I stepped into Jamie’s private jet for our flight to London, and that was not a sentence I ever imagined would go through my head in my lifetime. But as soon as I was on board, as much as I hated to admit it, I was glad it did.

Jamie walked in ahead of me, so everything I saw included him in the foreground, which made it all the more enjoyable to look at. In the same way he wore a suit well so effortlessly, he had a way of making the opulent luxury around him look a hell of a lot better.

The jet looked small from the outside, but the interior was as spacious as an ordinary office. It featured two main sections in the cabin, plus a bedroom beyond. The first section was a proper lounge, complete with a couch spanning the entire right wall with a sleek table in front of it and a large screen opposite it and what looked like a fully stocked bar next to that. There was even a stewardess standing at the bar, and the look she was giving me told me that yes, she was indeed there to play bartender.

The second section further toward the back was a conference room. A huge table took up most of the space, with comfortable chairs all around it and a smaller, self-serve bar adjacent to it. The conference room also included a gilded table that looked like it was perfect for serving hors d’oeuvres or even proper meals, if fewer passengers were on board. Beyond the second section, I could see a bedroom.

The interior design only highlighted the staggering wealth of the jet. Its carpet, walls, and ceiling were all shades of gold or near-white. The white light from the ceiling beautifully accented the heavenly glow, and there was a red rug in each section of the cabin that contrasted with the light, clean colors.

“So, is this yours, or are you just borrowing it from the Emir of Qatar?” I asked, scratching my chin as we finished walking the length of it. Jamie laughed, a little embarrassed, as I expected.

It was funny. We hadn’t known each other that long, but I was already starting to get a sense for how he would react to my ribbing.

Something in me enjoyed watching him squirm.

“It’s mine, I hate to say. I probably don’t have to tell you at this point that I’ve had the best engineers I can scrounge up make it the greenest plane in the sky. You should have been here for some of the conference talks,” he added, grinning. “It’s almost enough to make me wish I was in aerospace engineering because there are some really exciting things happening there.”

“Uh-huh,” I grunted, taking out a bottle of what I was pretty sure was Scotch whiskey dated from 1901 from the secondary bar.

Jamie bit his lip.

“Yeah, I know, it’s a lot, but I have to deal with business associates who aren’t from the same background as me. They have...expectations,” he said, looking over my shoulder at the bottle I was holding. “And good taste,” he added in a murmur.

“No judgment, honestly,” I said, chuckling. “I just don’t know how you can even stand to work, when you have all this at your fingertips.”

“What do you mean?” he asked, genuinely confused.

I stared at him a moment. Could it be possible that he legitimately hadn’t considered that he could just rest on his laurels and live a life of luxury for the rest of his days with all the money he had?

“I mean, if I were you,” I said, putting my hands on my hips and peering out the window, “I’d just take all this and sail away into the background. Put a few people I trust in charge of the business side of things I started, then fuck off to somewhere I don’t have to think about it. Never having to deal with those greedy sons of bitches again, you know?”

I looked over at him as I finished, and he was leaning thoughtfully against the back of one of the chairs at the conference table.

“I suppose I can see the appeal,” he lied. “It just doesn’t feel responsible.”

“You’d think ‘responsible’ is relative when you’ve got a private jet,” I pointed out. “Besides, can you honestly tell me a single one of the people you entertain in here care about anything but growing the little piles of money they’re sitting on?”

“Not really,” he admitted, “but I’m not doing it for them. Most people are just trying to get by, and most of them are good. I don’t think it should be that radical of an idea that they deserve help.”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought back when I joined the force, too,” I said.

Jamie frowned.

“If there’s one thing this money has taught me, it’s that treating people like you care about them makes a big difference in how they turn out, in day-to-day life,” he said, a little less casually. “Not to get too philosophical on you, but I’ve always believed people are more good than bad, even after coming into the ritzy lifestyle.”

“Does that include Barry?” I asked, deciding to punch a little higher.

Jamie peered at me for a few long moments, then smiled softly.

“I think so, but I’ll let you decide that for yourself,” he said.

Hours later, we had landed in London and were in short order making our way across the lobby of the kind of hotel that looked like it had been the cream of the crop all the way back to the Victorian era. The very wood of the walls smelled old, and I noticed the staff around us moving like clockwork, too fluid for it all to be anything less than perfection.

“I think this makes up for Heathrow sucking some of my soul out,” I admitted as we walked the hallway with practically a train of attendants.

“This place has its charm,” Jamie agreed, smiling broadly at the pre-Raphaelite art hanging on the walls. “I wouldn’t stay anywhere else in the country, except maybe Edinburgh. Just don’t tell anyone here I said that,” he added with a wink.

As we walked, we passed another couple of guests who were heading in the opposite direction. I caught a hint of what they were whispering to each other. It was a skill I’d developed over the years that I couldn’t turn off.

“Does he really need a cadre of servants like that?”

“Shh, that’s the bloody owner.”

“That’s-?!”

“Yes, Harold! Don’t you watch the news?”

Unsurprisingly, Jamie hadn’t seemed to hear. I didn’t realize he owned the place. Was there anything he didn’t have a hand in? I glanced over at him as we walked, finding myself appreciating his stride. It was confident; he was a man who knew what he was about and what he liked. But there was no swagger to him. I could think of a few dozen men who, given this kind of power, would be strutting around like peacocks and looking down at anything that moved.

Jamie wasn’t like that. He was proving that to me enough times that it was getting harder to write it off as an exception.

After a smooth ride up the elevator, we entered the penthouse suite, and I watched Jamie’s staff start getting settled like it was all rehearsed. In a matter of minutes, they had clothes put away as if he’d been living there for months and a laptop workstation set up just as professionally.

“So, the rest of the staff usually hits the hotel’s restaurant for dinner while we’re here,” Jamie said as we watched everything unfold. “But the chef I like is on paternity leave, so I’m going to be ordering takeout from this amazing Indian place not far from here, if you want in. Oh, that reminds me,” he said as he watched some of his suits getting hung up. “Do you have a tux?”

“Uh...no,” I said, looking down at my utilitarian outfit.

“Hey, Scott?” Jamie asked one of his assistants, who looked up immediately. “Can you get in touch with the concierge and have a tailor sent up here? We’re going to need a tux for Damon ASAP.”

“Yes, sir,” Scott said before I could protest.

The tailor arrived in less than an hour. Jamie’s name and money made things move a lot faster, I noticed. Within minutes, he had everyone, including Jamie, cleared out of my room in the suite. In short order, I stripped down to my boxers and was having a complete British stranger measure my waist, saying little. That part was fine by me, but it didn’t help the fact that this day was moving so fast that it made me dizzy.

There was a sharp knock at the door, and before either the tailor or I could say anything, Jamie cracked it open and stuck his head in.

“Sorry! Just wanted to add really quick that I’d like to get him in a classic tuxedo, so make sure to –”

He stopped as those green eyes locked onto me. More specifically, they found my body, and the once-over he gave me was more obvious than the cherry-red blush on his face. “Oh, um. Oh. Sorry! That’s all I wanted to say. Excuse me.”

He slipped back and shut the door, and while the tailor just rolled his eyes, I was embarrassed to realize my own face was red. I couldn’t have been more relieved when he moved around to my back to start measuring my shoulders.

Because my cock was swollen twice its normal size.

I must have just been tense. It had been a while since I’d had any alone time, but damned if my impulse hadn’t been to suggest the tailor get lost and Jamie take over, since he clearly knew what he was doing. He might even know his way around my body. My face grew redder, and my cock grew thicker, so I started forcing myself to think about ceiling fans and traffic lights to get my excitement to stop swelling up.

“All done here,” the tailor said, rolling up his tape and giving me a curt nod. “I’ll have something ready for you before tomorrow evening.”

“Perfect,” I said. “If there’s anything else you need done, I’d appreciate it if you just square up with one of Jamie’s assistants. I’ve got a headache,” I lied, pulling my clothes on and excusing myself to my room.

I had to clear my head. I had to run a billionaire’s security tomorrow evening, and I was nowhere near in the right mindset to work like a rational man.

The expo was the next evening, and I had to admit, it felt good to be back in the saddle, so to speak. I hadn’t run security at a big event like this in a while, and never one of this caliber.

I walked in with Jamie to the greeting of real spectacle. Whoever was organizing the expo had set up a series of metal sculptures to be set up down the entrance, complete with lighting that gave them a feeling of both wonder and abstract creativity. In short, I felt like I was walking into a science fiction movie. All I was waiting on was for some supervillain with a death ray to burst in and steal some radium or something.

I couldn’t remember the last time I’d worn a tuxedo, either, if I ever had. I had to admit, it felt nice, albeit not quite as easy to move in as I’d like. But Jamie had insisted that no bodyguard of his was going to show up to a function like this wearing a black turtleneck and the kinds of pants with more than four pockets, so I decided tonight would be an exercise in form over function.

“I take it you know half the people in here?” I asked Jamie as we walked down the red carpet at the entrance, and people already started trying to flag him down to talk to him.

But Jamie just kept moving, and I picked up on the cues to block the line of sight between him and the people vying for his attention. I found myself not minding that part of the job.

“Try three quarters of them,” he said with a smile as he gave passing waves to a few of them. “These are my people, love ‘em or hate ‘em.”

“They don’t look like anyone I’d want to talk to,” I said bluntly, and Jamie chuckled.

“That’s why I’m doing the talking tonight,” he said. “Come on, let’s head to the bar.”

“I have to say, this feels a lot more like a convention than anything else,” I said as we walked past a few different rooms where inventors were unveiling the next developments that were going to shape the future of our planet. “I was picturing something more like a college lecture, but bigger.”

“A STEM expo is honestly just a convention with more money moving around and more military contractors haunting the venue,” Jamie said in a low tone, smirking. “But you didn’t hear that from me.”

That actually made me feel a little more relaxed, and I allowed myself a smile. But then we reached a wide, circular area that was clearly meant for mingling. It was between a lot of the side rooms that were devoted to the actual presentations. There was an open bar, and live music was filling the room with a jazzy, relaxed feeling.

I liked it, until I saw Jamie wave at someone at the far end of the room.

My face fell. I recognized him from his dossier immediately.

It was Bradley, Jamie’s date for the evening. Susan had sent me his file not long after Jamie arranged their meet-up. Jamie didn’t know all that, though, and I’d gone out of my way to avoid talking about it. I figured it wasn’t something he needed to know, and he would probably feel better without knowing that Susan and I were keeping an eye on what he probably considered his private life.

Yeah, that was what I told myself.

Could a billionaire’s love life even be considered private at any time? I wasn't sure why that question nagged at the back of my head, except to distract me as Jamie turned to smile at me and tell me what I was hoping he wouldn’t mention.

“That’s Bradley over there. He’s just my arm accessory for the night,” he said with a wink.

He looked like he wanted to say something else, and for a second, he even seemed to be struggling for words, but Bradley’s voice called to him.

“I hear you,” I said, nodding. “Go have fun. I’ll keep an eye on you two.”

He smiled nervously, then turned to Bradley and waved as he approached him. With Jamie’s back to me, I held back a groan, watching the two of them hurry up to each other and trade a chaste European kiss before heading to the bar together.

I hung back, subtly moving off to the side as I watched the bartender make a couple martinis for them. I was good at melting into the background. It was part of every job I’d ever been in, and too much of my personal life than I wanted to admit.

Bradley seemed like an alright guy, I supposed. I didn’t care for his haircut or his suit, but he seemed to treat Jamie well. Something about his body language was respectful yet interested, just teasing him along enough to avoid coming off either too strong or too disinterested. The smiles on their faces told me they probably had history. None of the first-date awkwardness was there.

I felt my jaw clenching.

I wondered how I came off around Jamie. I didn’t need to be told I was rough around the edges. I was happy being that way, and I didn’t plan on going soft anytime soon. But as I watched the two of them trade sips of each other’s drink, I found my mind wondering whether Jamie liked that kind of thing. Bradley didn’t have a trace of facial hair, while I let my scruff grow short and scratchy. Something about the way he wore his suit told me he had plenty more back home.

I side-eyed one of the drinks on a table of wines nearby, and it was tempting to grab one. But even at a place like this, drinking on the job was beyond out of the question. Still, I was human. I could be tempted. And damned if Jamie didn’t make me feel temptation.

What the hell is that thought?

I ran a hand over my face, shaking my head as I glanced around at the crowd. Who was I kidding? I was in my thirties, I knew damn well what that thought was. And I’d have to deal with it, one way or another. But the timing couldn’t have been worse.

When I got a look at everyone who was worth looking at in this glorified nerd convention, I turned back to where I last saw Jamie.

As soon as I did, the color drained from my face. My eyes darted around the room frantically, flitting over every face there was. I moved through the crowds to the bar and looked from there, but my fears became reality in a matter of seconds.

Jamie and Bradley were nowhere to be seen.