CHAPTER ONE
TONY
I really, really wanted to be wrong this time. My younger brother Michael and I were standing outside Hush, a gay nightclub in the Hell’s Kitchen section of Manhattan. Inside, my boyfriend was possibly hooking up with random guys. Or a side piece. I wasn’t sure which it was. Maybe it was both.
Michael grabbed the sleeve of my winter coat and tugged me off to the side. “You don’t have to do this, Tony.”
“Yeah, I do,” I said. “We both know it’ll keep tearing me up inside until I know for sure.” The cold March wind whipped around the corner, making me shiver. “Let’s go inside. It’s time to find out one way or the other.”
Hush wasn’t a huge club, but it was pretty popular. As soon as the bouncer opened the door for us, I was hit by a resonating bass beat and the heat of dozens of male bodies undulating in time with the music. Michael had dressed for the occasion in a sheer black top and black skin-tight jeans. I, on the other hand, wore a black V-neck T-shirt and blue jeans.
We checked our coats and went to the bar. It was hard to see anything on the crowded dancefloor, especially with the way the stage lights were flashing different colors. I tried to spot my boyfriend, Luke, but had no luck by the time the bartender, ashirtless, muscular blond man, came to take our orders. I got a beer and Michael got some fancy cocktail.
After taking a sip of his drink, Michael leaned in close to me and shouted, “I haven’t seen him yet. Have you?”
I shook my head. “Maybe your information was wrong.”
My brother looked at me with a raised eyebrow. Yeah, it was a stupid thing to say. Michael was a computer programmer and cybersecurity expert who, along with me and Marco, another one of our brothers, owned and operated Angel Security. If Michael found information on someone’s whereabouts, he was right ninety-five percent of the time.
I sighed. I just wanted the night to be over. I’d turned to take a long swig of my beer when Michael tapped my shoulder. I looked over to where he was pointing and, sure enough, there was Luke, grinding against a slender, dark-haired, much younger man. The pretty twink was dressed in a hot-pink crop top and painted-on skinny jeans.
Was that what Luke wanted? I was barreling headlong into my fortieth birthday this year. I was fit and muscular, but not small or slender. My dark hair was starting to show gray at the temples, and I’d refused to dye it, even though Luke had suggested it.
I couldn’t wrap my head around it. If that was what Luke wanted, why was he with me? But my brothers had already told me why. Our business made good money. I had a nice apartment in the Chelsea section of Manhattan. An apartment I’d hoped to share with Luke one day. I really thought he had been the real deal. He’d even talked about having kids. It turned out he was only looking for a sugar daddy.
My eyes started to burn, but I pushed back the emotion. Enough was enough. I slid off my stool and walked onto the dancefloor, with Michael right behind me. Luke was nuzzling the younger man’s neck when I tapped him on the shoulder. Heraised his head and his eyes went comically wide when he saw it was me.
“Tony? W-what are you doing here?” he asked.
I held out my hand. “Give me back my apartment key.”
He stared at me blankly. “Tony, I can explain.”
The young man he’d been dancing with put his hands on his hips and said, “I’d like to hear this too. You said you were single.”
Luke reached out to him. “Chris…” The young man waved a dismissive hand at my soon-to-be ex-boyfriend and walked away.
Luke’s eyes narrowed when he saw Michael with me. “You! You’re always sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong.”
“Hey! Don’t talk to my brother like that.” I snapped. “Michael was looking out for me. You’re the one who’s cheating.” I held out my hand again. “Now give me back my key.”
His lip curled up in a sneer. “Fine.” He dug his hand in his pocket and pulled out his keyring.
I watched him struggle to get the key off until I couldn’t take it anymore. “Give me that.” I took the keys out of his hand and quickly got my key off the ring. I handed the rest back to him and said, “I’ll send Marco over with anything you’ve left at my place. Lose my number.” Then I turned and walked away.
Michael and I went to get our coats. I gave the guy a nice tip, and we headed out into the cold. We hadn’t gotten far when I heard Luke calling my name. “Fuck,” I growled.
We both turned and waited for my ex to catch up. “That’s it?” Luke demanded when he finally reached us. “After over a year together, you’re just going to walk away?”
My nostrils flared. “You mean like after over a year together, you decided you were gonna just fuck whoever you wanted?”
He reached toward me in a pleading gesture. “It was just a bit of fun, Tony. It didn’t mean anything.”
I took a deep breath and shoved my hands in my coat pockets so I wouldn’t hit the man. “A bit of fun? You know how I feel about cheating. I told you right at the beginning that I wasn’t into sharing or ménage-a-anything. You knew that, but you did it anyway.” I gestured back toward the club. “Now you’re free to do whatever you want with whoever you want. There’s no one holding you back.”
The placating mask fell away. “You’re such a goddamn old man. Keep it up, Tony, and you’re going to end up alone in your fancy apartment with only your brothers for company.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “You done?”
