Chapter 11
ELEVEN
“You need to fly to Brazil.” It wasn’t quite a question, but it wasn’t quite a statement either. James’ expression didn’t give away much.
“Yes,” Leo said. He laced his hands in his lap.
“And you have to leave right now.”
“I—yes. Because I did something really stupid.” Leo unlaced his hands and crossed his legs at the ankle, then forced himself to sit still.
Honestly, he was better than this; he wasn’t a pre-schooler who couldn’t keep his nerves in check.
“I need to set it right. I need to… I just…” Breaking off, he gave a helpless shrug while his intestines performed a sad pirouette.
The team’s current case wasn’t fully closed, so if James needed Leo here—Leo owed him that much.
A sudden smirk sparked in James’ eyes. “You need to see the Prince.”
“I need to see Joshua,” Leo corrected.
James nodded, his smirk softening. “Point taken.” He paused, leaning back in his desk chair. “All right. I’ll give you your big, romantic gesture. On one condition.”
Your big, romantic gesture.
It wasn’t like that; it really wasn’t. This wasn’t a big gesture, just a necessity—Joshua wasn’t here, and Leo needed to talk to him.
Desperately so. He’d been stupid, and he’d hurt Joshua, and he needed to set it right, needed to know if there was a chance, any chance at all.
He couldn’t wait two weeks for Joshua to get back, even if it meant spending a thousand pounds on a one-way flight with no idea where he’d turn if Joshua didn’t want him.
Oh. So maybe this did qualify as a big gesture.
Leo exhaled slowly, measured. “What’s the condition?”
“Take a couple weeks off.” James raised a brow. “That’s how long he’s staying, isn’t it?”
Leo sagged into himself, felt like a puppet with its strings cut. He was flying to Brazil. Wow. “Thank you,” he whispered.
With a little sigh, James shook his head. “I’ve been telling you to take a real holiday for years.”
He had. There just hadn’t been a particularly pressing need, not when Leo loved his work, not when his place was here in London. There was his Saturday gig with the kids—which he’d need to let Kylie know he wouldn’t be able to make tomorrow. Maybe Nate could fill in for him?
Also… Fuck, he’d need more than a fake ID to travel to Brazil. His was enough to withstand a cursory inspection, but certainly not enough to get him halfway across the globe.
“Hey, James?” Leo got up from his chair and crossed over to the window.
Restlessness itched in his bones and buzzed in his fingertips, had him watching the sky with a mix of hope and apprehension.
In just a few hours he’d be up there. Christ, it had been over a decade since he’d last been on a plane.
Turning, he found James studying him with fond amusement, and Leo cleared his throat.
“Do you know someone who might—my old passport is way expired.”
“Surprised you even have one,” James said. “Thought you might have left it behind so your parents wouldn’t find you.”
Leo gave a hollow laugh. “I really don’t think they even tried. But, yeah, that’s why I always used my fake ID. I was not so stupid as to run away without my passport though. Plenty stupid, yes, but that one I had covered.”
“Good thinking.” While James had never learned the specifics of Leo’s background, he merely smiled. “I can pull some strings.”
“Of course you can,” Leo said. Smiling back, he shifted his weight and tried to control the hectic pace of his pulse.
Unsurprisingly, his success was limited.
He probably wouldn’t get so much as a wink of sleep on the twelve-hour flight, would get high on complimentary snacks and sugary drinks instead.
God, please let there still be a free seat for him when he got out of here. He didn’t want to wait another twenty-four hours for the next flight out.
About to excuse himself, he was stopped when James spoke up again. “So, with what I know of your backstory, I’m aware we’re looking at a potential scandal. Shall I ready the troops?”
Leo stilled. The question sat strangely in his stomach, like a weight that had dropped quite suddenly.
What had seemed like an abstract possibility had just become a lot more concrete because—fuck.
If Joshua was willing to take that chance, it could cost them.
And if they failed in spinning this just right…
Buckingham Palace would be under siege. Again.
Jesus fucking Christ, Joshua would have to be mad to risk it. But Leo would give him a choice all the same. And if Joshua wanted him… Well. Leo’s life would change. Enormously so.
It would be worth it.
“Not quite yet.” Leo fought for an even tone. “And you know I can’t afford—”
James didn’t let him finish. “You’re not a paying client, Leo.
Don’t insult me.” He sounded genuinely offended, and Leo had no idea how he’d got so lucky.
If he hadn’t been at that bar while James had been waiting for a contact that never showed, if James hadn’t seen something in Leo that evening, hadn’t been willing to take a chance on a boy who didn’t possess much beyond a cheeky smile and a worn leather jacket…
“You might be the best thing that’s ever happened to me, you know?” Leo told him. On impulse, he closed the gap between them to lean down for a sideways hug. James grinned into it.
“Or maybe Joshua is.”
Pulling back, Leo managed a grin that was bound to turn out a little watery. Ever since this morning, everything about him felt broken open, unsteady. A few short hours ago, he’d believed that he should let Joshua go without a fight. How could he have been so stupid?
“Maybe,” Leo agreed softly. “Maybe he is, yes.”
James’ grin widened in response. Steepling his fingers together on his desk, he kicked his chair back a little, shooting Leo a shrewd look. “Nate’s coming with you, by the way,” he said, matter-of-fact.
“He what?” Then the implication caught up with Leo, and he crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes. “Wait a minute. Are you telling me that you knew the whole time why I was here, and yet you let me squirm through this? Not cool.”
If anything, James’ amusement seemed to increase. “It’s my job to know things, and I so rarely get to see you squirm.” He tilted his head, gaze warm and direct. “Really, though. I felt it would do you good, having to ask. Some things shouldn’t be easy.”
“You’re a closeted sadist.” Leo inhaled and swallowed, dropping his arms back to his side. “Also a better father figure than mine ever was.”
“Don’t think that’s saying much, from what little I gleaned. But,”—James’ tone grew serious—“I’m honoured, Leo. Don’t mean to brag, but I think I did a pretty good job with you, all things considered.”
“All things considered,” Leo echoed flatly. “Such praise, oh, you flatter me.” It took a moment, then a grin tugged at the corners of Leo’s mouth.
“Well. You go through with this, put yourself out there…” James’ eyes held a challenge, bright and fond. He inserted a significant pause. “Then I’d say I did an all-round spectacular job. Now go. Collect Nate. We’ll sort the passport, and then you can book your flights,.”
“Thank you,” Leo told him. His chest swelled on a deep breath.
“Go,” James repeated.
Leo did.
￡1,290.
￡1,290 per person, just for the flight to Rio de Janeiro. One-way, and then it’d be a similar sum for the way back. The financial cushion Leo had managed to squirrel away would be a little less comfortable after this trip.
It was worth it.
After a quick thank you, Leo angled himself away from the sales clerk to face Nate properly.
The airport was bustling around them, travellers rushing to and fro, announcements from the speakers reminding them not to leave their baggage unattended.
Leo rather doubted anyone wanted to mess with his hastily packed suitcase—but anyway. ￡1,290.
He cleared his throat. “Can I just reiterate that you do not have to come along? This isn’t a bargain, right, and I can do it on my own because I’m a strong, independent man and all that shit. You know, maybe it’s the kind of thing I should be doing on my own.”
“You’ve been doing things on your own your whole life.” The corners of Nate’s mouth curved up. “Also, who said I’m going for you, mate? Mo actually asked me to come along, like, this morning.”
That was news to Leo. Unsurprising news, but news all the same.
He pressed the side of his foot against Nate’s. “You’re boyfriends, then? All proper and official, making an honest man out of you? Do I need to give him the you-hurt-him-I-kill-you best friend talk?”
Nate scoffed. “Hate to break it to you, but you’re not that scary.”
“Excuse you, I am bloody terrifying. You’re probably just jaded, been up against super spies or something, so I don’t think you’re a good judge here.
” After another second’s pause, Leo nodded and turned back to the clerk, sliding his new passport across the counter.
“We’ll take them. Thank you.” Then he turned back to Nate and added a slightly belated, “Hey. Happy for you, man.”
“Kind of happy for myself.” Nate didn’t sound smug, just honest.
“At your next class reunion, you can totally brag about dating a supermodel. Stick it to the arseholes who bullied you.”
“Not what it’s about at all.” With a snort, Nate shook his head.
His attention was on Leo’s passport when the clerk opened it, a beat of silence spiralling out as he appeared to study the information upside down.
Birth date and place of birth, family name—not the one Leo had made his own and which had come to fit like a well-worn glove, but the one he’d grown up with.
Austin, Leo Troy.
Nate seemed to roll the name around his mouth, test it out in his head, before he nudged their hips together, voice low.
“Leo Troy Austin, huh. Sounds weird, mate. Is it the kind of fancy name that could get us into that extra-special lounge here? Like, the one where we met the others this morning?”