maddie

There's nothing in particular about the day that's been wrong. Morning meetings went long, sure, but Max can handle that.

Maybe it's that his coffee didn't taste right, or he forgot breakfast. Maybe it's the way he hates this time of year, or how the seam of his sock is weird against his shoe. Maybe it's the voicemail from Jos, acidic and vile in his ear.

But none of those things matter— so Max isn't sure why he feels shifty in his skin in the elevator, watching the numbers tick up until he reaches Daniel's floor. He's hoping being on his knees will get him out of his head.

Daniel's eyebrows arch with surprise when Max slips inside without knocking, barely glancing to make sure he's not on a call as he makes his way to his desk.

"Hey babe, I didn't..."

He trails off as Max thoughtlessly folds onto his knees, eyes focusing on the seam of his slacks, feeling slightly disconnected from reality. Max brings his hands up to fidget with his belt, fumbling twice before he gets it unbuckled.

"Well, I'm certainly not going to argue with having you down there, am I? Can you get under the desk for me, Maxy?"

The words drift through the unpleasant cotton in his head, and Max shuffles to be settled firmly under the desk, waiting for Daniel to get his cock out.

He can be good at this. If nothing else, he knows he can make Daniel happy, has something worthwhile about him. It feels like he hasn't been doing a very good job at it lately— Daniel cums, but he's always quick to move on afterwards, and Max hates feeling like he's failing.

The unease sits uncomfortably within him as Daniel pushes the band of his underwear down, barely giving Max time to get his lips around the head of his cock before Max hears the squirt of hand sanitizer and typing from above him.

Daniel can't even touch him without feeling dirty, and all Max is—

"My little office slut, yeah? Useless at everything else, but you're good at this."

It stings. It stings in a way that Max has learned is different from the pleasant sting, even though it's the same things Daniel has said to him before, things he likes.

He doesn't like it today. It hurts, another tiny chip into his self esteem, already low. Max knows he isn't good at anything else— couldn't finish law school, couldn't handle Jos, can't even do his job right, reduced to being his CEO's plaything.

He knows he isn't really contributing to anything, unless they're counting lackluster blowjobs in his performance evaluation, in which case— today isn't a very good performance.

He drifts further away, but it's not the pleasant float he normally experiences under the desk, it's worse. He feels more disconnected than he did before he got on his knees, unable to even focus on having Daniel's cock in his mouth. He feels numb.

He blinks, confused as to why his cheek is wet, vision blurry.

A hand settles in his hair, and he realizes Daniel's voice has trailed off, and he's pulling Max off of him, and Max can't even suck dick right—

"Max, hey— whoa, hey, why are you crying?"

Daniel rolls the chair back, his grip in Max's hair pulling him with him, out from the protection of the desk. Max blinks again, realizing as another tear slides down his cheek that oh, he is crying.

He swallows, trying to find his voice, leaning forward again. He'll do better, he'll get it right, Daniel just has to give him another chance.

"I'll do better sir, please, let me— I'll fix it—"

He can hear the thready desperation in his voice, and his heart is sinking as Daniel frowns, shaking his head.

"No, babe, I don't think... I don't think that's a good idea."

Max opens his mouth to protest, but Daniel pushes two fingers past his lips, pressing down his tongue as he narrows his eyes suspiciously at him.

"What's really going on?"

His fingers are shiny with spit when he pulls them out, and Max squeezes his eyes shut against the hot press of tears, nails digging into his thighs.

"Nothing, just— let me suck you off, sir, please."

Daniel's lips press together, brown eyes concerned.

"I said no, Max."

His fingers dig seeping into his skin, a hot bubble of anger snapping inside of him, startlingly bright.

"Why do you care, it has never mattered to you before, I thought the whole point was that I'm just some convenient hole to fuck—"

"Max."

He freezes. Daniel doesn't really snap at him often, but he just did, voice sharp.

"That's enough."

He glares up at him, lashes wet and clumped together, and Daniel seems annoyed, frown twisting at his lips.

"I'm not sure what the hell has gotten into you, but you need to cool it. You don't have all-access up here just to waltz in, give a shit blowjob, and then mouth off at me, that's not how this works."

Max grinds his teeth, jaw tight.

"Sorry I wanted to be worth something. I won't make that mistake again."

Daniel's fingers curl tight in his hair, tugging sharply at his scalp, and Max curls his lip at him. He's bitter, upset and tumultuous, and this has only made things worse.

"What the fuck, Max? Obviously you're fucking worth something, Jesus. I don't hire worthless people."

Max scoffs, blinking rapidly as another tear slips out.

"That might be the nicest thing you've ever said to me, sir."

He spits out the honorific mockingly. Everything inside of him is spiraling out of control, an inferno growing larger and larger, massively out of hand and intent on ruining everything.

"Excuse me—"

Daniel cuts himself off, fingers abruptly loosening in Max's hair.

"No— no. Stop. Whatever the fuck we're doing, I'm— I'm putting it on hold. There is clearly something else going on with you."

He pauses, sighing before he rolls the chair back further, fingers curling in the collar of Max's shirt to tug him upright, pulling him closer to the chair.

"Come here."

Max doesn't meet his eyes as he lowers himself into the chair, thighs spread wide across Daniel's. Neither of them are hard, and he's gone and ruined everything, their arrangement and his job in one stupid move. Office slut of the year, that's him.

Daniel brushes one thumb across the skin of his hip, looking intently at Max.

"I do not think you're worthless. Nobody in this entire building thinks that, Max. You impressed everyone in your intern year, and you've never stopped impressing them. You're smart, babe. You wouldn't have been recommended to me if you weren't."

He pauses, thumb resuming its smooth strokes a moment later.

"And you're very, very good for me."

Max's eyes flick up to meet his unintentionally, wide and hopeful as his shoulders relax incrementally. Something in Daniel eases up as well, relaxing back into his chair as he looks at him.

"Is that what you needed to hear? You're good for me, Maxy. Every time you come up here, so sweet and willing all the time."

It's a soothing balm against where Max feels raw and sensitive, slowly starting to patch his bleeding heart.

"There's the pretty boy I know."

He's starting to feel a low sense of exhaustion, but the floating is slowly shifting, reminding him more of the good kind than anything. It's clearly noticeable, because Daniel seems less stressed, letting Max hook his chin over his shoulder as he holds him.

"There you go, babe. Get it out of your system."

It's not quite what Max needs— he feels like a starving man, desperate for more, even just the tiniest scrap of praise— but it's better.

It's better.

------

Max whimpers, collapsing forward onto the counter as the vibrations pick up, plug pressed flush against his prostate. The countertop is cool against his flushed chest, nipples peaked against the chill, and he squirms as his eyes roll back, knees weak.

"Danny please, please I can't take it anymore—"

He hears Daniel's soft laugh behind him, and the humiliated flush to his cheeks burns brighter as he moans. He can't stop moving, trying to escape the sensation, and he can only imagine how it must look to Daniel.

He's been doing it to him all day. It had started in the morning, when Max woke up with the cock ring on— a fun treat from Daniel while he'd slept, apparently. He'd been fucked open and plugged before breakfast, and Daniel has been edging him since then, toying with him for hours.

He can't do it anymore. It hits like a lightning strike, the abrupt tip from something he still enjoyed to something he doesn't, and he panics, fingers clawing at the counter.

"Danny— red, red, make it stop—"

The vibration stops a moment later, and Max takes a second to catch his breath, trembling. He's not sure why he feels so bad, breath hitching as Daniel's palm curves across his hip.

"Max, babe, it's okay."

Daniel's slowly moving his hands across him, stroking carefully down Max's arm. Max shifts, meaning to turn around, but the brush against his prostate makes him freeze with a pained cry, forehead tipping back down against the cool counter.

"Shit— alright, you can stay there. Can I take it out of you?"

Daniel sounds worried. It's probably fair, given that he and Max never even had a safe word until Rico had gotten involved, and this is the first time Max has ever used it.

Max takes a slow breath, nodding.

"Please."

There's a reassuring squeeze at his hip before Daniel wraps his fingers around the base of the plug, pulling it out slowly. The stretch of it hurts at its widest point, and Max feels empty when it's gone, gasping quietly.

"Danny, I don't— I'm sorry."

He's ruined it. Their day, their evening, whatever Daniel had planned.

Daniel slides two fingers inside of him, satisfying the emptiness while carefully avoiding his prostate, and Max can hear the small noise he makes at the words.

"Max, you have nothing to be sorry for. I'm sorry— I pushed you too far, too fast. You weren't ready."

Max sniffs, saltwater tracing down the side of his nose.

"I should have been ready."

Daniel kisses his back over his spine.

"It's not your job to look out for that, babe. That's part of my job when we're together."

That's definitely Rico's influence. It soothes Max all the same, and he finally twists to face Daniel, relived to immediately get a kiss. Daniel kisses him deeply, licking across the roof of his mouth as he slowly removes his fingers.

He pulls back, pressing another soft kiss to Max's lips.

"Do you want to keep the ring on?"

He pushes a finger against Max's bottom lip before he can respond, looking at him fondly.

"I want you to think about what you want, not what you think I want."

Max pouts against his finger. He likes having the ring on. If Daniel takes it off, he's just going to feel like he's being punished.

He shakes his head, waiting for Daniel to remove his finger.

"I just want to cuddle. And more kisses."

Daniel grins, dipping down for another deep kiss as he pulls him forward into his chest.