“Indies talk,” the aunt said, much closer to the door now. “It’s only a matter of time before Luxoria learns his whereabouts.”
He backed away.
“Perhaps this was their destiny all along,” his mother replied. “To end up exactly back where they started.”
The door opened just as David slipped out of sight, his back against the wall around a corner.
“You promised Elenya you’d keep him safe,” the aunt said.
“He’s alive, unharmed, and in control of his abilities. That’s more than you can say for Sean.”
“At least Sean isloved.” She said it like an insult, like it was a dirty rag she could throw in his mother’s face.
And it was.
Sean was loved. David was not.
The worst part was that his mother said nothing in return. To argue would be to lie, and despite her faults, Alex wasn’t a liar. She didn’t love him and probably never had. All that mattered to her was his father’s happiness, and what made his father most happy was David’s total obedience.
David would never be free of this life. He’d known it, of course, but just then, with his back pressed against a wall, as if he was a stranger in his own home, he couldfeelit. The notion was like muddy talons gripping tight into his heart. His father wanted him imprisoned there, serving his psychopathic whims, and his mother would never save him. No matter how David tried to disobey, he couldn’t stop the compulsive, uncontrollable compliance to any of this father’s requests.
There would never be a way out of this.
For a single instant, David found himself jealous of Sean Archer—not because the man had known love, but because he’d found freedom.
CHAPTER 3
SEAN
If Sean had to describe the way the guy at the reception desk was staring at him, he’d call it horrified recognition. Or…maybedisturbedrecognition. Something in the middle? His expression delicately straddled the line between the two.
But that was impossible. Why would this random stranger recognize him? Sean had never been to this hotel, had never been toanyhotel. The whole experience was rather jarring if he was being honest. Maybe Blaire had a point about staying home, Sean thought as he stared in confusion, and not a little wariness, at the man behind the counter, still gawking at him.
Appalled. Was that the right term?
Sean glanced behind him, where Cole stood with his hastily packed bag. The golden lion of the MGM Grand’s lobby shone behind him, and people lingered everywhere. More people than Sean had ever seen. More people than even lived in his tiny town in NorCal.
Cole’s shaggy reddish-brown curls flopped over his forehead when his head tilted. “Everything okay?” he asked.
Sean returned his attention to the appalled desk clerk and ignited his most charming smile.Thishe knew how to do. With hisbright smile and some well-timed winks, he’d always been able to win over even the grumpiest of folks back home. But maybe that trick only worked in small towns where everyone knew his name because the dude behind the counter was not budging.
“We called a few hours ago to book the reservation.” Sean pulled his ID from his wallet and slid it across the counter to the man.
He glanced down at it and swallowed. “Archer.”
“Yes, the reservation’s underSean Archer.”
Some life breathed back into the man, almost like relief. “Your first name is Sean?” He had an accent somewhat reminiscent of his aunt’s. She’d always told him she and his mother had immigrated from Egypt, but this man had ginger curls and freckled skin—unlikely to be native Egyptian.
Maybe she’d lied. The thought made his skin hot.
Still, Sean hesitated at the question. As far as anyone else knew, his first name was Sean, but his mother had a different name for him, one she’d made him swear never to reveal.
Always with the secrets. The mysteries.Thiswas why he’d run away.
No. He hadn’t run away. He was a fucking adult.
“Yes, I am Sean Archer.”
