CUCKOLD H & S Husband's Unfortunate Bet with an Alpha (Mask of Desire)

[Steel]

Luckily, it seemed like the job would be simple. The room was just a box with one large window, a walk-in closet, and an en-suite bathroom. Nothing particularly notable design-wise, and no architectural quirks to work around. Kusha lost herself in the work, eyeballing a few basic measurements, then snapping a few pictures with her phone as references for when she sketched her proposal. She felt some of the embarrassment and frustration ebb away as she went through the motions, and by the time she turned back to her infuriating patron, she felt a bit calmer.

"I would recommend a sleek modernist redesign," she said in clipped tones. "That way, the bedroom won't clash with the rest of your house's decor... or lack thereof, I suppose. I can sketch a proposal for you by the end of the week and present some artwork options that are within the project's budget for your approval." There. All he needed to do was agree, and Kusha could get out of here and leave this awkward meeting behind her.

Rakesh looked thoughtful, pursing his lips. "Hmph. Well, it's certainly impressive that you could come up with a plan just like that, but I'm afraid that "sleek modernism" just isn't what I had in mind."

Kusha gritted her teeth. "Mr. Kumar, in my professional opinion, this plan will..."

Rakesh cut across her protest in a firm voice. "Yeah, yeah, and I appreciate that, Kusha wusha. I do. But I hired you because I thought you had the creative spark to not just make something that looks good, but to design something in the style I want."

This arrogant little fucker... "Which is?" snapped Kusha.

"Masculine. Powerful," said Rakesh, his eyes boring into Kusha's. "To put it bluntly, I have a lot of guests in this room, Kusha. A lot. When a woman walks into this room, I want her to know immediately what kind of man I am. A dominant male. An alpha."

It might have been a little unprofessional, but Kusha couldn't help snort in derision and roll her eyes. "What," she asked disdainfully, "shall I get started commissioning a ten-foot granite statue of your dick?"

Rakesh met her mockery with a wide, unapologetic grin. "Let me know if you need reference photos," he said with a wink.

Kusha flushed red. She had walked right into that one. Mental note: don't be the first one to bring up sex around this creep. "Rakesh, you don't need to hire a decorator if you want to act like a neanderthal. Here: Mounted deer head on the wall there," she said, pointing with a withering expression and a cocked hip. "Bearskin rug on the floor, large size poster of the movie 'Animal' above the bed. There, now you look exactly like the type of guy who calls himself an 'Alpha'. You can have that consultation on the house."

Rakesh raised an eyebrow, and Pooja gave Kusha a flat, unimpressed glare, crossing one lovely leg over the other. "So you're saying you can't do it," said Rakesh lightly.

"I'm saying I'm not interested in doing it," corrected Kusha, trying to keep the annoyance out of her voice.

"I get it," said Rakesh. "I've seen your portfolio. Soulless minimalism; that 'sleek modernist' look you tried to sell me. Oh, and breezy, feminine cottage-core. I thought you had the chops to work a little bit outside the box you've put yourself in, but hey, if you don't feel comfortable with that, I completely understand."

Kusha felt her blood boiling. All of the annoyances and frustrations of this trainwreck of a meeting came to a head as that smirking floozy Pooja laughed behind her hand. She opened her mouth, ready to show both of them the error of their ways…