Page 27 of One Night With The Nanny

For some unfathomable reason, Reid hesitated, his jaw hanging as he stared into the other man’s deep, dark eyes. Reid was lost, his usual smooth playfulness failing him as he pictured Max’s cool blue eyes and heard that beguiling accent instead.

“I… I’m not quite ready for another, I think,” Reid mumbled, blinking and blushing like it was his first time in a real bar, talking to grownups, and drinking big boy drinks.

“Very well,” the other man said, ducking his head politely at Reid as he withdrew.

Reid smiled and waited until the other man’s back was turned to flick himself on the forehead. “What is wrong with me? He was so fucking hot!”

“Maybe you’re looking for something a little more…foreign?” Jim attempted in a hushed whisper, earning a horrified gasp from Reid.

“I am not and that was just…last weekend,” he told Jim with a firm nod.

Jim cringed at Reid as he continued to buff the counter. “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” Reid stated, pinning Jim with a hard look. “That was last weekend and you know I like variety. It’s more fun and no one gets their feelings hurt,” he said and cleared his throat when a woman sat at the other end of the counter and waved, attempting to get Jim’s attention. “You have another customer. Go on,” he ordered as he hunkered over his drink.

Reid used the time while Jim was away to give himself a pep talk and reaffirmed his objective: to shake Max off and prove that he could move on. There was no doubt in Reid’s mind that Dash and Gavin would gossip about him like a pair of fishwives and that news would get back to Max, via Agnes, thus signaling that it was truly over between them.

“Mind if I join you?” a rasping voice asked in a twanging Southern accent and Reid grinned as he straightened and turned to greet his next conquest.

“I don’t mind at all,” he said, pleased to find himself face-to-face with a strapping older cowboy in a black hat and a tux. “Where did you come from?” Reid asked with a nod at the other man’s formalwear.

“The Met,” he said, tossing a hand in the direction of the art museum. “Fancy banquet bullshit so I snuck out and came over here for a drink and a little peace. What about you?”

Reid hummed into his drink as he finished it. “Snuck out and came here for a drink and a little peace,” he replied, setting his glass down with a loud thunk, mustering his courage.

The other man’s gaze dropped to Reid’s glass before meeting his eyes. “What are you drinkin’, slim?”

You, if you play your cards right.

Was what Reid should have said and the words were right there on the tip of his tongue, but his brain had locked and his mouth didn’t seem to want to work.

Jim chose that moment to make his return. “What can I get you, sir?” he asked Reid’s potential conquest. The odds were quickly crumbling as Reid blinked at the older man. He had kind eyes with charming wrinkles at the corners, suggesting he liked to laugh and knew how to have fun. And his salt-and-pepper stubble looked like it would feel nice on the inside of Reid’s thighs and he had an extremely rideable face.

“That depends on him,” the other man said with a wink at Reid.

“Another Old Fashioned?” Jim suggested helpfully but Reid blinked rapidly, floundering.

“Um…” Reid pushed out a hard breath, silently begging himself to get his shit together and focus. He nodded at the other man, then paused, noting that his eyes were too blue and that the accent was all wrong. “Actually, I’ll pass,” Reid managed, offering the other man an apologetic smile.

“Are you sure?” he asked as he swayed closer, his hat casting a shadow over them and blocking out the rest of the bar. “I promise, I can make it worth your while,” he drawled and Reid heard Jim swallow a gasp.

“I’m afraid you have me confused,” Reid said softly and quietly. “My time is incredibly precious, but it’s not for sale. I’m just here for a drink and some peace,” he added pointedly.

“My apologies,” the other man said as he stepped back. “I’ll be on my way, then,” he excused himself, leaving Reid thoroughly disgusted.

“Don’t say anything,” he told Jim, sliding his glass across the bar. “And keep these coming,” he said with a hard groan. “I deserve to be thoroughly miserable tomorrow,” he declared, then jumped when he heard a throat clear. Reid turned and swore as Max smiled knowingly at him. “What the fuck are you doing here!” Reid hissed at Max and gave his chest a swat.

“It’s nice to see you again too, Wes,” Max said as he took Reid’s hand and raised it to his lips. He kissed his knuckles, but Max held on, trapping his gaze and lingering as he licked between Reid’s fingers. “You look…delicious,” he added in his stupid, beguiling accent, making Reid anxious and hungry. He wanted to suck that smarmy smile right off of Max’s face and hear him scream.

“I told you, I’m not interested in a relationship and I don’t fool around with the same man twice.”

Max stared at Reid for a moment, his expression relaxed—passive—until his attention pivoted to Jim. “Louis XIII. Two glasses, please,” he said, then smiled and held out his hand. “Hello, I’m Will. It’s very nice to meet you.”

“Will?” Reid gave him a withering look, making Max laugh. It was light and easy as he rested his hip against the bar and got comfortable. The sound made the hairs stand on the back of Reid’s neck and he wanted to hear it again, but he resisted the temptation and remained aloof and serious. “Nice try.”

“It’s short for Wilhelm,” Max continued and thanked Jim as he filled their glasses, then signaled for him to leave the bottle. “My full name is Maximilian Wilhelm Ernst August Frederick Prinz und Markgraf von Hessen. I have many names we can try out, but for tonight’s purposes, I thought it might be fun if you called me Will.”

“I won’t be calling you anything,” Reid said, raising his glass to Max before enjoying the first velvety sip. He savored the spicy warmth, and the vanilla and caramel fumes on the backend, sighing appreciatively as he inspected the amber liquor and the way it glinted and refracted off the crystal facets. “The night won’t be a total loss, at least. This is just about as good as sex.”

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