He shrugged against me. “There’s not much to tell. I grew up mostly in Georgia until I was about six. I think there might have been a year in Florida in there somewhere. I remember seeing the Gulf of Mexico. Mother decided she was tired of the heat, or at least that’s all she’ll say, and we traveled to New York. She thought she could get herself a rich man, but no one wants a woman with a kid, especially guys with money.” He paused, and I waited because there was obviously more there that he wanted to say. “I remember telling Mother to leave me somewhere. I promised I wouldn’t tell anyone who my mother was, no matter what. She’d have a better chance without me. She wouldn’t hear any of it, though. Told me it was me and her, and that was it.”
“The madam is a woman of morals,” I said laughing. “For the most part. You really did that?”
“Yes.” He chuckled, too, and the happy sound went straight to my cock. Who knew laughter from him was so sexy? My half-hard wood thought so, apparently. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind he could feel what he was doing to me because his cock was reacting, too, where he was pressed to mine. “Yes, Mother has a code she lives by, but the fine print of that particular document is very small, and only she can read it. Depends on who you are. If you’re one of hers, she’ll take good care of you.”
“Did that ever make you jealous?”
He snorted. “Are you my therapist now? Mother sends me to one every month. I don’t need another one.”
“Why?”
“You ask a lot of questions.” He exhaled loudly. “Because I’m the manager of the Courtesan. The hotel depends a lot on my health, both mental and physical. Mother trusts me to keep the business running. It brings in money for the Harlots, not only her, and that’s not an alliance she wants to sour. So, that’s what I do.”
“Hm.”
“What does that sound mean?” he demanded.
More laughter echoed in the distance—loud and abrupt—startling in the otherwise quiet area. “Nothing.”
“Please don’t treat me like an idiot.” He tried to shove at me, but I held him tight. What Darcy didn’t know was now that I had him in my arms, I never wanted to let go again. He was mine.
“Fine. You want my opinion? You have too much responsibility thrown on you, and that causes you to stress. You’re a stresser, Darcy. I don’t have to see it to know how tense you are. I can feel it and hear it in your voice.”
Darcy snorted. “Are we honestly doing this again?”
I stiffened and sighed. “Yes, we are, because I care about you. I want you to be healthy and happy. You deserve it.”
“So tell me, great business guru, what shall I do? Tell Motherno?” Sarcasm laced his voice. I knew how the madam worked: she never took no for an answer and got the results she wanted through violence or persuasion. She was good at both, but Darcy was her son, and I also knew she wanted only the best for him.
“Nope. Get help. Hire someone to be your second-in-charge.” I grinned at him.
“Oh yes, let me pull out the resumés and see if someone has experience in managing a brothel.” Iheardthe roll of his eyes through his voice.
“You have plenty of staff who work for you. There has to be someone you can train.”
“That requires me to have time totrainthem. I don’t have time to breathe, let alone that.”
“Have them be your shadow. Teach them as you work.” He huffed, and I laughed because I knew exactly what the issue was. “You hate giving up control.”
“Of course I do. I’m used to being in charge. If something went wrong—”
“Instead of looking at what could go wrong, sweet prince, look at what could go right. You could have someone who had your back, give you the time off you deserve.” I traced my hand up his spine, over the knobs, and curled my fingers around the back of his neck.
“Maybe.” He didn’t sound so sure about the idea, and it was something I filed away in my brain to talk to Madam Winters about. She always listened to my suggestions, even though I was no longer working for her. “Are you done? Should we go inside? It’s starting to cool down.”
The wind tickled my wet skin, proving his point, and I nodded. We walked out of the water together, Darcy once again holding on to my arm tightly until our feet were firmly planted on the soft, lush grass. He handed me my cane and a towel, and I thanked him with a gentle kiss that had him sighing pleasantly.
I wrapped the towel around my waist, and we walked back to the cabin slowly, the afternoon sun’s glow giving off the last bit of heat it had left, which was no competition for the night air in the mountain area. I shivered, my skin prickling with goose bumps as we finally reached the cabin.
As soon as the door opened, we were met with the sound of fast footsteps. There was a familiar huff I knew well by now. “Levi, what are you doing in here?” I asked, miffed that he’d invaded our privacy.
“I was suspicious,” he said, thumping his foot on the wooden floor. “And I had a right to be. He’s cheating on you, Brooks.”
Lemonade whined somewhere from my right, but I ignored her.
“What?” Darcy’s voice turned to ice, and he tensed at my side, muscles pulled so tightly I expected his body to shatter. “Where did you get that?”
“Get what?” I asked, my gut churning.
