DanielsSurrender Read online

  “Marc and I have a lunch meeting.” He glanced around. “I take it he isn’t here yet?” His voice was all cool velvet, but Matthew kept remembering the whip of command as Daniel had directed his orgasm.

  Carrie nodded. “He had to check in with Meredith about the construction bids, and then he said he had to stop and talk to the new head of Personnel before he could leave.” Carrie smiled, and her pretty face seemed to light with a glow Matthew couldn’t help appreciating. “You can wait in his office, if you like.” She cast a mock-scolding look at Matthew, who was still lounging on her desk. “Matt can keep you company so some of us can get some work done.” Her sparkling eyes gave lie to her tart words.

  “I can take a hint, sweetheart.” Matthew grinned down at her. “Though it breaks my heart for you to send me away.” He clasped her hand and dropped a dramatic kiss on her palm. “When, oh when, will you leave my dictator of a brother and run away with me?” He produced a wounded look at her sparkling laughter then glanced over at Daniel, who was watching them almost warily.

  “C’mon, Dan. I’ll keep you entertained until big brother shows up.”

  Daniel followed him silently into Marcus’ office and went to stand by the floor-to-ceiling windows. Marcus had a view of the river, breathtaking on a clear day, but the gray skies and dirty snow of late January lent it a bleak air.

  “So.” Matthew decided to take the bull by the horns. “You look like you’re afraid I’m going to take out a full-page ad in the Free Press announcing we sucked each other off.”

  Daniel was surprised by Matthew’s bluntness but he didn’t let it show. He also didn’t show his guilt—this was his best friend’s baby brother, for fuck’s sake—or his unwilling arousal as Matthew sprawled across the leather couch Marcus kept tilted toward the window.

  “Matty—”

  “That’s not my name.”

  “All right, Matt, what happened Friday night was nice but it was a one-time deal. I don’t do relationships, and I’m not going to make my best friend’s little brother my fuck-buddy.”

  For the first time Matthew’s eyes showed something more than amusement and irritation.

  “Daniel.” Suddenly Matthew didn’t look nearly as young and naïve as he had just a moment before. “I told you Friday night, I know who and what you are. I’m a big boy, and I’ve been choosing my own lovers for a good ten years now.” His hazel eyes glowed almost green as they met Daniel’s.

  “If you don’t want to fuck me, fine.” He gave a slight smile. “I don’t lack for volunteers. But if you want to, and you’re not because you’ve got the misconception I’m a child who doesn’t know what he’s getting into, then that just makes you a coward.”

  Daniel shot him his most vicious glare, but Matthew just smiled again. Matthew always seemed to have a smile, a laugh, a joke. Joy followed him like a fog.

  “Or a fool,” he added, tucking his long wine-red hair behind his ear.

  Daniel glared harder.

  “I don’t think you’re a coward or a fool. So, if you decide you want to finish what we started Friday night…” Matthew winked and unfolded from the couch, heading for the office door. “You know where to find me.”

  Matthew exited the office, leaving Daniel to stare, nonplussed, at the door. He was absurdly relieved when Marcus arrived and he could get his mind back on business.

  Chapter Two

  Six Months Later

  Shannon Whitney was hot, sticky and achy. And she still hadn’t completely unloaded the damn moving van. Heaving a sigh, she accepted she was going to have to pay another day’s rental fee on her U-Haul, and decided she would reward herself for a hard day’s work with a swim in the glorious pool dominating the courtyard that was the centerpiece of the condo complex.

  Shannon would never have been able to afford such swanky digs on her own, and sent a silent thank-you winging to her old college roommate, who was currently spending a year in Germany as an Army reservist. After changing into her black one-piece suit and grabbing a towel, she headed out the door, making sure she had the key.

  The pool was gorgeous and inviting, cool and blue and the perfect remedy for her sweaty, miserable self. Dropping her towel on the first chair she passed, Shannon took a breath and dived cleanly into the water, feeling the grime and stress of the last several weeks peel away under the chlorinated caress.

  When she surfaced, blinking water from her eyes, the first thing she saw was her towel, dangling in front of her. Attached to the towel was a very male hand. Following the hand up, she discovered a muscular arm, a round, hard-looking shoulder and finally a breathtakingly beautiful male face surrounded by a fall of long, silky hair that was either black or red—with the sun in her eyes she couldn’t really tell.

  Pulling herself up onto the deck, she accepted the towel with a smile. He was a truly edible man and she sincerely hoped he lived in the complex. Every woman should have such eye candy at her fingertips every day.

  “Welcome to the Villas.” Man, his voice was as good as his face, and his face was as good as his body. And—oh my God—his body was good enough to eat. Repeatedly. She’d been way too focused on work for way too long. This man was clearly out of her league, but did that stop her from creaming her bathing suit? Oh no. Not her.

  “I’m Matt, the pool-side welcoming committee.” He had a great smile, one that invited her to smile along with him. It was an invitation she was helpless to refuse.

  “I’m Shannon.” She was proud to hear her voice was steady. She’d been half afraid it would emerge as a breathy croak.

  “You’re Lisa’s roommate, right? The one who’s subletting while she’s out of the country?” Shannon battled a brief mental picture of Matt and Lisa, two perfect golden specimens tangled in the cool white satin sheets she’d found on Lisa’s bed. It didn’t matter if Matt and Lisa had been lovers. Lisa was gone and anyway, Shannon didn’t stand a chance with a demigod like Matt.

  “That would be me,” she answered. “I don’t know what I would have done without Lisa. There’s no way I could afford a place like this on a teacher’s salary, and I pretty much blew my savings with the move here.”

  “A teacher, hmm? The move here from where?” Surprisingly, he sounded as if he were really interested.

  “Most recently? Texas. Originally, Georgia. Both warm climates. I can hardly wait to experience my first snowfall!”

  “Oh, you’ll get over that quick enough the first time you have to dig your car out.” But he said it with that darn inviting smile. “So, what exactly do you teach?” He’d lowered himself to sit by her on the side of the pool, and their dangling legs brushed against each other in a move that might have been accidental. Or maybe not.

  “Elementary school. First grade this year.” Shannon felt a brief spurt of excitement. Teaching in the Texas public school system had been tough. She was excited to begin fresh in a school district with some money and lots of community support. But right now the school year was six long weeks away, and this gorgeous man was right next to her in the here and now.

  Matt cocked his head to study her for a moment. “Yep, I can totally see you teaching first grade. I bet you’re the best read-aloud teacher ever.” He returned her smile with one of his own. “And I bet all the little boys will have a huge crush on you.”

  Shannon laughed at his silliness as he continued.

  “So, I’ll have to get my request in early, before I have a dozen or so competitors. Will you have dinner with me?”

  The invitation caught her by surprise, and he seemed to mistake her hesitation for refusal.

  “Tell you what,” he said, sliding into the pool. “I’ll race you across the pool and back, and the loser has to take the winner to dinner.” He smiled so engagingly she found herself slipping into the water to join him before she had time to think.

  “It sounds to me like a win-win situation for you.” She laughed up at him while clutching the edge of the pool.

  “I guess it’s my job to
make it a win-win situation for both of us,” he replied before giving a brief countdown and taking off.

  “Hey!” Shannon splashed after him, and they spent the next hour frolicking in the water until neither could have said who won or lost the race.

  * * * * *

  Matthew was sprawled on his oversized velour couch watching football when the phone rang. He spared a brief moment to hope it might be his hot little mermaid before looking at the caller ID. With a resigned sigh, he answered.

  “Meredith. Who died?” Because that would be the only reason she would call him on a Sunday afternoon.

  “Died? Matt, are you drunk?” She sounded distracted and maybe a bit worried, but her voice lacked its normal icy bite.

  “I’m kidding, Meri. What do you need?”

  “Have you spoken with Marcus at all this weekend?” Now the worry in her voice was completely clear. Something had happened to upset her. “He took Carrie and went AWOL Friday afternoon, and then called me this morning to say he’s taking some time off. He yelled at me.”

  Now Matthew was worried too. Marcus never took time off. Hadn’t even taken time off when that vicious viper of an ex-wife Karen had raked them all over the coals. More than that, Marcus tended to treat Meredith with kid gloves. He’d once told Matthew his divorce had hurt Meredith more than it had hurt him, and Matthew knew he wouldn’t deliberately worry or upset her. At least not without some sort of explanation.

  “Well, what did he say?” There must be something going on. Knowing Marcus, it had to do with the business, and knowing Meredith, she was blowing things out of proportion.

  “He didn’t say anything, Matt.” She blew out a sigh. “He called this morning and told me to, and I quote, ‘tell Matty to get his ass into the office. I’m not coming in.’ He’s not answering his phone, Matt. Not at home or his cell.”

  She paused for a moment, and he could almost picture her pinching the bridge of her nose before taking a deep breath to continue.

  “I’m not worried about the company. I, uh, we can handle that.” Matthew wasn’t sure what surprised him more, her saying she wasn’t worried about work or her including him in the equation. “But he didn’t sound good. Didn’t sound like himself.”

  “Okay.” Now it was Matt’s turn to think for a minute. “Okay, obviously I’ll come in tomorrow and we can divvy up his appointments. I’ll keep trying to get him on the phone, and I can go by his house too.” Not only was she letting him take control of the situation, but he could almost feel her relief over the phone, which was totally out of character for his control-freak sister. “I’ll call you if I get him, and you do the same.”

  Her agreement was subdued.

  “It’ll be fine, Meri. Marcus is immortal.”

  As he hung up the phone, Matthew just wished he believed his own words.

  Chapter Three

  Daniel tucked the towel tightly around his hips. Running his hands through his hair, he swore when the doorbell rang.

  Not bothering to dress, he went up the stairs and looked through the peephole. Fuck. Matthew. After the weekend he’d had, he wasn’t exactly happy to see the man.

  Letting out a deep breath, he threw the door open. Matt stood on the other side looking like a frat boy, dressed in jeans and a Detroit Lions t-shirt.

  “Matty, haven’t you realized by now that team is a lost cause?” Daniel remarked, moving his hand in a sweeping motion, inviting Matt in.

  “Daniel, haven’t you realized by now I’m a sucker for lost causes?” He smiled. “And my name’s not Matty.”

  Daniel grunted and left him standing in the living room. He stalked back to the bathroom to retrieve his robe. It wouldn’t do to start sporting wood in front of Matt. The kid was too sure of himself as it was.

  “What’s up?” he asked as he returned to the room. He casually sat back against the deep leather sofa, hoping he appeared more relaxed than he felt.

  “Marcus is gone.” Concern was written clearly across Matt’s lean features.

  “What do you mean ‘gone’?” When he’d left Marcus on Friday night, the man was in heaven, happier than Daniel ever remembered his best friend being.

  “I mean he’s split. Called Meredith and told her to get hold of me to come into the office. He wasn’t coming in. I went to the house but he wasn’t there. But there was a big mess.” Matthew looked worried. “Broken dishes, a bag of bagels scattered to hell and gone. And he isn’t answering either phone.”

  Daniel rose and folded his arms over his chest. Damn. When he left he’d been so sure things were going great.

  He walked over to the window, something he often did when deep in thought.

  “When I saw him Friday night he was fine. In fact, everything was going just like I thought it would.” He spoke more to himself than to Matt. Surely Marcus would have called him if things had spun out of control. Then again, maybe not. Marcus was a hard man to read at times and he rarely showed his emotions to anyone after the number Karen had laid on him.

  “What do you mean, Friday night?”

  Daniel turned toward Matt and shrugged. “He was with Carrie Friday night.”

  “Carrie? His secretary Carrie? Our Carrie?”

  “Yes, that Carrie.” Matt’s face colored red a little, a sure sign of annoyance. “Stop where you are, Matt. Carrie is a grown-up. She knows all about Marcus and his tastes. She has the same tastes as well.”

  “Are you kidding? I know Carrie a hell of a lot better than you, and she’s about as kinky as a kitten. And how would you know what she really likes? It’s not like you…” Matt’s voice faded as Daniel’s body stilled. “Oh. Fuck. You were with them, weren’t you? And not just for drinks and dinner, either.”

  “That’s none of your business, Matt.” Daniel shook his head. Walking over to the bar, he poured himself and Matt each a shot of scotch. Matt looked as if he seriously needed it, and God knew Daniel did. He slid a glass toward Matt with one hand and knocked back his drink with the other.

  In a move that caught Daniel by surprise, Matthew charged across the room, shoving Daniel up against the bar. Hands fisting in Daniel’s lapels, he growled, “God, you really are a heartless bastard, aren’t you? Couldn’t the two of you leave her alone?”

  “Back. Off.” Daniel gave Matt a rough shove, and the younger man moved back a step without releasing his grip.

  “I was issued an invitation. Carrie’s a beautiful, desirable woman, so I accepted. And even that is more of an explanation than you deserve. This is none of your fucking business.”

  Matthew tossed his hair back in aggravation. “But this is Carrie. She’s like a part of the family. She stood by Marcus through all the shit. Why would he go after her?”

  “Because he loves her.”

  “He told you this?”

  “Matt, are you blind? Haven’t you noticed the way he looks at her? The way she looks at him? Hell, even with me as deep inside her as I could get, she never looked at me once, her eyes were only for him.”

  “So, was this a one-time-only deal?”

  There was an odd tone in Matthew’s voice, though his face was carefully blank.

  “Yes. It was written all over your brother’s face. We won’t be sharing again.”

  “Good.”

  Some of Matthew’s tension visibly eased, and all at once he seemed to become aware that he still clutched the lush velour of Daniel’s robe in his fists. The tension arcing between the two men took on a whole new flavor.

  Matthew reached down to toy with the tie of Daniel’s robe.

  “We can’t go there again, Matty.”

  His words said no, but Daniel wasn’t fighting him off. Matt’s hand found its way through an opening in the robe. He slid his fingers across the satiny skin and hard muscles of Daniel’s abdomen.

  Daniel closed his eyes.

  “Matt.” His voice took on the smoky quality of arousal, and Matthew’s breath caught in clear response.

  “You keep saying I don�
�t know what I’m doing. When will you get that I do? Is this new to me? Yeah, you know it is. But it’s something I want to explore. You want it too.” His hand drifted down past Daniel’s rising cock to cup his heavy sac. Daniel’s breath hissed between clenched teeth as Matt manipulated his balls.

  Guilt and frustration and angst—a trio of emotions Daniel avoided at all costs. Matt was right, they were both consenting adults, and this felt fucking great. Why not enjoy the moment? Maybe he could teach Matthew a little lesson along the way.

  Opening his eyes, he grabbed Matt by the arms, fingers biting into the muscles.

  “Fine. You want to do this, then we do it my way, Matty. Do you understand? My way.”

  Matt’s answer was to tighten his grip on Daniel’s balls. Daniel stayed Matt’s hand. Walking around him, he returned to the couch. He opened a small drawer in the table next to it and pulled out a familiar foil packet and a tube of clear liquid. He stood looking over at Matt, who was glued to the floor, staring at the items Daniel had so casually produced.

  Daniel’s hands went to his belt and he released the knot, letting the robe fall to the floor. His cock, erect and proud, jutted out from a tidy nest of dark-gold curls.

  He heard something close to fear in Matthew’s voice when the younger man finally opened his mouth. Nodding toward the table, he asked, “Are those for me? Or for you?”

  Daniel looked at the condom and lube then back to Matt. “I’m always safe, Matt. I love to fuck, but I also plan to stay healthy.” Matt’s eyebrow shot up. “I’m not as indiscreet as you might believe. I pick my partners very carefully.” He gave a dark smile and added, “And they’re for me. To use on you.”

  Matthew’s eyes widened but some of the tension left his face. He licked his lips and eyed the lube again.

  “My way, Matt, or not at all. The choice is yours.”