Felix wasn’t sure what he should do. There was no way he was taking Eddie and his goons with him to meet Ryder. It was supposed to be a private moment between them. Was this what his life would be like if he were with Ryder? People from his past and random strangers claiming they were better than him? Was that something he wanted? He loved Ryder, but the last couple of weeks had given him a taste of how his life could change in a nanosecond. Despite Ryder’s declaration on social media, Felix’s business was still in the toilet and his pride project was now probably just a dream.
The train jolted and moved again. Eddie smiled and sat down opposite Felix. The others remained standing, glaring at him. They would arrive at Grand Central in a few minutes, and he needed to think. There was no way he could meet Ryder now, but he needed a plan. He just hoped Ryder would understand.
CHAPTER 17
RYDER
Ryder looked at his phone for the hundredth time, and his heart broke a little more—Felix wasn’t coming.
He was standing in Central Park in the freezing cold, waiting to take a moonlight carriage ride with the man he loved. It was possible Felix had been too far away, or he might not have seen the message, but in his heart he knew Felix had chosen not to come. Thankfully, he’d not announced the location on social media, so there was nobody else here, other than tourists enjoying their coach rides. Ryder was wrapped up warmly and wearing his baseball cap, so it wasn’t easy for people to recognize him. Despite the public setting, Ryder had wanted this special moment to be private. He’d paid a guy extra to be away from the crowds.
Felix was an hour late, but Ryder wasn’t ready to give up yet. He’d wait here all night if he could, but he was mindful of the horses getting cold from being stationary for so long. He was about to pay the guy off when his phone rang. Eager to get to it, he dropped it on the ground with a fumble while getting it out of his pocket. It stopped ringing before Ryder got to it. The missed call was from Mason, and his heart sank. Before he could think, it rang again, so he answered.
“What is it Mason?”
“You need to come to the restaurant.”
“He’s not here yet. I’m not leaving until I hear from him at least.”
“I know.”
“How do you know?”
“Like I said, you need to come to the restaurant.”
Ryder’s heart sped up. Could Mason mean what he thought? He hung up without another word, gave a handful of cash to the driver, and ran. The restaurant was twenty minutes away on foot, but he didn’t want to waste any time getting a car sorted and navigating through the traffic. He could get there in less than ten minutes if he ran.
Arriving at Epicure, Ryder was aware how much he was sweating. He probably looked a mess. If Felix wasn’t here, Mason would get a thump. Not wanting to bring attention to himself, Ryder took the side entrance, which he had the code for. The warmth of being inside was a welcome relief, but despite the cold, he was sweating buckets from the run. He’d kept himself wrapped up, so he didn’t bring attention to himself. Getting to the park earlier had a been an operation in stealth. There’d been a crowd waiting outside his apartment, wanting to witness his reunion with Felix. It was sweet, but also irritating. The downside of being semi-famous, at least in the social media sense, was that nothing was private.
When coming up with his grand gesture, he hadn’t thought about how overwhelming it could be for Felix. It was only when he’d had to act like a super spy to get to the park undetected that he realized.
“You took your time,” said Mason, walking out of his office.
“Get fucked! I ran here in less than ten minutes.”
“I know, and it shows. Come in here.”
“Where is he?”
“I said come in here,” he growled.
“Wow. Does that voice work on Zeb?”
“I’m trying to help you here and you’re being a dick.”
Ryder chuckled. He couldn’t help it with Mason. If only his grumpy friend would see the wonderful thing that was right in front of him and push all the negatives aside. None of that crap mattered when you were in love. He knew that himself now.
Ryder followed Mason into his office, but there was no sign of Felix. Mason closed the door behind them.
“Get undressed.”
“Look, Mason, I love you like a brother, but two tops don’t make a pair.”
“Put the fucking suit on, Ryder, and stop being . . . well . . . you.”
“What suit?”
He spun around and saw his best suit hanging up. What was going on? Mason gave him a look as if to say “hurry the fuck up” so he didn’t ask any more questions. Ryder peeled his many layers of clothing off.
