Spark & Stone - Ch. 02

Chapter Two -- Not A Virgin-Virgin

If he had been asked, Aidan would have had a hard time explaining why he was so keen on using Heathcliff Stone as JO material. It made him feel a bit ashamed. With so much gay porn to use for that particular purpose, singling out a guy who wasn't even in that industry was sort of fucked up.

Aidan could not clearly explain to himself the attraction. He had never been into the muscled type, although Heathcliff wasn't some bodybuilder, to begin with. But there was something in the man's harmonious body that was easy on the eyes, and also made it difficult to keep from objectifying the guy and making him the main protagonist of some pretty X-rated fantasies.

The thing was Heathcliff had something unique. Aidan knew, and not only because he was trying to build a career in advertising for himself, that it wasn't for nothing that so many people were following Heathcliff Stone on social media.

The fitness guru had charisma. When he talked, he was full of passion and genuinely interested in what he did. He was the kind of celebrity that didn't seem to look down on his audience.

Aidan had been enthralled from the first time he had watched one of the man's videos. The truth was Heathcliff's advice worked. He was interested in making people do at least a little something to change their lifestyle for the better.

Of course, once Aidan had realized the guy on the screen was also making him hot under the collar, that had been a sort of revelation. Not that he hadn't been well aware that he was gay. But because he had realized, that moment, what was his type.

The type Aidan knew would be so good for him, and yet so bad, at the same time. From that first eyes-to-screen contact, Aidan had been interested in learning more about the man. Discovering that Heathcliff was batting for the same team had made him feel stupidly happy. It was like he was suddenly some schoolgirl dreaming, wide-eyed, about having a real chance with some A-list celebrity.

Aidan had found the idea so ludicrous that he had been trying ever since to dismiss it. There was no real chance of meeting the guy, let alone getting involved with him in some way. Well, that had been before.

Because now, not only he had made Heathcliff's acquaintance, but he was supposed to look after him some of his working hours on most days. Which made Aidan's imaginary dilemma from before a pretty much real one.

He needed something to blame everything on. Maybe the fact that he was still a virgin. Well, not a virgin-virgin since he had traded handjobs and blowjobs with a few strangers in his life. But his experience was limited. Each time he had seemed to find the courage to go for the next step, something had happened, preventing him from doing so.

The other problem was that he was buried in work. He had a very clear plan in place that was supposed to take him to being paid six figures yearly before the age of 30. That meant that he needed to put in the hours and kiss the right behinds. The latter, he wasn't crazy about. Plus, while he was a hard worker, it seemed like everyone just saw the proverbial willing donkey when looking at him.

And that landed him in his current position. Being the youngest in the department, the higher-ups had decided that he was perfect for looking after Heathcliff Stone and his shenanigans. In other words, his work at the office was not that important or indispensable. And that was going to put him through a lot of suffering, seeing who Heathcliff was and his prowess in bedroom affairs. At work, people weren't aware of Aidan's sexuality, and he hadn't been keen on telling them. After all, office romance was frowned upon, regardless of form and sexual orientation, and it was no one's damn business anyway what he was and what he wasn't.

So, back to the current situation, Aidan was in a pretty bad place. But he planned to survive. Also, seeing that outside his fitness guru image, Heathcliff Stone was sort of an ass, that was definitely going to cure him of his little obsession.

What the hell was he thinking? Cure him? Now he had the image of the guy's glorious cock imprinted on his cortex. And how the guy moved when fucking. All those details had stored themselves happily into the spank bank.

Damn, Aidan thought and winced. His dick had a mind of its own, and it wasn't helping. No problem, he said to himself. He knew how to be the perfect professional. And he was going to keep a perfectly cool head while dealing with the guy.

Aidan clicked on the folder and went through the schedule he had eventually agreed upon with Heathcliff. Now he was at work, and he was not supposed to fantasize about a particularly scrumptious male specimen when he actually had to keep his mind in the game, as his boss often said.

"Aidan, the boss wants to see you." One of his female coworkers peaked at him from above, looking down inside his cubicle.

He almost jumped.

"All right, thank you," he murmured, and the woman gave him a half-frozen smile like she had been studying hard for it.

He took the physical folder with him since he knew their head of department liked to do things the old fashioned way.

"Come inside and sit down," the man said the moment Aidan knocked, and half stepped into the guy's office.

"Yes, sir." Aidan sat gingerly across from the guy.

All the chairs in the room, except for the one on which the head of the department sat his important behind, were so low that Aidan, without being unusually tall, felt like he was trying to fit into a kindergarten chair.

For some reason, his boss was making him nervous. There was something about the guy that seemed to judge everything and everyone. He wore thick black-rimmed eyeglasses, and he could be anywhere between 40 and 55 years of age. Even that detail about him was making Aidan feel a bit odd. And the fact that the man seemed to have nothing particular about his physique. It was like someone had traced the persona of an average middle-aged, middle-class, man, and come up with this guy.

"How was your meeting with Heathcliff Stone?" the man asked sharply, linking his hands in front of his face and looking at Aidan over them while keeping half of his face hidden.

"Good, sir. We established a schedule and, starting this week, we will go through a few possibilities to see what works. The first photo shoot is today."

"Excellent. Do you find him manageable? You know you must keep a close eye on the guy. He's quite famous for his rather unsavory sexual trysts."

Aidan knew a bit about Heathcliff Stone's sex life. It wasn't like he was some stalker. By merely picking any tabloid, one could get up to date with the guy's adventures. Aidan especially recalled a particular night spent by the said celebrity exposing his talents as a dancer while showered in expensive champagne by two rather attractive and also obnoxiously rich celebrities. It had happened at a very posh and high-class establishment catering only to the most affluent clientele, and made quite the impression on Aidan.

Yes, Heathcliff Stone knew how to live his life to the fullest, but Aidan would not have called that unsavory. Glamorous? Yes. Exciting? Definitely. And maybe wild. But Aidan was sure Heathcliff would not do anything truly dangerous for him, or his sex partners. In his frenzied and bubbly lifestyle, the man still acted responsibly, as far as Aidan could tell. Otherwise, how the hell he managed to look so good and healthy day after day, in the videos he was sharing with the world? Also, while he was thankful for the tabloids carefully documenting Heathcliff's sex life, Aidan was sure that it was, after all, no one's business how the guy spent his free time.

"What's your opinion on this guy, Spark? Do you think you can make him behave?"

Aidan kept his professional smile on, but he could feel his cheeks hurting.

"The deal is for him to be discreet, sir," he said, his voice a little strained.

"Sure." His boss nodded. "Of course, it would be great if there wasn't anything for him to be discreet about. Keep him busy."

"Um, sir?" Aidan blinked a few times. "I filled every free opening he had in his schedule for the week, but, otherwise ..."

"Be proactive." The man suddenly smacked the desk with both palms, making Aidan almost jump from his chair. "That's the secret to climb the career ladder. And you want that, don't you?"

"Of course, sir," Aidan replied right away.

"I expect a lot from someone like you. The first steps you make in your career, they matter a lot. They shape up your future. Do you understand what I'm telling you?"

"Yes, sir," Aidan said again.

"All right. Dismissed. Make sure our most recent asset doesn't make a fool of himself and our brand."

"That's my mission, sir," Aidan said while standing up.

Had the man been in the army before marketing and advertising? Aidan almost felt compelled to salute before scampering off.

The secretary handed him a folder with details on the photo shoot. On his way out of the building, Aidan stole a look inside and read through rapidly. He felt the need to work his jaw a little. How was he supposed to achieve that and still keep it family-friendly?

***

Heathcliff had spent a rather uneventful Sunday after the cutie who had just waltzed into his life had ordered him to rest and get his beauty sleep. Aidan had also left a stack of confidentiality agreements for him to use in case he wanted to get freaky. The size of that stack was making his heart fill with pride. It meant Aidan knew how busy he could get between the sheets. But, also, he had felt not so inclined to go cruising, seeing how he needed to have his bed partners sign before doing the horizontal dance. It didn't seem like good foreplay strategy.

So, after the morning exercising routine, a shower, and doing some post-processing on a quick video on the workout of the day that he religiously proceeded to post on all his social media, Heathcliff was ready to meet the guy again. They were supposed to go to a photo shoot, and details were pending.

Not that he wasn't good at taking things in stride. Part of his success stemmed from how adaptable he was. So he was going to flash the biggest, family-friendly smile he could manage while holding that protein shake they needed to be advertised. And he was going to bring home the dough. Easy as a breeze.

While the photo shoot caused no anticipation, meeting Aidan Spark again did. The young man was yummy. He also had such an air of innocence about him, despite his efforts to appear stiff upper lip. That was causing excitement all right.

Heathcliff wouldn't have been interested if the guy had been true to his image or straight. But so far, Heathcliff's gay-dar had proved to function flawlessly. On Saturday, when the guy had been around, Heathcliff had had plenty of time to read him.

Any straight dude walking on two gay guys going at it would have been at least a little put off. But Aidan Spark had stood there, watching him and Matt fucking, without as little as a blink. That was exhibit A.

Exhibit B was how utterly unflinching Aidan had been while standing next to Matt, and talking to him. Male nudity? He had no problems with it.

And the piece of resistance. Aidan Spark had seemed nervous only when Heathcliff had gotten close while wearing nothing at all. And those signs of arousal he had talked to the guy about? Oh, they had been there. Slightly parted lips, a small intake of breath, and a little coloring of the height of his cheeks. Heathcliff smiled to himself. He wasn't leaving Aidan Spark indifferent at all.

It almost seemed a pity to mess with him. But Aidan Spark was on a mission to make him, Heathcliff, keep it in his pants. Well, then his mission was to make the guy have a hard time doing that for himself.

The short buzz let him know Aidan was dead on schedule like a Swiss watch. Heathcliff smiled to himself.

"It's showtime, baby." He winked at himself in the mirror.

***

"How was your weekend?" Aidan asked perfunctorily seeing how for long minutes since they had climbed into his car they had been silent.

If he was going to make small conversation, he was going to be all right. And it was going to be easier to ignore how particularly handsome Heathcliff looked in casual slacks and a matching shirt that was hugging his body like it was in love with him.

He needed to keep his wits together.

"You're pursing your lips again," Heathcliff noticed.

Aidan's hands flexed on the wheel. Great, the red light was going to prolong his torment for at least 90 seconds.

"I'm afraid it's a habit," he replied icily.

"So break it," Heathcliff said with confidence.

All right, his charge was stepping on his toes. Why did it matter if he was pursing his lips or not?

"Why? Is it bothering you?" he shot at the guy, tapping a rhythm with his hands on the wheel, and begging with his eyes for the light to change.

"It has nothing to do with me," Heathcliff replied matter-of-factly. "But it doesn't make you look good."

"Well, it doesn't matter." Aidan frowned. "I'm not the model, you are. I don't have any reason to prevent wrinkles or whatever."

"You're also scrunching your nose when you're irritated, and you want to hide something. That's actually cute. What are you hiding?"

Aidan exhaled and stepped on it, as the light changed. Speaking to Heathcliff was like a one-sided conversation. The man seemed only interested in sending his point across and could not care less about what the other had to say. He was probably assertive or something like that.

So Aidan chose to ignore the question.

"Aren't you supposed to keep me entertained?"

Aidan could swear the guy was drawling the words on purpose. He needed to focus. With one snappy move, he turned on the radio.

"Here. Be entertained," he said.

His radio was set on the death metal station. Soon, the car was filled with a cacophony of sounds and unintelligible words. Well, for Heathcliff, that might have sounded like a cacophony, at least. Aidan loved it. It was just an outlet to vent off after spending the entire day like a little robot caught in the corporate automated hell.

"Sorry." He began fiddling with the knob to catch something more adequate for his passenger.

Warm fingers were over his, and Aidan withdrew like touched by fire. His hands clasped firmly on the wheel, and he set his eyes up ahead. Heathcliff turned off the radio.

"Is that the music genre you prefer?" Heathcliff questioned.

"Why? Do you have something against that, too?" he said through his teeth.

He was supposed to keep a cool head. But he was acting like a stupid kid. His crush was next to him, and he was proving himself an inept in all possible ways.

"No. But it just goes to prove my theory that you are hiding something. Actually, if I were to say it correctly, you are hiding your entire true self."

"All we need is a couch for me to lay on it," Aidan said with a sigh. "Thank you, Mr. Therapist. Any other advice you have for me?"

"No. I do have a question for you, though. What's with the cat and mouse game?"

"What do you mean?" Aidan could feel himself blushing.

"Is this how you treat all the business associates your company has to work with?"

Aidan froze. Of course, he was overstepping. No matter how eccentric Heathcliff Stone was, he was not supposed to lose his temper like that. He stole a small glance at his passenger. The man's face was cut in granite, his eyes deadly serious.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled. "I ... I seriously apologize. You're right, I ..."

A hand was in his hair, tousling it around.

"Kid," Heathcliff chuckled.

Aidan could feel his righteous indignation coming back up. But he exhaled and parked the car efficiently.

When he looked at Heathcliff again, the man was smiling. Oh, that. That was the thing that could sell protein shakes, and health drinks, and most probably anything else, from cleaning supplies to cryptocurrency.

His righteous indignation melted to a puddle.

***

The photographer was busy snapping pictures from all angles while Heathcliff found it a bit annoying how he had to keep up a frozen smile all this time. Something wasn't working; he could tell. His babysitter was mumbling, trying to get the photographer do something, both their faces scrunched up in thought. And what followed was a particular string of indications for Heathcliff to follow that made little to no sense.

"Let's take a breather," he said shortly, putting down the glass in his hand on a nearby table.

Someone had to take the reins, as the other two people involved seemed to struggle to reach an agreement. The photographer made a face like he wanted to protest, but one stern look from Heathcliff was enough to make the guy reconsider that.

"Regroup in 10," The man agreed with a sigh.

Heathcliff gestured for Aidan to come close.

"So, are you going to let me in what I'm supposed to do, or are you going to keep that little folder all to yourself?" he questioned, pointing out at what Aidan was holding in his hand, as his life depended on it.

"Yes, I am going to keep it to myself," Aidan said stubbornly.

"And why is that if I may ask?" Heathcliff said smoothly while getting dangerously close.

He knew well what personal space was and he was invading it right now. But Aidan Spark needed a bit of shaking up if they were going to work together.

Aidan took one step back and held the folder to his chest protectively.

"It's all per need to know basis."

"For real?" Heathcliff laughed. "I've never heard of such a thing. Also, it appears that there is some miscommunication between you and the photographer. And seeing that I have already tried to keep a smile for half an hour, without looking like a psychopath, I'm starting to get a little annoyed. I did clear my schedule for you, you know."

Aidan seemed to ponder over that, his face all a frown.

"Is it that difficult what you have in that little prep paper there?"

"Kind of," Aidan admitted sheepishly.

"Then tell me about it. I can help." Heathcliff said.

"No, it would sound ..." Aidan trailed off.

"Come on," Heathcliff insisted. "You guys want family-friendly. I can handle family-friendly. Is this t-shirt not okay?" He gestured toward his outfit. "Is there anything in how I look that doesn't work? How about the posture?"

Aidan just shook his head repeatedly.

"All right, you have me a little frustrated here," Heathcliff warned. "And I don't plan on wasting my entire day, trying to figure out what you want."

"I can't just tell you," Aidan said, blushing a little.

"How about you show me, then?" Heathcliff came up with an idea.

If Aidan was embarrassed, whatever he had to do had to involve something along the lines of showing off more of his body. With a smirk, he began to unbutton his shirt.

"Um, what are you doing?" Aidan mumbled.

"I suppose I need to change a little the angle for this little ad of yours."

"You're way too naked." Aidan protested, putting his hands up and waving them both like he wanted nothing to do with whatever Heathcliff was proposing.

"Then dress me up how you like," Heathcliff said with a wide grin.

That seemed to finally propel the corporate bunny into action. Aidan turned on his feet and went straight to the small wardrobe available for various photo shoots. After deliberating and browsing through the clothes neatly placed on hangers for a couple of minutes, Aidan came back with a light blue tank top.

Aidan offered the piece of clothing to Heathcliff. "Here."

"Hmm," Heathcliff said in a non-committal tone but picked up the tank top.

"And maybe change into some shorts?" Aidan added, rubbing his chin in thought.

Heathcliff waited patiently for Aidan to come back with the other piece to complete his outfit. He had no troubles acting with nonchalance as he opened the fly on his slacks. Aidan looked away, and Heathcliff smiled to himself. The bunny was so damn easy.