Leo followed Julian’s line of sight. Logan stood in front of the big windows that overlooked the city skyline. He had a grin on his face as he talked to Dane Hawthorne. Dane was a Dom who worked at the same law firm as Finn and Lucas O’Malley. He was a big, all-American looking guy who had a real light touch with the neediest of subs. Logan was laughing as he talked to the Dom.
“Yes, I think my charge might have been a little less traumatized than he was advertised.” Leo stopped. Crap. Was he actually upset that this guy wasn’t as fucked up as he’d been told? He really did hide behind his patients.
A vision of Shelley’s lovely face assaulted him. She’d been perfect. She’d opened herself body and soul to him and Wolf, not holding a single thing back.
He’d almost lost her. His heart still seized at the thought. He could still hear Wolf’s monotone as he’d called and said flatly, “Trouble. Come now.”
That was all. Three words and he’d come running. Wolf hadn’t thought to explain. He’d simply said three words and known that Leo would move heaven and earth to help him.
Maybe he wasn’t as far from his brother as he thought.
One of the servers offered Leo a cup of coffee. He took it as Julian talked about something that was going on with Finn. Leo nodded, but his brain was on his earlier talk with Wolf.
Maybe he should take his brother up on his offer. If Wolf and Shelley were cool with it, why should he hesitate? Why shouldn’t he take everything they were offering? He could have Shelley and not have to worry about it ending because she would be fine. She would have Wolf. Wolf wouldn’t leave her. Wolf would make her the center of his whole fucking world. He would build a life around her.
And Leo would show up for some nice long fucks.
Wasn’t that what he wanted?
“And then I gave away everything to charity. This is our last day in The Club. It’s being taken over by the Society for Smarter Butterflies.”
Leo shook his head. “What?”
Julian frowned, his face a mask of disapproval. “Well, it was brutally obvious you weren’t listening to me.”
“Sorry, boss.” He had to get it together. He didn’t have to make any decisions today. He needed to think. He never acted on his instincts the way Wolf did.
Except that once when he’d tried to get Shelley to run away with him. And he’d seen where that got him.
“Do I need to get Wolf his own condo?” Julian asked, his eyes looking to Wolf. “There’s an open spot on the tenth floor.”
Leo shook his head. “No. That unit is a one bedroom. Mine is a three. We’re fine.”
He was surprised at how fast the denial came out of his mouth. He didn’t want Wolf to move. He didn’t want Shelley to leave. There had been an oddly comfortable domesticity to the morning. It had been nice to not be alone. He’d woken up with Shelley’s head on his chest, his arms wrapped around her.
Of course, he’d also woken up clinging to the edge of the bed because his brother was so oversized he took up most of the queen-size mattress. Leo and Shelley had barely been left with enough room for one person, much less two. He hadn’t minded snuggling, but he’d almost ended up on his ass.
They needed to move into his room. He had a king.
“So you’re comfortable with your brother and his sub staying with you?” Julian’s eyes pinned him as though he couldn’t quite believe that was possible. “It’s necessary that they stay close, but they don’t have to stay with you. I don’t believe Shelley should be on her own right now, but I understand it could be difficult for you. Should I move Logan out? You only have the three bedrooms. I seriously doubt Wolf was comfortable on your couch.”
“He was comfortable enough, Julian. He didn’t sleep on the couch.”
Julian nodded. “Well, that was inevitable. He seems to work fast.”
Julian didn’t know the half of it. Leo stared out over the Dallas skyline. “And he talks in his sleep. And he hogs the damn covers.”
Julian Lodge was a man of perfect manners. It gave Leo a little lift of joy that Julian spit his coffee out, sputtering as Leo’s words hit him.
With an elegant twist of his hand, he put the coffee down and wiped off his suit. “So I am to assume that the adrenaline of the night before led to some physical interaction?”
Leo felt a grin cross his face. He hadn’t fucked with his boss in over a year. How much of himself had he cut off after Shelley had denied him? He’d gone into his shell, and he was only just now coming out of it. Screwing with Julian had been his favorite pastime. “If you’re talking some serious playtime, then yes. My brother is very open-minded.”
And generous. And might know him better than Leo thought.
The door to the dining hall came open, and Ben and Chase walked through, their gaits in perfect time. He and Wolf might not be in such perfect synchronicity, but they had been able to please their sub anyway.
Leo winced inwardly. There it was. Possessive words. Shelley wasn’t his.
Julian watched the twins walk in. “I’m going to talk to Ben and Chase for a moment, Leo. We’ll start breakfast in ten minutes. We need to discuss the scenes for tonight and tomorrow night. We have some VIP politicians coming in, and they need some unique setups.”
Leo stifled his groan. He hated politicians, and they tended to be tourists. But still, he had a job to do. “All right. I can accommodate them. When are we going to talk about Shelley?”
“I talked to the police chief last night. I’m sure Ben and Chase found something as well. When we’re done here, we can all go up to the penthouse and discuss it. Be right back.”
Leo watched Julian walk away with a growing impatience. It had been easy to forget about the thugs after Shelley when he’d had his face in her pussy. Now, in the light of day, the enormity of the situation hit him squarely in the chest.
Someone had tried to kill her. Two someones. It hadn’t been a mugging. They had been after her.
Leo walked to the balcony and slipped outside. The early-morning air had the slightest chill, but Leo welcomed it.
No way was he going to let Wolf move even to another floor. He couldn’t stand the thought of not knowing where Shelley was. And more than that, he didn’t particularly want to lose track of his brother.
He could still remember how angry he’d been when Wolf had given him the news that he was joining up. Wolf hadn’t exactly discussed the situation with him or their mother. He’d been on his way to Great Lakes when Leo got the news.
And then years of not knowing where he was. Years where his brother’s location on the planet earth had been a state secret. Leo knew he’d put Wolf and his mother through the same thing, but damn it, he’d had a plan. He’d been doing it for them.
“I hear you’ve come to the dark side.”
Leo closed his eyes briefly. Jack Barnes. Well, he did flirt outrageously with the man’s wife. “Dark side?”
“I heard you finally got into Shelley McNamara’s bed.”
God, Julian had become a gossipy old man. “It’s really not your business, man.”
“I don’t know about that. I like the hell out of her brother. Trev spent some time with Barnes-Fleetwood a couple of years back. I enjoyed working with him. I wonder what he would think about you playing around with his sister. Julian might think this is funny, but that girl is going to get hurt.”
“Don’t be a hypocrite, Jack. You share your wife.”
“Yes, I share my wife with my partner,” Jack replied. “We’re all committed to our lives together and the family we’re raising. You’re just playing around.”
Leo felt his eyes narrow. “You don’t know anything about this situation, Jack.”
“I know the way she’s looked at you for years and the fact that since she walked into this club, you haven’t spoken to her. She was lost and broken and you didn’t reach out. You reach out to every goddamn person in this club, but she gets nothing. If she meant a thing to you, I can’t tell.”