18. Jace
Chapter 18
Aiden might have been done with his father, but I’m not. I told him all those years ago what would happen if he ever contacted Aiden again. I let his outburst in Aiden’s office when Oliver was there go because Oli handed his ass to him. But this has gone too far.
So, first thing this morning, I called Vince and decided to take a trip to Aiden’s hometown. If I knew where to find Oliver’s dad, I’d take care of that too. At least Oliver’s dad doesn’t continuously shove himself in Oliver’s face. I pull up in front of a two-story house and put my car in park.
“What’s the plan?” Vince asks.
“It’s time I remind him that I don’t appreciate him fucking with my family.” Aiden’s dad has blamed me for years that his son doesn’t want anything to do with him, unable to admit his own faults. I shove the car door open, and Vince does the same. I walk straight to the door and ring the doorbell.
A guy who isn’t Aiden’s dad answers the door. “Can I help you?”
“We’re looking for Mr. Powers,” I answer.
“And you are?”
I look into the camera above the door. “I know you’re here. Come down, and let’s talk.”
“I think you need to leave,” the little guy huffs, but his eyes dart between Vince and me. The two of us make for an intimidating package.
“I think we’ll wait,” I reply.
“It’s fine, Henry,” Aiden’s dad says. “Let them in before they cause a scene on the front lawn.”
Henry steps back to let us in and shuts the door behind him. I cross my arms over my chest and lean against it. “Kind of like the one you caused at Aiden’s office?”
“This is just like him. He still can’t fight his own battles.”
I push off the door and walk further into the foyer, making Henry scramble out of my way. “He doesn’t even know I’m here. He’s enjoying the day with Toby and Oliver. I told you once to leave Aiden the fuck alone; that he doesn’t need your bullshit in his life anymore. I also told you what would happen if you did contact him.”
“He’s my son!”
“You lost that right years ago!” I yell, the thread on my temper snapping in two. “You made him feel like shit for who he was because it might embarrass you. You don’t give a fuck about him. You need to take a long, hard look at the person you are. Aiden is one of the most successful, high profile real estate agents in New York. He did that without you. Take a minute to let that sink in.” I pause, waiting to see if he’s even listening to me. Something in his expression changes, and I soften my voice. “You shut him out when he needed you the most and made him feel worthless. You know who showed him he wasn’t? Me and Toby. Oliver is the one who finished showing him that he’s worth something. If you don’t plan on making amends and admitting that you were wrong, do us all a favor and stay the fuck away from Aiden. My next visit won’t be as cordial, Mr. Powers.” I spin on my heel to leave before I pull a Toby and punch this fucker in the face. Once we’re inside the car, I have to take several calming breaths.
“You good?” Vince asks.
“I will be.” I stab the start button on the ignition, shift into reverse, and back out of the driveway. When I’m about to drive away, I notice Mr. Powers standing on the front porch. I pull away, wondering if what I said will sink in. No matter what Aiden says, I know everything that his dad has said still bothers him. I’m still damn proud of him for finally standing up for himself. When I first met Aiden, he was so far in his own head—and closet—that it took Toby and me months to get him out. I’ll be goddamned if his dad shoves him back in.
“Have you talked to Oliver?” Vince asks, and I snort.
“You aren’t asking about Oliver, Vince. I’m surprised you’ve waited this long to ask about Leland.”
“It’s not like I have a way to contact him unless you want to give me his number.”
“Fat fucking chance, asshole. I think you need to give him some space.”
“If space was what Leland needed, I wouldn’t have pushed that night. He was all in, man.”
“And you know how scary that first encounter is with another guy. You’re experienced. Leland’s never even experimented until that night.”
“We can take care of him.”
“I know you can, or I would have crushed your skull by now. But just remember, he’s best friends with the love of my life. If you hurt Leland, you’ll hurt Oliver. I won’t stand for that.”
“What did Oliver say about it?”
“Oliver agrees that you guys will be good for Leland, but there’s shit about Leland that you don’t know, and it’s not my story to tell. Tread lightly, Vince, and tell Zac the same thing.”
Vince sits back in his seat and stares out his window for almost twenty minutes. “Zac and I have been looking for our third for a while.”
That shocks the shit out of me. I glance at him and then back at the road. “I thought you guys were content to do fantasies from the site.”
“We were.”
“What happened?” I still have no idea why the hell they started working for Dark Desires, and I’ve been dying to know.
“Zac and I have been together since we were sixteen. That’s almost twenty years. We’re still really fucking happy, but we felt like something was missing. We met Jackson when he came to the firm needing legal advice. He introduced us to Dark Desires, and you know the rest. Recently, we’ve been talking about adding a permanent third. That’s why we stepped back from the site. We never thought we’d meet the one that would complete us.”
“Until Leland,” I guess.
“Yeah. There was this instant pull with me and Zac that’s never happened before. It’s either I’m into them, and he’s not, or vice versa. We said we wouldn’t stop looking until we both felt the same. The night we first met him, we went home and decided that Leland would be ours.”
“Out of all the guys you could pick, you pick the straight one.”
Vince chuckles at that. “It can never be said that we don’t like challenges. I want what you have.”
“What I have doesn’t come without its struggles. But I understand.”
“You’re lucky that Oliver came back when he did, or we were about to swoop in to save the day.”
“Do you want me to throw you out of this fucking car?”
“I’m joking,” Vince laughs. “I’d never step on you like that. But I am glad you worked things out. You were a miserable asshole.”
“Shut up,” I grouch and then laugh. “You’re right. I can’t deny it.”
“So, how are you going to help me get in contact with Leland?”
“I’m not getting involved. And leave Oliver and Toby out of it, too.”
Seeing Vince and Zac fall all over themselves for Leland makes me think back to the first time that I saw Oliver. It was just a picture from the site, but it’s all I needed to see. Then the way he gave himself over to us even though he was nervous as hell. When I got him from upstairs, he was bright-eyed and practically shaking, but he let himself just live in the moment.
I’ve never been more glad that Toby has stalking tendencies because he’s the reason we got to know more about Oli. I don’t think he would have tried to sign up for another fantasy, and he was all we could talk about.
Now he’s wearing my collar, commiting the rest of his life to me.