Chapter 18 Locusts Swarming #2
I sighed. Mr. Olivier ordered, and he would get his way. “Kim, secure a corridor for us. Mr. Olivier’s team is thirty seconds behind you. Lothair and I will slow down to give you time. When do you want us to get out?”
Kim’s car was already driving around us. “One and a half to two minutes from now,” he replied. “We don’t want to give them time to regroup.”
“Got it. Slowing down.”
The first car parked right in front of the building, and the crowd swarmed it immediately, moving away from the front door.
Kim and a couple of other guys from our team got out.
The people looked disappointed and confused, not finding whom they’d expected.
Then Paris’s security team parked in front of them, causing another wave of excitement and disappointment, once more drawing the people away from our path.
When the seven men in dark suits began creating a corridor for us, it took a while for the fans and paparazzi to understand what was going on.
Timing was everything. If we gave them too little time, the path to the main door wouldn’t be clear.
If we gave them too much time, the fans would notice us, and the paparazzi would regroup.
Lothair and I exited our car first, with Paris and his main man right behind us. The team surrounded us, pushing through the swarm that was swiftly moving back to block the main door.
The screams were deafening.
“What the actual fuck,” Lothair muttered, looking a little dazed.
Paris moved forward single-mindedly with his head down, shielded by his bodyguard’s massive form. He was used to this type of attention way more than Lothair was. Lothair had fans too, just not the screaming kind who would throw themselves at him or faint at the sight of him.
Someone grappled at my suit, but Kim pushed them away.
It took a mere ten seconds from the opening of the car door to the building’s red-faced doorman locking us inside. Two of Paris’s team remained outside, blocking the entrance to the building and threatening the mob with the police, who were hopefully on their way.
“Holy shit. What was that?” Lothair glanced back, visibly shaken.
“The downside of hanging out with me,” Paris said, smiling wanly.
His bodyguard stood close behind him with one hand on Paris’s shoulder in a way that seemed just a little too intimate. He wore a murderous scowl as he assessed our new surroundings.
The roar of the crowd outside was muted here but not lessening in intensity.
“We need to move before they break in,” he said.
Paris began walking toward the elevators, and we followed.
“I can hear the sirens already. We’re okay for the night,” Kim said. “But we’ll need an exit strategy in the morning.”
“The garages,” Paris’s bodyguard said. I’d spent three evenings in the man’s company and still didn’t know his name.
Paris disappeared into his part of the condo as soon as we arrived, but his bodyguard stayed long enough to make it clear he blamed us for what had happened.
“On our side, Mr. Olivier and I were the only ones who knew about this location,” he said, looking at me expectantly.
“I understand. We’ll sort this out. You have my word.”
Holding my gaze, he gave me a grim nod. Then he turned around and stalked in the direction of Paris’s rooms.
Lothair sighed. “I’ll call Carlos.”
I sat on the sofa and unscrewed one of the water bottles prepared on the coffee table. I couldn’t wait to go to bed and wrap myself around my mate.
“How did it leak?” Lothair was pacing around the living room, his phone to his ear. “Who else knew, then?”
Carlos’s reply was unintelligible to me, but the dismissive tone of his voice came through loud and clear.
“We’re doing it for the press, not for getting attacked in the street!” Lothair shouted.
I gestured for him to give me the phone. He glared but handed it to me.
“Hello, Carlos, Terrance Harbinger here.”
“Hi, Terrance. Can you please calm the superstar down? Nobody got hurt, and he and Paris are splashed all over the socials. He’s only getting what he wanted.”
I gritted my teeth so I wouldn’t snap. “I have to disagree. The location was supposed to be undisclosed, and someone leaked it ostentatiously and early enough for a large group to occupy the entrance. A breach like this is unacceptable. Mr. Olivier’s team is airtight, so it must have been someone on our side. Your office booked the accommodation.”
“As I said to Lothair. The entire point of this charade is to get him more press.”
“In controlled situations. An unexpected crowd of randos at one in the morning is not desirable press. It’s seriously dangerous. Do you at least understand why Mr. Olivier is not looking kindly at us right now?”
Carlos grunted. Even he had to see how damaging it could be to Lothair’s relationship with Paris if we were seen as unprofessional.
“We need you to trace who knew about this and find out the source of the leak. It can’t happen again.”
“I’ll see what I can do,” Carlos grumbled. I could hear his eye roll.
“That’s not good enough.”
“Since when were you the boss, Harbinger?”
“This is not a prick-waving contest, Carlos. I don’t give a shit about who you think is in charge of what. Someone fucked up. It’s in your best interest to find out who.”
There was a breath of silence. Was it bold of me to suggest Lothair might fire him?
“It’s two in the morning,” I said. “We’re going to bed. Find out who did this and get rid of them.”
I gave the phone back to Lothair, who was grinning at me gleefully. He ended the call and dropped the phone onto the sofa cushion.
“Do you think you could handle my calls from now on?” he asked.
I snorted. “No.”
“Can I blow you now?”
“Yes.”
I tugged on his hand and led him to the bedroom. Finally, we were alone. It felt peaceful and domestic as we undressed in silence and hung our suits next to each other on the closet doors. Then he knelt for me in the shower and brought my hand to the back of his head.
The stress of the long night got washed down the drain. For the next few hours, it was just my mate and me, making love.
Even so, I woke up ridiculously early. As I gazed at Lothair’s face, slack with sleep, I wondered how the hell I was going to keep my mate safe in the constant chaos that was his life.