. Never... before--" Nicky was breathing heavily and was barely coherent. The young man's cock was so hard it barely bounced despite his rigorous movements. It was leaking copiously, painting wet streaks along the olive skin of his stomach. Jonas was trying all his tricks to last longer than his lover, but he couldn't tear his eyes away from the incredible vision in front of him.

"Look at me," Jonas asked. "I want to see your eyes when you come."

"Can't... close! Oh fuck, I'm gonna... come!" Nicky sank down hard, tilting his hips as he did, and Jonas felt the hot seed splatter between their bellies. Nicky kept riding up and down erratically, and the friction, together with the ecstasy on Nicky's face, were enough to make Jonas's groin contract as well. He came with Nicky in his arms.

Their breathing and heartbeats slowly steadied enough so they could start kissing once more, lazily this time, and Jonas pulled the duvet around them again.

"You're still inside of me," Nicky mumbled against Jonas's mouth.

"I know. You feel good."

"I do?" Nicky asked, shy again now.

"Yes, you do."

"We'll have to move eventually."

Jonas moaned in disappointment.

Nicky leaned back, retrieving the washcloth that had been used to bandage his hand and wiped their stomachs with it. As Nicky moved around, Jonas slipped out of him and got rid of the condom, tying it in a knot and folding it into the towel.

"Want to get some sleep now?" Jonas asked.

"You know, I think I could. Will you stay until morning?"

"Sure," Jonas answered. He didn't usually sleep over if he was only paid for the evening, but right now he was unable to deny Nicky anything.

"Can we just sleep here on the couch? You're right; I don't like that bed either."

Jonas snuggled Nicky closer, spooning with the duvet around the two of them.

Next thing he knew, Jonas was waking up still smelling Nicky's hair. He felt Nicky's hands on his body and the young man's ass push against his morning erection.

"No matter how great that feels, I need to go to work," Nicky said, clear regret in his voice.

"Can I take a quick shower?"

"Be my guest. There's another shower in the next room."

When Jonas stepped out from under the hot spray, Nicky was standing in front of the mirror, applying make-up and looking like a highwayman. "Jonas? Can I call you again some time?"

"Yes, you can. In fact, I'd like it if you did."

Despite the fact Nicky was in full working gear, he smiled that warm smile Jonas had discovered behind the facade.

After putting on his suit again, Jonas walked downstairs with a spring in his step. Tanna, dressed to the nines, met him at the bottom of the stairs. "Your fee is transferred, Mr. Hunter, and I've taken the liberty of calling a car to take you to your hotel and then the airport."

"Thank you, Tanna," he answered.

"Could you please pencil Nicky in for London fashion week? But I'm sure we'll be calling you before that as well. If that is okay with you, of course."

Jonas didn't need to think about it. He'd seen behind the facade and hoped to be allowed that privilege again soon. He smiled at the gorgeous young woman. "Consider it a date, Miss Taylor."