Chapter 3
Gadiel was no stranger to bodyguards. In fact, growing up, he’d considered it normal that there was always a hulking, silent man following him everywhere. For the most part, he hadn’t minded that. He’d never known any different, after all.They’d been part of his life from his very first memories.And rationally, he understood that as the son of the sheikh of Dubai, he needed protection. It was for his own good; Gadiel understood that.
But in the past few years, his bodyguards had no longer felt like protection. They’d started feeling like jailers. Gadiel had become acutely aware that his every move was watched and reported back to his brother. Which would have been okay—Zain was far cooler than their father or older brother, Omar—except Gadiel did have something to hide.
Namely, the fact that he likedmen.
Of course, Zain had found out. And Zain hadn’t exactly been happy with him. Zain might be cooler than everyone else in their family, but he was also unbearably bossy and harsh. He didn’t seem to understand that Gadiel couldn’t just switch his sexuality off and pretend to be a good, straight Muslim young man. He seemed to think that Gadiel had chosen to be gay just to annoy him and create problems for him.
It was singularly infuriating. He wasn’t a child! It wasn’t fair that Zain expected him to live like a monk. It was his life, his decisions.
Except Zain hadn’t been impressed with that argument, either.
“Yes, it’s your life, but if you keep this up, your life will be very short,” Zain had said the other day. “Who was that man?”
“No one,” Gadiel had lied quickly, suddenly very glad that it had been pretty dark and Scott had left before Zain could get a look on his face. Not that they’d been doing anything wrong! They’d just been flirting. And all right, they might have been standing kind of close—as close as people who were about to kiss. But still. Zain had totally overreacted!
Zain fixed him with a flat look. “I’ve had enough, Gadiel,” he ground out. “One more transgression, and I won’t protect you anymore. I spent millions on covering up your hookups last year. I thought you understood after what happened in October, but apparently not, since you were about to kiss a man outside your apartment. Grow up and learn to be responsible with your life.” He turned away and strode to the door, but then he stopped, his hand on the door handle. Sighing, he looked over his shoulder, his eyes grim. “I don’t want to bury you too, kid.”
Gadiel’s throat constricted. “I’m not doing it on purpose,” he whispered, barely audibly. “It’s just who I am, Zain.”
Zain shook his head. “You are being irresponsible and reckless. This has nothing to do with you being gay. There are gay men in this country who manage to be discreet. But you... You don’t want to be discreet. Sometimes I almost think you actually want to get caught.”
Crossing his arms over his chest, Gadiel looked away.
The silence stretched, heavy and thick with unspoken words.
Do you want to die?
Gadiel could almost hear the question. Could almost taste it.
And the truth was... the truth was, he didn’t know the answer.
He wasn’t an idiot. He knew what would happen to him if he got caught with a man. He was engaged to the daughter of the president of the UAE, who was a ruthless man with very narrow-minded, old-fashioned views. That man wouldn’t be lenient with him if Gadiel got caught. A life sentence would be the kindest outcome. A beating and death were the likeliest.
What did it say about him that the knowledge still didn’t stop him? Was he suicidal?Gadiel didn’t know. Sometimes he thought death would be preferable to living a lie all his life. But he wanted to live too. He wanted to be free. He would have liked to be allowed to be himself—to find out who he would have been had he been born into a different family, in a different country. If he were someone else. Someone free.
“It’s obvious now that I can’t trust you to keep your word,” Zain said, snapping Gadiel out of his depressing thoughts. “I’ll get you a new bodyguard and make it part of his job description to stop you from acting like a suicidal idiot. No more men.”And with that, Zain had walked out.
Gadiel hadn’t thought he was serious.
But apparently, he had been wrong.
Within days, Zain informed him that he had gotten him a new bodyguard, who was basically going to be in charge of Gadiel’s life: Gadiel wasn’t even allowed to talk to other men without clearing it with his new bodyguard first. It was fucking unbelievable. Gadiel screamed at Zain until his throat was sore, but his tyrant of a brother remained unmoved. So Gadiel got smashingly drunk.
The rest of the night was something of a blur. He fell asleep and had some strange, vivid dreams.
He still felt tired when he woke up in the afternoon, a raging headache making his head throb. Fuck, he never should have drunk that absinthe. If Zain or their father found out… Then again, why would they? It wasn’t as though they cared to check on him as long as he didn’t embarrass them in public. They didn’t give a damn if he fucked up in the privacy of his apartment.
His lips twisting bitterly, Gadiel dragged his miserable self to the bathroom and took a long shower. Thankfully, it made him feel somewhat human, his headache receding to a dull ache he could ignore.
He was drying his hair when an image pushed to the forefront of his mind.
Light blue eyes glaring down at him. A big bulge against his mouth.
Gadiel frowned. The image was weirdly vivid for a dream. The man looked somewhat like Scott but definitely wasn’t him. So strange. Why wouldn’t he dream of the man he was currently crushing on? That would have made more sense. But maybe it was the absinthe. Maybe it really caused hallucinations.
Wrapping a towel around his hips, Gadiel padded out of the bathroom. His mouth felt dry, so he made a beeline for the fridge. He probably needed to hydrate.
He nearly jumped when the elevator suddenly opened—and the very same man from his dream entered the apartment.
They stared at each other.
After a small eternity, Gadiel finally managed to pick up his jaw. “Y-you—” he stammered, flushing as he reviewed the contents of his supposed dream. He didn’t remember everything, but he did remember mouthing this man’s cock through his pants—and he remembered being turned down. Had that really happened? Or had he met this man somewhere and then had a very inappropriate dream about him?
“I’m Will Summers,” the man said, his handsome face impassive. “Your new bodyguard. We have met this morning, but you were still pretty out of it.”
Gadiel’s face was on fire.It looked like his dream hadn’t been a dream, after all.
I don’t want you , this man had said, looking at him with derision.
A hot wave of humiliation made Gadiel’s stomach cramp.
“I don’t remember you,” he said stiffly, feeling small and foolish. “But forget anything I might have said or done—I do stupid things when I’m drunk, things I’d never do in my right mind.”
“Right,” the man said, very dryly. He walked forward and stretched his hand out for a handshake. “Let’s pretend it’s our first meeting, then.”
After a moment, Gadiel shook it.Summers’s hand was big, calloused, and warm. His handshake was firm.
“Nice to meet you,” Gadiel said insincerely, swallowing as those light-blue eyes held his. He was suddenly acutely aware of his nearly naked body and the older man’s tall form in his dark-gray suit. The stark contrast between them made him feel... odd. Something base curled in the pit of his stomach, a primitive, animal awareness. Will Summers might not want him, but objectively, he was a splendid specimen of a man: a tall, strikingly handsome male in his prime, with broad shoulders, narrow hips and powerful thighs that looked like they would be excellent for thrusting—
Gadiel winced at the direction of his thoughts, but he was hardly surprised. These days, random horny thoughts were the norm for him. It had nothing to do with the man. Thanks to Zain’s efforts to cockblock him, it had been months since he’d last gotten laid, and the dry spell had been driving him crazy. He was half-hard constantly, for little to no reason. He was one step away from humping the furniture like a horny dog. The mental image would be funny if it wasn’t terrifyingly likely.
Gadiel cleared his throat a little, his voice coming out sharper than he’d intended when he spoke. “Actually, it’s not nice to meet you if what my brother told me is true.”
Summers looked at him steadily. “And what did he tell you?”
“That you’ll be living here, with me,” Gadiel bit out, his resentment finally overcoming his embarrassment and self-consciousness.“That I can’t even talk to men without your prior approval or at least your presence.”
“That would be correct,” the man said without much interest. He sounded bored. Bored!
Gadiel flushed, spluttering with helpless anger. Rationally, he knew it wasn’t really Summers’s decision; he was simply doing what he was being paid for. But he was still complicit. He was fine with stifling someone’s freedom for a fat paycheck. It made the guy at least partly at fault, even if Zain took the larger portion of the blame.
“I refuse,” Gadiel said, lifting his chin. “Over my dead body.”
The other man continued to gaze at him steadily, looking entirely unimpressed. “That might happen sooner than later if you keep up your reckless behavior. From everything your brother told me, you do need a minder.”
Gadiel blinked at him, stunned. None of his previous bodyguards—and he’d had a legion—had ever dared to talk to him that way. “I don’t need a minder,” he said faintly. “I don’t want you here. Go away.”
“I can’t, I’m afraid. Take it up with your brother if you have a problem with it.”
Huffing, Gadiel marched into his bedroom, grabbed his phone from the nightstand, and jabbed angrily at the screen. Zain, I don’t like him, please don’t do this to me! Can he at least stay downstairs? I can’t live with him!
Strictly speaking, he was of age and Zain couldn’t force him to do anything, but Gadiel couldn’t disobey him when he lived on his brother’s charity. If Zain booted him out of the apartment and stopped paying for his expenses, Gadiel would be forced to return to their father’s house. The mere thought filled him with nauseating dread. It was bad enough to have to play the role of a straight, obedient Muslim son every time they had a family dinner. He couldn’t do it 24/7. He’d go mad.
No, Zain was the lesser evil. His brother was as much of an overbearing dick as their father was, but at least Zain knew—and tolerated—the real him. With Zain, Gadiel didn’t have to pretend to be someone he wasn’t.
Sighing, Gadiel looked at his phone.
He could see that his message had been received and read, and after a moment, Zain sent a reply. He’ll stay. Nothing will change my mind.
Swearing in frustration, Gadiel threw himself on the bed and groaned into his pillow.
“I take it your brother said you’d have to put up with me,” Summers said from the doorway.
“Fuck off,” Gadiel said without much heat.
“Can’t, I’m afraid.”
He didn’t sound sorry at all. Just bored and condescending. It was beyond infuriating.
“Get out of my room,” Gadiel gritted out. “My brother can force you on me, but I don’t have to put up with you in my own bedroom.”
“I’d like to point out that I’m not in your bedroom,” Summers said.
Turning onto his back, Gadiel glowered at him. “Summers.”
“You may call me Will,” the dick said, looking completely unbothered by his anger. God, how was it fair that such an ass was so damn handsome? Gadiel could have licked that firm jawline if it didn’t belong to such a dick.
“Summers,” Gadiel said. “Kindly fuck off and let me fume in peace.”
Summers sighed, leaning a wide shoulder against the doorway. “Look, it doesn’t have to be like this. I don’t want us to be at odds. I’m just doing my job. I’m here for your safety.”
“You’re here to be my jailer,” Gadiel said with a humorless laugh. “How much is he paying you to make sure I’m miserable and alone?”
Summers opened his mouth and closed it. “Your brother cares for your safety,” he said at last, his voice neutral. “Surely you understand how dangerous it is to—”
“Oh, please,” Gadiel said, scoffing. “You don’t care. All you care about is the fat paycheck my brother gives you for making my life miserable—more miserable than it already is.”
His lips twisting, Summers glanced around the bedroom. “That fancy watch on your nightstand would feed a starving family for a year. Don’t get me wrong: I sympathize with your situation, but you’re being a spoiled brat if you think this is misery.”
Gadiel flushed. “Money can’t buy happiness.”
“Only rich, self-absorbed people say that,” Summers said with an expression that was just shy of an eye-roll.
“You know nothing about me and my situation, you presumptuous jerk! Get the hell out of my room!”
They stared each other down. Gadiel was shaking with anger, his skin too hot and tight.
At long last, Summers turned and walked away.
Breathing hard, Gadiel flopped back onto the bed and glowered at the ceiling.
Yanking the towel off, he grabbed his stiff cock and started jacking it, hard and fast. He wasn’t sure why he was so damn worked up—probably a physical response to his anger—but he needed this, he needed to get off. With Will Summers breathing down his neck, it was going to be harder to get off. Gadiel wasn’t used to sharing his space. He was used to touching himself whenever he felt like it: pulling his cock out and jerking off in the living room, in the kitchen, or in any other room. He had a very high libido, and he liked stroking between his legs and bringing himself off every few hours, but with Will Summers constantly being around, it was going to be impossible. God, fuck that, and fuck him.
Gadiel spilled into his hand, groaning in relief as the maddening tension in him finally faded, somewhat.
But the frustration remained.
Frustration and helpless anger.