Page 50 of Not Your Golden Boy

“Why would he do that? He makes money off of us, too.”

Hot discomfort washed through Harry. There were way too many parallels between Nikky now and the naïve, inexperienced musician he’d been back then.

“Albion makes a hell of a lot of money off of a hell of a lot of artists,” he said. “He could afford to send one of them, me, a message for trying to stand up to him. It’s a message he’s continued to send me for the past fifteen years.”

“And that message is?” Nikky leaned forward slightly.

“That he controls everything,” Harry answered. “That he built me up and he could bring me down. It’s even the reason he allowed me to have such a generous cut of the royalties, especially when the song was used for those commercials.”

“Why would letting you collect good royalties be sending you a message?” Nikky asked.

Harry huffed a laugh. “Because it’s my income,” he explained. “My only income. Those royalties are more than enough to sustain me without me having to get an ordinary job. But they’re also a constant reminder that Albion has my balls in a vise to this day.”

“That’s bullshit,” Nikky said, scowling like an irritated puppy. “What a fucking bastard.”

“Yeah, he is, and he’s proud of it,” Harry said. “And that’s also why he’s never going to let the two of us record a duet for your album. Never in a million years.”

Nikky looked like he was about to say something, but he snapped his mouth shut and sank back onto his stool instead. He stared down at the guitar he held like it might burst into flame at any moment.

Harry hated seeing him look so vulnerable, like he’d had faith in the goodness of people and in the music industry and that faith had been squashed. “Hey,” he said, reaching across and resting a hand on Nikky’s knee. “It’s not as bad as all that.” When Nikky looked up at him like he didn’t believe that at all, Harry shrugged and went on. “I’m still making a living off my royalties. Albion’s arseholery hasn’t stopped me from playing music or from getting involved with hot young superstars in ways that are entirely inappropriate.”

The slightest hint of a smile touched Nikky’s lips and lit up his eyes with heat. “Our relationship isn’t inappropriate,” he insisted, the most adorable flush spilling across his cheeks.

“Oh yeah?” Harry asked, scooting as close to Nikky as he could on his stool. “Are you telling me this is appropriate?”

He rested his hands on Nikky’s thighs and slid them up until the guitar blocked his way while standing and leaning close enough to brush his lips lightly over Nikky’s at first, then diving in for a fiercer kiss.

Nikky let out a breath and smiled into Harry’s kiss. “Definitely inappropriate,” he hummed, then pushed into Harry as much as he could with the guitar standing between them.

Harry would have been satisfied to leave things there, but when he pulled back, intending to sit down and take up his guitar again, Nikky quickly set his aside and stood to follow Harry. He slipped against Harry, holding his sides, and pressed in for another longer, hotter kiss.

Harry was so unprepared for Nikky’s show of want that he gave in to it immediately. He tugged Nikky into an embrace with one arm and rested his other hand on the side of Nikky’s face. The way the younger man plied his incredible body against Harry’s was intoxicating and made him want so much more. He wanted to see Nikky on his knees for him and splayed in his bed in a dozen different ways.

But more than anything, he wanted to connect with the amazing young man. He wanted to feel him inside and out, to share his fresh take on life and his enthusiasm. And yes, he wanted to protect him from the wolves of the world.

“Can we go to bed?” Nikky asked breathlessly when they came up for air.

The hope and courage in his eyes melted Harry’s heart. “We can absolutely go to bed,” Harry growled, holding Nikky tighter against him.

He dove in for another kiss, commanding Nikky with his mouth and with the insistence of his body. He was already hard and straining against his jeans, and he made damn sure Nikky felt that.

Nikky groaned softly as he surrendered to Harry’s lust. It was adoration in its highest form, and it filled Harry with a sense of responsibility that he took very seriously.

He would worry about the intensity of his emotions and all the ways he wanted to keep Nikky safe and keep him to himself later, though. He stepped back enough to take Nikky’s hand and lead him out of the music room and down the hall to his bedroom.

They’d been lazy earlier that morning and hadn’t made the bed, which seemed like more of a convenience now than an embarrassment. As soon as they were through the door and near the bed, Harry turned to Nikky and grabbed the bottom of his t-shirt, pulling it off and tossing it aside. Nikky was easily one of the most beautiful men Harry had ever laid eyes on. He was fit and lean and obviously worked out, though he had no idea when the man fit the gym into his crazy schedule.

Nikky’s body was amazing, but it was the man’s heart and soul that Harry was falling so ridiculously in love with. Once Nikky’s shirt was off, Harry swept his hands over the man’s chest and sides before pulling him close for another kiss. Nikky had been about to tug Harry’s shirt off, which meant his hands were caught between them. There was something fun and potent about the sudden restriction that made Harry think about more ways he could master Nikky as he kissed him hard.

He wanted more than thoughts and ideas. They both did. Harry stepped back enough to help Nikky to get his shirt off. The two of them made quick work of the rest of their clothes before tumbling into bed together.

“I want this,” Nikky sighed as Harry kissed and licked his way across his chest, sucking one of his nipples. “God, I want this!”

Whether he meant the touches and kissing, sex in general, or the two of them together, Harry didn’t know. He wanted all of it, even the relationship. The shock of that vulnerability was lost as he slid lower down Nikky’s body to the point where he could hold the man’s tight balls and draw his hard cock into his mouth.

It was pure joy pleasuring Nikky that way. The man was so free in the way he enjoyed pleasure, like he didn’t think he had to hide anything at all from Harry. It might have been the only time Nikky thought he didn’t have to hide. They both lost themselves in the moment so thoroughly that Nikky didn’t try to push back or give Harry what he thought he needed, like sex was some sort of transaction that should be consciously made equal. He just let Harry love him and play his body like the perfect instrument it was.

“Are you ready for more?” Harry asked as he adjusted to reach for the box of condoms and bottle of lube on the bedside table.