Work and Play Pt. 02

Instantly, I zip over to the cabinet to grab the good creamer and set it on the counter, but it's not there. I thought I left it there... I swear I did. I used it yesterday in my hazelnut coffee and—

"May I help you?" I hear from my right. I practically jump out of my skin. Mr. All Important Vice Chairman, Gabriel Ortega sits at the table, newspaper in hand and legs crossed. Christ, he's quiet as hell.

"I—" my eyes find the creamer at his table, sitting by his large forearm. "That's mine," I say quietly. Gabriel looks at me in confusion. "I mean, it's the creamer I like. I personally purchase it with the money we set aside for our break room."

"Oh..." Gabriel says, surprised. "I thought what was in here was free for all to use. I apologize."

"It is free to use," I reply. "Just that it's not... I mean it is, but I prefer if people put things back," I say, my tone tight and irritated.

"Again, I apologize," Gabriel says with a nod, hardly looking away from his newspaper. Ugh. I'll just wait until he leaves to grab the creamer. It looks like he's boiling water in our tea kettle. It should be ready soon, probably two minutes.

I go to grab the filters from the cabinet, but they're two shelves up. Of course. I stand on my toes, but I still can't reach it. This is ridiculous. Gabriel definitely moved all of my stuff. I'm practically the only one who uses this upstairs break room. There's another down the hallway, and most people use that one or the one downstairs. Honestly, just put things where you found them.

I don't say a word, choosing to grab a chair and stand on it to reach the filters. Not gonna let simple things ruin my day. Luckily, the teapot starts whistling, so Gabriel stands up.

Then it hits me.

"Why are you using my creamer for tea?" I blurt out.

"That's how one properly makes tea, Nancy," Gabriel says smoothly. I scoff in annoyance at his tea drinking and at his calmness and at the way he radiates his dark masculinity throughout the room like he owns the place. If he calls me Nancy again, I might start to think that's my real name.

Ugh, fuck him, honestly.

"You could just drink coffee," I retort under my breath.

"I'm allergic to caffeine," Gabriel snaps. I step off the chair and reach for the creamer, but Gabriel has it. I frown. He looks me right in the eye as he pours the last few teaspoons into his giant cup of tea, every last drop.

"Oh, sorry. I don't think there's enough for the both of us." He looks at his cup with a fake sympathy face.

Well, if this isn't just the most childish thing.

Just then, his secretary comes in with a frenzy. "Your uncle's on the phone, Gabriel," she says quickly and urgently. Gabriel instantly sets his tea on the counter, storming out of the room.

Well, since we're being childish...

I act quickly, grabbing the caffeinated lemon tea, taking out Gabriel's bag and replacing it with the caffeinated brand. As soon as it happens, I feel my heart start beating too fast, too hard. I toss the previous bag behind the refrigerator. God, I'm stupid and I don't know how allergic he is to caffeine—it's too late to go back now. I could wait until he comes back into the room and tell him what I did...

Absolutely not.

I'm in too deep now. I filter my coffee, barely breathing, just waiting for the death of my short career here. As I add some watery creamer to my coffee, Gabriel walks in with his sleeves rolled up, looking as intimidating and masculine as ever.

He takes a sip of tea on his way out.

----------

Grayson sits across from me at Olive Garden. He's swept his brown hair back, making his green eyes stand out. I kissed him the other day. Ugh, I kissed him and I almost put my mouth on him.

Halfway through our meal, Grayson has hardly said a thing. Shannon is Concerned Mom, as usual. We order dessert, and that's when Grayson decides to speak up. If this is what I think it is...

"You guys are probably the closest friends I've had here," he starts. "I think this is the closest I've been to a group of people in... years. I've been reckless with my trust and friendships—"

Okay, Grayson. You're fucking gay.

"—and I think it's time—"

You love fucking men, Grayson.

"—to be honest here. I just hope—" Yeah, honey. You wanna bone me. Spit it out already.

"—this doesn't change anything." Grayson stares at his hands. "I'm gay." He keeps staring at his hands. "I know it shouldn't be a big deal and I-I didn't want you guys to think I didn't trust you..." He looks up, right at me. "Being honest and out with it is just going to lift a weight off my shoulders. I can't be the friend that holds back anymore. That never works out... for anyone."

Oh, is he fucking KIDDING me?

Is that supposed to guilt me into somehow spilling my own information? He could've just told Shannon since I already knew, but oh no. If he wants me to come out with it, he just set me back a few hundred steps. Two can play this game.

I grab his hand, giving him my most sympathetic smile. "We aren't going to judge you, Grayson," I say sweetly.

"Yeah, Grayson," Shannon chuckles. "We aren't going anywhere." She grabs his other hand; her smile is genuine. "I don't care what you like. That doesn't define you at all."

Grayson's eyes haven't left mine. Not for a second.

------------

That was the most awkward coming-out-to-friends thing I've ever experienced. I mean, I haven't seen much of it, but that was weird... and kind of stupid.

Shannon and I stack up some already completed evaluations in the small file room. She's just beaming after Grayson's confession, like it made her day or something.

"You know? I never would've thought Grayson would be gay. I can usually tell," she says, handing me a stack of papers.

I can't help but snort at her claim. I guess she's 0 for 2 with Grayson and me. "Well, good for him," I say, trying to sound enthusiastic. "Hope he finds someone."

"Unless he already has..." Shannon says. "I just feel good that he trusts us, you know? It's just nice knowing—"

Before she finishes her sentence, Gabriel Ortega walks into the room. I can feel the heat rush throughout my entire body. I almost forgot what I did to him earlier today.

"Hello, Mr. Ortega," Shannon says nicely. He gives her a smile and a nod. His lips are swollen and his eyes are noticeably red. Shannon notices too. "Oh, um—"

"You can call me Gabriel," he says gently with a nice smile. "Sorry for my appearance; I guess my allergies aren't used to the Colorado atmosphere yet. It doesn't help that it's constantly snowing in March," he says. With that, he looks me dead in the eyes. "Never know if you're going to get... stuck somewhere. And how are you, Mr. Hartigan?"

I gulp before answering. "I'm good, sir," I reply, my hands shaking in my pockets. "I hope you're staying warm. California to Colorado is a big climate change."

"I am indeed, thank you. I've been drinking tea nonstop since I arrived," he says. And I'm the only one who notices his eyes narrow the tiniest bit. I'm dead. I'm so dead. He knows what I did and he's probably going to kill me with his bare hands. "Well, if you'll excuse me," he says politely. He grabs a file and then leaves.

"I'm dead, Shanaynay. I'm getting fired," I whisper.

"What?"

"We got in a disagreement earlier today and he's allergic to caffeine and when he wasn't looking I switched his tea and—"

"Wait, what are you saying to me?" Shannon cuts me off. "Slow down."

I sigh. "He said he was allergic to caffeine. He purposely took the last of the creamer upstairs. I switched the tea he had to caffeinated tea out of spite. He knows I did it. I'm dead," I explain. Shannon gives me the most condescending look ever.

"Are you stupid? Zeke!" Shannon makes sure nobody's around. "You could've killed him if it were severe enough."

"I know," I whine. Through the window, I can see Gabriel laughing with the ladies in sales. "If I'm not here tomorrow, you can have that paperweight you like. Tell Grayson he can have the rug under my computer chair."

----------

I check out later than everyone else, making sure I don't bump into Gabriel on my way out. What a mess.

The elevator door opens, and I jump when a face stares back at me. It's Jiao, Gabriel's secretary. No sign of Gabriel. She greets me with a small nod. I step inside cautiously.

"How was your day?" she asks.

"Fine, and yours?" I reply quickly.

"Eventful," she sighs with a chuckle. Then she looks me right in the eye. "It's not everyday someone pulls a fast one on Gabriel. It took a while to calm him down."

I swallow hard. "Well, I hope he's okay," I say, my voice tight.

"I hope you're okay," Jiao says quietly with a knowing look in her eye. Then the elevator arrives at the bottom floor, and she gets out. I cautiously stride to my car, looking around—I don't know why I'm so scared but I am—and then I stop short.

On three sides of my car, there's mountains of snow. Probably four feet tall and two or three feet thick on each side. A fucking barricade. Even if I wanted to just ram into the snow behind my car, it's going to take half an hour to clear it enough to get inside my driver's seat. My doors are probably frozen shut. Fuck me.

As soon as I drop my briefcase in shock, Gabriel walks out of the building on cue. He takes one look at my car and smiles to himself. He must've set this up. Had to. "Have a good night, Zeke," he calls before heading off to his car.

It takes me an hour and a half to clear away the snow and get my car started.

----------

ST. PATRICK'S DAY

I haven't told Shannon about what Gabriel did, and I think she forgot about what I told her a couple days ago. All I know is I've shamefully hid my face from him, and haven't gone upstairs for coffee in a while. And that's fine with me. What Gabriel did really soured my week (I asked around; turns out our snowplowing guy got a $150 tip the night a fort was built around my car), so not surprisingly, I haven't been in the best mood.

So far, I've had about six women tell me how good I look, Grayson tried to discreetly stare at me from across the room, and I haven't taken my Adderall. It's not often I wear a nice suit, or a suit at all, really. I'm a vest kind of guy.

Everyone looks just about as nice as you can for a St. Patrick's Day get-together. I don't plan on staying long. It's been an hour, and everyone has either gone around the room introducing themselves to the people they don't know, or kissing Gabriel's ass. I don't know if it's because they find his 6'5" build scary or because he looks like the cover model for a men's magazine.

And I can't believe I just thought that.

Maybe it's a good thing I haven't taken any medication, because the arrangement of alcohol looks enticing. I didn't drink a lot in college, but when I did, I certainly had fun. Some of the wildest sex I've had was when I hardly had control over my own body.

I start gentle, sipping on a glass of champagne and making small talk with a few people. I'm not planning on sucking Gabriel's dick or calling a truce. It's not like he has a huge say in the deciding process. He's only one guy.

Recently, I had a big hand in putting together a thirty second commercial for OrtegaTech's online store, and it's being presented in a few minutes. Everyone is gathered around the area by the large flat screen. I've seen this commercial over two hundred times. When nobody's watching, I grab a bottle of champagne from under the table and head upstairs to the coffee room. Nobody's going to be there.

I don't know how long it's been, but the bottle is empty and I've taken my shoes off like a college girl. Apparently, I decided I didn't need to see along the way, because my glasses are on the table next to me. I can't decide if this is fun or not, but I feel great.

The larger part of me contemplates going downstairs to see if I can be sneaky enough to grab another bottle. Maybe Grayson could bring me something. God, he'd love to see me, wouldn't he? Grayson's nice and... he's hot.

Damn, Grayson's fucking hot, isn't he? I don't know what's wrong with Sober Zeke but Grayson would probably let me ride him into next week.

I loosen up my green tie thinking about how much fun I would've had if Grayson held me up against my refrigerator and pounded my tight asshole until—

"What are you doing?" I hear from my angle. That's when I realize I'm sitting on the floor. "Ezekiel?"

Gabriel closes the door gently behind him. He's trying to be sneaky. He has a bottle of champagne in his hand and he's tucked it behind his leg.

"Caught you," I say. My voice sounds odd. It's too low and full. Gabriel sounds and looks as he regularly does. He's just a mass of... man. He's a mass of masculinity and sophistication and I hate him. I hate him so much.

"No, I definitely think that's the other way around," he says, setting the bottle on the counter.

"You have a—" I grunt while I stand up, "whole bottle of champagne there, buddy. I think I caught you." I put my glasses on and straighten up a little. "So let me just forget I saw your stupid face and go do the do."

Gabriel smirks, walking over to me with a knowing look. He looks under the table to find my own very empty bottle of alcohol and throws me the smuggest smile I've ever seen. "If you don't tell, I won't tell," he says, looking down on me like he—

like he owns my ass.

Fuck him. Really? Out of all the things he has done and all that douchebaggery and-and his superiority complex—he does NOT get to turn me on like this. No way. And it's not like I can let him know that. Shannon doesn't know that I'm gay and Gabriel doesn't get to know either. So he can add that to the list of things he can tease me about? Over my dead body.

I'd have to be sick and dying to let his name come out of my mouth.

"I only work with bribes," I say. Well, that was NOT what I was thinking. Way to give yourself away, Zeke.

"Oh?" Gabriel says in this ridiculous condescending tone—God, I'm practically shaking and then my mind goes straight to the fucking gutter.

That fantasy I had over a week ago...

"Tell me to be quiet," I say quickly. Gabriel looks confused yet intrigued, and he invades my space even more. "I'm drunk a-and I want to have sex with you and I think my best bet is to just shut my big mouth before I end up saying more dumb things."

"Like 'you want to have sex with me'? Dumb things like that?" Gabriel says with a laugh. I shove past him on a beeline to the door, but then have to make a U turn to grab my shoes.

Oh, fuck it.

I yank Gabriel down by his tie to kiss him. He's caught by surprise, but adjusts quickly. Is he gay? Who knows? Do I care? No.

Gabriel softens up instantly, grabbing the small of my waist and pulling me into him. He tastes the inside of my mouth, exhaling through his nose. Then he pulls away. "Are you fuckin' serious?" he snaps, looking around.

"Pretty damn serious," I reply. Gabriel is doing some heavy self-contemplation before I clear my throat to get his attention.

"I don't want trouble," he says softly.

"Neither do I," I reply. Gabriel leans down and licks my lips before pushing his tongue in my mouth. He's an excellent kisser, and had I thought about it before, with his large lips, I probably wouldn't moan as loudly as I just did. The kiss is practically orgasmic, I don't know if it's because I'm drunk or desperate. Probably both.

Gabriel shoves me against the wall before I realize what's happening. Fuck, he's so fucking tall and big—I wrap my arms around his neck and suck on his tongue before I feel his hands on my ass. I can feel his cock bulge against my groin, which just gets me more excited. I wonder how big his dick is.

We're grinding on each other as if nobody could walk through the door at any minute. Gabriel fucks his tongue in and out of my mouth while I unbutton his suit jacket, and he does the same with mine. It's been a good five minutes of tonguing and grinding. Gabriel hasn't let me move unless he's moved me, and my submissive side really plays it up when I'm buzzed.

My cock practically hurts with the strain against my pants. Gabriel sits down and drags me onto his lap. I sit, straddled, and he puts his big hands on my waist, grinding my ass onto his strong thighs. I unbutton his shirt; just as I thought, his chest has a little bit of hair scattered, and the scarce light in the room reflects the sweat off of his defined abs.

He's not chiseled or bulky, just strong and built as hell.

He kisses on my neck fiercely, and I grab the bulge of his cock. Holy shit is he packing something huge. I squeeze, sizing him up. My nerves kick in. Gabriel has some serious dick. All at once in a harsh whisper he says, "Suck me off."

"Planning on it," I breathe. Immediately, I get on my knees in front of the chair, and this time I don't hesitate. I unbutton his slacks to see what I'm in for. As I let his cock out of his briefs, Gabriel groans the tiniest bit. I've seen big before, but Gabriel has taken it to the next level. Maybe it's the alcohol talking but from what I can see, he's bigger than the dildo I have in my bathroom. Thick and long—it's like a dream.

There's a beautiful curve in his cock, starting at the base of the thick girth. Like hard granite, it sticks up at me majestically and tauntingly. Challenging me. Gabriel himself looks carved from stone like a Greek statue, and his leaking member just tops it all off. Smooth and dark and cut, the head stares at me and I almost moan, just at the sight. The feel of my hot breath on the skin makes his cock twitch as if it has a mind of its own.

I stroke him slowly, wondering how to approach the task at hand. I kiss up the side of the shaft and rub my thumb along the tip. There's already a buildup of pre-cum on the head. My own dick pulses in my pants, but I'm waiting.

My tongue swirls along the dark head of his cock before I take about three inches in, just getting the feel and taste of him. I can feel his pulse beat in my mouth, and I end up moaning around the thickness. I suck slowly but dramatically, relishing the feel of his member.

When I start bobbing my head back and forth, Gabriel runs his fingers through my hair, subtly encouraging me to take more of him in my mouth, down my throat. I cough the tiniest bit and Gabriel pulls me off. "I'm fine," I gasp, then I take over half of him in my mouth. I finally take my own cock out and begin stroking quickly in the rhythm of my bobbing head. I get a good grip on the base of his dick and lick along the side. If I were him, with this thick, 9" cock, I'd probably hold myself up all high and mighty too.

I squeeze his balls gently before I find my tongue trailing along his cock, down to his full sack. There's light and reasonable hair covering it, but it makes no difference to me. I take each hard nut into my mouth, alternating back and forth with hard sucks that make Gabriel groan and entangle his fingers deeper into my hair.

Before long, I'm just squeezing his sack. I forgot how much fun sucking cock was. Feeling each curve and bump and vein slide along my tongue--perfect. I want to get my nose into that perfect patch of dark hair at the base of his tool that fades marvelously into his dick. I want this dick to completely control my mouth. I think Gabriel gets what I'm hinting at.

"All the way," he says, voice low. His fingers are gentle in my hair. I nod once and begin to slowly take him into my mouth. My eyes flutter shut as I take him in, inch by inch, trying to use the excess saliva for easier access. It's so thick, I can barely do anything else with my mouth. I cough once he hits the back of my throat. I still have two inches left. I can't do it.

I pull off completely, gasping for air. "I can't," I breathe.