Pride (Living In Sin #1)

Chapter 8

Alec

The few red flags that had arisen so far I was confident I could deal with. The pay was fair, hours expected, and the duties reasonable. Even that little niggle of 'it's too good to be true' wasn't too loud. Cause really, any job offering me work and a place was too good to be true. The list of what 'I wouldn't do' was a lot smaller with those sorts of terms. If I stopped to think about it, it was pretty embarrassing.

If my new boss wanted to be all handsy but I got a place to stay out of it... Well, let’s just say, I'd sucked dick for less.

That he'd backed off as soon as I'd said something was a point in his favour, too. If he could respect boundaries, then it was bound to be a safer workplace. Or at least that's what I could hope.

The contracts were correct, if a little dry. They covered all the basics that I'd seen in every piece of employment paperwork. And I'd seen a lot. When you couldn't hold down a job, you spent a lot of time applying for new jobs. I had gotten quite adept at spotting bad contracts.

"Why is the live in part non-negotiable?"

I had to ask. Again, so far there had been no reason that I'd want to turn this down. If I was going to sign today, I could be moved out of Max's place before the end of the day. It was the best offer I could ever hope for. But the fact it was something that was non-negotiable was intriguing. It was a weird hill to die on.

"My family and I need a new housemate. It makes sense that everyone who works in a key position all live together."

It didn't. I wasn't sure how to say that to Pry without causing any tension. Most of my jobs had been minimum wage, as had been the vast majority I had applied for. No one had such a stipulation. Even the reasoning seemed shaky at best.

It seemed that this was the only response I was going to get. Pry looked haughtily across at me, and again I felt the heat sink into my skin. There was something about the man that made me want to crawl into his lap. The feeling was one I hadn't had in a while. I ignored it as I looked back down at the contracts. And shrugged. It wasn't like I had any better choice. The duties appeared simple, and I got a bed that wasn't a couch. I could look into getting my own lock on the door if Pry and his family bothered me.

So I picked up the pen, a pretty golden one that was probably worth more than all my possessions, and signed my name on both contracts.

Pry looked more pleased than I thought he should. Hiring me shouldn't be such an accomplishment, especially when he hadn't even asked to see my resume or anything. I was no one special, as my lack of accomplishments would have shown. Yet Pry looked like all his Christmases had come at once. Maybe it had been really hard to find someone even halfway decent.

"Well, I'll show you the office and you can begin your first chore of photocopying these for your own records." Pry still looked vaguely predatory, slipping the forms back across the table. "If you are going to be working with us, you will need to take contracts very seriously."

Another weird hill to die on, but I nodded, anyway. And tried not to watch as he walked through the dark club in those leather pants. It was not a good idea to be perving on the boss, even if he had an arse shaped by the gods. Even though I studiously did not look, Pry shot me a grin over his shoulder. I had been caught not checking out my new boss.

The office was quite a bit brighter than the rest of the club, and I was impressed. From a quick look, it had all the usual equipment I'd find in an office. Most of it was new and well looked after. When I thought about it too hard, I had been expecting a seedy-looking place with questionable stains everywhere. Looking around now, I felt a little bad about that. It was a kink club; not some shady mob’s lair or something. I'd probably been watching too many daytime soap operas.

At the photocopier, Pry handed me the papers with a flourish. "Figure out this thing to get your copies and that desk's yours." He pointed to the one in the corner that was empty save for the computer sitting on it. There was only one other desk, and it was drowning in paperwork, so I probably would have figured that out on my own. "I'll get us some drinks to celebrate your new employment."

"Nothing alcoholic," I remembered to call out as the tall man sashayed out of the room. He chuckled from beyond the open door so I knew he heard me. But I resolved myself to having only limited sips of whatever Pry brought me. I had a feeling he didn't have any moral issues with drinking during the day. I would not risk it around him, though. It seemed like I was going to need all my wits just having to work in proximity with the other man. Even if he thought they were overrated.