Page 5 of Cruel Salvation

FOUR YEARS LATER

“Brother,why are you in my house at seven-thirty in the morning, eating my bacon and drinking my coffee?”

Damon looked up as Gideon walked into the large kitchen diner of his home in the village of Longtown, only wearing a pair of athletic shorts. His hair was messed and he had a two-day beard on his face.

He frowned at Gideon, his already shitty mood worsening. “Can you put some clothes on?”

Gideon shot him a look, only a brother could give, and lifted his middle finger. “One, this is my house and you’re lucky Nadia didn’t shoot you, and two, fuck you.”

Damon rolled his eyes. “Eloquent as always.”

Gideon poured himself a mug of coffee and walked around to sit opposite him at the table. Damon knew his brother didn’t really mind him being here. They’d given him a key, after all, but he was also aware they were newlyweds and needed space.

“What’s going on?”

He and Gideon were very different men. Although, since meeting Nadia and falling in love, Gideon had mellowed a lot. The mess with their half-brother, Carter, and the fallout for Cavendish Enterprises had left him feeling slightly adrift of late.

Damon had always been the face of the company, at least since his father had stepped back. But law was his first love and he’d managed to navigate a route where he could have his career as a barrister, which he loved, and be the face of Cavendish Enterprises while Gideon ran it. Now, though, it was a mess. At least, it felt that way for him.

Gideon was living his best life, but Damon wasn’t entirely sure where he fit into it. He loved it here, away from the hustle and bustle, and, helping Shadow, which until recently had felt like a different world, felt right. “I don’t know.”

“What does that mean?”

“How did you make this move so easily and walk away from Cavendish?”

Gideon got a soft look in his eye, and Damon knew he was thinking about Duchess.

“Because Cavendish wasn’t what I loved. I found I could give that up and not lose a second of sleep, but life without Nadia was unthinkable.”

Damon knew all this, but it wasn’t the same for him. He loved being a barrister; he’d just lost his reason for being in London. The glamorous parties, the string of women, it got old. He missed his grumpy brother and the woman who’d become a sister to him, and if he was honest with himself, it also had a lot to do with the irritating brunette who was avoiding him like the plague since their explosive night together a few weeks back. Not that he’d talk about that with Gideon.

“I still love being a barrister, I’m just tired of the parties and the mindless sex. I want what you have. I want something real. I want to make a difference and I don’t think I’m doing that at the moment.”

“Hey, Damon.”

He looked up as Duchess strolled into the room in a red silk robe and moved to kiss his cheek before Gideon snagged her around the waist and pulled her onto his lap with a growl.

“No kissing other men.”

Damon chuckled when Duchess rolled her eyes.

“He’s your brother.”

“Which is why it would be awful if I had to kill him.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

“Ridiculously in love with you.”

“Okay, enough. I came here for advice, not to vomit in my mouth.”

Duchess glanced at him before stealing Gideon’s coffee, the intimacy between them so natural it was like they shared a brain and a heart.

“Damon is jealous.”

He threw his hands up. “I’m not jealous, asshole. I just want what you two have, and I want to take on a case or project that makes me feel good about myself. I swear, if I have to deal with another celebrity case of phone hacking, I’m gonna jump out the window.”

Duchess watched him over the rim of her mug. “What kind of case?”