Work Text
Jack anxiously watched Devon leave his office. He knew that he could crush this guy like all the others. He just needed to figure out what his weakness was.On his way back to the elevator, Devon stopped by Jonathan’s desk. “Hey there,” he said, flashing him a smile.“Do you need help finding the elevator, Mr. Banks?” Jonathan asked coldly, seething as he thought about the fact that this man dared to challenge Jack.“I mean, if you’d like to walk me home, I wouldn’t turn down the company,” Devon told him, squeezing his shoulder. Jonathan felt a little bit excited by the attention, but he said, “That wasn’t a real offer. The elevator is right over there.”“Well, hopefully I’ll see you around,” Devon told him. Jonathan watched him with curiosity. He had to admit that Devon was attractive. But, of course he’d never actually be with one of Jack’s enemies. When he turned his head, he saw that Jack was standing at his desk, watching him. He jumped. “Mr. Donaghy.”“What did Devon say to you?”“Nothing,” Jonathan said quickly. Jack raised an eyebrow. Jonathan sighed and said, “He hit on me. But, obviously, I would never go out with him.”“I need you to go out with him,” Jack told him. “Okay!” Jonathan said immediately. “I’m going to write down some questions to casually bring up while you’re talking to him,” Jack said. “You can handle being my man on the inside, right?”Jonathan couldn’t find the words to respond, he just let out a dreamy sigh. Jonathan spent a long time stressing out over what to wear before settling on the right sweater and slacks. While he was excited to be able to help Jack, he felt weird playing the role of seducer. The truths was, he’d barely dated since college. Jonathan stood in front of the mirror, summoning up his courage. He let out a breath and reminded himself that in order to do this, he’d have to put all his nervousness aside and act confident.When he heard a knock on the door, he opened it. “Hey,” he said, in a cold, detached voice. He felt relieved that his natural hostility worked as a substitute for actual confidence.“Your apartment is a real shithole,” Devon said with a laugh. “I haven’t been this far downtown in years.”Jonathan pursed his lips and slammed the door closed. He immediately felt nervous that Devon would just walk away, but he stuck by his choice. He was relieved when he heard a knock. He opened the door and glared at Devon.“I’m sorry that you were offended by my accurate comments about your apartment,” he said. “I hope my remarks won’t stop you from letting me take you out on an amazing date.”“I guess that’s fine,” Jonathan said. Jonathan was glad that he and Devon were seeing a show together, so he didn’t actually have to make conversation. He could just sit there in the dark and pretend he wasn’t on a date with an extremely intimidating man. And, more importantly, on a mission for Jack. As they filed out of the theater, Devon asked, “Would you like to come back to my hotel suite?”“You know there’s no guarantee you’ll get laid just because you’re an executive and I’m a lowly assistant, right?” Jonathan asked.“Oh no, am I going to have to also be handsome and charming? Gee, that’ll be real tough for me,” Devon said. He added, “Sarcasm.”Jonathan rolled his eyes and said, “I guess I could come check out your hotel suite for a bit.” Once they were in the hotel room, Devon asked, “Would you like something to drink?”“Rum and pineapple,” Jonathan said as he sat down. He looked around the suite, doing his best to look unimpressed despite it being by far the nicest room he’d ever been in. Devon mixed two drinks for them, then sat down next to Jonathan. Jonathan took a big sip of his drink. “So, what brings you to New York?”“Business,” Devon said.“Can you be more specific?” Jonathan asked. “I’m just curious.” “Let’s talk about you,” Devon said, putting a hand on Jonathan’s knee. “Okay,” Jonathan said softly. “What’s it like working for Jack?” Devon asked him, leaning closer.“It’s incredible,” Jonathan said. He also leaned in.“Yeah?” Devon asked, running a hand down Jonathan’s face. “What’s he working on right now? Anything interesting?”Jonathan frowned and pulled away. “Did you ask me out just so you could get information about Jack?” The possibility that Devon wasn’t really interested in him was more upsetting than he was willing to admit.“Of course it’s not just for that,” Devon said, putting a hand under Jonathan’s chin. He pressed his face close to Jonathan’s ear and whispered, “I can multitask.”Jonathan let out a breath and had to actively keep himself from shivering with pleasure. He composed himself and told Devon, “Well, that’s good. Because I’m not telling you anything.”“Fine,” Devon said with a little sigh. “Then I guess I’ll just enjoy my night with a super-hot little slice.” He pulled Jonathan into a kiss.Jonathan felt guilty, but reminded himself that technically he was only doing Jack’s bidding. He kissed Devon back eagerly. After a minute, Devon pulled Jonathan into his lap.Jonathan groaned happily and bounced in Devon’s lap as he kissed him hard. Devon grabbed Jonathan’s ass with both hands. He pulled away from their kiss and asked, “What does Jack have planned for the meeting with Don Geiss?”Jonathan felt a mix of arousal and anger, which just let to more arousal. “Nothing,” he said. When he saw the grin on Devon’s face, he shook his head and said, “Not nothing. Obviously. I mean that I’m not going to tell you anything.”“Mmhmm,” Devon said with the same smug smile. “Yeah, I’m sure he has something.”“He does!” Jonathan said.“Yeah, I totally believe you,” Devon said in the same sarcastic voice.“He does. He has his fireworks idea!” Jonathan groaned when he realized what he’d done. He angrily asked, “How are you able to get even more smug every moment?”“It’s a gift,” Devon said. “But, what is a ‘fireworks’ idea? That sounds dumb.”“It’s not dumb!” Jonathan said. “That sounds like it couldn’t possibly be a good idea,” Devon told him.“An evening of live fireworks, that’s fun and delightful!” Jonathan said. He groaned again.Devon laughed. “Don’t worry. Jack won’t find out that you spilled the beans.”Jonathan glared at him and stood up. “Where are you going?” Devon asked.“I don’t want to be with someone who would use me to get ahead at their job,” Jonathan told him as he headed for the door.“Why not?” Devon asked calmly.Jonathan turned around. “What kind of question is that?”“Why would you not be interested in someone who’s driven and ruthless enough to get ahead by any means necessary?” Devon asked. “I mean, I had the vibe you’d be into that.”Jonathan bit his lip. “Maybe I find those qualities admirable in general. But, my loyalty lies with Jack.”“Okay, I can I appreciate loyalty,” Devon said. “Just two quick points. First off, in ten years, I will be Jack. And Jack will be dead or irrelevant or whatever. Who cares?” “That will never happen,” Jack told him tensely.“Okay, second point,” Devon said. “You can’t have Jack.”Jonathan briefly considered denying that he wanted Jack. But, he stayed silent.Devon stood up and walked over to him. He put his hands on Jonathan’s waist and smiled down at him affectionately. “That brings me back to the first point. In ten years, I will be Jack. Less with the right partner by my side.”Jonathan kissed Devon aggressively. Devon eagerly kissed back as he started guiding Devon to the bedroom.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Jonathan woke up feeling amazing. He’d never slept on a bed as comfortable as the one in Devon’s suite. He stretched and opened his eyes, then slowly sat up. “Hey, babe,” Devon said as he stepped into the bathroom doorway, dripping wet and wearing a towel around his waist.Jonathan jumped. He laughed when he realized it was just Devon. “You know, you kinda sound like a scary dark alley mugger even when you’re just saying hi,” he said affectionately. “Thank you,” Devon said. “Do you want to hop in the shower with me?”“Didn’t you just take a shower?” Jonathan asked.“I could still use a second, sexier shower,” Devon told him. “Normally I’d try to start the day as early as possible. I was planning on going to brand research and getting some exclusive consumer insights, then working out to get the blood flowing while I b-storm some more. But, honestly, after hearing that Jack’s only pitch is a live fireworks special, I feel comfortable relaxing.”“Yeah, that’s smart you should totally underestimate Jack,” Jonathan murmured sarcastically. Devon was visibly nervous for a moment, but he recovered and rolled his eyes. “I’m not scared of Jack ‘Fireworks’ Donaghy. But, I am going to get going because I did already shower and I should get to work.”Jonathan smiled a little at Devon’s nervousness. He realized that maybe he could turn this mission around after all. He pushed the blanket off of his body and stretched out. “So, you really don’t want to shower with me?” He didn’t entirely have the hang of this seducer thing, but he was doing a decent job of looking confident on the outside.Devon bit his lip. “Fine. But, right afterwards, it’s back to work.”“Great,” Jonathan said. “Get the water running. I’ll be right in there.”Once Devon closed the bathroom door behind him, Jonathan grabbed his pants off the floor and took out his phone. He quickly made a call. “Hey, Karen,” he said to the fellow assistant who answered. “Could you make me an appointment to talk to Linda in brand research on Jack’s behalf?” He smiled a little. “And that’s the only time she’s available today? Great. I’m going to need to take up the whole two hours.”He hung up, then walked into the bathroom. When Devon smiled at him from the shower, he felt a rush of excitement. That afternoon, Jack stopped by Jonathan’s desk. “What’d you find out about Devon?”Jonathan felt his heart flutter, like he always did when Jack actually spoke to him directly. “He told me that he was going to speak to brand research to get some consumer insights. I made sure that no one would be available to speak to him and I got you all of the information he would’ve obtained.” He pushed a stack of papers towards Jack. “All the stats that support your fireworks idea are highlighted in pink, anything that would make a good thought starter for other ideas is in yellow.”Jack actually looked pleased and for a moment Jonathan thought that he might get some praise. But, instead Jack just took the papers and walked away.Jonathan sighed. He’d gotten used to Jack never thanking him, but he’d expected something after Jack went as far as asking him to sleep with someone. As he watched Jack disappear into his office, he heard the ding of the elevator. Devon approached him and rested his knuckles on the desk, looking down at Jonathan with disapproval.Jonathan gave him his most polite workplace smile and asked, “Can I help you, Mr. Banks?”“Funny thing,” Devon said. “I tried to get someone in brand research to talk to me and she was all tied up.” “That is funny,” Jonathan said. “You didn’t do something stupid like reveal your plan to someone that you know works for your competition, did you?” He felt a rush of satisfaction when he heard the frustrated grunt that Devon made. “Uh, excuse me, did you not have an amazing time with me?” Devon asked.“I had a great time,” Jonathan said. “But, as you know, my loyalty lies with Jack.”“May I ask why?” Devon asked. “I’m his assistant,” Jonathan reminded him.“Sure, but you’re clearly going above-and-beyond so I have to assume you’re concerned with more than just not getting fired,” Devon said. “What exactly is the long term benefit of being an unappreciated assistant?”Jonathan felt embarrassed that he didn’t have a good answer. He’d always gotten perfect grades and done exceptional work in all of his endeavors, but things had plateaued since he’d made it to the level of executive assistant. He didn’t want to get into all that with some guy he’d spent one night with, so instead he snapped back, “Well, what exactly is the long term benefit of sleeping with you?”“Only the time-honored tradition of making the leap from secretary to trophy wife,” Devon said with a laugh. “Or ‘executive assistant’ to ‘trophy husband’ if you want to be all Murphy Brown about it. That is what you want, right?”Jonathan hadn’t thought about it in such clear terms before, but he had always known he wanted to devote his life to supporting a strong man, event planning, decorating and possibly bragging about some cute little overachieving child. “That’s a bit of a retrograde assumption,” he murmured, although part of him was already imagining how beautiful his and Devon’s wedding would be. “Right,” Devon said. “Well, I’d like to see you again tonight. And if only you were willing to sabotage Jack to prove your loyalty to me, I might be interested in continuing to see you in the future.” Jonathan smiled tightly at him and said, “I’m free tonight. Not sure about my schedule after that.” “I’ll make a reservation,” Devon said. “And I’ll send a car for you, I don’t want to go to 14th street again.”“You’re an elitist snob,” Jonathan murmured.Devon affectionately rested a hand on his back. “And you could be too if only you had the means.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“And then I guess my fifth favorite NBC sitcom of all time would be Cheers,” Jonathan said. He flashed Devon a smile. He was starting to feel like he was really getting the hang of flirting. “My list is the exact same,” Devon told him, grinning. The waiter brought them their oysters. Jonathan picked one up and attempted to look like an expert as he swallowed it down. “Oh my god,” he said. Desperate to get the taste out of his mouth, he grabbed his wine glass and chugged the whole thing. “You eat those on purpose?” “Let’s order you something else,” Devon said. He called the waiter back and asked for a salad with tuna. As the waiter walked away, Jonathan looked at Devon with embarrassment. “Sorry. When you asked if I liked oysters, I really assumed that I would.”“It’s okay,” Devon said. “It has to grow on you. I’m sure your palette will change eventually, like after you marry rich.”Jonathan smiled a little at the idea of this eventual future where he had a rich husband and ate disgusting raw mollusks. Devon looked at him nervously. “So, um, tomorrow morning I have my last meeting with Jack and Don Geiss. And then after that I’m flying back to L.A. So I wanted to ask you…”“Mmhmm?” Jonathan asked. His heart raced as he prepared to assure Devon that he was ready for a serious long-term relationship.“Could you mess with Jack’s schedule? If you make him think the appointment got moved to 3 o’clock, then—”“Seriously?” Jonathan asked angrily.“I really like you,” Devon said, taking Jonathan’s hand under the table. “I was sort of hoping you’d… be my boyfriend. I just want to know we’re on the same team.”“So, your pitch is that I have to earn being your boyfriend by risking my job while you sacrifice nothing?” Jonathan asked.“Well, it seemed worth a shot to try to get you to agree to both,” Devon said. “If you’re negotiating, you don’t start with a compromise.”Jonathan sighed. “I’m going to leave,” he said.“No, come on. Negotiate back. I’m flexible,” Devon called after him. The next night, Jonathan was sewing a throw pillow and trying to forget the whole thing ever happened. He told himself that he would eventually meet some other handsome executive who liked him and was genuinely fun to be around. He heard a knock on the door and opened. “Devon,” he said with surprise. “Was your flight delayed?”“I cancelled it. I wanted a chance to talk to you,” Devon said. “Can I come in?”Jonathan led him inside and sat down on the couch. “Jack destroyed me in the meeting,” Devon said. “These old network guys loved the idea of live fireworks.” He sighed and said, “I mean, they’ll regret making such a CBS move and then they’ll die soon, but in the short term it’s a real blow for me.”Jonathan looked at him uncertainly. “I’m not going to apologize for not sabotaging my boss, if that’s what you’re expecting.”Devon shook his head. “I’m apologizing for asking you to.”“Oh,” Jonathan said, smiling a little. “Why didn’t you just come see me after the meeting, while we were both in the same building?”“I thought coming downtown this urine-soaked, garbage neighborhood would be more of a grand gesture,” Devon told him.Jonathan grinned and scooted closer to him. “That’s really sweet.”“You know,” Devon said. “If I’m going to destroy Jack— which I absolutely am— I’m going to have to visit New York a lot.”“Yeah?” Jonathan asked, smiling shyly.He put his hand on Jonathan’s shoulder. “I’d look forward to those visits a lot more if they were also visits to my boyfriend.”Jonathan pulled Devon into a kiss. Devon put his hands on Jonathan’s waist and pulled him close, kissing back aggressively. Devon stood up, picking Jonathan up in his arms.Jonathan giggled with delight.Devon carried him into the bedroom and sat down on the single bed. “Oh my God, this is the saddest bedroom I’ve ever seen,” he said.“Do you want to take a taxi up to your hotel?” Jonathan suggested, since he wasn’t crazy about his bedroom either.Devon shook his head. “I don’t want to wait,” he said, looking down at Jonathan admiringly.Jonathan grinned back up at him and started wiggling out of his clothes. Devon also got naked. Then, he grabbed a condom and lubricant out of his coat jacket. Once he was ready, he pulled Jonathan’s legs up around his waist. “Are you ready?”“Mmhmm,” Jonathan said, excited.Devon kissed him as he started pushing into him. When Devon pulled away, Jonathan said, “You’re lucky I’m even doing this after you blew that big meeting.”Devon did a surprised double take.Jonathan raised an eyebrow and shrugged a little. “It’s true.”Devon groaned and started fucking Jonathan harder. “I know,” he said. “Next time I’ll crush it.”“You better,” Jonathan said in a warning voice. He groaned and threw his head back.Devon started jerking him off as he fucked him. “God, you’re perfect,” he told him.“Thank you,” Jonathan said. He moaned happily. Devon kissed his neck as he pushed deep into him. He started jerking him off faster.Jonathan moaned as he came.Devon pushed deep into him a few more times before he came. He threw the condom out, then returned to the bed and wrapped his arms tightly around Jonathan. He kissed up and down Jonathan’s neck lovingly.Jonathan felt like he was in heaven, but all he said out loud was, “I can’t believe you got beaten by fireworks.”“I’m sorry,” Devon said in between planting kisses on Jonathan. “I’ll start planning how to topple Jack immediately.”“Mmm, good,” Jonathan murmured, closing his eyes. “And then I’ll buy you a better bed,” Devon told him.Jonathan smiled. “And build it for me?”Devon snorted. “Who builds a bed? You can pay people to do that.”“Mmm. Yeah. Good idea,” Jonathan said. He nuzzled contentedly against Devon’s neck. Devon held him tight.