Chapter 4

4

LINCOLN

M y drive to the office is as silent as always and I take solace in the quiet and calmness that surrounds me, especially after spending a weekend with Logan. I like having him around, but I am still getting used to having someone constantly in my space. He isn't like Marcus and Jace, or even Elle for that matter. Yes they are always around, but we only usually spend mealtimes together, the rest of the time we are doing our own thing. They know me, they know I like to be left to my own devices, yet lately with Logan I find him in my space more often than not. He has even stopped sleeping in his room at the house completely, even though he is now visiting every weekend. I don't mind, I actually quite enjoy having someone fill the void that I had become accustomed to, but I still also enjoy the serenity of silence sometimes.

Which brings me to the other person that constantly surrounds me, both silent and brooding in everything he does. You would think it would be easy to ignore him, but I don't think anyone in their right mind could ever ignore someone like Asher Donovan. Whether it be at the house or at the office, despite his best efforts, he can never seem to avoid me, which again I quite enjoy. Watching the effect I have on him, whether he wants to admit it or not, gives me a thrill I can't seem to describe, and knowing Logan feels it too? Well, let's just say it allows me to fill the silence with some very interesting thoughts.

By the time I pull into the secure garage at the office, my cock is at half-mast, and I have to readjust myself in my pants before stepping from the car. I don't bother pulling my keys out at the entrance, just my security pass, because it doesn't matter what time I arrive, Eliza always beats me to it. We hired her six months ago when we realized we needed someone to man the front desk, and after speaking with Pam over at the diner, she recommended her niece. We started her on a trial run and we haven't looked back since. She has exceeded all of our expectations, and more importantly, we can trust her. She keeps her head down, and her mouth shut, no matter who she sees cross the threshold of the office, and that's discretion you just can't buy.

I enter through the main doors as always, and Eliza jumps to her feet instantly, clicking a few buttons on the coffee machine she keeps behind her, and then gathering up some envelopes from her desk. By the time I reach her, she has a drink made for me, just like she does every morning, and all correspondence with my name on it ready to hand to me.

"Good morning, Mr. Blackwell, there are two new clients scheduled for meetings this morning that asked for you specifically. A Mr. Marshall called again, he asked if you could call him back, he said it's urgent, and Max wants to schedule a meeting with you and Mr. Donovan to discuss the upcoming trip to the Maldives," she reels off from her list, as she falls in step beside me, following me down the hall to my office.

I nod to the couple of security guys that have already arrived as we pass, and then unlock my office and push inside with Eliza hot on my heels. She knows I like to be efficient in my work, so we always start our days like this. She gives me a run down of my day and what to expect, and then unless I need her, or something urgent comes up, she doesn't bother me. That's what I like about her, she's intuitive. I never ask her to do anything, she just anticipates it, and then does it. She's the same for Ash, he even gave her a raise after just two months of working for us, which to be fair, if he hadn't, I would have, she's just that good.

We spend twenty-minutes running over my schedule for the day, moving meetings around, and setting up calls with clients.

"Okay that all looks good, thanks Eliza," I tell her as we finish up, clicking out of my calendar to focus on my emails from clients.

"No problem, let me know if there is anything else I can do for you, Mr. Blackwell," she smiles back, in a way that some might mistake for flirting, but they'd be mistaking her kindness. There is only one person who frequents this office that makes Eliza's eyes light up, and she comes with a royal name and a blade strapped to her thigh.

"How many times do I need to tell you to call me Lincoln," I toss back, for what must be the hundredth time since she started.

As always she responds, "At least one more time, Mr. Blackwell." I roll my eyes and she smiles, walking out of my office, and pulling the door closed behind her.

I don't waste any time jumping into work, dealing with all my outstanding emails first, arranging some client meetings for the rest of the week, and then returning the phone calls I missed. I wanted to try and get through my work quickly, so I can focus on my other work, the one that no one knows about, except Ash. The one that makes a need pulse inside of me to get it done, but my phone call back to Mr. Marshall ended up taking longer than expected, he was a demanding and grumpy fucker, and by the time I'm done, it's basically lunch .

Leaving my office, I pass everyone busy at work, nodding my head in greeting as I pass them all, and I can't help but feel weird to know that between Ash and I, we run this entire office. Yeah it's a Royton Technology office, but when things calmed down and Zack moved back to New York, he entrusted it to us. We have some of Max's security team based here, and Eliza, so it's not a huge operation, but we still get quite a lot of foot traffic in terms of clients. We deal with internet security, personal safety, and security for small companies, which means we work on everything from accounts being hacked, to someone being stalked, all of which we take seriously.

From looking at his calendar, I know Asher isn't in a meeting right now, so when I head to his office, and Eliza calls out to me, I find myself pausing.

"Mr. Donovan is with a client," she calls out to my back, and I stop and turn towards her.

"I checked his calendar, there's nothing in there, are you sure?" His office is conveniently on the other side of the building to mine, much to his pleasure, so I didn't even see him arrive this morning, let alone whether someone went into his office for a meeting.

"Yes, I'm sure, she came in about forty-minutes ago, and they have been in his office ever since," she replies, innocently, but her words make the hair on the back of my neck stand on end.

A meeting in his office that isn't on the calendar, with a woman. "She?" I question instantly, and she frowns a little at my tone, but nods slowly.

I don't need to hear anything else, my feet are already moving before I can stop them. My steps are the opposite of casual as I storm towards his door and burst through it as if the building is on damn fire, cutting him off mid-sentence and making him frown.

"Lincoln?" He questions, looking between me and the woman, who is sitting perfectly politely in the chair across from his desk, as every other client would. "Everything okay?" he adds, and I see worry stain his brow, and it's that look that makes me realize how ridiculous I am acting right now.

"Yes, sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt," I force out, willing for my rapid heart rate to return to normal. "I was just seeing if you wanted to go grab some lunch." The lamest excuse in the world falls from my tongue because we have worked together for months and not once have I invited him to lunch. Hell, until a few hours ago, I had never even invited him for a ride to work. What the hell is wrong with me?

My request only makes him frown further as he flicks his stare between me and the woman and quite obviously states, "I'm in the middle of a meeting right now." Which of course he is, just like Eliza told me, and the woman in question turns to smile at me.

"I'm sorry again, I didn't see anything on your calendar," I admit aloud, as she lets her gaze trail over me from head to toe, and if I'm not mistaken, I swear I see a flare of interest in her eyes.

She's beautiful, with fiery red hair, and striking green eyes that have a sort of amused glint to them, as she looks over me in appraisal. She's older than us, late twenties at least I'd say, and from the way she's dressed, I would guess she is middle to upper class. She keeps her head held high and holds my stare with purpose, taking in every inch of me with just one look.

"Oh it's totally okay, we were just finishing up, right?" She coos brightly, turning back to Asher, and before he can respond she stands and moves towards me offering me her hand to shake.

I take it, and she grips it tightly as Asher introduces us. "Lincoln, meet Sierra Banks. Miss Banks, this is my partner Lincoln Blackwell. "

The word partner sparks a fire in me more than I care to admit, despite knowing he means it on strictly business terms. Plus the way he says my name has a level of affection to it that it never used to have, not that I think he notices that, but the client smiles up at me with intrigue anyway.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Banks. Again, my apologies for interrupting." I take my hand back and offer her a small smile in return.

She looks me up and down once more, and now I am certain I see interest there, which is only cemented further when she replies, "Oh no, the pleasure is definitely all mine, Lincoln."

My name rolls off her tongue as if she has said it a thousand times before, like the gentle purr of a kitten, and I'm sure her obvious tactics would work on other men. Other straight men that is, but she doesn't seem to realize she is barking up the wrong tree.

"Did you enjoy your weekend with your boyfriend, Lincoln?" Asher abruptly interrupts, and my gaze breaks to him in confusion.

I wonder why the hell he is asking me about Logan, but when I flick my stare back to Miss Banks, I notice her shoulders have dropped a little as if in disappointment, and when I look back to Asher I can't help but smirk. He knows full well how my weekend was, I saw him for most of it, so he has no reason to question me about it. The only reason he is asking is to make my sexual orientation known. He was outing me to stop her from flirting with me, which is unusual. It's not like she is the first client to ever flirt with me. It actually happens quite a lot, given the types of people we deal with, but I guess never in front of him. And never with someone as beautiful as Miss Banks. Not that it flares even a speck of interest on my part, no, there is only one person in this room I have any interest in fucking, and it isn't her .

"It was very physical, we worked out a lot," I reply smoothly, knowing that neither of them will miss the innuendo, and I swear I see his teeth grinding from here.

"The best ones are always gay," Sierra mutters, confirming her attraction once more, but all I can do is smile.

"You're right, they are." I ensure my focus is solely on Asher as I answer her, before adding, "And sometimes the best ones are unattainable."

My thoughts must be clear on my face because he drops my stare, looking flustered as he turns back to his client. "Miss Banks, I pretty much have everything I need," he says, clearing his throat. "So if you are comfortable with moving forward, I will get started this afternoon and be in touch when I find something."

Miss Banks is watching us both closely, almost meticulously, as if trying to figure out the dynamic between us, which, good luck with that, even I don't understand it. Eventually she smiles at us both with a nod, "Yes that would be fantastic, thank you so much for your time." She moves back towards his desk to retrieve her things, and offers him her hand. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Donovan, I look forward to working with you." They shake hands, and then she slips her hands back into her coat and moves towards me. "And, Lincoln," she purrs, placing her hand on my shoulder firmly. "It was really nice to meet you too, I look forward to seeing you again soon."

I nod in response, turning to watch her leave, before moving my focus back to Ash. "Are you planning on outing me to all future clients, or just the ones who try and hit on me?" I ask, strolling towards his desk, and dropping into the now vacant seat, much to his dismay.

"I didn't realize your relationship with Logan was a secret," he claims, ignoring my presence and focusing back onto his computer, as if I am not even there .

"It isn't," I toss back instantly, not wanting to lose the upper hand he has just given me.

"So you admit it?" he asks, flicking his stare at me, as if he is in desperate need of the answer to whatever the question is.

Confused about where this conversation has gone, I reply, "Admit what?"

"That what you and Logan have is actually a relationship." His words are casual, his tone almost indifferent, but the intensity of his stare is something I can't ignore.

His ocean blue eyes bore into mine, and I can't look away as I all but whisper, "That's not what I meant."

I mean yes, technically I am not seeing anyone but Logan, and haven't been with anyone but him since Elle returned to town almost eighteen months ago now. Yet neither Logan or I have set any parameters to our seeing one another. Yes we are fucking, and spending time together, more and more time for that matter, but we haven't said we are in a relationship, but does that mean we aren't?

"But it's what you said." Asher doubles down, like he just wants me to admit it and get it over with, but I refuse to give him the satisfaction.

"No, it's what you said," I start, standing from the chair, and rounding his desk until I am towering over him. "I wasn't aware you had such an interest in my relationship status."

"I don't," he snaps, reaching up to adjust his tie, as he moves his eyes up to meet mine. His pupils are wider than they were a moment ago, and the pulse in his neck is strong, but it's his mouth where my focus lies. "I was just trying to help save Miss Banks from embarrassing herself by flirting with someone who is unavailable."

His words shouldn't excite me but I can't help it, especially when they sound a lot like jealousy. I lean my hand down onto his desk so it rests right by his, bringing our faces closer together as I say, "But flirting with someone who is unavailable is so much fun sometimes."

The thrum of his vein intensifies from my words, and I am certain he is clenching his teeth this time, but before he can respond, another voice floats between us.

"So this is what you do all day, and here I thought you were saving people," Elle chuckles, and both our heads snap towards the door she's suddenly leaning against. "And don't forget, sometimes flirting with someone unavailable can get you killed," she adds with a smirk, flashing us the blade she never leaves home without, and I am mildly reminded of the night she killed Cherry. Of course it wasn't because she set her sights on Marcus, no there was much more to it than that, but I'm sure she enjoyed killing her all the more because of it.

Asher is up and out of his seat faster than when I burst into his office and interrupted his meeting, as he makes his move away from me and towards her. "Hells Bells, what are you doing here?"

I crack my neck as I rise back to my full height and move towards her myself, burning under her assessing stare as she watches us both. "Max called and said that he would be finalizing the security measures and travel plans for the wedding today, so I told him I wanted to be here." When neither of us say anything she continues, "I know the call was scheduled for this afternoon, but Marcus is teaching a class at the gym and I need to be around for Cass, so I asked him to bring it forward, unless the two of you are busy?" Her questioning tone sounds only slightly teasing, as if she knows exactly what game I was trying to play before she arrived.

"My last meeting just ended, I'm free," Asher replies almost instantly, moving to stand in the doorway with her, and holding out his hand. "Lead the way. "

Elle holds my stare for a second before she relents and smiles up at Ash. "Sure, let's go."

I allow the two of them to leave before I inhale a much needed breath, then I follow after them to one of the meeting rooms, and to my surprise Elle leads us to the smaller one, which I suppose makes sense. Max is video calling in, as is Zack, so that only leaves us three here. When she steps inside, she takes the first seat, leaving Ash and I to take a seat side by side, all of us facing a large screen hanging on the wall. I sit down first leaving a space between Elle and I for him, but he hesitates, looking around the rest of the room as if willing another chair to appear.

Elle is too focused on setting her laptop up for the call to notice his dilemma, but I can't help but smirk as I watch his internal struggle. I swear he would rather slit my throat than be forced to sit next to me, but whatever argument he is having with himself must fail because he huffs and stomps towards the vacant chair. He takes a seat, ensuring not one part of our bodies touch in the process, and keeps his focus solely on the screen before us.

A soft chuckle leaves me as the dial tone sounds out around us, and I can't help but lean forward and whisper, "I'd say I don't bite but I know you don't like liars."

His entire body reacts to my breath against the back of his neck and a thrill shoots through me as he cuts me a scathing look. "I also don't like you."

Excitement buzzes beneath my skin as I lick my lips and his eyes track the movement unconsciously as I mouth back, "Liar."

"What's up, gang," Max's voice interrupts us, and Ash is still frozen, staring at me as I move my attention to the screen.

"Max, how are you? I miss you," Elle starts off, smiling at him with complete adoration.

"I miss you too, my little warrior," he gruffs back, flicking his gaze to us. "Lincoln, good to see you, and how's my favorite Donovan?" he taunts, forcing Asher to look his way.

"Still a billionaire, can't complain," Ash grunts back, his distaste for Max still as present as ever and Max chuckles. "Where's Zack?" Ash adds. "I thought he was coming on the call too?" He looks back to Elle, dismissing Max completely, and I smother a smile.

"Don't tell me my little brother misses me," Zack teases, stepping into view beside Max, neither of them looking like they were actually in the middle of a work day.

"I didn't know you two were working together this week," Elle accuses, and they both smile.

"Max is just helping me with some training routines," Zack replies with ease. "Plus we are having dinner with Logan later, I haven't seen him in a few weeks so we thought it would be nice to all catch up, Lily is coming too," he explains, and the mention of Logan has me flashing back to how I spent my weekend with him.

"Oh my god, I am so jealous, I can't wait to see you guys for the wedding, it feels like it has been forever since we were all together," Elle complains, and she is right, we spent weeks and weeks together after the war ended, and then slowly we all drifted back to our own lives.

Lily and Logan went back to college, Zack returned to his New York office, and Max and most of his guys returned to their base of operations too. Elle keeps busy with Cassie and running the Kennedy foundation with the help of Asher and Helen. Arthur has been doing some teaching, and Marcus and Jace finished up the gym on the South Side and now hold classes there for kids every day. And with Ash and I manning the Royton Tech office here in Black Hallows, it makes it hard for all our schedules to align and catch up. We have family dinners at the house most nights but it's only usually Elle, Marcus, Cassie, Jace, Asher, and myself.

"That's what happens when all your enemies are dead, less reunion parties," I joke, which must be to everyone's surprise, because they all look at me in shock.

"Unless you find new enemies," Asher replies, looking at me with intent, calling me out without actually calling me out, yet still I see Elle frowning in my peripheral vision.

Thankfully Max saves me."Speaking of traitors, how are my guys holding up?" he asks me, and a soft laugh leaves me.

He likes to pretend he is pissed that a few of his guys decided to stay here and use Black Hallows as their base of operations. I guess he presumed that when the war was over they would all return to New York, but some of them talked and agreed it would be good to stay here, which of course we appreciate, you can never have enough security. Max was surprised at first, but he soon got on board with the idea when Zack agreed it was a good one, but that doesn't mean he doesn't call the guys out every chance he gets.

"They're good, man, working hard as always," I reply.

"Good, that's what I like to hear, gotta keep my reputation clean," he replies with a wink, and Zack laughs.

"Like that could ever happen," he muses to his best friend, and Max pretends to be offended.

"That's just earned you one-hundred more push ups, prick," he tells him with warning, before turning back to us. "Anyway, let's get this wedding finalized, hey?"

Marcus and Elle are getting married in the Maldives in a couple of weeks time, and have rented out a whole portion of an island for the affair. The island has a hotel with beach villas, water villas, a gym, a spa, multiple restaurants and bars, and a whole hoard of activities for everyone to indulge in. The newlyweds will be spending just over two weeks there, with the wedding taking place in the first one, and their honeymoon in the days after. Cassie will stay with them for the wedding and part of the honeymoon, but then will fly home with Asher to give them a few days alone together.

Everyone is flying out for the wedding and a few days on either side of it, but we just need to finalize everyone's dates and travel arrangements. Of course Max and Zack run through all the security procedures in place both for traveling and on the island, and they send both Asher and I a copy of all the details being discussed as they go, along with the rest of the security team.

Elle planned the wedding as close to Christmas break as she could to accommodate everyone, and none of us missed the checks she wrote to soften the blow. As a result, it's decided that Elle, Marcus, and Cassie will fly out first, accompanied by Arthur, Helen, Lily, Logan, and Zack, with Max, Owen and Josh as their security detail.

Jace's little sister is in school another day, so he will wait and join Riley, Sofia, Gerry, and Ava, along with Elijah and Liam as their security the following day once Sofia gets home. Max's guys Oliver and Alex drew the short straw, and are being left behind to man his New York office, while Seb, Harry, and Landon drew the same fate to stay and man the office here.

I presumed Asher would be traveling out with Elle and Cass, but when both his and my name don't get mentioned, I start to wonder. The first lot are traveling out on a Thursday, and the second on the Friday, but I know I have clients that I couldn't move on Monday morning, so I won't be traveling until Monday afternoon much to my annoyance, but then I figured I could get some of my other work done over that weekend uninterrupted.

"You two both have other engagements running through to that Monday, so rather than you traveling alone, I thought it would be easier to group you together, so you'll both catch a private plane on Monday afternoon at 3pm, sound good?" Max finishes with, and I practically feel Asher flinch beside me.

"What? Are you certain of my schedule? I bet I could move things around," he pushes, but Max cuts him off.

"I already had Eliza check with all your clients, and certain ones won't budge, especially given the amount of time you'll both be away from the office, but it's fine, it works out well. We'll charter you a smaller aircraft, it will be less stressful," Max continues on, oblivious to Asher's outrage, much to my amusement, and once again I feel Elle's watchful eyes on me.

The rest of the meeting is wrapped up quickly after that. We discuss some more details like catering, the bachelor and bachelorette parties etc, by the end two hours have flown by and the whole thing is pretty much set in stone with flights booked.

Asher storms from the room pretty much as soon as Zack and Max say goodbye, and Elle looks at me and rolls her eyes, more than used to his particular brand of moods, before she settles her focus on me.

"How are things, Superman?" she asks, and though the question sounds innocent enough, I can't help but feel under interrogation.

"I'm fine," I reply smoothly with a shrug, forcing my tone to remain unchanged and casual, and all she does is laugh.

"That's your problem, Lincoln, you're always fine," she says, shaking her head before she adds, "How are things with Logan?"

Again her question feels like an interrogation because she has never asked me about him before. "Things with Logan are fine," I reply calmly, and she laughs again.

"Fine, of course they are." She packs up her laptop and places it in her bag before she stands, and I stand with her. We both move towards the door to leave before she pauses to look at me. "I know you never wanted this, Lincoln," she starts, and I must look confused because she confirms, "A family. I know you had some kind of fucked up childhood and that whatever happened made you lose your family, and you were never in the market for another one. I know you didn't want Marcus and Jace, and you definitely didn't sign on for me and Cassie, but we are your family, and we love you, no matter what, I hope you know that."

I nod because despite how right she is, I do know that. I did lose everything, but I gained so much more in return. Things I never imagined, things I never dreamed of, and I don't think anyone will ever understand how grateful I feel for it, but it doesn't stop the things I lost from haunting me.

Elle doesn't push any further, just leans up and embraces me, placing a soft kiss on my cheek before she turns to leave, but I call out before I can stop myself, "You never did a background check on me, did you?" She pauses, turning to look at me in wonder before slowly shaking her head, and I ask, "Why?"

She sighs, closing the distance between us again and looking up at me to say simply, "Because I trusted you."

I should have expected her answer, I know she trusted me, I saw it in her the week we met, but I never questioned it, not until now. "Yes, but why?" I push, needing the answer more than I have ever realized.

Elle sighs again and some of that emotion inside of her rushes to the surface as she admits, "Because when I looked at you, I saw myself looking back. I saw pain and grief, but I also saw fight and strength, I just knew you were one of the good ones."

One of the good ones.

Her words slice through me, because I don't think I have ever been referred to as one of the good ones before. People know me as being regal, rage-infused, ruthless, but never good, and I can't help but think back to the nights spent with my father and every time he called me useless, a waste of space, and made me feel nothing but completely worthless.

All thoughts that must be clear on my face, because Elle reaches out to grab my hand as she implores, "I know you, Lincoln, I think I know you better than you even realize I do. You came to me when I needed you most and you have saved me more times than I care to admit," she laughs, tears gathering in her eyes at her declaration, and unwanted emotion clogs in the back of my throat. "I see you, all of you, even the darkest parts of you, and I accept you." Her eyes travel past where we are standing before they come back to me as she adds, "And so does he, so don't be scared of taking a risk and going after what you want, no, what you need to survive, because it might just be the best thing that happened to you."

With that she turns and walks away, and it's only then I notice Asher standing by his office door with his eyes on us. He watches her leave, and then brings his stare to mine and it's filled with something I don't recognize and I can't help but wonder, was Elle talking about Logan, or him?