He nuzzled my hand with his cold nose, and I rubbed his snout. “It’s okay, boy. Nothing’s going to hurt you.” I patted his head. “Just stay here and let me check out what spooked you.”
Declan had a state-of-the-art alarm system. Nothing would get by it, but it was better to err on the side of caution. I left only the bedside lamp on in my bedroom and walked barefooted toward the stairs.
It would’ve been a better idea to turn the lights on, but I pretty much knew the outlay of the house by now. I didn’t snoop around, though, more than content to stay within the public areas and avoid the closed doors. Occasionally I used Dad’s office to tweak my résumé and comb the local classifieds for a job in office management.
Halfway down the stairs, I was all set to turn back when footsteps sounded downstairs. I instantly went on high alert, the adrenaline rushing through my blood. Should I go back or continue downstairs to find out who had broken in? I was always too curious for my own good.
I hurried down the stairs while moving with caution. The pale moonlight streaming inside provided minimal lighting. As I reached the landing, the shadow of a man loomed a couple of feet ahead of me. He halted with a jerk, apparently as shocked to see me as I was by him.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I snapped.
I didn’t give him a chance to answer but lunged at the man.
“I—”
Whatever he said was bitten off in a cry of pain when I mowed him into the wall and shoved him roughly against the solid surface. A hand came down on my arm, but I twisted it off and jammed my arm against his throat as he struggled against me.
“How did you get in here?” I snarled.
He tried to speak, but my arm pressing into his windpipe made it impossible. I had zero patience to listen to his excuses. He had broken into Declan’s place. Probably knew the couple was on their honeymoon and didn’t expect anyone to be home.
“You picked the wrong house, you bastard.”
With my elbow still digging into his neck, I started patting his sides, checking if he had a weapon on him. He seemed to be wearing a formal attire of sorts. A jacket, shirt, and even a tie. Something wasn’t right with this whole picture. Unease had me reducing the pressure on his throat.
“You have five seconds to tell me what you’re doing here before I knock you out.”
The man inhaled deeply.
“One...”
“August—”
I stiffened at the sound of my name distorted by a wheeze. Only two people called me August—Dad when he was pissed off, and since he was in Greece, it could only be the next person. Even though I’d invited him to call me Auggie, he never did.
And I secretly liked it.
“Charles?”
“Can’t…breathe.”
“Shit.” I released Charles, and he slumped against the wall, sliding to the floor, coughing and wheezing.
“Turn on the hall lights.”
At my voice command, the hall lights flickered on, revealing Charles propped up against the wall, massaging his neck. I dropped down to one knee in front of him, concerned that I might’ve hurt him worse than I thought.
“Goddammit, Charles, are you hurt anywhere?”
“My pride,” he rasped. “You startled me.”
I brushed his hair with my fingers and frowned at the bruise just above his eye. I didn’t remember hitting him there, but it must’ve happened when he was scuffling with me.
“I startled you?” I scowled at him. “I didn’t expect you.”
“I didn’t expect you either. Thought the place was empty.”
“So you decided to drop by in the middle of the night?”
When he didn’t say anything, I reached for his arm, wincing when I remembered slamming him up against the wall. Not once but twice.
“Come on, let’s take a good look at you. Then you can explain what you’re doing here.”
He allowed me to help him up, gasping when he straightened. He rubbed at the back of his head, where it had snapped into the wall.
“Declan didn’t tell me he had personal security at home.”
If I wasn’t so concerned about him, I might’ve laughed. I instructed Declan’s automated system to turn on the lights in the kitchen. I pulled out a chair and helped Charles to sit.
“Take off your jacket.”
I got an ice pack from the refrigerator and brought it over to him. He was struggling to get his jacket off, and I placed the ice pack on