have a bad word to say about you.”
“I try to find jobs for people if they don’t work out.”
“There are a few not so happy. We’re tracking them down. You’ve got fingers in a lot of pies, Louis.”
“I know. I’ve always been a workaholic. Now, though, I wonder if it’s time I slowed down.”
Dominic gave him an oddly gentle smile for such a fierce man. “Just give yourself time to recover. You’ve suffered a huge trauma. Let Craig take care of you for a few weeks.”
“I’ve got to plan for the party.”
“You’ve got Jamie to do that,” Craig said brusquely. “You need to trust him.”
Louis gave them both the side-eye. “This sounds like you’re all telling me to sit down and shut up.”
“Yep,” Dominic agreed. “I’m off. Anyone else comes knocking at the door, you can refer them to me.”
Craig got to his feet. “Done. My boy gets a quiet afternoon in my arms.”
He swore he heard a happy sigh from Louis.
Craig insisted they go into the den, as he knew Louis relaxed there more than anywhere else. He settled himself on the couch and tugged Louis down so he could enfold Louis into his arms. Louis sighed and curled into Craig, tucking his head under Craig’s chin.
“It’s been a long day,” Louis murmured, his warm breath ghosting against Craig’s skin.
Craig stroked Louis’s hair. “Did you mean what you said about slowing down?”
“A week ago, I’d have said no.”
“And now?”
“I wonder if it’s all worth it.”
“What do you mean?” Craig asked.
Louis sighed. “I lost you, and my world fell apart. I poured all my energy into my work. And I’ve been successful. But look what happened to me.”
“It wasn’t your fault, boy.”
“Maybe I should have stayed a club owner minding my own business.”
“You think it’s your success that’s made you a target?”
“I don’t know,” Louis said. “I wish I did. Targeting me for my success is better than the alternative.”
“Which is?”
Louis sat up and looked at Craig. “Targeting me because I’m a boy. That could mean someone is coming after the community.”
Craig sighed and tucked Louis back in his arms. “I know.” He hated that idea, but Louis was right. Those were the two obvious options. Louis yawned and Craig decided to drop the subject. “Rest, my boy. We can pick this up later.”
“I should work.”
“You should sleep,” Craig insisted.
He received a snore in response. Craig grinned and held his boy closer to him. He was glad of this quiet time. He needed to do some thinking.
Craig blinked. He cracked open one eye to see he was alone in the den. He must have fallen asleep almost straight away, because he couldn’t remember doing any thinking beyond the fact he needed to think. He grimaced. Jet lag was a bitch.
Where was Louis? He didn’t like the idea that Louis had gotten up without him realizing. Craig was never that deeply asleep. He yawned, scratched his armpit and went in search of his errant boy.
He heard voices from the kitchen. He had one hand on the door to open it when he heard Louis say, “No, I haven’t told him. How can I tell him? He’ll kill me.”
Craig stiffened. Told him? Told Craig? He waited, not happy at the thought of eavesdropping on Louis’s conversation, but equally unhappy at the thought of Louis keeping something important from him.
“Yes, yes. I know, Jamie, I know. It’s stupid to hide this from Craig, but he’s always trusted me. What happens now when he discovers he can’t?”
Craig wanted to burst in, to demand to know what Louis was talking about. But he waited, determined to know the full story before he made an idiot of himself.
There was a long silence and Craig was about to step into the kitchen when Louis said, “I’ll tell him. You’re right, he needs to know. It was just one time. He’ll forgive for me that.”
Louis sounded so defeated. Craig’s heart ached as it always did when he heard that tone in Louis’s voice.
“It’s okay. I’ll call you later and tell you what he says.”
Craig waited but he heard nothing more. He pushed the door open to see Louis staring out of the window, his hands in his pockets, and his phone abandoned on the countertop.
“Tell me what?” Craig asked.
He’d intended to go in softly, but apparently his mouth hadn’t caught up with that idea.
Louis didn’t turn his head to look at him. “How much did you hear?”
“Enough,” Craig said grimly. “What is it you need to tell me?”
“Erik