Needing Harte (1-800-DOM-Help) (7 page)

He could feel Harte’s eyes on him even as he continued with his routine. Every swivel of his hips, every clench of his ass, every time he ran his hands down his own body or flirted with someone in the crowd, Harte sat and watched. It turned him on in a major way to have Harte there and he started putting little extra moves and steps in his routine, wanting Harte to be turned-on too.

The crowd was mostly on their feet as they clapped and egged him on. Money hit the stage, more than he’d ever earned in one night, and Ramey couldn’t stop grinning. Picking up his tips, he headed for the side of the stage, catching Harte’s eye again and tilting his head to the side. He saw Harte’s barely imperceptible nod and the grin stayed on his face as he headed for the dressing room.

Ramey dropped his tips into a zippered pocket of the bag in front of the mirror he used and listened to the voices of the other dancers as they got ready to go onstage. In about two minutes he’d be alone in the room, but hopefully not for long. Shortly after the last dancer left, slamming the door behind himself, a short knock sounded and the door opened. Ramey looked into the mirror and met gorgeous blue-gray eyes.

“Hi.” He winced internally at the uncertainty in his voice. Ramey turned and leaned against the makeup table, staring at Harte. In the sudden silence, he heard the lock click on the door behind Harte.

“Hi yourself. C’mere.” Harte crooked one finger and Ramey ran toward him. Harte caught him hard against his chest, shoving his fingers through Ramey’s hair and holding his head for one of those fabulous kisses.

Ramey felt his knees going weak but steadied himself against Harte’s body. Harte broke the kiss and just stared at his face.

“What are you doing here?”

“Watching you seduce every goddamn man in the room. Christ, Ramey, you’re really good at this.”

“Seduction?” Hearing the playful tone in Harte’s voice, he responded in kind and was rewarded by a smile crossing those features.

“Yes, and dancing. You’ve been doing this awhile?”

“Yes. And we’re about to be interrupted. The others will be back in here in just a few minutes.”

“What time do you get off?”

“Midnight. The shows all stop then, even though the bar stays open until three.”

“Meet me at the bar for a drink.”

“Are you asking or telling me?”

One of those blond eyebrows rose and those eyes went very blue. “I’m telling you, sub.”

“As you wish, Sir.” Ramey leaned forward to hug Harte and felt Harte’s arms come around him strong and steady. “Sir? May I ask a question?”

“Ask.”

“Do your co-workers know you’re gay?” The long silence was answer enough. Ramey felt his heart drop before Harte even started to answer. He kept his head on Harte’s chest, listening to the beat of his heart.

“No. With my job…it’s just not…I’m a good cop, Ramey. I do my job really well and I’m on the fast track right now. I don’t want to derail that.”

“Where do I fit in with that?”

Before Harte could answer, someone turned the doorknob and hit the door from the outside. Several confused voices sounded from the other side of the door and someone banged loudly on it. “You should go. I have to be back onstage in a few minutes.”

Without looking up, Ramey stepped away from Harte. He moved to stand in front of his mirror as the door opened. He was not going to watch Harte walk out. He didn’t want that to be his last sight of the other man. He wanted to remember the teasing and the kissing.

As the other dancers came into the room, some of them giving him hell for locking the door for a quickie with his boyfriend, Ramey just smiled. If his smile was a little strained, well, only he knew that. He honestly didn’t believe Harte would still be waiting for him and inwardly cursed himself for pushing it. Harte had taken the first step by coming to watch him dance.

Ramey had just effectively shut the door in his face.

Yanking his costume off, Ramey wiped his body down with a towel and pulled out the next costume. He had two more routines to get through. He had to maintain and not look at the bar to see if Harte was waiting for him. First the solo then the final group number—he took a deep breath, he could do this.

“Ramey, turn,” his friend Tony hissed at him. The three-minute final felt like three hours and he couldn’t keep his head on the moves. Ramey clenched his jaw into a rigid smile as he caught up with the other dancers. Finally the music ended and he could flee the stage. Part of him wanted to go to the bar but another part wanted to go home and pass out—or hit the bike again.

Harte nursed his drink. He’d allowed himself one gin and tonic, since he didn’t have to be at work early. He grimaced when he saw Ramey’s concentration falter. They definitely needed to hash some things out. He wasn’t going to be the reason for Ramey losing money, or worse, his job.

As the dancers exited the stage, Harte’s pocket vibrated. He snatched the phone out then cursed when he saw the text. All officers on the Ramos case had to report for a seven-in-the-morning meeting. Damn lieutenant—didn’t he know not everyone kept his cock-a-doodle schedule? Still, he wasn’t going to miss an opportunity to talk to Ramey tonight. They had to hash this out.

He had some hard decisions to make. Did he want to come out to his co-workers? To his boss? Did he want to pursue a relationship of any kind with Ramey? He could answer a solid yes to that. Did he want to compromise his career to do that? Harder question. His musings were cut short when Ramey joined him at the bar. Though the man stood right next to him, he might as well have been across the room. Hating that distance, Harte turned to face Ramey.

Before he could speak, Harte held up his hand.

“Me first. Though I’d hoped to have at least a couple of hours to spend with you tonight, now I have to be at work by seven. That means I’m going to have to hit the sack in about an hour. So, can we go somewhere?”

“Sure.” Ramey’s voice had lost the sad quality he’d had in the dressing room. But he sounded resigned now, and Harte didn’t want that either. “There are a couple of private rooms here. Not like at Unfettered, but no one will bother us in there. I can’t leave work just yet, we’re on the clock until three.”

“Private suits me fine. Lead the way.”

Knowing Harte followed him and knowing how well the worn jeans hugged his ass, Ramey put a little extra sway in his step. Just as he’d hoped, Harte’s attention was firmly on Ramey’s ass when he glanced back over his shoulder. The rooms set aside for private dances weren’t ideal for conversation, but then again, Ramey wasn’t really interested in doing much talking right now.

He led Harte to the room farthest from the noise around the main bar. With another glance over his shoulder, Ramey opened the door then leaned against it so that Harte could precede him into the room. The lighting was dim, giving the room an almost cave-like quality. Two long upholstered couches were flush against the far wall and a big fabric ottoman on wheels could be moved in front of either couch.

There were several black and white photos on the walls, each depicting a nude male torso from shoulder to groin or buttocks. They could have been hanging in any art gallery, the lighting and composition more reminiscent of high art than porn.

Harte looked around then walked closer to one of the photos. He studied it for a few minutes then looked back at Ramey. “This is you.”

Pleasure washed through Ramey. Harte had recognized his body out of all the pictures on the walls. “Yes. All of the photos in here are of the dancers. Jason thought it would bring more intimacy into the room.”

“He’s right.” Harte turned to study the other photos, then came back to the middle of the room. “Ramey, you asked me a question in the dressing room, and I want to explain my answer.”

“You don’t—”

“Stop.” At the definite command, Ramey quieted. Harte moved closer to him. “I’m damn good at what I do and my career is very important to me. However…” Harte cupped Ramey’s face, tilting it up slightly and making Ramey meet his eyes.

“I’m willing to compromise. I want to know if you and I can be more than just a one-night hook-up in a place like Unfettered. I want to know more about you and I want you to know more about me. I don’t know where you fit in with what I do, but I do know I’m willing to explore this a bit. So what do you say? Want to give this a shot?”

Ramey nodded and stepped into Harte’s embrace. He wrapped his arms around Harte’s waist and started to sway.

“What are you doing?”

“Well, where I come from we call this dancing. I figured a smart guy like you would know that.”

The sharp smack on his still slightly tender ass had Ramey sucking in a deep breath and lifting his face to Harte’s smiling one. “Don’t get smart with me, I’ll turn you over my knee.”

“Promises, promises.” Ramey snuggled even closer, enjoying the feel of Harte’s muscular body against his. They were close enough in height to make dancing smooth and not awkward, but Harte was bulkier, his muscles different from Ramey’s own more slender build. He liked the contrast. He felt Harte chuckle even as his arms tightened a bit around Ramey.

Though he wasn’t used to leading, he liked the feel of Harte responding to his movements.

He liked it even more when Harte’s hands slid down to his hips, pulling his lower body even closer to Harte’s. Ramey could feel Harte’s cock thickening behind his jeans and turned his head to nip at Harte’s jaw. The slight rasp of Harte’s evening beard brushed against his own smoothly shaven cheek and he knew he’d have some beard burn when they left this room.

Ramey smiled even as he nipped at Harte’s jaw again.

The kiss wasn’t unexpected at all. Ramey had been hoping for another one. Harte kept one hand on Ramey’s lower back, his other gripped the nape of Ramey’s neck, holding him right where he wanted him for this kiss. Ramey let his own hands wander, sliding around Harte’s back, up to his shoulders and then moving around between them to stroke Harte’s chest and pinch at his nipples. Harte made a rough sound in his throat and dove back in for another kiss.

This time when Harte let him up for air, Ramey stepped back. They were both breathing like they’d run a marathon. Harte’s eyes practically glowed and Ramey reached up and touched Harte’s lips, then his cheek, then his forehead. Harte’s eyes closed briefly as he tilted his head toward Ramey’s caress, then he snared Ramey with another smoldering look.

“How much longer can we count on being uninterrupted?”

“Probably another half hour. The crowd’s not that big tonight.” Ramey swallowed hard then stepped forward. “Do you want me, Sir?”

“Good God, yes. But what I want from you will take longer than thirty minutes, Ramey.”

“But thirty minutes is what we have, Sir. May I suggest we make the most of it?” Ramey dropped to one knee in front of Harte, his hands going immediately to Harte’s belt. He kept his gaze down until Harte cupped his chin and tilted his head up.

“Is this what you want, Ramey? I thought we’d talk first.”

“We can talk later.” Ramey succeeded in getting Harte’s belt undone and his jeans open.

The dark boxer briefs weren’t a surprise though Harte hadn’t worn anything under his leathers the other night. Ramey had just figured Harte for a boxer brief kind of guy. Leaning forward, he ran his open mouth over Harte’s cock, blowing warm air through the soft cotton fabric.

“Ah, sweet….suck it. Suck my cock.” Harte’s hands threaded through his hair and Ramey quickly pulled the briefs down so that Harte’s hard dick sprang free. Ramey didn’t waste time, but took Harte into his mouth and then deep throated him. Harte’s hips jerked convulsively and Ramey heard, “Fuck!” and then Harte was thrusting forward, fucking his mouth.

Ramey slid his hands around to Harte’s butt, shoving Harte’s clothes farther out of his way. He loved Harte’s smell, his taste and especially his cock. He could suck him for hours.

Harte pulled away much too soon, yanking Ramey to his feet and tugging at his clothes. “Off, now.”

Loving that he’d reduced Harte to one-syllable words, Ramey quickly stripped out of his faded jeans and slipped his feet out of his shoes before jerking his shirt off over his head. Before he could move closer again, Harte spun him around and pushed him toward one of the couches. Ramey started to kneel on the couch, presenting his ass to Harte, but couldn’t stop his gasp of surprise when Harte spun him around again.

A second push, this one to his chest, had Ramey landing breathlessly on the couch. Harte leaned over him, tonguing his nipple before sucking hard on Ramey’s chest. Ramey ran his hands over Harte’s short hair and down his neck, loving the feel of Harte’s teeth and tongue.

“Ahhh. That feels so good, Sir.”

“Master. You called me that last night. I like the sound of it.” Harte kissed him hard as he pinched Ramey’s neglected nipple.

“Yes, Master.” Ramey arched up into Harte’s mouth, then gasped again as Harte released his nipple with an audible pop and curled his fingers around Ramey’s throbbing cock.

“You’re damn good at sucking cock, sub, and I loved fucking that tight ass. Now I want to know how long you can keep from coming. If I suck your cock, if I lick your balls and ass, will you come, Ramey?”

“N-n-no, Master.” Ramey stuttered out an answer, his brain having gone completely numb with the feel of Harte’s hand stroking his cock. “Not until,” another gasp escaped him when Harte cupped and squeezed his balls. “Not until you command.”

“Good. Don’t come. Not yet.” Harte’s warm mouth closed over the head of Ramey’s cock, and he couldn’t stop the shout that escaped. Master Harte chuckled again then licked his way down to Ramey’s sac. Sucking Ramey’s balls into his mouth as he stroked his cock, Master Harte took total control over Ramey. All Ramey could do was toss his head back, gasp for air and concentrate on not coming!

Ramey opened his eyes, watching Master Harte’s head moving, feeling his mouth sur-rounding Ramey’s cock and his hands gripping, squeezing and playing with Ramey’s asshole.

Master Harte licked his way down Ramey’s cock again, then licked his way around Ramey’s balls before sucking his forefinger into his own mouth and pressing it against Ramey’s ass.