Chapter Nineteen
“You all understandhow this will work,correct?”
With a squeak of leather, Sean Cook turned in his seat to regard the six tuxedoed men -six, despite Damon’s incredibly loud and curse-filled threats of retribution against his lover when he insisted on accompanying them - in the back of thelimo.
“You’ve been over it enough times,” Damon said, his gravelly voice made even rougher by suppressed anger andworry.
Cain took Damon’s hand and leaned into his side, undeterred by his grumbling, and Damon laid a fervent kiss on his temple. “The entire event is being held in one room. We walk into the room together,” Cain recited. “We take one walk around the perimeter to observe the items for auction, alsotogether.”
“If one of us stops, to bid or to chat, all of us stop,” Cam said flatly, slouching in his seat. Cort reached over and took his hand, pressing a smiling kiss to hisknuckles.
“Right.” Cainnodded.
“After the first circuit around the room, we find our table, which will be in the back corner, furthest from the door and without a direct sightline from any windows,” Bas said. Though he held tightly to Drew’s hand, his jaw was hard and his gaze was turned resolutely out the window, maybe watching the lights shimmer on the Charles River as they approached their destination. His displeasure at the whole scene was visible in every line of hisbody.
“We eat the special meals that will be delivered by Agents Derrick and Marquez,” Cort said, taking his turn. “Who have already warned me against asking for extra ketchup with my steak tartare.” He sighedcomically.
“I appreciate you reminding Carl and Nat why they really shouldn’t miss you all that much,” Sean said soberly. “Whatelse?”
“We don’t leave the room for any reason. Not to use the bathroom. Not to take a phone call,” Drew said. “If we have an emergency situation, we find one of the agents we know and informthem.”
“Good,” Sean said. “Excellent. Everyone’s phones are on andcharged?”
A chorus of yeses, along with Damon’s, “I already fucking told you it was!” filled theair.
“We’ve got a dozen agents working behind the scenes in that room - some as waiters, others as guests. They will be monitoringyouat all times, keeping in proximity and ready to jump in if something happens. We have a safe room set up in one of the unused maintenance shops just down the hall from the main area. We have taken every precaution to make you as safe aspossible.”
“Except one,” Bas said, finally turning his head only to glare at Sean. “Because what you’re not saying is that Alexei has likely anticipated all of this. He knows we’ll have agents in there with us, thanks to Cort’s connections if nothing else. He knows you guys have run checks on all the guests, and will be doing tight security screenings at the door. And he still chose to do this here and now. Which means he must have thought of something wehaven’t.”
Sean scratched his cheek. “Sebastian…”
Bas shook his head. “I don’t wanna hear it. I appreciate the effort you’re putting in on this, Sean, but you know it’s true.Iknow it’s true. No matter how much smoke you try to blow atus.”
To Drew’s surprise, Sean grimaced and nodded slowly. “You’re right, Bas. You’re absolutely right. And yet, this is the best plan because it’s the only plan.” He shrugged. “You can still backout.”
Bas squeezed Drew’s hand more tightly and turned his gaze back out thewindow.
Sean took this as the silent capitulation it was. “Alright, then. We’re pulling into the covered parking area as we speak. This is the spot where our position is weakest, and the time when everyone needs to be on high alert. Listen to the agents and stayvigilant.”
He turned around and was out of the passenger door practically before they’d come to a complete stop. A second later, he was opening the rear door and ushering them out into the cold, dampnight.
Bas emerged first. An agent dressed in a tux came forward to usher him inside, but he hung back, holding out his hand forDrew.
Drew shook his head, even as his heart soared. Trust Bas to defy orders in the most romantic waypossible.
He gave Sebastian his hand, gripping it tightly, and walked quickly into the lobby of the hotel - a large atrium twenty-seven stories tall, ringed on all sides by walkways that overlooked the spacebelow.
Even to Drew’s untrained eye, this situation appeared incredibly unsafe. He held his breath as Cain and Damon were ushered inside, followed by Cam and Cort, and the agents tasked with shepherding them to the function room formed a loose ring around them, two women dressed in simple but elegant gowns, and four men in black tie. The twelve of them moved together, spread out just far enough that they didn’t attract much notice from the other guests, but close enough that no one else could approachthem.
When they made it to the relative safety of the ballroom on the far side of the lobby - a place with a ceiling, granting them safety fromabove, if nothing else - Drew breathed a sigh ofrelief.
And then, as his heart rate began to settle, he noticed dozens of eyes turning in his direction, watching him enter theroom.
No,he realized, recognizing the direction of their collective stares.Notwatchingme.Watchingus. They were focused on Bas’s hand clasped aroundhis.
Drew swallowed and glanced at Sebastian. He seemed wholly unaware of the gazes focused on them, and he probably was. His mouth was turned up in a polite smile, his posture relaxed. Only someone who had studied his face since childhood would have recognized the slight tension in his jaw, the squeeze of his hand, that indicated Sebastian was not nearly as laid-back as he appeared. Nor was he likely to relax at all until Alexei was in prison. Not unless Drew steppedin.
Drew stroked the inside of Bas’s wrist with his thumb, and Bas turned to look athim.
