Chapter 2

He’d slept like the dead. Normally, Roman had a hard time sleeping in, no matter how much of an all-nighter he’d pulled, but this time, he didn’t wake until noon. After a quick shower, he dressed in jeans and a Boston Bruins hoodie and headed downstairs, following the murmur of voices into a large dining room.

A group of men sat around a large rectangular table, chatting animatedly as they devoured the food in front of them. The veritable brunch spread rivaled that of a five-star hotel with freshly baked rolls, danishes, and croissants, plus scrambled eggs, bacon, smoked salmon with sour cream, capers, and onions, and a variety of jams and marmalades. His stomach rumbled.

“Good morning,” he said, and every head turned his way.

“Morning, Ro.” Wander got up. So did Burke, Wander’s boyfriend, whom Roman had met a few times.

“Good to see you.” Burke gave Roman a warm hug.

“You too.”

“Roman, I’d like you to meet Jesse, who owns this place and is our gracious host. Jesse, this is my brother, Roman,” Wander said.

A fortysomething lean man shook Roman’s hand. “It’s a pleasure to have you.”

“Thank you, Jesse. I appreciate you putting me up.”

“Please make yourself at home.” Jesse grinned as he shot a look over his shoulder at the others. “And avail yourself of all the house has to offer.”

“We sure do,” a broad-shouldered guy replied, chuckling.

Roman wasn’t entirely sure what they were referring to, but knowing his brother’s kinky proclivities, he could take a guess.

“And this is my team. That’s Ryan, our PI, and Alex, a security specialist. Then we have Jonah, Lowell, and Caleb, our cybersecurity specialist.”

He said the last with a pointed look at Roman, who had no trouble interpreting. Clearly, this was the man to talk to if Roman wanted to find out who was behind the threats.

“And then we have David.” Wander pointed at a slender young guy with gorgeous curls. “He’s Jesse’s sub-in-training.”

Right. So Jesse was a Dom, like Wander. Wait, now Roman remembered. Jesse owned a BDSM club and had been a client of Wander. Once his case was solved, he’d invited Wander and his team to move in with him in this massive mansion, which he’d inherited if Roman remembered correctly.

“Grab a seat,” Wander said, and Roman took the empty chair next to…Caleb?

“You’re Caleb, correct?” Roman checked.

“Yup, that’s me. Can I get you a coffee?”

“Yes, please. Thank you.”

Caleb went around the room and poured everyone a fresh cup. When he was done, Lowell slapped his ass. “Good job, subbie.”

Subbie? Oh, Caleb must be a sub as well. Wander’s whole team consisted of people with experience in the kink community because he often had clients who were active in that lifestyle. Roman didn’t know all the ins and outs of his brother’s sexual preferences, but he did know Wander had changed since meeting Burke. He’d become monogamous, something Roman hadn’t thought possible.

Caleb beamed at the casual compliment and sat next to Roman again. He was cute. Young, probably early twenties, but with a tight, lean body, shoulder-length chestnut hair, and tanned skin. Colorful tattoos decorated his arms, disappearing under the sleeves of his T-shirt. Did he have more tattoos? Probably. They looked good on him. His most striking feature was his lips. Those full lips begged to be kissed and would look so pretty wrapped around…

Roman shifted in his seat. Jesus, not even an hour with his brother’s team and he was already facing his old battle. Well, that was to be expected, right? He didn’t have to hide his bisexuality here. His brother’s team was one hundred percent discreet, or Wander would never have hired them. Maybe Roman could indulge a little? Because if he was interested, hypothetically speaking, Caleb would be exactly his type.

He sighed. No, he couldn’t allow himself to be distracted, no matter how tempting it was to engage in the rough sex he loved so much. The last time had been, what, six years ago? Yeah, it had been the weekend his divorce had become final. He’d still been an assistant DA, not quite as high profile as he was now, and he’d booked himself a flight to Vegas. He’d spent the weekend fucking his way around town, scoring one guy after the other. Being able to hook up that easily, even with the little padding he’d acquired around his waist, had boosted his ego. And once the clothes had come off, they’d been more than a little impressed by his cock. Also a nice experience.

After that, he’d never allowed himself to so much as look at men again. He couldn’t afford to. If his enemies found out, they could use it against him. The rumors circulating now were already damaging. They’d be a hundred times worse if word got out he was bi. No, as a DA, he couldn’t make himself an easy target like that. No more men for him.

During breakfast, he kept quiet, only answering when asked a direct question. Everyone seemed to realize he needed time to acclimatize because they left him alone. When they were done eating, Wander tapped him on the shoulder. “Come on, let’s talk.”

Roman grabbed a second cup of coffee and followed Wander to an old-fashioned library, a gorgeous room with plush leather couches and reading chairs, a massive stone fireplace, and floor-to-ceiling windows with thick, dark-blue velvet curtains pulled to the side. The heat from the crackling fireplace warded off the January chill and created a cozy, homey atmosphere despite the size of the room.

He glanced out the expansive windows at the gentle snowfall, the flakes swirling and dancing on the wind, dusting the sprawling property. Antique side tables invited you to put down your glass of whatever your beverage of choice was. A man could lose time in this room, and Roman resisted the urge to inspect the books.

Wander grinned. “Wanna check out the collection?”

He’d always been perceptive. “Later.”

“Yeah.”

Roman sank into the well-used, comfortable couch, letting his weary body relax into the cushions. Despite having slept well, he still experienced a bone-deep tiredness. Probably not something that could be fixed with sleep alone.

Wander settled into the adjacent armchair, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. “How are you feeling after getting some rest?”

Roman rubbed his temples, exhaling slowly. “I’m doing a little better, but I’m still on edge. My mind won’t stop racing.”

Wander nodded, his piercing blue eyes filled with concern. “I want you to tell me everything that’s been going on. Start from the beginning.”

“I can’t tell you everything for legal reasons, but I’ll share what I can.”

“Fair enough.”

“I’ve been receiving anonymous phone calls, voicemails, and texts over the last few months. First, whoever was on the line stayed silent. Then, they left brief messages. ‘Stop your investigation.’ ‘Drop the case.’ All with a distorted voice. Lately, they added general threats. ‘Drop the case or else.’ ‘If you know what’s good for you, stop your investigation.’ Along those lines.”

“I’m gonna ask the obvious questions to get a clear picture, yeah?”

Roman waved his hand. “Ask away. I’ll tell you if I can’t answer.”

“Who knows about these messages?”

“My boss, who is the head DA, the attorney general of Massachusetts, and a handful of FBI agents who investigated.”

“Have they been able to trace them?”

“The FBI said they’re all coming from burner phones. They thought they had a lead on them, but that turned into a dead-end after all.”

“Hmm, okay. What else?”

“My apartment was broken into. The place was trashed, but nothing was taken, as far as I can tell. And I know I’m being followed.”

“Followed? You mean someone has surveillance on you?”

Roman nodded. “I’ve never seen their face clearly, but I’ve noticed someone watching me several times. And I received a letter in my mailbox with printed surveillance pics of me, which only confirmed what I already suspected.”

Wander whistled. “That’s a lot. And the message is consistent, a variation on ‘drop the case?’”

“Yes, but they never mention which case.”

“But you said you have a strong suspicion who’s behind this, yeah?”

“You know I’m always working on multiple cases at the same time, but for the last year, I’ve focused on one case in particular.”

Should he tell Wander? He wasn’t bound by legal reasons not to, and Wander wouldn’t tell anyone. Besides, Whitman already knew Roman was building a case against him.

“Senator Whitman.” Even mentioning the name felt like an exhale of tension.

Wander’s mouth set in a grim line. “Why am I not surprised? He’s always been a weasel.”

“Well, he’s a corrupt weasel, and I’m building a case against him in close cooperation with the FBI. We have evidence, enough for a grand jury, but we haven’t found the proverbial smoking gun yet that will seal the court case beyond any doubts.”

“And you suspect he’s behind the threats.”

Roman leaned forward. “The man has spent his entire life amassing wealth and power by building a corrupt empire. He’s not gonna go down without a fight. He would do anything to prevent his downfall.”

Wander scratched his beard. “Yeah, I can see that. It’s gonna be hard to prove it, though. No way would a man like him do the dirty work himself. He has people for that, guys who are probably several steps away from him and may not even know who they’re working for.”

“Exactly.”

“That’s the whole picture? Nothing else?”

He’d only told Wander about the threats, but something more was weighing on him. Strange occurrences he couldn’t explain. Incidents that made him question his sanity.

Perhaps sensing Roman’s unease, Wander said gently, “It’s me, Ro. You know you can tell me anything. I won’t judge.”

Roman met his brother’s earnest gaze. If anyone would understand, it was Wander. “It’s not your judgment that I fear. It’s that you’ll think I’m crazy.”

“You’re not crazy.”

“You may want to hold off on that conclusion until you’ve heard my story. There have been some…bizarre incidents lately. Things that make me feel like I’m losing my mind.”

“Like what?”

Roman sighed, dredging up the first inexplicable event. “It started a few weeks ago when my secretary quit out of nowhere. She claimed I had sent her inappropriate sexual messages.”

Wander’s eyebrows shot up. Roman held up a hand to stop any assumptions. “Betty was with me for five years, totally professional. You know me. I’d never fuck around at my job. I take it way too seriously for that. The accusation was insane, and I could prove I was in back-to-back meetings when the messages were sent. My phone records showed I hadn’t called or texted her once that day.”

“Any idea who could’ve sent them?”

“None. I alerted the FBI, and they checked my phone and laptop, but they found nothing. It must’ve been some software that spoofed my phone and made it look like the messages were coming from me. Modern technology, man. It’s scary.”

Wander pursed his lips. “What else?”

“This is going to sound crazy…” He hadn’t told anyone about the laptop incident, not even the FBI. They’d think he was going mental for sure. “Four weeks ago, I opened my work laptop, and my files were a complete mess. All the folders I’ve meticulously created over the years were gone.”

“You sure you didn’t reorganize them yourself?”

“Positive. My laptop is encrypted and password-protected. I’m the only one who can access it. And you know how particular I am about my sorting system.”

“You do like things just so,” Wander said with a small smile.

“Exactly. I spent hours fixing it. It was maddening.” Roman dragged a hand down his face.

Wander grew serious again. “Is there anything else?”

Roman exhaled sharply. He might as well air it all. “This is the thing that scared me most. I got in a car accident last week. Rear-ended someone at a traffic light.”

Wander’s eyes widened in alarm. “What? Are you hurt?”

“No, just minor damage to my BMW. But, Wander, I have zero memory of the accident happening. If the insurance company of the other driver hadn’t contacted me, I wouldn’t have known about it.”

“Jesus. But if your car was damaged, you must’ve been driving, right?”

“I guess so,” Roman said helplessly. “But I don’t remember any of it. According to the form I apparently filled out with the other driver, it happened around midnight. All I know is that I wasn’t feeling well the night before and woke up the next morning with the mother of all headaches, so I took some Advil, and that was it. Until the insurance company contacted me later that day. I must’ve sounded like a moron. I had no clue what they were talking about. The lady even asked if I had been under the influence, since it was clear I couldn’t remember.”

He dropped his head into his hands. Wander stood, crossed over to the couch, and gripped Roman’s shoulder firmly. “Ro, listen to me. We’re going to figure this all out, okay? We’ll get you checked out medically. Maybe do a brain scan to rule out anything neurological, yeah?”

Roman lifted his head. Thank fuck he’d reached out to Wander. Talking to him already felt like unburdening himself, like lancing a festering wound. At least he wasn’t facing everything alone anymore, whatever it was. “Yeah…that’s probably a good idea.”

Wander gave his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “I promise you we won’t stop until we get answers. You’ll stay here as long as you need. My team will keep you safe, no matter what.”

For the first time in weeks, a spark of hope fluttered in Roman’s chest. “I know you’ve got my back. Couldn’t ask for a better brother.”

Wander smiled and pulled Roman into a bear hug. Roman returned it fiercely, the knots of anxiety unfurling bit by bit.

“We’re going to get to the bottom of this,” Wander said as he let go. “In the meantime, you’ll stay here where we can keep you safe. No one will get to you, I promise.”

Roman’s watch buzzed with an incoming message, and he read it. Anxiety blazed through him, spiking his pulse.

“What is it?”

Wordlessly, Roman held up his wrist so Wander could read the chilling words.

You can’t hide from us. We’re always watching.

Wander’s face hardened. When he looked back at Roman, his eyes blazed with brotherly protection. “I’m getting my team involved, and we’re going to find out if Whitman is behind this. If he is, we’re taking this bastard down.”

“Thank you.”

“For now, why don’t you try to relax? Check out the books, read a little, maybe take another nap… And I’ll see what I can do to help you release some of that stress.”

“Wander…” Roman knew exactly what his brother was referring to. Wander was one of the few people who knew about Roman’s bisexuality.

“No worries, Ro. I got you.”