The piece of paper remained in his wallet for the next couple of weeks. Kieran had taken to pulling it out to stare at it, before finally grumbling to himself and shoving it back out of sight. It hadn’t taken Martin very long to make the arrangements, and it was up to Kieran to make the final plans. He knew he needed to just get it over with and make the call.

He wasn’t the sort to ask for help, and he died a little inside every time he thought about having to dial the number. Kieran didn’t want to have to admit he might need help that he couldn’t simply attain himself, through some old fashioned hard work and determination. He wanted to believe it was being done with his best interest in mind, but he didn’t appreciate being bullied into it.

“Not like you would have done it by yourself,” he grumbled as he stared at the piece of paper on his desk.

As if on cue, the firm’s front receptionist popped his head through the open door of his office. “Talking to yourself again, Killer?”

Kieran glared at him. “Dane, you know how I feel about that.”

“What? ‘Killer Kieran’ just doesn’t fill you with a tingly feeling of joy?” Dane asked, wiggling his pale brows in amusement.

Kieran rolled his eyes. “It’s, by far, the most unoriginal and asinine nickname I’ve ever heard in my life. You’d think with all the college degrees floating around in this field, there would be at least a measure of creativity, but no.”

Dane laughed. “I’ve worked for lawyers since I was almost nineteen years old. Trust me, you’re lucky you got a catchy nickname at all.”

“It’s not a compliment, coming from them,” Kieran said shortly.

“In this office, not much of what people say about one another is meant as a compliment,” Dane said as he inched further into the office, the smell of his cologne drifting across the room to Kieran’s nose.

Kieran arched a brow. “So why do you say it?”

Dane shrugged. “I mean it as a compliment.”

Kieran scoffed. “They call me that so anyone who hears it thinks I’m a ruthless prick.”

“Eh, you do your job with, uh, quiet efficiency,” Dane said.

Kieran rolled his eyes. “That’s a nice way of saying they’re right.”

Dane sat on the edge of the desk with a sigh. “Oh c’mon. You’re going to tell me you aren’t a little vicious at it? You approach your job like you’re going into battle, and there haven’t been too many people who can stand against you when you start railing at them.”

Kieran knew he wasn’t wrong, but it bothered him to hear it from Dane. The receptionist was the only person in the whole firm, save for his bosses, who seemed to even slightly like him. It was the age-old story for Kieran, having grown up being avoided by most people around him. People tended to find him too brusque, or too intense. He thought it was ironic that despite having become a lawyer, he was often disliked for his brutal honesty. His ambition and determination had brought him a lot of success in his career, but it hadn’t done much for his social life.

Dane smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry. I don’t think you’re a dick. I just think you want to win sometimes is all.”

“I think you called me ‘really intense’ before,” Kieran said.

Dane laughed. “Was that before or after we slept together?”

Kieran’s eyes darted to the open door before returning to Dane. “Say it a little louder, please. I don’t think the people in the next building heard you.”

Dane snorted, looking at his phone. “This place has been almost completely empty for about an hour now, bud. You always stay later than everyone else.”

“Except you, apparently,” Kieran noted.

“Except me. There’s no one around to hear what we’re up to,” Dane said suggestively.

Kieran was sure the next sentence from Dane’s mouth would involve an offer of another tryst. Kieran had always had a healthy sex drive, one he’d come to learn was higher than average. Despite his difficulty relating to others on a social level, he’d never had much trouble attracting people who were looking for something sexual from him. In one way, Dane was the exception to that expectation. The man genuinely seemed to enjoy being around Kieran, while also wanting to sleep with him.

It had been their shared habit of staying late at the office that started it all. Kieran hadn’t been blind, and hadn’t failed to notice that the young man was eye-catching. Dane looked after himself, and his carefully mussed, blond hair made him look boyish but charming. He was Kieran’s opposite in many ways, with light skin and hair in contrast to Kieran’s black hair and tanned skin. The only similarity they shared was that they both had blue eyes, Dane’s dark to Kieran’s light. Even their body shapes differed, with Dane preferring to keep his smaller frame sleek, while Kieran’s was broad and tough. His size did nothing to endear Kieran to people who already found him intimidating, but it certainly helped when people like Dane considered their size difference arousing.

“You know, they’re bound to put cameras up in this place eventually,” Kieran told him before Dane could come out with some kind of innuendo.

Dane glanced around. “What, in your office? Or is that your way of telling me you plan on recording us some time?”

Kieran snorted, trying not to laugh. “I would be a really shitty lawyer if I willingly took video evidence of us doing something we definitely should not be doing.”

“It’s not illegal,” Dane offered.

“And yet, sleeping with a co-worker is definitely covered in the rules of the firm,” Kieran said tightly.

Neither of them bothered to pretend their sexual relationship was allowed. The difference was, although breaking the rules was a source of arousal for them both, it bothered Kieran, while Dane didn’t seem to mind in the slightest. Kieran didn’t mind bending a rule to serve his own purpose, or even breaking one, if it was called for, but here he was breaking a rule at his dream job for the sake of sex. It wasn’t like he was risking everything for the sake of someone he cared about or wanted to spend his life with, and yet he couldn’t help but give in to his own desires whenever Dane was being particularly persuasive.

“You having another fit of conscience?” Dane asked.

Kieran snorted. “I’m a lawyer; in law school, we learn to leave our conscience at home.”

“I’ve told you: anytime you’ve had enough, I’m more than willing to stop,” Dane reminded him.

Kieran knew that, and he appreciated it. There’d been times he’d been tempted to stop everything, though not necessarily out of fear of being fired. They were more than careful, save for the occasional bout of sex in the office that was both thrilling and terrifying for Kieran. It was more that Dane was the only person in his professional life Kieran felt he could rely on. They weren’t friends outside work, since Kieran’s own busy schedule kept him from having a social life and they both seemed to prefer to keep everything within the workplace, except for the sex. Kieran just didn’t want the situation getting too complicated, and risk losing Dane, who had the sole title of being the only person at work he liked and who liked him in return.

Kieran leaned back in his seat, puffing out a breath of air. “I know. I’m not trying to be difficult.”

Dane snickered. “No, you’re just naturally good at it.”

Kieran glared at him. “Did you come in here just to give me a hard time and see if I’d fuck you?”

Dane’s brow raised a little. “Wow, you’re cranky today. Something up?”

Kieran ignored the innuendo but couldn’t help looking at the slip of paper sitting on his desk. “It’s…nothing.”

Dane glanced over at the paper, then snatched it up before Kieran could stop him. “What’s this number for? Oh God, did you finally get a date?”

Kieran reached for the paper in annoyance. “Give me that! Stop snatching things away from me; you know I hate that.”

Dane pulled the slip of paper away, leaning back so Kieran couldn’t grab hold of him. “So, it is a date then.”

“No, it’s not a date,” Kieran huffed as he stood up.

Dane hopped off the desk to inch further away. “Then what is it?”

“It’s personal,” Kieran told him.

“Too personal to tell me? Would this have something to do with the fact that the big guys upstairs were talking about you taking time off?” Dane asked innocently.

Kieran’s eyes narrowed, now he knew why Dane had come up to his office in the first place. “You little sneak! You came up here to listen to gossip?”

“Can you blame me? You’ve worked here for a year and have never taken a sick day, let alone even talked about taking time off. You’re here before everyone else, and leave when everyone’s long gone. So yeah, I’ll admit I was more than a little curious about why you might suddenly decide to take time off,” Dane said.

Kieran was close enough to snatch the paper from him. “It’s not voluntary.”

Dane watched him carefully. “Ouch. Forced? That’s not good, is it?”

Kieran rounded the desk to sit down once more. “It’s fine. They’re just…concerned.”

“About?” Dane asked as he resumed sitting on the edge of Kieran’s desk.

“They’re concerned I’m working too hard and they’ve been trying to find ways to relieve the stress they think I’m under,” Kieran told him with a frown.

“You gonna tell me you’re not stressed?” Dane asked.

Kieran shrugged, “Perhaps, but it’s nothing I can’t handle. Everyone seems so concerned about my health, when as you said, I am the only one who hasn’t called in sick in the past year.”

“Which is exactly why I said I thought it was interesting you were considering taking time off. Though, I mean, it sounded like kind of a big deal to the guys upstairs, because they were talking really quietly about it,” Dane told him.

Kieran rubbed his forehead. “Don’t you have, I don’t know, receptionist things to be doing rather than eavesdropping on everyone else’s conversations?”

“You only complain when I hear stuff about you,” Dane teased.

Kieran shook his head. “And when you come to me about who’s possibly dating who, as if I even care.”

Dane cocked his head. “You’re trying to change the subject, and you’re being pretty obvious about it.”

Kieran grimaced. “I already told you: they’re worried about my health. Unnecessarily at that, I thrive under pressure, and I don’t break. Unlike some.”

Dane rolled his eyes. “Your overbearing ego aside, are you telling me they’re forcing you to go on vacation?”

“I wouldn’t say forced, but it’s certainly been very strongly hinted that I should. And it’s not a vacation. A vacation is at least somewhere you might enjoy yourself. They’re apparently sending me on a…retreat,” Kieran said, spitting the last word out as if it were a curse.

Dane’s lips twisted in what appeared to be pain. “Oof, last guy I knew who got sent on a retreat never came back.”

Kieran peered at him in disbelief. “Thank you, Dane. That makes me feel considerably better.”

“I didn’t mean you were going to be like that, I just meant it’s not usually…a good sign is all,” Dane said.

“I’m aware it’s not a good sign. I was aware of that back when they advised me to go to this…New Age hippie guru in the first place,” Kieran said with distaste.

Dane snickered. “They sent you to a meditation place?”

“I say New Age and you automatically think I mean meditation,” Kieran said.

“Well, unless you were going for like, oils or something, then yeah, that’s about the only thing I can think of. I’ve got a cousin who swears by essential oils and meditation. Personally, I think the oils are a bit much, and I don’t think I could sit still long enough to meditate either,” Dane said with a shrug.

Kieran motioned with the piece of paper. “Well, apparently I’m not a whole lot better. I’ve been seeing the guy for weeks and nothing’s happened except I end up leaving the place frustrated.”

“Hey, I like you frustrated,” Dane said with a wiggle of his brows.

Kieran shook his head at him. “Maybe you do, but no one else seems to like it. I just don’t understand. I’ve been doing my job the best I can. I worked my ass off to even get in here, let alone how much I’ve done since I arrived. Why the hell should it matter if I’m putting a lot of stress on myself? I’m a big boy; I can handle it.”

“Yeah, you’re big alright,” Dane said with a cocky grin.

“Dane, please,” Kieran sighed, even as his mind wandered toward being tempted by the offer.

Dane nodded. “Alright, alright, I’ll behave. Look, the big guys want you to go, right?”

“Well, it’s more like the guy they sent me to wants me to go, so I guess they’re up for it. Apparently it’s a case of whatever it takes for me to learn how to be calmer. Which is the most asinine thing I’ve ever heard when it comes to being a lawyer, but don’t tell them I said that,” Kieran warned with a jab of his finger.

Dane held up his hand. “I promise I won’t breathe a word of what we’ve talked about. I might be a dirty gossip collector, but I don’t go spreading rumors. Now, do you want my opinion on this?”

“You’re actually asking if someone wants your opinion instead of just giving it?” Kieran asked in disbelief.

Dane frowned at him. “I am capable of knowing when to keep my mouth shut. You’re Mr. Independent, and don’t like to be told what to do with your life.”

“Never stopped you from telling me what I should or shouldn’t do before,” Kieran said.

Dane shook his head. “Yeah, when it came to your terrible sleeping habits, or the fact that you drink more coffee than I think is safe. Those aren’t the same thing as telling you what I think you should do about a serious life choice.”

Kieran was honestly impressed with Dane’s logic, and it occurred to him the man ought to move up from being a receptionist. They weren’t exactly what he would call friends, but he’d never really had many to begin with, if at all. Dane might have made light of Kieran’s independent nature, but it was as much a product of being left to his own devices as it was Kieran’s own natural inclination. Kieran wasn’t opposed to hearing other people’s opinions, but he would’ve liked to actually want to hear them in the first place. That Dane was even asking for permission said plenty about how much he’d paid attention to Kieran in the past year.

Kieran waved at him wearily. “Alright, what’s your opinion?”

Dane nodded. “I think you should go. Now, don’t give me that look. Just let me explain. I know I said the last guy who went to a retreat never came back, but I’ll be honest and admit the guy was already having breakdowns. I don’t know what happened to him, but I’ve not heard his name mentioned by a lawyer since, so I’m pretty sure he retired. I’m guessing the bosses don’t want to see that happen to you, and they’re sending you off to learn some coping mechanisms or something that doesn’t involve ‘more work’ or whatever.”

“It’s worked just fine for years,” Kieran grumbled.

Dane wagged his finger at him. “Don’t interrupt. And yes, it’s worked just fine, but that’s only for now. What happens when it stops working ‘just fine’ for you? You’re not going to have anything to fall back on to help you. No one’s invincible, Kieran, and everyone has their breaking point. Eventually, you’re going to be hit with too much of some kind of stress you can’t cope with, and the way you are now? You’re not going to have anything to back you up and make it easier to deal with.”

Kieran played with the paper between his fingers. “And you think they’ll be able to help with that?”

Dane shrugged. “I don’t even know who ‘they’ are. All I know is, the guy the bosses sent you to seems to think that whoever you’re supposed to call will be able to help. Maybe they will, maybe they won’t, but it’s not gonna look good if you don’t go, right?”

“It just feels like I’m being punished,” Kieran admitted.

“The way I see it, if they were trying to punish you or be rid of you, they’d just let you burn out. They’d milk you for everything you were worth, then when you finally met something you couldn’t deal with anymore, they’d toss you out without batting an eye. You’re at your best right now, and it sounds like they’re trying to make sure you stay that way. That’s a good thing,” Dane said.

Kieran hadn’t thought of it like that and he sighed, giving the paper another shake before dropping it on his desk. He most definitely did not want to make the call to the retreat, and he intensely disliked having his personal affairs being dictated by other people like they were. Dane was making excellent points, and Kieran couldn’t help but bow to the persuasive argument. It didn’t stop him from hating it though, and he gave an angry snort.

“You’ll call them?” Dane asked after watching Kieran for a moment.

Kieran sighed, reaching out to turn his computer screen off in disgust. “Yes, I’ll call them. It’s obvious no one is going to take into account what I want, just what they think I need. If I want to keep my job, I have to take the risk and hope this is meant to be a good thing. I’ll call the damned place in the morning and set up time off after that.”

Dane grinned, hopping down off the desk. “Good, I think it’ll be a good thing.”

Kieran readjusted his tie in annoyance. “I just hope you’re right.”

Dane appraised him for a moment, a playful smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth, “How about I help make it easier?”

Kieran finally allowed himself to shift away from his dark thoughts at the man’s suggestive tone. “Oh? And how do you intend to do that?”

Dane cocked his head. “I’m sure I can think of something, that is, if you’re up for a little bit of our personal brand of stress relief.”

Kieran smirked. “I’m sure I can manage, if you rinse some of that god-awful cologne off first.”

Dane laughed. “Yes, yes Mr. Sensitive, now, come along.”

Kieran pulled his tie loose as he got up to follow a grinning Dane. He wasn’t happy at all about what was coming his way, but he would be damned if he missed an opportunity for a bit of no-thoughts-required sex.

Dane took charge pulling Kieran toward the break room, but Kieran had other ideas. “Just who is the boss around here?”

Dane turned and looked up at him with a small smirk on his lips. “Oh, you are, boss man. Definitely you.”

Kieran saw his opportunity and swung Dane around suddenly pinning him up against the doorframe. He quickly claimed the receptionist’s mouth, immediately seeking entry with his tongue, which Dane willingly granted with a moan. Their tongues tangled forcefully for a moment, before Kieran pulled back just an inch.

“How quickly can you come? I’ve got arrangements to make,” Kieran asked, laughing as he fumbled with Dane’s zipper.

“Let’s see who gets off first,” Dane quipped back, knocking Kieran’s hands aside, undoing his zip and dropping his pants to the floor. Not before he fished a travel size sachet of lube and a condom from his pants pocket and handed both to Kieran.

Kieran wasted no time divesting himself of his own pants while freeing Dane’s cock from his tight boxers. He pressed himself up against Dane feeling the man’s length against his own and moving his hips in an almost desperate need to speed things up and get some much needed friction.

“Not quick enough!” Kieran panted, pulling back from Dane and spinning him around so his hands had to steady himself on the nearest piece of furniture. Dane suddenly found himself leaning face first over a formica table, ass in the air. He wiggled his hips suggestively, looking back at Kieran and winking.

“Bring it on boss,” he quipped.

Kieran didn’t need to be told twice. Tearing the lube open he spread a good sized dollop on his fingers and proceeded to open up Dane’s ass. He wasn’t gentle, but the noises Dane was making indicated the man clearly didn’t mind.

Kieran’s patience was running thin; he couldn’t wait any longer. He removed his fingers, noting the soft moan that escaped Dane’s lips, and replaced them with the head of his now sheathed cock.

“You ready? This is going to be fast and furious, so you might want to brace your hands on the table,” Kieran whispered in Dane’s ear.

“Don’t hold back because of me, boss,” Dane tightened his hands on the table edge and shoved his ass back toward Kieran’s waiting cock.

Kieran pushed in with one smooth movement and waited for Dane’s muscles to relax.

“I’m fine. Just go for it, please,” Dane pleaded as he tried to move despite his chest being pinned to the table top.

Kieran grinned and pulled back briefly, then thrust back in. He set a vigorous pace, quickly working Dane into a frenzy as he pegged his sweet spot, time and again.

Dane was a vocal lover, and Kieran briefly wondered if they could be heard outside on the street. He chuckled at the thought, knowing it was impossible. Instead, he concentrated on the increasing volume of Dane’s cries and moans, and the sound made his cock swell even more as he continued to pound into Dane.

“I’m...Oh! Geez...I’m gonna cum…” Dane’s voice trailed off as he reached for his own cock giving it a few light tugs.

“Ugh...Do it,” Kieran closed his eyes and felt Dane tighten around him, his body jumping slightly as he came hard spilling onto the table top.

Kieran followed within seconds, giving one final thrust as he came deep within Dane’s hot channel.

“Damn,” Kieran said as he slumped over Dane’s back, checking his watch. “That’s gotta be a record.”

As Kieran pulled out of Dane and disposed of the condom in the trash, he was suddenly hit by a thought: this was last time he and Dane would fuck.

“Where did that idea come from?” Kieran whispered.

“Where did what come from?” Dane said, pulling up his pants and smiling broadly.

“Doesn’t matter,” Kieran said wistfully as he made himself presentable.

The two men cleaned up the break room and checked everything was in order, then walked together in silence down to the lobby.

“Catch you tomorrow, and thanks for the ride!” Dane commented back over his shoulder, smiling broadly as he left the building with a skip in his step.

“Sure thing,” Kieran looked after Dane, a strange feeling seated in his stomach. He shook his head to clear the odd feeling and left the building without glancing back.