“I don’t want you to fear for your position any more than for yourself. I had told myself I would not touch you for exactly that reason.” Luke gave a tiny shrug. “I also intended to be sensible.” “Good intentions,” Rufus muttered. “Not worth the paper they’re written on.” “And I realise that last night, ah, overstepped the boundaries. You may not wish to do that again.” Rufus didn’t know if one could overstep boundaries again when they had already been thoroughly and mutually trampled into the ground. Perhaps he ought to re-erect them. If he only knew where they should be. He knew where he
“I don’t want you to fear for your position any more than for yourself. I had told myself I would not touch you for exactly that reason.” Luke gave a tiny shrug. “I also intended to be sensible.” “Good intentions,” Rufus muttered. “Not worth the paper they’re written on.” “And I realise that last night, ah, overstepped the boundaries. You may not wish to do that again.” Rufus didn’t know if one could overstep boundaries again when they had already been thoroughly and mutually trampled into the ground. Perhaps he ought to re-erect them. If he only knew where they should be. He knew where he wanted them to be, in this moment, with Luke inches away and the memory of his touch, his taste. “I do wish to do it again,” he said. “I’d sodding love to do it again, repeatedly. Just not at the cost of your job, or your well-being, or our friendship. I hope you count us friends.” “Yes,” Luke said, voice rather constricted. “Yes, I…have come to do that.” “As your friend, I don’t want to hurt you. As your employer, I don’t want to lose you. As the man whose bed you adorned last night, I’d very much like you back there, but not at the expense of the rest. So tell me what you want, and I will do my best to do right by you, which includes taking your ‘no’ with all the grace I can muster.” Luke’s dark eyes looked huge. “I believe that you would hear my ‘no’. Could I persuade you to hear my ‘yes’?” “I would take that with pleasure.” Rufus’s chest felt rather tight. “A lot of pleasure.” “Promi...
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“I will let you know if you do or suggest anything I don’t want. I won’t gloss my objections, spare your feelings, or worry for my employment. Does that satisfy you?”
