Chapter 21
Twenty-One
Marcus fought the urge to reach over and take Ethan’s hand as they rode the elevator up to Rafe’s penthouse.
As it was, he couldn’t completely dismiss the smile that played on his lips every time he looked over at the young man.
He knew he should be heartbroken over the death of his mother, but what he told Ethan was the truth.
They’d said good-bye to the woman who had raised them as children nearly two hundred years ago.
They mourned her death over the years while caring for the creature that walked around in her body.
Of course, they weren’t going to just let her death pass. She was still murdered, and the culprits behind that act had to be dealt with, which was why they were gathering at Rafe’s.
But their grim reason for gathering did nothing to diminish his joy.
Ethan knew the truth of what Marcus was, and he still loved him.
Ethan still wanted him. They’d spent the majority of the day either talking or wrapped in each other, and he had been the one to drag his feet when it came time to leave for Rafe’s.
Never in his life had he struggled to get out of bed and put his mind to the task ahead of him.
Except this time, he’d wanted to linger in bed, Ethan’s naked body draped around his as they talked or kissed.
And never in his life had he felt so free.
He’d largely squashed the voice in the back of his head, but then the little voice cared less about what happened in the secret of his home.
It was standing in public where others could see him, judge him.
Where others could hurt Ethan for being with a man, not that Ethan gave a shit what others thought about him.
“You know, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you smile so much,” Ethan said with a grin of his own.
“I don’t think I’ve ever had such a good reason to smile.”
Ethan chuckled. “Yeah, I knew that was totally an ‘I got laid’ smile.”
“That makes sense since I did get laid. Several times, in fact.”
“Yes, but I figured you wouldn’t want your brothers knowing that,” Ethan said, never losing his smile, but Marcus’s wilted a little.
“Why would I worry about them knowing?”
“Well, I thought they still blamed me for the attack on your home and the death of Julianna.” Ethan’s smile seemed more brittle as he looked up at Marcus, and it was becoming much clearer that Ethan was incredibly nervous about going to Rafe’s penthouse.
He shifted from one foot to the next, and the hands Marcus had thought were tucked behind his back were actually holding the bar around the car in a death grip.
“I also wasn’t sure how you’d feel about them knowing you’re involved with a man. ”
Marcus stepped closer to Ethan so that their chests were brushing.
“I’m not involved with a man,” Marcus said with a sneer.
“I’m in love with a beautiful, amazing, funny, smart man.
” He smiled when Ethan’s shoulders slumped a little in his relief.
“And your only crime from last night is not telling me sooner about the League, but I understand why you didn’t and have forgiven you. ”
“Thank you,” Ethan murmured, leaning his forehead against Marcus.
“Last night’s attack was not your fault. Julianna’s death was not your fault. She wanted to protect you. I will not take her sacrifice for granted. You are precious to me.”
Ethan lifted his head and smiled at him, tears glistening in his eyes.
He opened his mouth to speak, but the elevator chimed and the doors slid open.
On the other side stood Bel, wearing a dark suit with a red bow tie.
His hair was standing up a bit as if he’d been pulling at it in frustration, but it was good to see him not covered in blood for once.
His brother’s eyes moved from Marcus to Ethan to Marcus again before a smug smirk flashed across his face.
He turned on his heel and walked across shining black floors, leaving Marcus and Ethan to follow.
“I knew it!” Bel said loudly.
Marcus swallowed back a groan and kept his focus on Ethan as he trailed nervously behind them.
Of course, Rafe’s place tended to be a lot to take in with its black marble floors and dark woods.
But the most stunning thing was the magnificent view of the city in the endless wall of windows.
Two walls of windows were visible from almost every spot in the penthouse, which was a damn strange choice for a vampire, but then damn strange was a perfect description of Rafe.
Of course, he was protected. The windows were specially coated to guard against UV rays, and special shades rolled down during the day to block more sunlight.
There were also thick metal shields that came down as a final layer of protection if necessary, but Marcus wasn’t sure if Rafe had ever used those.
For the most part, the penthouse was about Rafe being in the center of all human action and not allowing anything, especially the sun, to stop him from enjoying his extremely long life to the hilt.
What drew Marcus’s attention was the forlorn song lifting from a violin, its notes dancing through the various open rooms. He hadn’t been sure if he’d ever hear Rafe play again after the death of Julianna.
His brother had enjoyed learning the instrument when he’d been younger, but when it had become a tool to control and calm her darker moods, he’d come to resent it.
It was a reminder of how they couldn’t save her and how they were in constant danger.
Marcus could only hope that Rafe found some peace at last with the music and their mother.
As they entered the main living space, they found Rafe’s tall, lean form standing just beyond the balcony doors, the violin tucked under his chin.
The wind blew his hair partially over his face, but not enough to obscure the look of pain etched into his features.
All of his brothers worried Marcus in their own way.
Bel tended to get lost in his work. Rafe tended to get lost in his pleasures while trying to run from his personal demons.
And Winter just tended to get lost, dropping out of contact for long periods of time.
Bel whistled sharply, and Rafe lifted his bow from the strings. With narrowed eyes, he entered the living room, looking from Marcus to Ethan. Bel snapped his fingers once and held out his hand.
“I can’t fucking believe it,” Rafe muttered. He moved the bow to the same hand as his violin and reached into his pocket. Crossing the room, he slapped what looked to be a hundred-dollar bill into his twin’s outstretched hand.
“What did you bet?” Marcus snapped.
“Whether you’d fuck him or kill him,” Rafe grumbled before looking over at a still-smug Bel. “I can’t believe you got that right.”
“You didn’t have a meal with them. They’re quite adorable.”
Ethan snickered from beside Marcus, and Marcus rolled his eyes. “Is Winter here yet?” he asked wearily.
“No, but soon,” Bel replied. “I spoke to him earlier, and he wasn’t able to find Aiden. I have a feeling he’s gone back to the old estate in England.”
Marcus nodded. It made sense. Aiden had owned a large, sprawling estate north of London where they’d all lived for a short time as a family.
It would make sense that Aiden would take their mother’s body to the last place they’d all been happy together.
Before Julianna’s illness. Before they were all transformed. Before it all changed.
“I’m guessing in between all the orgasms, you explained things to him,” Rafe said, waving his bow in Ethan’s direction.
“Well, he explained some things,” Ethan said quickly. “There wasn’t a lot of time between the orgasms for talking.”
Rafe stared silently at Ethan for a moment and then rocked back on his heels with laughter. Marcus looked over to find even Bel shaking his head and smiling, while Marcus could feel his cheeks heating. This was not a topic he’d ever imagined talking about with his brothers.
“You’re faster than I expected.” Rafe pointed his bow at Marcus. “He’s too good for you, I hope you realize that.”
“I do.”
“Not true,” Ethan interjected sharply. “He’s just the right amount of good for me, and the perfect amount of bad.”
Rafe gave a little shiver. “I didn’t think I’d ever say it, but I now know more than enough about Marcus’s sex life.”
“Agreed,” Bel added.
“Like I haven’t been saying that about yours for years,” Marcus grumbled.
Rafe walked over to a table where a violin case lay open. He carefully placed the violin and bow inside, making sure both were properly secured before closing it. “I just felt that I had to share mine with you since yours was so abysmally nonexistent.”
“Well, that has been fixed. Please leave me off your sex picture texts from now on.”
Rafe lifted his head and smirked at them. “We’ll see.”
The argument was interrupted by another soft chime, announcing the arrival of the elevator.
They all turned toward the hall and watched Winter stroll in wearing a pair of black slacks and a black button-down shirt.
He nodded at his brothers but did a strange double take when looking at Marcus and Ethan.
When he looked away, there was a small smirk on his lips as if he could see that things had changed between Marcus and Ethan.
“What?” Marcus barked at his brother and Winter chuckled darkly.
“You’ve got that ‘I got laid’ glow. It’s about time,” Winter said.
“It’s true,” Bel said. “I wish I had taken more pictures of you before you met Ethan so I could do a comparison study to more precisely identify the differences in your appearance. But you do seem lighter.”