His brows shot up. “Thought it best for whom?”
“Not for you or Allie.” I see from years of friendship, knowing that look on his face, where his mind is at, so I explain, “She’s worried that the paparazzi are going to get another photograph of us together and they’ll use it against me.”
“Ah, I see,” Micah says with a knowing look. He turns to the bartender and orders, “Scotch on the rocks, please.”
“Yes, sir.” The barkeep accepts the order and hurries off to fetch his drink.
The band switches songs and squeals drift over from the dance floor as Micah leans an elbow on the bar and says to me, “She’s protecting you.”
“It appears that way,” I agree, my muscles stiffening against all the things I couldn’t control. “Of course, her protection is the very last thing I want.” I want this to be over. I want the tabloids to leave us alone. I want her with me.
Micah’s brows furrow at me as he accepts the glass the bartender delivers to him and takes a sip. Over the rim of his glass, he regards me, then states, “You’ve grown more attached to her.”
I draw in a long, deep breath before addressing him. “While the situation is complicated, what I feel for her is very much uncomplicated.”
“This will soon be over,” he says, obviously reading my tension. “There will be a time when you stop looking over your shoulder and wondering if someone is following you.”
Of course, he understands, Micah has been there. Seeing the tension rising in Micah’s face—obviously, he’s worried for me—I cup his shoulder. “I’ll look forward to that time, but this night is about you and your beautiful bride.”
Micah blinks, slowly the cold on his face replaced by warmth as he glances over my shoulder. “I am a lucky bastard, no?”
I follow his gaze, finding Allie dancing with Taylor, Darius’s wife, and Hadley, Ryder’s girlfriend, as Darius and Ryder watch them, sitting at a table a few feet away, enjoying a drink and sharing a laugh.
Never in all the years that I’ve been friends with these men have I felt like an outsider. Christ, back in our twenties, we’d created an inner circle for ourselves, owning the four sex clubs in the city, Afterglow, Lace, Impulse, Masquerade, living life to the fullest. Excitement and
thrills . . . we had invented the Dominants’ Council to create a clubhouse, so to speak. Under that title, we ruled the city’s sex industry, profited off it, and enjoyed the delights of lust and freedom ourselves. But these past weeks, their lives have settled into something that is the exact opposite of what we all stood for. They are members of a different club now, and I no longer fit that mold. Both Micah and Ryder have given up ownership of their clubs, and Darius is only a silent partner. They all sought to move on, while my life still spins wildly out of control, being something I never wanted.
Where will I land when this is all over?
“She is stunning.” I focus back on what’s important tonight, giving Micah a firm slap on the back, not allowing my self-pity to ruin the most important day of my closest friend’s life. “I could not be happier for you.”
“Thank you for that, Gabe.” His smile is content as he takes me into a rough embrace.
From going through college together, to enjoying our wild twenties together, to now a new direction in our thirties, it’s obvious Micah’s found peace within himself. He downs the rest of his drink and then grins. “I better go to her before she gets annoyed with me.” He gestures.
I glance over my shoulder, finding Allie eagerly waving at him to come to her on the dance floor. “You don’t want a case of Bridezilla,” I tell him seriously.
“I certainly do not.” Micah laughs, then passes by me.
Allie gives me a little wave, which I return, then I watch as Micah wraps his arms around her, spinning her around for all to see. I shut my eyes, feeling the warmth of the booze slide deliciously through my veins, but tonight I can’t drown my tension.
“We’re watching her.”
I snap my eyes open, find Ryder sliding up to the bar next to me. “Watching who?”
“McKenna.” He rests an elbow on the bar, facing me. “Alex has eyes on her. If she leaves her house, we’ll know about it. She’s not in any danger.”
I snort and slowly shake my head, blowing out a deep breath. First, Micah. Now, Ryder. “Do I really look that miserable?”
Ryder nods. “Yes.”
“Perfect.” motion the bartender for another shot, pretty sure that’s the only thing that’s going to get me through tonight.
The bartender pours the shot and asks Ryder, “And for you, sir?”
“I’ll have the same,” Ryder replies.
Once the second shot is poured, the bartender moves farther down the bar, and I lift my glass to Ryder. “To Micah and Allie.”