Chapter 37
Talon
My leg bounces in the backseat the whole ride to my parents’ house. I’d thought about walking to burn off the energy, but the weather is total shit. The flurries from earlier have turned into freezing rain, and I just needed to let someone else deal with delivering us where we need to be.
Zeke’s hand grips mine in support while I mentally dress for battle.
Unfortunately, the mental suit of armor does little to protect me when we enter my parents’ brownstone.
“Mom? Dad? We’re here.”
“Talon, honey, come on in. We’re in the study,” my mom calls from deep inside the house.
I’m clutching Zeke’s hand so hard I’m probably cutting off his circulation, but he says nothing.
I turn the corner first, seeing my dad behind his desk, my mom on the chocolate leather couch already clutching a glass of champagne—which isn’t a good sign—Lukas is in one of the wingback chairs, and Eloise is sitting in the window seat.
“Um, hi,” I say, pulling Zeke through the doorway with me.
“Mom, Dad, Lukas, this is Zeke. My boyfriend.” I want to tuck him into my chest and protect him, even from them, but I know he wants to stand on his own.
“Zeke, this is my mom, Lorraine, my dad, Harrison, and my brother, Lukas.” I point to each of my family members as I give the introductions.
Zeke lets go of my hand to shake theirs, and my eyes follow him around the room, clocking their reactions.
He stops to give Eloise a hug before moving from my mom to my dad, and I breathe a little easier when my sister engulfs him in her arms and kisses his cheeks.
My father gives a firm, one-pump handshake, and then he approaches Lukas, who gives Zeke a stiff handshake and a nod of his head.
He’s clearly still not on board with this.
Too fucking bad. We’re family, so his job is to help me protect Zeke whether he likes it or not.
“Zeke, it’s nice to meet you,” my mom says. “I wish it were simply dinner where we could celebrate the happiness you’ve brought our son, but it appears we have to jump straight into business.”
“Just so everyone knows,” Zeke starts beside me, “I’m not upset about the article.”
“That’s because you have no idea what’s about to happen, son.” My dad’s words are harsh, but not unkind.
Zeke flashes a concerned look at me. This time, I do tuck him into my side and whisper into his ear.
“No matter what, I choose you. Just remember that.”
“The articles are already spinning out of control,” Dad continues.
“The most recent headlines are, ‘Is New York’s Favorite Billionaire Bachelor being Bamboozled?’ ‘Are those hearts or dollar-signs in Devereaux’s Young Lover’s eyes?
’ and ‘A Cross-Class Affair: What We Know About Zeke Hastings and Christian Devereaux’s Whirlwind Romance. ’”
Zeke stiffens next to me.
I’m sure reporters are already connecting the dots, trying to figure out where he’s from and what his story is. He hasn’t even shared much of his story with me. I can’t let them blast it all over the fucking internet.
“How do I shut this down? Zeke doesn’t deserve to have his name and his face posted everywhere because of me,” I lament to my family.
“I’m not sure we can stop it at this point,” my mom says sadly before adding, “I hate to put this kind of pressure on you, but if you two are planning on staying together long term, then we need to know if there’s anything we should address.
” Looking directly at Zeke, she asks, “Is there anything from your past we need to be aware of? Misdemeanors, felonies, affairs, etc.?”
Zeke sways beside me, his breathing labored.
“Hey, it’s going to be all right. Come sit down with me.”
He’s finally caught on to why I’m freaking out.
Derek.
If Derek catches wind of this, he could potentially have one helluva payday by offering information.
And if he doesn’t care about the money, he could do it anonymously just to ruin Zeke and me.
He could tell the media about the things Zeke did to pay his rent.
He could lie and say we had an affair. Or if he’s smart, he’ll blackmail me for a shitload of money because he knows I’ll protect Zeke at all costs.
Until now, Derek didn’t know my real name or identity, but by printing Zeke’s name alongside mine, he’ll know exactly who I am.
Hugging Zeke to my chest, I address my mother.
“Zeke has had a hard life and, like most of us, has done things he isn’t proud of, but no, there’s no record of arrest or anything like that. But his ex could be a problem. A big problem.”
“How so?” my dad asks.
Clearing my throat, I finally enlighten everyone about the real issue.
“Zeke’s ex, Derek, the asshole who put him in the hospital, never knew my real name, nor did he know how much I’m worth.
By printing Zeke’s full name in connection to mine, there’s a damn good chance he’s going to try to extort a lot of money from me in return for his silence about things Zeke would rather not have aired to the world.
Derek and I…uh…” I rub the back of my neck.
“We may have had an altercation one night that ended with Derek in the ER. He knows Zeke is my Achilles’ heel and that I’ll do anything to protect him.
And while Zeke and I didn’t have an affair, I am responsible for physically taking him away from Derek, and he would love nothing more than to hurt us both for that, I’m sure. ”
I scan the room, taking in my family’s faces, and I can’t help but notice Lukas looks awfully pale suddenly, but it’s my mom who speaks.
“Zeke, honey, Talon’s dad and I have to know, and I’m so very sorry for asking, but I hope you understand why we’re asking, but are you with our son for his money?
” Zeke opens his mouth to answer, but my mom holds up a hand while I sit in mortified, angry silence.
“If the answer is yes and you walk away right now, I will write you a check for two million dollars. We’ll handle the press if you sign an NDA and agree to never contact him again, and we’ll all move on. ”
I don’t know where he finds the strength, but Zeke stands and moves to the center of my father’s study to address everyone.
In an eerily calm voice, Zeke makes my heart swell with love to the point of bursting.
“I understand your concerns, Mrs. Devereaux. All of them,” he says.
“I have never had money. I have never had a family. And until Talon, I’d never met someone who made me feel like those things were a possibility for me.
It’s always been important to me that I stand on my own two feet, even when life kept knocking me down.
But despite my best efforts to find independence, I was drowning when I met Talon, who I actually thought was trying to take my job, if you can believe it,” he says with a smile.
“Every day around three o’clock, he’d bring me a cup of hot chocolate or coffee, and that simple act quickly became the highlight of my day.
He showed up for me when there was no one else.
He advocated for me when I couldn’t advocate for myself.
He believes in me as a survivor when everyone else sees me as a victim.
I fell in love with Talon long before I knew who he was, and I’m sure it’s hard to believe, but I’d love him just the same if his net worth was as low as mine.
People see him for his wallet, but I see his heart, and I’m not willing to walk away from that unless he tells me to go.
So, with all due respect, you can keep your money, because the way I feel about Talon is worth more than your entire empire. ”
I don’t even remember standing up, but I’m on Zeke in two seconds flat, pressing my lips to his, the presence of my family be damned.
“I love you,” Zeke whispers.
“I love you, too,” I reply, meaning the words now more than ever.
I thought Zeke would be scared when I explained that Derek might threaten to spill details about their relationship or lie about ours.
I thought he would be pissed knowing Derek might try to extort money from me.
I’m ashamed to admit that the one response I hadn’t counted on was such a well-spoken defense of our relationship to my family, people who had just accused Zeke of the one thing he was adamant he never wanted.
Suddenly, a broken whisper sounds from my right.
“I just wanted to protect you.”
My eyes flash to Lukas, who now looks a sickly shade of green.
“What? Luke, are you okay?” I ask because he’s not making any sense.
“I just wanted to protect you, Tal. You’re too nice for your own good. The article was only supposed to—”
“IT WAS YOU?!” I yell, pushing Zeke behind me as I spin toward my brother. “WHAT THE FUCK, LUKAS? YOU TOLD THEM HIS NAME! How could you do this to me? To him? You KNEW what he went through! I talked to you from HIS HOSPITAL ROOM WHEN I THOUGHT HE WAS GOING TO DIE!” I bellow.
Suddenly, there’s a hand on my shoulder, but I shrug it off, wanting my brother to answer for this.
Keeping his eyes pinned to the floor, Lukas says, “I didn’t mean for it to get so out of hand, Tal.
You have to believe me. And it was just supposed to be the one article.
I just…” He cuts his eyes to Zeke. “I just wanted to scare Zeke a little, make him see what being associated with our family can be like. It’s not a world you can just jump in and out of. Our choices have consequences.”
“Zeke knows far more about that than you do, obviously,” I snarl.
Luke drops his head into his hands.
“I’m so fucking sorry. You wear your heart on your sleeve, and you have to know what this looks like from the outside, right?” he asks, desperate and grasping at straws.
“No, Lukas. I don’t. You should’ve asked me what it was like on the inside.
I tried to buy Zeke meals because he couldn’t afford to eat, and he left the fucking bag in the refrigerator, untouched.
I tried to buy him a car when he got out of the hospital so he could have his independence, and he refused.
El took him shopping with my credit card and explicit instructions to buy him anything he wanted.
” I pull out my phone and scroll back to my conversation with Eloise from two days ago and flip the phone around for him to see.
“AND ALL HE AGREED TO BUY WERE SOCKS, YOU ASSHOLE.”
“Okay, let’s just everyone take a deep breath,” my dad says when suddenly another thought occurs to me.
“Oh, shit. I thought this was Dahlia’s fault. I need to call her and apologize right now.”
Grabbing Zeke’s hand, I pull him from the room with me, not wanting to leave him in the same room as my brother without me there. Finding an empty guest room, I lock us inside, kiss him hard, and call Dahlia.
She answers on the first ring this time.
“Talon. Have you called to cuss me out again, or did you simply come to the realization that I didn’t do whatever it was you thought I did?” she asks.
I’m honestly stunned that she even answered the phone.
“Dahlia, I am so fucking sorry. I don’t even know where to start,” I tell her, my hand rubbing Zeke’s back the entire time because I can’t bear to have any distance between us right now.
“I’ve seen the articles. Of course, several of my friends are sending them to me with jokes about you leaving me for a guy—bunch of cunts—but I assume you thought I was behind this?”
“Jesus, Dahlia, I’m sorry,” I repeat.
“So, who leaked Loverboy to the media?” she asks.
“Lukas,” I answer, figuring she at least deserves the truth since he’s the reason she was cussed out first thing this morning.
“He’s always been a bit of an asshole,” she muses, seemingly unbothered.
Normally, I would argue that point, but today, I’m inclined to agree.