Chapter 5
FIVE
NATE
“Heard you took my kid to the gym,” I say to my brother as I enter the Landry Security conference room. “Imagine my shock when that little nugget just toppled out of my son’s mouth last night.”
Dominic leans back in his chair. “I never had Ryder pegged to be a snitch.”
Ford Landry, the CEO of Landry Security, laughs from the head of the table. Troy Castelli, Ford’s right-hand man, laughs along with him.
Troy and I met through Landry Security. It was a little tense at first because we’re both used to getting our way and won’t back down from a fight.
But once we got to know each other, the exact reasons things were tense between us actually brought us closer.
He’s probably my closest friend, aside from Dominic.
I pull a chair out next to Dominic and sit. I yawn, arching my back as I fight off the sleepiness that I’ve battled all day.
That’s what you get for staying up all night thinking about your housemate.
As hard as I thought it might be to have Paige under the same roof, I was wrong. It was harder.
Just knowing she was there, possibly naked and totally willing, was temptation on a level that I didn’t know existed. Staying away from her was a feat in and of itself.
But I did it. I survived one night.
“I promised Percy that I’d come by and help him with a camera he had some quack install,” Dominic says. “I don’t know why the hell he just didn’t call me to start with.”
“If I were venturing to guess, I’d say it’s because of your stellar personality,” Troy says with a grin. “You always make me feel all warm and fuzzy.”
Everyone laughs. Everyone but Dominic.
He levels his gaze with Troy. “What are you saying? That I’m an asshole?”
“Yes,” the three of us say in unison.
Dominic tries to act like he’s pissed but ends up chuckling too.
“How’s the bar?” Ford asks me, always the epitome of class. “Business good?”
“Yeah. Yeah, it’s going good. We’ve started opening for lunch and increased our dinner menu. It just keeps growing.”
I beam. I know I do, and I probably look like a schmuck. But the fact is that I’m proud of what I’ve built. I took a seedy joint in a risky part of town and made it into something that even the Landrys come to for a drink now and then.
“That’s great,” Ford says. “I’m glad to hear it.”
“Me too.”
He takes an envelope out of a black folder and slides it to me. “That’s for the Burgundy event last week. We charged the host a fee for the crowd control mess, and I gave you a cut of that since you were the point man.” He rubs his temples. “That was a nightmare.”
“You’re telling me.”
I instantly touch my right shoulder. The pain has gone from getting my arm nearly jerked out of the socket by a crazed protestor.
“Have I mentioned my unwillingness to work any more political events?” I ask, joking but also not really joking.
Ford makes a face. If anyone in this room understands political events it’s him. His family’s roots in public service go way back and end with his oldest brother as the governor of Georgia.
“You handled it like a pro,” Ford says, resting his hands together in front of him. “I really wish you’d just come work with us full time.”
“Yeah,” Dominic says, teasing me. “Come work with us. What could be better than working with me all day?”
“Oral surgery,” I say without thinking. “Swimming in chummed waters with sharks. Petting a cobra. Hiking through the Outback with no water.”
Troy laughs. Dominic rolls his eyes.
“I mean it,” Ford says. “If you ever get to the point where The Gold Room is operating on its own, or you can hire someone to manage it, I’d hire you full time. No questions asked.”
“I’d hope you wouldn’t ask any questions since I’m already on the payroll.”
Ford grins. “We’re working out contract details for a job in Atlanta. Will be a whole weekend the first weekend next month. You interested?”
I lean back in my chair and exhale.
Usually, I grab some of these jobs here and there.
The money is nice—very nice. I sack it all away for a rainy day because those kinds of days happen more regularly than I care to admit.
Especially with a kid with loads of energy.
So when I can get my day manager to close at night and can talk my neighbor, Mrs. Kim, into watching Ryder for the weekend, I’ll sign on to help Ford out.
But now I have something else to contend with—Paige.
“I’m sorry, Ford,” I say, sitting back up. “I have a … situation that precludes me from leaving town for a while.”
“How long?” he asks.
I shrug.
Dominic looks at me, confused. “What situation?”
Shit. If anyone can see through me, it’s my brother. “Just a situation. Relax.”
“I want to know.”
“Do I poke around in your life?” I ask, irritated. “Come on, man.”
“What do you want to know? Hit me with your questions.” Dominic sits up, screwing with me for the sake of screwing with me. “You wanna know how hard Camilla fuc—”
“That’s my sister.” Ford’s voice booms through the conference room, effectively silencing my brother. “For your sake, don’t go there.”
Troy sits back and cackles.
Dominic looks at Ford. “Sorry. That got a little out of hand.”
“You think?” Ford shakes his head. “Just be glad Lincoln didn’t hear you say that.”
Dominic snorts. “You know I’m not scared of Lincoln.”
“Did someone say my name?” Lincoln asks, eyeing each of us.
We all turn toward the door as none other than Lincoln Landry walks in. He removes his sunglasses—why was he wearing them in the building in the first place?—and plops down in the chair beside Troy.
Out of all the Landrys, I like Lincoln the least. He’s not a bad person. Actually, he’s pretty funny and one hell of an athlete. But he knows it. His cheekiness might work on the women in his life, but it doesn’t work on me.
I look at my brother. Or Dominic.
Troy smirks. “Nah, I don’t think so. Dominic was just talking about getting a new car. Right, Dom?”
Dominic rolls his eyes.
“Oh, what kind?” Lincoln asks. “I love cars.”
“A Lincoln,” I say, elbowing my brother.
Ford takes a deep breath. “What are you doing here, Linc?”
Lincoln cracks a piece of gum. “You want the truth or bullshit?”
“What kind of question is that?” Ford asks.
“I’m here for the bullshit answer.” I look at Ford and shrug. “Hey, the last time he swung by and I was here, he said he was helping Graham with paperwork.” I look at Lincoln and grin. “We all know you were full of shit that day. There’s no way in hell G would let you help with paperwork.”
Lincoln rolls his eyes. “It’s all fun and games and ‘Graham is so responsible and works so hard’ until he has a heart attack.”
“Good point,” Dominic mumbles.
“Anyway,” Lincoln says, “I was here to see if anyone wanted to go golfing with me.”
Four various forms of no ring out through the room. Even if we had the day to blow off, doing anything remotely athletic with Lincoln is not fun. The guy is a phenom. Although I would absolutely knock him out in a fight. Probably in the first thirty seconds.
Lincoln gets up, his lips twisted in displeasure. “You guys are no fun.”
“We have work to do,” Ford tells him.
“Heart attacks. All of you,” Lincoln says, pointing at each of us as he walks to the door.
“We’ll take our chances,” Dominic says.
Lincoln puts his hand on the door and starts to push it open. “You still owe me a bottle of tequila, Nate.”
“It’s been three years. Let it go,” Ford says just as Lincoln disappears into the hallway.
Once he’s gone, it’s as if all the air in the room is momentarily sucked out with it.
It takes a few seconds for us to regain our footing.
It’s no secret that Lincoln and I butt heads from time to time, but it’s not easy for me to deal with a grown-ass man who plays golf randomly in the middle of the work week. Must be nice.
Ford looks at his watch. “All right, guys, I gotta go. I have a call in fifteen minutes.” He gets to his feet and glances at Troy. “Where are we meeting Holt Mason this afternoon?”
“Hilary’s House.”
“What’s going on with them?” I ask.
“A recommitment ceremony,” Ford says. “Holt’s parents are renewing their vows and are going all out. Coy has some bands coming to town from Nashville, so there’ll be celebrities. It’s going to be nuts.”
Cool.
“See you there,” Ford says to Troy. “Talk to you guys later.”
“Later,” Dominic and I say.
Once the door closes behind Ford, Dominic elbows me in the side.
“What?” I ask.
“What’s the situation?”
I sigh.
It’s not a big deal. I might as well just tell him. But even though having my friend stay with me as a favor to her isn’t a big deal—right now? It feels like it is.
I know exactly what Dominic and Troy will think when I say Paige is at my house. They both know her and have seen us together. They’ve independently made comments about how much she wants my cock and I should give it to her. Naturally, they’ll think there’s a fuck fest happening on Galloway Drive.
Do I care if they think I’m banging her? Not necessarily. But I don’t really want to talk about it.
“Paige got evicted,” I tell them.
Dominic furrows his brow. “The hottie who works for you?”
I nod.
“Dude, make sure she doesn’t go back to Atticus out of desperation.”
“Oh, she isn’t …” I exhale sharply. “She’s staying with me for a little while.”
Troy looks pleased. “Okay. Well, I can’t say I didn’t see that coming.”
I chuckle, wishing I had never brought it up to them. “Yeah, well, it’s not like you think.”
“Why the hell not?” Dominic asks. “She’s a ten outta ten. She wants your cock. Hell, she’d probably spin around whatever way you asked her to, and you’re telling me she’s under your roof and not under your sheets?” He gasps. “What’s wrong with you?”
Troy jabs a thumb Dominic’s way. “What he said.”
I get up and pace around the table.
“Have you ever talked to her?” Troy asks my brother. “She’s funny. Great sense of humor.”
“I haven’t said much to her, but I know her well enough that she seems pretty cool.”
I feel both of their gazes land on me. The weight of them makes me stop moving.
“You guys are right,” I say, surprising myself. “But just because I can doesn’t mean I should.”
“She’s an adult. Consent is a real thing, and I bet she’d be more than happy to give it to you,” Troy says.
“You do know me, right?” I ask, raising a brow. “I don’t bring random women back to my house with Ryder there. I’m not gonna confuse him like that.”
“But you like her, and she’s already at your house …” Dominic says, raising a brow. “I think you’ve already stepped in that puddle, brother.”
“She’s there as a friend. Ryder understands that. I’m not going to let him get attached to her.”
“You’re the parent.” Dominic looks down at the paper in front of him. “You do you.”
I will. Tension spans the back of my neck. Coupled with my lack of sleep, I know my patience is thin—even for these two.
“I gotta go,” I tell them, picking up the envelope Ford gave me. “See you guys later.”
They respond, but I don’t know what they say. I walk out, leaving them and their tempting take on my status with Paige behind.