Isn't It Time Read Online Free Page B

“Are
you ready?”
    “Yep.  Lead on,” I said and followed him to his office.
    He unlocked the door and gestured me in ahead of him.  “Have
a seat,” he said, closing the door behind him.  I sprawled into one of the
chairs in front of his mammoth desk while he walked around to the opposite
side, removing his jacket and loosening his tie as he did so.  There was no
Casual Friday for poor Jack.  He tossed the jacket in the general direction of
his credenza, knocking over a haphazardly-piled stack of paperwork in the
process, and rolled up his sleeves.
    “Ah, that’s better,” he sighed, as he settled into his own
chair and gave me a grin.
    I returned the grin and asked, “So, what’s up?”
    “It’s actually two things…” He trailed off and took in a
deep breath, leaned back in his chair, exhaled and then leaned forward again,
clasping his hands together on top of the desk.  He looked nervous and I studied
him, wondering why. It wasn’t like him.
    “Okay, here it is.”  Another deep breath followed by another
long exhale.  “You know that I love you and that I’d do anything for you,
right?”
    I was starting to feel a little worried about where this was
heading. “Yes, and you know I feel the same.”
    “Right.  So, there’s all this love between us…”  He paused
at that point, just long enough to smirk at me.  I smirked right back, and then
he continued, “We get along great, we’re nearly identical in our likes and dislikes
– we were even both named after songs, for Christ’s sake.”
    “Yes, all true.  That’s what makes us friends, Jack,” I said.
    “Yeah.  But how do you think that would all come together if
we were in a…a different kind of relationship?”
    I tilted my head slightly and eyed him warily.  “Exactly
what kind of a different relationship?”
    “The intimate kind,” he said, looking me straight in the
eye.
    I straightened out of my sprawl and squeaked, “ Together? ”
    “Well, yeah, that was the general idea.”
    Being sure to enunciate clearly, I asked, “Are you out of
your mind?”
    He actually laughed at that. “No, wait.  Just hear me out
before you dismiss the idea completely.”
    “Okay, I’ll listen, but I’m telling you right now - this is
going to require some serious convincing.”
    “Understood.”  He looked down at his clasped hands and I saw
his lips twitch slightly, the way they did when he was trying not to smile, and
I had to wonder what was so amusing.  “Ah, hell,” he muttered.  “I’ve already
got my ass swinging in the breeze, I might as well put it all out there.”
    I was still staring daggers at him when he looked back up. “First
of all, how do you feel about submission?”
    I arched an eyebrow and replied coolly, “I’m against it.”
    “Let me be clear. I don’t mean submissive as a lifestyle.  I
mean submissive strictly in the bedroom.”
    “Still against it,” I retorted stubbornly, folding my arms
across my chest and giving him a look that dared him to continue.
    He accepted that dare and went on, almost as if to himself. 
“Well, that wouldn’t be a total deal breaker, I suppose.  It’s something that I
like.  A lot, actually.  But it’s not something that I need .”
    Oh my God.  I feel like I’m in the middle of a really bad
romance novel .
    “Oh my God,” I said out loud.  “I feel like I’m in the middle
of a really bad romance novel.”
    “What?”  He blinked a couple of times and looked confused.
    I uncrossed my arms and leaned forward.  “Jack, you’re a hot
guy with a little kink and a lot of money. All you have to do now is tell me
that your parents were both tragically killed when you were young, leaving you
to be raised by a sadistic guardian, which, in turn, has left you emotionally
unavailable, and you would be the perfect romance novel hero.”
    He burst out laughing. “You think I’m hot?” 
    “Oh, please,” I said with a dismissive wave of my hand.