Page 43 of Takeover-
On the stage, Sam rarely kept still. He paced to the side of the screen that displayed his presentation, so close to careering over the edge of the platform that the tension in the room was palatable.
Pure Sam. Intelligent, beautiful. In command.
Well, for the moment. Michael resisted the urge to smile. Sam still wanted Michael. His expression when Michael had arrived in the lobby had been priceless, and one Michael planned to remember. The curve of those lips and the startled, yet hungry, look. Oh yes, Michael cleaned up well, and Sam, for all his type-A control, needed to surrender to power now and then. An image of a very different Sam than the one on stage—naked and on his knees, hands tied behind his back, mouth open in silent pleading—flashed through Michael’s mind and stiffened his dick.
Tonight, with any luck.
It would have to be Sam’s choice, though. Michael wasn’t going to chase after him—just entice. Play. Sam certainly was no Rasheed, but he still had a closetful of issues—and unless he did something about those, there was no hope beyond New Orleans.
Michael’s heart ached for a moment and he took a breath. A quick glance at his fellow conference goers told Michael that the room listened intently as Sam spoke of leading from within, of being a part of a team not the head of it, of trusting your employees rather than lording over them.
He doubted it was a speech those in leadership roles expected, especially when Sam stopped and challenged them to walk the talk.
Sam’s adherence to his own code was one of the things Michael lov—
Michael pulled his legs in and stared at Sam, as enwrapped as everyone else, but for an entirely different reason. His entire body numbed then blazed with heat.Oh, shit.
Admiration. Desire. Lust.
Love?
Shit. But there it was. Of course it was there, or at least the start of love. Why else was he still here, after swearing up and down to himself he wouldn’t be?
Sam was his boss. They could play their power games around the rules, in the corners of life, but this… there wasn’t really any way around love.
He couldn’t date his CEO. He’d known that from the beginning. He wouldn’t date a man in the closet. He’d learned that mistake with Rasheed.
Yet he wore Sam’s cuff link, the one Sam had pressed into Michael’s hand after he’d slapped and fucked Sam into bliss. He’d brought Sam coffee. Dreamt about him.
Of course it was love.
On the stage, Sam wrapped up his speech. “If you want your employees to work hard, you have to work harder. If you want them to give up their nights and weekends, you better as well, and make it worthwhile. It’s not a privilege to sit at the top—it’s a responsibility.” Sam’s voice boomed over the crowd. “So take up the true mantle of leadership, the true cost. Risk your hide, and the reward will be all the greater.”
Every transgression carried risk. Michael shifted in his seat. This time, he wouldn’t run, no matter what passed between Sam and him. There were other options, other ways they could solve the tangled mess they’d fallen into—if Sam felt similarly. If Sam cared enough to stop hiding who he was.
Rasheed hadn’t been willing to change for Michael—he’d been willing to change for his family, for society—let go of who he was and be someone he wasn’t. Sam might be hiding from his colleagues, but unlike Rasheed, he accepted his sexuality. Embraced and reveled in it.
Rasheed wouldn’t even fuck with the lights on.
Why, then, was Sam so hung up? He needed to know. Needed Sam.
First things first. Four Rivers had to be safe, and there had to be a secure future for the employees—or as secure as one could be in the corporate world.
Then, Michael would take the leap he swore he wouldn’t again.
It was just a matter of figuring out which cliff to jump from.
* * *
After his speechSam couldn’t find Michael at all. He’d vanished from the front of the room during the scant minutes Sam spent talking to Dr. Malik. When he made his way back to where he and Michael had been sitting, only the chairs and Sam’s coffee remained. Given that William was also nowhere to be found, Michael might have been dragged off to some meet-and-greet.
He hoped that was the reason. Had his speech pissed off Michael somehow? No. Their philosophy of leadership wasn’t that different. But there was no way for Sam to slip free of the crowd of people working their way forward to speak to him. No chance to find Michael and ask him what he thought.
How many of the folks anxiously working their way forward had actually listened to the content of his speech? He had no idea. Even if he reached one person, that might change corporate culture for the better—and that would be worth all the energy. That was part of the reason he’d worked so hard to get where he was despite all the costs. He pushed the desire to find Michael aside and walked forward to greet those waiting for him.
Much to Sam’s delight, the questions and conversations were thoughtful and heartening—proof that his way of leadership wasn’t unknown or unappreciated. As he spoke to the attendees, other sessions started. Eventually, the crowd about him thinned and cleared. Twenty-five minutes later, Sam exited the conference hall. Time well spent.
Sadly, the coffee from Michael had gone cold, but like all good roasts, it held its flavor. Sam drank the rest of it, then tossed the cup. He might have a chance for another warm brew tomorrow. Pinpricks ran up his spine. Had Michael asked for a night together? It wasn’t a question he could ask Michael in the middle of a tech conference. Sam still felt the heat from Michael’s leg pressed against his and he wanted more. So much more. Had Michael done such things with Rasheed? Probably not, from what Michael had said.Good.
