Lexington Black (6 page)

'You're the dark horse,' he said. 'You keep
people at arms length in order to protect yourself.'

Rob picked up his wine glass and hid behind
it. 'Very good. So what do you do for a living?'

Lex smiled wryly, acknowledging Rob's desire
to change the subject and respecting it.

'I'm the enemy, Rob. I'm into mergers and
acquisitions.'

'Ah.'

'I buy companies, asset-strip them, make a
lot of money and move on, like an Armani-clad locust. Does that
bother you?'

'Everything about you bothers me.' It was out
before he could stop it. 'I mean ... wow, I'm sorry. Not sure where
that came from.'

'Maybe you need to step out of the
closet.'

Rob laughed nervously. 'You don't pull any
punches, do you?'

'Neither do you. I don't waste time if
something needs to be said. Well? Am I right?'

'I don't know,' Rob said faintly. 'Until
recently I'd never thought about it. The whole marriage thing, I
just fell into it. It was expected, you know? I have a huge family
and they were all so excited when I met Sandy. I was the golden
boy, the great white hope. Now I'm living above a kebab shop but
it's better than living in a huge house I can't afford with a woman
who looks down on me. She never forgave me for not trying to get
back into investing, but I only ever went into it for the money. It
wasn't something I enjoyed doing.'

'Are you happy doing what you do?'

That was a tough one. He loved working with
Paul. It was easy and comfortable. Safe but unexciting. He was
thirty-five years old, too young to be mouldering away with a lot
of old men in a provincial town in the middle of nowhere.

'I guess that answers my question,' Lex
said.

'Paul is great. Radleys is a wonderful place.
But I'm there twenty years too early, if you see what I mean.'

'I do.' Lex looked thoughtful. 'So what are
you going to do about it?'

'I don't know, to be honest.'

'It sounds like you need some
motivation.'

'I know. Motivation and confidence. Two
qualities that haven't been in great supply for a long time.'

The waiter approached with two elegant plates
of venison medallions, balanced artfully on a disc of mustard mash
and pooled in fragrant gravy. As he put it on the table in front of
them, Lex leaned forward, closed his eyes and inhaled.

'God, that smells good.'

'It looks divine.' Rob picked up his knife
and fork and began to eat. For a while they ate, uttering not much
more than appreciative noises. The venison was tender and melted in
the mouth.

'Maybe this is the time for you to start
writing again,' Lex said suddenly. 'I downloaded your book last
night. It isn't my kind of thing but you can definitely write.'

Rob lowered his knife and fork. 'Thank you.
Apart from Geri, you're the only one who thinks so.'

'You mean, I'm the only other one who's read
it. Maybe you should try a more accessible genre. Steampunk is
probably a niche market, as far as I can see.'

'Well, I am working slowly on something else,
based on my family. My father died when I was fifteen. He was the
Head of a local boarding school when he committed suicide.'

Lex stopped eating. He had gone slightly
pale. There was a tremor in his hand as he picked up his wine
glass.

'I know,' Rob said ruefully. 'Hideous, isn't
it? My mother was ashamed, being a staunch Catholic. She forbade us
to speak of him from that day. All I have is the grandfather clock
and some stuff I stole from his study before my mother had it
emptied. She burned all his photos and books. It was as if she
wanted to wipe him off the face of the planet.'

'Do you know why he did it?'

'Not really. There was some kind of scandal
but it was hushed up. I found out later he was gay.'

Lex dropped his fork with a clatter. 'Fuck,
sorry,' he muttered.

'He always seemed so melancholy, despite
having a great career, wife and kids, a huge house. Don't get me
wrong, he was a wonderful father and that's why I had such a hard
time with Mother destroying all those memories of him.'

'So he killed himself because he was gay? In
1995 that seems kind of extreme.'

Rob stared at him. 'How do you know when he
died?'

Lex regarded him carefully. 'You told me just
now.'

'No, I didn't.'

'Yes, you did. You said you were fifteen when
he died. You're thirty-five now so it isn't that difficult to work
it out, even for a dumbass like me.'

'I didn't tell you my age either.'

'Actually, you did. "I'm thirty-five years
old, too young to be working with a lot of old men." They were your
very words just now.'

Rob blinked and shook his head. He was
definitely losing it. He could remember thinking it but hadn't been
aware of saying it out loud. The wine was going to his head.

'Yeah, sorry. I had forgotten. And yes, it
does seem extreme to kill yourself because of your sexuality, but
think about it. He would have lost everything if the truth had come
out.' He gestured helplessly. The topic of conversation was turning
too dark. Talking about it made him sad and that made him drink
more. 'Anyway, that's it. All very miserable and sordid. I guess
the book is my way of exorcising the past but even if I knew the
truth, I'd prefer to keep the story as fiction. That way I can
inject the emotion whilst keeping the truth at arm's length.'

'That sounds like a very good idea.'

Lex sounded as relieved as Rob felt to move
on to other subjects. They finished their main course and, after
not much persuading on behalf of the waiter, perused the desserts.
Rob learned that Lex had been at Princeton, and had given up his
Business degree halfway though to live on a California beach and
teach other wealthy kids how to windsurf.

'Then Dad got sick and I was called back to
Manhattan.' There was a bitter twist to his mouth as he said
it.

'Must have been quite a shock to the
system.'

'Yeah. I knew how the corporate world worked.
Dad made sure of that. He never forgave me for jacking it all in to
be a beach bum, as he saw it. Having a stroke was his form of
revenge, I reckon.'

'I'm not sure anyone who's had a stroke would
agree with that.'

The flicker in Lex's eyes told Rob he had
touched a nerve. 'Anyway, I came here to close a deal and
succeeded, so that should please the old bastard.' He toasted Rob
with his wine glass and drank from it.

'What kind of deal?'

'We've just taken over one of your local
transport companies. Not a very big one, but the assets are
useful.'

'It's not the Eaves Group, is it? I know
they've been fighting a hostile takeover for the last couple of
years.'

Lex smiled evilly. 'I couldn't possibly tell
you that.'

'Holy shit, it is!' I used to be at school
with the CEO. Well, he was older than me. A total wanker. What a
strange coincidence.'

'Isn't it?' Lex said coolly.

Rob sensed that the subject was over. 'Would
you ever go back to California if you had the choice?'

Lex shrugged. 'I never look back. What's the
point? Do you have any regrets about your own life?'

Rob thought about it. 'Not really.'

'Not even your marriage break-up?'

'As you say, what's the point? Like you, I'd
rather move forward. I'm just not sure which direction I should go,
that's all.'

As the evening wore on, gradually they were
the only diners left. The pianist and wine had long gone and they
had moved on to coffee. Conversation flowed easily between them.
Eventually, the waiter discreetly asked if they would like to take
an aperitif in the lounge.

'Or we could go to my suite,' Lex said, the
invitation plain in his eyes. 'If you're unsure which direction to
take, maybe I can help you with that.'

Rob jumped as he felt sly fingers stroking
his thigh under the tablecloth. For the first time ever, he
understood how some women felt at the end of a first date. That
sense of obligation after the man had spent money on good food and
superlative wine, the reluctance to go further, and the guilt that
followed a refusal. Having relaxed him with good wine and playful
banter, Lex was moving in for the kill. Half of him was highly
aroused by the thought, but the other half resented the hell out of
it.

He excused himself and went to the men's
cloakroom. He splashed cold water on his face and held up a hand so
he could see the tremor in his fingers.

He wasn't ready for it, was he? Whatever it
was. His dick was saying otherwise, though, trapped uncomfortably
in the confines of his underwear. It was only reacting to the aura
of the man though. He oozed sex and power. Hell, anyone would be
turned on by that.

Wouldn't they?

Maybe you're still in the closet.
That
silky phrase was destined to stalk him all the way home. And he had
to go home before he did something he would regret. He was in
danger of acting in a totally irrational and hazardous manner.

Lex smiled as he approached. 'What do you say
to a cognac?'

'Thank you but I really need to go,' Rob
said, trying not to sound too abrupt.

Lex was on his feet in an instant. 'That's a
shame. Do you mind if I walk with you to your car?'

Rob mentally thanked his foresight in
borrowing the Audi. 'Sure.'

The night was dark and smelled of incoming
rain. The car was parked under a tree, away from the comforting
pool of light radiating from the hotel.

'Ah, one last ditch attempt to get me to buy
this car?' Lex laughed when he saw it.

'I usually drive a Volvo,' Rob admitted. 'It
isn't quite as sexy. That's the only reason.'

'Good, because I was never actually
interested in buying the car.' Without warning, Lex moved in and
pressed his lips to Rob's.

Rob barely had time to think. He was aware of
his hitched breath, his body frozen as if in fright. He began to
protest but he was mesmerised by the unexpected softness of the
lips on his, the faint abrasion of stubble against his chin, the
rearing excitement in his trousers. He inhaled the aroma of coffee
and spiced aftershave, too shocked to do anything but let Lex pin
him to the car and tease his tongue into responding to him. If he
hadn't done so, Rob would have collapsed to the ground in a
boneless mess. The kiss was long and languid, their tongues
exploring every aspect of their mouths. As it went on, Rob could
his whole being unfurling. Not just his cock, which was like an
iron bar in his trousers but
everything
. So many unformed
questions about his life had been answered. The reason why he had
never been able to commit to anyone, the reason his marriage
disintegrated, the mistrust of the motives of other people, the
constant feeling that some part of him was hidden, or buried
because he had not wanted to face the truth.

'You've never done that before, have you?'
Lex whispered huskily when he drew away.

Rob shook his head. His voice had completely
deserted him.

'You weren't bad for a novice.' Lex gently
stroked Rob's chin with his thumb. His smile was tender but his
eyes were not. They were dark with lust.

What was he supposed to say? Thanks very
much? All he wanted was for Lex to kiss him again. And again.

'I have to go,' he said woodenly. He had to.
He had to think and not do anything rash and stupid.

Lex reached out and stroked Rob's face with
the back of his hand. 'If you change your mind, I'm in the King's
Suite.'

'Thank you. I'm sorry,' Rob said again, and
scrambled to open the car door.

Halfway home, he was kicking himself. Not
easy when one was driving. He hit the steering wheel in
frustration, the words "I'm in the King's suit," on a loop spinning
round in his brain, like a lariat preparing to capture him and pull
him back.

'Fuck, fuck, fuck,' he muttered. His cock was
harder than ever, reminding him it had been a damned long time
since he had last been laid. It seemed to be holding a one-sided
conversation in his head. "
Come on, Rob. You're single, he's
single. What's the harm? He's flying back to the States tomorrow.
You never have to see him again. Chalk this up to a new experience.
If you don't like it, you'll know it isn't for you. Give me a
fucking break, I'm ready to blow here!
"

He did a U-turn in the middle of the wide
road and headed back towards Deansfield House.

The old floorboards creaked under the thick
pile carpet as he walked up to Lex's suite. He knocked gently on
the door and waited.

When Lex opened the door, the flash of
surprise in his eyes was quickly suppressed, replaced with warm
invitation. Rob opened his mouth to speak, but Lex silenced him
with his lips, shutting the door on the outside world.

Rob closed his eyes and let the feeling of
Lex's kiss wash over him. His lips were soft, his tongue probing
and insistent. Rob opened up like a flower in search of sunshine as
he pushed him back against the door. He felt a hand stroke his hip,
gather his shirt and loosen it from his trousers, caress his bare
skin. Lex's tongue brushed against his own, curled around it, drew
it into a slow-rolling dance. He tasted of Courvoisier and smelt
warm and masculine, spiced with expensive aftershave. Their bodies
pressed together, angular and hard. No soft curves, no pillowed
flesh, just muscle and bone, and two massive forces thrusting
between them.

Lex drew away and slipped the knot loose on
his tie. Twisting the two ends around his knuckles, he led Rob over
to the bed.

This is really happening
, Rob thought,
his heart pounding. He was mesmerised by the intensity in Lex's
eyes.

'You can still change your mind,' Lex said
softly.