10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

JAMESON

The night ended on a sour note, the investigation into the portfolio taking a lot longer than I had hoped. It didn’t help that I had to call Eugene on his fucking vacation to let him know what was going on so that it could be fixed immediately. He wasn’t happy Kylie had given me the books but he understood. After that, however, I was drained.

Wyatt was just happy for me to crawl into his bed and play big spoon. It’s not a chore with him. Nothing is. And holding him in my arms, what little I can reach with his massive shoulders keeps me sane. Especially when I get to wake up staring at his sharp features that contrast the softness of his personality.

I hadn’t expected Wyatt to take charge last night but it just makes me love him all that much more. The moments when he sees I need a break from reality and actually does something about it. Maybe it’s not healthy to soothe most of our problems with sex but it works for us.

For now.

And now that Wyatt is publicly mine, I plan on stealing a lot more kisses and touches and dragging him away from any and all gatherings so that I can fuck him senseless.

“Stop staring, Jay.”

“But you’re so fucking gorgeous.” I slide up the bed a little to kiss the bridge of his nose, smiling when he just groans as a response. “Come on. As much as I want to lay here for the rest of the day, we both have work. We can try that dinner thing again tonight.”

Wyatt sighs, his entire body deflating as he finally opens his eyes. “Can’t. Tuesday nights I hang with Gramps, remember? You’re invited, you know. You should come with me this time.” I remember several days when we spent vacations and weekends over at their grandparents’ house. After their parents died, I used to go over there all the time with Wyatt and Axel.

The visits slimmed down until it was just Wyatt spending time with his grandparents every week to keep them company. They enjoyed the baked goods their grandson brought and Wyatt enjoyed the lack of chaos and a good home-cooked meal. Somewhere in there, I stopped going as much as well. Whether it was timing or what, I don’t know.

I scoot a little closer and throw my arm around his waist. “You just want to show off your new boyfriend.”

Wyatt chuckles as he slowly sits up and stretches. I admire every last muscle carved into that man as his back cracks before weathering my expression. “I absolutely do want to show off my new boyfriend, not that they’d be surprised. They’ve told me more than once I needed to speak up.” He shrugs and then twists around for a kiss, a small pout on his lips.

And how can I deny that?

I draw him in, lightly tasting him until my phone rings on the nightstand. “I swear that everyone always wants to interrupt us. The entire world is conspiring against us, babe.” He laughs at the insinuation as I grab my phone and answer without looking at the screen. It takes me a minute with all the yelling to realize that it’s not my phone.

I pull it back and put it on speaker, frowning as Reggie spouts off a lot of angry words so early in the morning. It’s barely 7:30 and this man is running on a motor.

“Did you even talk to James? Fucking hell, Wyatt! My boss is angry because he got a call yesterday that things didn’t match up. We had everything in and on time and you couldn’t even just speak to James about it? I trusted you.”

His words don’t even make any sense. Trusting his brother to speak to me about a matter that I’m not involved in and being mad when Wyatt doesn’t do what he’s told is a childish thing to do. Reggie is still yelling into the earpiece until he stops and asks if Wyatt is still listening.

“He is still listening, Reg. However, so am I, and if it was that fucking important, you should have called me. I had no idea you were in finance but you never meant for me to know if you were with Eugene. We don’t even work in the same wing.” I sit up as well, running my hands through my hair before I lean into the mouthpiece. “Whatever you thought you were asking me to do is fucking illegal which I’m sure you knew. When did you start working in finance?”

“Does it matter? We’re late on our submission.”

“Which is not my problem because the paperwork wasn’t submitted to the firm correctly. So, speak with Eugene and get it squared away. I’m sure it’s nothing.” The panic in Reggie’s voice tells me it’s absolutely something and the nearly $50,000 missing in receipts means it wasn’t just an accident. “I mentioned yesterday that you were pushing everyone away and this isn’t helping. Berating your brother for something that is out of his control is a step in the wrong direction. Fix your business and don’t call so early in the morning.”

I hang up on him and slip out of bed, all of that peaceful rest ruined by that call. Reggie is tied up in something and he’s getting antsy. My problem is that he thought he could get to me through his brother, which means that although he hasn’t accepted us, he will use the connection.

Wyatt scoots out after me, walking into the kitchen and starting the coffee before speaking again. “Why do I feel like this is worse than just some misplaced money or the numbers being wrong in the portfolio?”

“Because it is.” I lean back against the counter and fold my arms across my chest. “They’re reporting way over what they made, possibly because it’s a newer public company. If everyone thinks they’re making more than they are, more people buy or invest or whatever the fuck Reggie needs them to. He’s not the CEO or even the CFO of the company but he’s listed in the documents so I have to believe that he knows what is going on.” My jaw pulls tight as I try to think through my options.

I was never going to cut Reggie out of my life, not unless I had to or he crossed another boundary with Wyatt. The problem is that this illegal business he’s working for could cost me my job if anyone thinks I’m working with him. I have no choice but to cut ties. Fuck this hurts.

The worst part is how this is going to affect Wyatt. I stare up at him, my boyfriend trying to understand the torrent of emotions running through my expression. His kind eyes soften my anxiety but it’s going to be difficult breaking away when all Wyatt needs and wants is support.

I don’t even have to say anything, though. Wyatt just knows.

He engulfs me in a large hug, patting my back several times. “Don’t worry about me. You and Axel are all I need and I have you both. If Reggie wants to play games, then he’ll have to figure it out on his own.”

I sag against him, drawing comfort from him for once. “I don’t understand how we got here. We used to all be so close and now…” I huff out a breath, refusing to finish the sentence. Instead, I just hold Wyatt tight against me, loving that we don’t need words to show how we feel about each other. Even if the entire world is falling apart around us, Wyatt has always been my rock as I have been his.

I just hope this time it’s enough.