"Delicious," Ricci said, licking his lips, chuckling. "We'll meet again, Des." He then walked off, leaving Des feeling disgusted.
"I told my brother you were a slut, and he should dump you before you break his heart, but he wouldn't listen to me."
Des looked over his shoulder as Iago Romano walked up to him.
"I didn't kiss him. He kissed me," Des said defensively.
"That's not how it looked. I'm sure my brother will see it my way. Unless..."
"Unless what?" Des quirked a brow.
"If you want this to remain between us, you will dump Othello. You're not good for him."
"I'll just tell Othello the truth," Des said.
"You really think Othello will believe you, especially after seeing this?" He held up his mobile phone, showing Des a video of what happened with Ricci, and he felt his world crumble. From the way Ricci held him possessively at the back of his neck and the tilt of his head, his palms on his chest, it appeared he was into the kiss when it couldn’t have been further from the truth.
"It's really not what it looks like," Des mumbled.
Iago reached into his pocket and pulled out a business card, pushing it in front of Des, who didn't take it. "Call me when you're ready to break things off." He stuffed the card into Des's hand and walked away, leaving him unsure of what to do.
He wasn't sure how long he had been standing there when he heard Erin's question.
"Des, why are you standing out here in the cold?"
"Erin, I fucked up," he said and rushed into her arms, holding her.
"It's okay. Tell me what it is, and we'll deal with it," she said, wrapping her arms around him.
"I hope so," he said, holding her tightly. "Because if we can't, I will lose Othello."
Later that night,Othello threw his phone down on the coffee table, frustrated for the fifth or maybe the hundredth time. He had been trying to call Des, but it went to voicemail. He wasn't sure when he had grown so attached that Des's voice would put him in a good mood.
He still can't be angry with me, right? I did what he asked me to do. Fuck!
He was about to reach for his phone again when someone knocked on his door. Othello quickly got up and opened it, hoping it was Des.
"Oh, it's you," he said, walking to the kitchen for a drink.
"Don't look so happy to see me, little brother," Iago said, letting himself in, following behind Othello.
"What are you doing here, Iago?"
"I came to see if we're cool about last night."
"As long as you stop thinking Des is going to fuck me over, then, yeah. Besides, we're brothers; we fight and argue, make up and move on."
"You're right, we are." Iago smiled.
"Good. Want a drink?" he asked, holding up the whiskey decanter.
"Sure," Iago said. "But you don't normally drink. What's going on? Are you worried about the commission?"
"No, I just feel like having a drink," he said, pouring them two glasses.
"I heard you were summoned," Iago said. Othello's glass stopped halfway to his lips, and his brows tightened in question, which Iago noticed. He hadn't informed anyone of Luca's message, and he was certain Des hadn't either. "I was informed that, as your consigliere, I needed to be there with you."
"Oh," he said, downing his drink in one gulp, ignoring the slight burn.
