It was a party in a mansion built by someone with too much money and not enough taste, attended by those with too much money who thought they were the official standard of what *was* in good taste. But for all their perfumed, surgically enhanced 'perfection,' the talk of the gathering was as far from opposite of them as they were to true perfection. They murmured and tittered, trying to belittle and decry with false disparagement, but in the end they all drifted past the vision as many times as they discretely could, not admitting their envy, even to themselves.
On the surface, it was a simple thing: one man curled into the lap of another, inside a protective circle of strong arms, head cushioned on a broad shoulder.
Some claimed it was the beauty of the smaller man so held that drew them. Amidst the artificially smooth and pallid attendees, the young man's healthy tan and lightly haired body was refreshing in its contrasting natural state. Long brown-red hair curled playfully over his shoulder, half-hiding the masculine planes and angles of a winsomely handsome face. Sleekly muscled like a swimmer, he wore nothing to hide either his build or his obvious gender, though a white satin cloak was pooled at his feet, waiting to be needed.
Some claimed it was the erotic submission implied by the collar and chains he did wear. Circling his neck was a broad band of gemstones that began with the darkest sapphires at the top - sapphires that matched his languid, dreamy eyes - and gradually faded to blue-white diamonds at the bottom. A matching bracelet ensnared his left wrist; yet another was on his right ankle. In between was only a chain that hooked into clamps on his nipples, sapphires at either end, and a cock ring of the same holding his proudly erect manhood just under the head.
Some claimed it was the wealth implied by the value of the gems adorning the incredibly exquisite young man, which was almost equal to the precisely tailored, hand-made suit of the tall, imposing figure cradling him. To bring a Pet to a party like this, and to provocatively display him in such a way spoke of even more money; the kind that bought power enough not to have to consider social consequences or public opinion. That kind of power was an aphrodisiac in and of itself, and couldn't help but attract attention.
A few, in un-accustomed bursts of honesty, admitted it was the implied power of the body underneath the suit that spoke loudest. The tall man whose ice-cold eyes matched the blue-white diamonds his lap-warmer wore looked as though he could personally deliver death to anyone who dared approach what was so clearly his. And would without hesitation.
No matter what excuse they gave each other, gave themselves, as they drifted by the small room nearest the gardens to get yet another eyeful, it *was* only an excuse.
What brought them back time after time was the gentleness in the long fingered hand caressing the lush curls, the utter contentment in both faces, the implied trust in both allowing and participating in the display. The love that hovered in the air around them like a mystical aura of great power.
When the clock struck 11, the tall man rose, carefully setting his lover on his feet, only to swaddle him in the cloak and gather him back up in his arms again. They slipped unseen through the garden door and out the back, both clearly hearing the disappointed hum when their absence was discovered.
"Tease," Blair whispered just for Jim, snuggling down contentedly.
"And you love it, Chief." finis