LEGACY
by Cassie Stevens
M/M Erotic Romance - Paranormal/Superheroes
May 2008
Cover Art © 2008 Trace Edward Zaber
Amber Quill Press - Amber Allure www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure
ISBN 978-1-60272-274-3
It's the biggest day of David McKay's life threatens to implode when the custom-made suit he's ordered isn't delivered. No problem. He'll just borrow the one delivered to his best friend across the hall. After all, they are always borrowing things from each other and it's a great suit -- a power suit. Yes, David will definitely soar to the heights with this baby on -- in more ways than one.
It's a big day for Max Westchester, too, one he's been training for his whole life. With one phone call the family legacy becomes his to bear and along with it the suit that will give him untold power to accomplish his role. It's a heavy responsibility, one he has always been told is his and his alone. So, why is his best friend flying around the city in the thing? One thing he does know -- the instant David gets home, the suit is coming off.
The job of his dreams, the experience of his life...why shouldn't David take it a step farther and go after the man he loves, especially when Max is so anxious to get him undressed?
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What The Reviewers Are Saying
FOUR STARS! Cassie Stevens has written a delightful short story with the perfect balance of fantasy and reality/lust and romance. The characters are well developed with enough emotional issues to help the reader to relate and sufficient struggles for the reader to root for our protagonists. I think what appealed most is that the story focused on a single day and yet gave the reader enough background within the story to invest in the present action. Short stories can have difficult endings with the reader wanting more or feeling unsatisfied. This does not happen with “Legacy;” this story comes to a very satisfying conclusion! ~Matthew, Rainbow Reviews
Excerpt
A cold sweat trickled down David McKay's back and yet he couldn't stop pacing between the window and his apartment door. Where the hell was the deliveryman? David had paid to have the suit delivered yesterday. He never should have taken the chance, not on the most important job interview of his life. But going back for the tailored extravagance meant taking more time off from his current job. Waiters were a dime a dozen in Los Angeles, and David could be replaced in the blink of an eye. He couldn't take the risk, especially considering the money he'd laid out to put his best foot forward, and how badly he wanted this job with Global Advertising.
"I am strong. I am confident. I am strong. I am confident. I am a professional. I know my work." David recited that mantra even in his sleep.
Friends, family, and professors told David he'd have no problem landing a job right out of college. With his credentials and hot portfolio of ideas to back him up, ad firms would be hot for him. Mentors suggested he should start low and work his way up the ladder to his dream job at Global. David had taken the advice to heart, but in two years he'd yet to find any job in his chosen field, not even as an intern. He was done listening to others. It was time to trust his instincts. The hell of it was...his confidence was shot. His morale was in the toilet.
Now it was down to the one company he wanted more than anything else. The one he'd wanted to go for from the start.
Doubt niggled at him like flea bite. If he wasn't good enough for the lesser profile companies, why would a prestigious firm like Global want him?
He mopped sweat from his upper lip. At this rate he needed to shower again before he left, but worried about missing the delivery. And if the suit didn't come?
David did an about-face and strode to the window for another look. The only other suit he owned was from his college graduation. His body had somehow morphed since then--broadening in his shoulders, becoming leaner in the hips. There was no making do with it. All the tailoring in the world couldn't add fabric to the jacket.
Now his stomach churned. He never should have spent so much money on a suit. Something off the clearance rack from J. C. Penney would have been just as good. Where the fuck was his head? He could have borrowed a suit from Max. The man had offered many times and they were close to the same size--the thought amazed him because Max was so damn great looking. Did it matter so much that the very idea of wearing something that had touched Max's sculpted body did things to David that were probably illegal in some states, definitely illegal in some countries, and most assuredly illegal in some galaxies far, far away?
A quiver of excitement rolled through David, swelling his cock. Such was his obsession for Max Westchester. David wanted him as much, if not more, than the job at Global. Fear of rejection kept him from making a move. They were neighbors, good friends. A wrong move would be more than awkward.
So he contented himself with Max as his imaginary lover...often. Wherever David was naked--or not--Max was there in his arms, exploring him, licking him, doing all those delicious acts that made David's cock hard and his balls tight.
"Damn it." David shoved his hand in his jeans and rearranged his penis to a more comfortable position. Impossible. The only comfort would be in having it limp again, preferably after a night in Max's bed. The thought doubled his agony.
Shit. He didn't have time for a jack-off session. If he missed this interview because of his own stupidity...
He glanced out the window just in time to see a delivery van pull up. The driver jumped out, suit box in hand.
"It's about damn time." David ran to the door and whipped it open. He could hear the man's footsteps scuff up the stairs to the second floor like he had all day. David's patience snapped. He raced to meet him.
The guy's brown eyes bugged out when David rushed him, probably thinking he was going to get mugged or something. David felt bad about startling him, but...
"Sorry, I've just been waiting for this. Important day."
"Sign here." He thrust a clipboard David's way.
David's hand shook as he scrawled his name in the minuscule rectangle and handed the board back. The instant it hit the driver's fingers, the man shoved the box into David's arms and hurried away.
Good. Just enough time to jump in the shower. He rasped his hand over his face. Another shave just in case. "Best foot forward. Think it, act it, be it. Strong. Confident."
Long strides carried him to his bedroom. He set the suit box on the edge of his full-size bed, scored the tape around the edges with his pocket knife, then slid the lid free.
"Damn it!" David smacked his fist into the mattress. It was the wrong damn suit. "What the fuck!" He flipped the lid over and groaned. The delivery was for Max, not for him.
Now what? He had two hours before the interview and Global was twenty minutes away by surface streets. There was no way in hell he'd risk freeway traffic jams today.
Well...it's not like Max hadn't offered to loan him a suit.
David pushed out a hard breath and lifted the hanger. Draped in shimmering plastic, the suit didn't have a wrinkle on it. He slipped his hand under protective covering and fingered the material--a light gray wool blend with what looked like flecks of blue woven in. It wasn't too far from what he'd picked out, his being shot with blue pinstripes.
Max would understand. He had offered. And hadn't he encouraged David to go for it? He'd gone to work hours before, so David couldn't ask. It'd be okay. He was certain of that.
He looped the hanger on the hook behind his closet door and lifted the plastic sheeting. The fabric shimmered under the light and screamed power suit. He brushed his hand over it. It even felt alive, like it reached right out and touched him.
Go.
David nodded, like he was answering a command, and hurried into the bathroom. His skin tingled with a combination of fear and excitement. His heart raced with every move. He recited his mantra over and over, focusing on the positive, focusing on winning the job. He saw himself sail through the interview, professional and sure of his words. Saw himself smiling, shaking hands. Then he pictured the moment afterward. It would be unusual. His would be the last interview of the day. They wouldn't keep him waiting for an answer. He was the man they wanted.
David knew hiring on the spot wasn't the norm. But this was his dream, his positive reinforcement, and he damn well got to live the moment in his head. As he'd discovered the last two years, sometimes that was the only moment a person got. He was going to enjoy the fantasy while he could. Rather like he did when he thought about Max.
His penis lifted as the man's name filtered through David's head. David laughed and gave it a rub. "Don't make me have to tie you down." The threat didn't help.
He did his best to ignore the menace while he shaved. Hard-ons were a way of life for a man, rising at the least provocation. He'd pretend it didn't exist and warned it not to show off during the interview.
Fifteen minutes later, he dashed the barest amount of Old Spice over his cheeks, reveling in the sting. He went with tried-and-true for aftershave since he'd never found any other brand he liked as well. And since he was also going for confidence, David didn't want to spend his time worrying that he reeked.
"Yep...strong. Confident. And not bad to look at either."
Yeah...don't get cocky, his conscience chided.
Again, he nodded to confirm he'd heard loud and clear, then hurried to dress. The suit called to him. It seemed like he barely reached for it and the hanger leaped into his hand. He placed it on the bed and pulled out underwear--another extravagance, slate blue silk boxers to match the suit. He was building his image from the skin up, projecting success. Act it. Be it. And he loved the feel of silk against his body.
Before he realized any time had passed, David stood before his dresser mirror. Everything he'd ever wanted to be reflected back. The suit clung to him like it was custom-made. No one would guess it wasn't his. He felt energized, ready to take on the world. All he ever wanted was his for the taking.
David smiled. "Damn. I am strong and confident."
He raked the comb through his hair one last time, snagged his portfolio of faux PR campaigns, and headed for the parking garage across the street. The world looked like a brighter place. He realized he was humming as he hurried along. The sun was shining, the air cool, the sky...well, there wasn't much to do about the smog. He could really smell it today, but there were other scents mingled in there he hadn't noticed before: fresh coffee from the Starbucks a block away, bread baking at the Subway next to it, the floral tones of perfume from a woman walking down the other side of the street, someone cooking bacon. He heard things, too: laughter, tears, muted conversations, an argument, the screech of tires, sirens, gunshots.
David snapped his mind into place. His imagination was working overtime. He chalked that up to nerves. As he dug his car keys from his pocket, he realized he wasn't in the parking garage. He was standing at Global's entrance, the glass doors gleaming.
"What the..." A glance at his watch showed only five minutes had passed, yet here he was.
God, he'd spaced out on the drive over. His watch must be busted and he had no idea where he'd parked his car. Panic set in. If he'd missed this interview...
He pulled in a breath and walked through the doors. His gaze went to the huge clock behind the receptionist's desk. Okay, maybe his watch wasn't broken. It didn't make sense...
"Good afternoon," she said with a smile. "How may I help you today?"
"David McKay. I'm here for an interview." I'm here to start the rest of my life.
"Twelfth floor, Mr. McKay. They're expecting you." She handed him a visitor badge and waved toward the bank of elevators. Nice, shiny elevators that were taking him to his future. David felt it, knew it.
One hour later he was standing outside the Global building as a new employee. They'd even asked to keep his portfolio to review for some of their pending campaigns. He walked away from the entrance, smile growing larger with every step. And when he was certain he was out of sight of the receptionist, he pumped his fist in the air...
And shot skyward.
