THE BOARDROOM CLAIM
Episode 7
The Apex-Global boardroom gleamed under controlled light—glass partitions, polished marble, and the faint hum of the city below.
Every detail was precise, every movement calculated.
Aria sat beside Liam, hands resting over the blueprints for the collaborative skyscraper project.
The meeting agenda had been packed: finalize international bids, review financial projections, and confirm launch timelines.
Every point demanded focus, but none of that mattered.
Not when Sonia, a high-ranking executive with a sharp edge and an unnervingly intimate charm, leaned just a little too close, letting her fingers drift toward Liam's arm.
Aria felt his pulse spike.
Not today.
Not here.
He adjusted his posture subtly, sliding his laser pointer toward Liam's side of the table, just enough to create a barrier.
Liam's eyes caught every flicker of intensity in Aria's gaze.
He knew the storm brewing beneath that calm surface.
He felt it radiating from Aria: possessive, protective, desperate.
The way he protected Liam without a word said more than any spoken claim ever could.
"The Confrontation"
The moment the executives filed out, Liam didn't hesitate.
He took Aria's wrist, his grip firm but careful, and led him into the private lounge behind the boardroom.
The door shut with a thud, muffling the distant murmur of the city, leaving only the sound of their ragged breathing in the private lounge.
Liam pressed Aria against the wall, the heat between them immediate.
His hands cupped Aria's face for a fraction, his thumb brushing along his jaw.
"You were furious," Liam murmured, his voice a low growl, shaking with the raw energy that ran between them.
Aria's chest rose and fell rapidly.
He didn't answer with words.
Instead, he shifted suddenly, pressing forward until the space between them vanished.
The tension that had been building in the boardroom snapped, replaced by an undeniable heat.
Aria's hands tangled in Liam's hair, pulling him closer as their lips met in a fierce, claiming kiss.
Liam groaned, the sound vibrating against Aria's mouth as he surged forward, backing Aria against the wall again.
His hands moved with a frantic sort of possession, gripping Aria's waist and pulling him flush against the hard plane of his body.
"Liam," Aria breathed, his voice a ragged plea against Liam's neck.
Liam didn't slow down, his touch roaming over Aria's shoulders and back, his fingers tugging at the buttons of Aria's shirt.
He paused and said.
"...you started it."
He pressed burning kisses along Aria's jaw and down to the hollow of his throat, marking the skin with a fervor that spoke of his refusal to let go.
They moved together in the dim light of the lounge, a blur of motion and stifled gasps.
Every touch was an assertion, every breath a shared secret.
When Liam turned him, pressing his forehead against Aria's, the intensity in his eyes was overwhelming.
He trailed his lips across Aria's chest, the contact sparking a low growl from deep within Aria's throat.
In the quiet of the private suite, the rest of the world faded away, leaving only the two of them caught in the storm of their own making.
Liam didn't give Aria a chance to breathe.
He reclaimed Aria's mouth in a bruising, hungry kiss, his tongue sweeping inside to claim every inch of him.
Aria met him with equal ferocity, his hands tangling in Liam's hair, pulling him closer until their teeth scraped together.
The kiss deepened, a frantic exchange that left them both breathless.
Liam's hands moved to the buttons of Aria's shirt, his fingers steady despite the tension between them.
One by one, the buttons slipped through the holes, and the fabric was pushed aside, allowing the warmth of their bodies to meet.
Liam trailed his lips from Aria's mouth down to the hollow of his throat, his breath hot against his skin.
Aria let out a moan, leaning back against the wall, his eyes fluttering closed as he felt the intensity of the moment.
They stayed like that for a long time, lost in the quiet intimacy of the room, the only sound being the rhythm of their shared breathing.
Liam didn't stop at the shirt.
With a sudden, authoritative move, he spun Aria around, pressing his chest firmly against Aria's back and pinning him toward the wall.
He trailed a path of lingering kisses along the line of Aria's shoulders, his touch firm and unwavering.
Every press of his lips against the skin of Aria's back was deliberate, a silent claim in the quiet of the room.
Aria let out a soft groan that was deep and involuntary.
Liam leaned in closer, his breath warm against Aria's ear as he murmured words of singular focus.
He moved lower, his teeth grazing the sensitive skin near Aria's shoulder blade, leaving small, reddened marks that served as a fleeting, visible sign of the intensity between them.
Aria leaned back into the pressure, his eyes closing as he felt the weight of the moment.
The air in the room felt heavy with unsaid things, marked by the steady rhythm of their breathing.
After a final, firm press of his forehead against Aria's spine, Liam slowly turned him back around to face him, his gaze dark and searching, waiting to see the reflection of his own intensity in Aria's eyes.
He didn't take his eyes off him as he reached for his pants, unbuckling them.
He slowly leaned in, planting kisses on his lips while using his hand to play with his nipples.
Aria let out a soft, low moan against his mouth.
Liam went further, sliding his hand into his already unbuckled pants, feeling his hardness.
A deep groan escaped him as he leaned close to his already flushed ear and whispered,
"I love how your body reacts for me."
A faint smile spread across Liam's lips as he bit down gently, his breath unsteady.
The sensation made him tilt his head back slightly, eyes closing for a brief moment as he fought to keep control, refusing to let the image of Aria overwhelm him just yet.
Aria's heart was pounding so hard he could barely hear his heavy breathing over it.
He couldn't take it anymore, he needed to feel him, needed to be closer.
"I want you, Liam… I need you," he growled, his voice almost unrecognizable as he reached for Liam's pants, unbuckling them with urgency.
His hand brushed over him before he looked up.
Liam met his gaze, eyes dark and wild with desire, his face flushed.
Those words, those touches, sent a sharp wave of need through him as he pulled his pants down completely.
Without hesitation, he turned Aria around, pressing him gently to face the wall.
He pulled out his cock, holding it in one hand, the other still propping him above him.
Liam rubbed his tip up and down along his asshole.
The sensation was overwhelming, he bit back a moan.
Liam stopped there.
Their breathing slowed for a moment and then he slowly thrust himself into him.
Aria's breath caught and Liam released a moan.
The warmth around him tightened as he pressed in fully.
He took all of him, every last inch.
They fit together perfectly.
Liam started thrusting into him rhythmically, dropping his head to his shoulder, panting hard and fast.
Aria moved his hip, encouraging him to drive in deeper and deeper with each thrust.
He eagerly obeyed, becoming a little more rough with his movements.
Aria responded by tightening his grip, and moaning in pleasure.
Liam knew he was building up to his climax.
Aria pushed him further along when he panted "Liam! Don't stop!" His breathing became shallow and irregular again as he was brought to another climax.
Liam completely unraveled as he could feel his asshole spasming around his cock inside of him.
He thrust into him harder and faster until the release finally took over.
His body stiffened as he moaned, releasing deep inside him.
He slowly pulled out of him, planting kisses along his back as he tried to catch his breath.
Aria reached out and grabbed his hand, his chest rising and falling as he too tried to catch his breath.
After a minute, both of their breathing seemed to return to a more relaxed state.
Liam turned Aria toward him, kissed his forehead, and pulled him into his arms.
He fit perfectly in his arms, like the missing piece of a puzzle.
He tucked some of his hair back.
There was no going back from this.
He was his now, he always had been.
The room slowly fell into silence, their breathing the only sound left between them.
Aria's body trembled slightly, his strength giving way after everything he had just poured into the moment.
His fingers tightened weakly against Liam's shirt, his forehead resting against his shoulder.
"Liam…" he whispered, voice soft, almost fragile now.
Liam didn't answer immediately.
He was watching him.
Taking in every detail, the flushed skin, the unsteady breath, the way Aria leaned into him without hesitation.
Something in his expression shifted.
Softer.
Deeper.
Without a word, Liam slid an arm beneath Aria's knees and lifted him effortlessly into his arms.
Aria let out a quiet breath, instinctively curling into him, his head resting against Liam's chest as if that was the only place he knew how to exist now.
"You pushed too far," Liam murmured, not a reprimand, but something close to concern.
Aria gave a faint, tired smile.
"You didn't stop me."
Liam's lips curved slightly.
"No," he admitted quietly.
"I didn't."
He adjusted his hold, carrying him out of the private lounge and down the quiet corridor toward his office.
The world outside had returned to normal, but around them, it still felt like everything had changed.
Inside the office, Liam moved with rare gentleness.
He laid Aria down carefully on the couch, one hand brushing through his hair, pushing it back from his face.
Aria's eyes were already closing.
Exhausted.
Safe.
Liam lingered for a moment, watching him, memorizing the stillness, the quiet trust.
Then, softer than before, he whispered,
"Rest."
Aria didn't answer.
He was already asleep.
"CUT!"
The Director's voice shattered the silence.
For a second, no one moved.
Then the entire set seemed to explode.
"WHAT was that?!"
"That was insane."
"Did you see the way he carried him?!"
"That wasn't acting anymore."
Crew members were half-laughing, half-stunned, some covering their mouths, others staring at the monitors like they'd just witnessed something unreal.
A prop assistant dropped a clipboard without realizing it.
The sound echoed and she immediately bent down, embarrassed, as if she had interrupted something sacred.
One of the co-stars shook his head, grinning.
"I'm sorry, but… are we sure we're filming a script anymore?"
Another added,
"Because that looked way too real."
Near the monitors, a camera operator rewound the footage instinctively.
Not because he was told to, but because he needed to confirm what he just witnessed.
He played it back once.
Then again.
Then leaned back from the screen.
"…That eye contact wasn't scripted," he said quietly.
Even the Director, usually composed, stood frozen in place, a hand running through his hair as he replayed the final moments in his mind instead of looking at the monitor.
He finally exhaled.
"Don't change a single thing," he said firmly.
"If anything… we don't interrupt them next time. We just… capture it."
That statement made a few crew members exchange looks.
Because nobody knew anymore if they were filming a project or witnessing something that was starting to feel dangerously real.
"That," he said, pointing toward them, "is the kind of scene people remember.
The tension, the control, the release and then that softness at the end?
Perfect.
Absolutely perfect."
Crew began resetting lights and clearing equipments.
On set
Massimo still hadn't stepped away immediately.
He was still holding Gemini.
Just for a second longer than necessary.
Gemini let out a quiet laugh, still slightly breathless.
"You carried me off script."
Massimo glanced down at him, a faint smirk forming.
"You looked like you needed it."
Gemini raised an eyebrow, amused.
"Or maybe you just wanted to."
Massimo didn't answer.
But the look he gave him said everything.