Exposed Exposed (Dom Nation #1) - E. Davies Page 0,71

down to the very pit of my stomach. I don’t have anything to be embarrassed about, I told myself, but it fell short. I’d spent years cultivating my reputation, after all.

After hanging up as fast as I humanly could, I finally looked at Seb. He was grinning enormously as he leaned on the display cabinet, wearing the suit and tie that meant he was on his way to some late meeting.

“Evening, sweetheart,” my so-called friend said, batting his lashes at me.

I gave him a look that let him know there were sharp knives behind this counter. “Asshole.”

“No, I’m happy for you.” Seb’s eyes glinted as he smoothed his hand over his face like he was trying to stroke away the smile lines. “Love looks good on you.”

My heart just about stopped. No, he did not, I thought. I gave him an incredulous look, but he wasn’t joking around. He must not understand everything he was implying by using that word.

It was just a phrase. A thing people said when they approved of their sad, long-single friends getting un-single.

“I didn’t ask your opinion, actually,” I said with a smirk. “I wanted to talk about something else.”

Seb only swooned harder against the display case. “Not the depths of his eyes and the—” I unrolled the top of the flour bag under the counter, and he held his hands up, stepping back. “Okay! Not on this suit, man.”

No point in beating around the bush. “I want to know how I should go after Isaac.” I let a moment pass as I scrutinized him, making sure he wasn’t about to tell me they’d become best buddies while I opened up the shop.

Seb’s brow wrinkled. “I’ve never known either of you to sub.”

“Not that way,” I groaned. “I mean, I think he’s harassing me. But everyone loves him. They won’t believe it without proof.”

The jokes faded from Seb’s eyes, and he immediately grabbed a chair, turning it around to sit and face me. “Are you serious? What’s happening?”

I allowed myself a moment of gratitude for my friend before explaining. Not all the details, of course. Barely any of them. Just that someone had shown up at my old workplace, I was pretty sure it had to be him, but I wasn’t given a name or face, so I had no proof at all.

Seb raised a brow. “You’re sure it’s not some boy’s jealous boyfriend?”

“Slate would never.” My words were an ice-cold warning, but fire sizzled in my belly. He wasn’t a cheater. Not on his life.

Seb blinked at me. “Whoa,” he said, sounding startled. “I didn’t mean his boyfriend. Is he the only one in the picture, then?”

He wasn’t asking to be curious or tease. He still had his serious voice on. So I ground my teeth and snipped, “Yes. And the guy who showed up had black hair and a leather jacket.”

“That’s what he often wears,” Seb agreed, rubbing his chin.

I nodded, hoping we were on the same page now.

“What are you going to do about it? Because I’ll help you hide the body, but…”

I smiled, but my gut roiled. This was the part I couldn’t quite come to terms with. What was I supposed to do?

I couldn’t let Isaac rampage around my life, trying to find out more about me. And telling Slate would only make him feel guilty—or worse, unsafe.

I was the Daddy. It was my job to deal with this, and I already knew how.

“I want to talk to Brighton,” I said. “Even though I don’t have evidence yet… there are things he should know.”

“Okay. Let’s go,” Seb said, checking his watch, not even questioning my decision. “I’ve got a few minutes before I have to leave. I saw his car, so he should be in.”

A few minutes later, it was déjà vu all over again.

“And you think it was Isaac even though he didn’t leave a name? Why?”

Brighton leaned back in his office chair, his hands clasped in front of him as he frowned.

He couldn’t look more different from the dark office with its red-paneled walls and plush velvet chairs. He wore a fluffy pink sweater and skinny jeans, bright blond hair swept to one side, dangling gold earrings, and black heeled boots.

Brighton always looked like a twink who’d gotten lost on the way to the cocktail bar, but I knew better than to be fooled by the appearance. He was tough as nails. I just didn’t know how to get him on my side without breaking my trust with