Total pages in book: 43
Estimated words: 39756 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 199(@200wpm)___ 159(@250wpm)___ 133(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 39756 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 199(@200wpm)___ 159(@250wpm)___ 133(@300wpm)
“Hey, what’s up?” he asked, trying not to sound as worried as he felt.
“Hey! I didn’t catch you at a bad time, did I?” Edison’s warm, friendly voice filled his ear. He didn’t sound hurt or upset, allowing Stephen’s own fears to ratchet down.
“No, everything is good here. Is Charlie okay?”
“Oh yeah, Charlie’s fine,” Edison said with a chuckle. His friend had no idea how those four words nearly knocked Stephen’s legs out from under him. As it was, he sat on the bottom step of the stairs, his underwear clenched tightly in one fist. His older brother marched into war zones as if they were his own personal playground. The man was going to drive Stephen to an early grave with worry.
“Are you calling about my favor, then?” Stephen prodded, trying to pull the sweet lug to his point.
“Yep. I got good news and bad news. I had to call because Charlie and Kairo are headed off to Amsterdam to help Soren out with some mess he got himself into with assassins and the KGB. Or was it the CIA and MI6?”
Stephen groaned and rubbed his temples. This was why he didn’t ask too many questions about his brother’s life. “Wait, I thought Soren was the guy you were all pissed at.”
Edison made a dismissive noise, and Stephen could imagine him shrugging his massive shoulders. “Eh. We’re all past that. He’s still an idiot, but he’s one of us, and we look out for our brothers. Plus, Soren’s apparently dating this hot assassin, and Charlie promised to send back pics.”
Stephen honestly didn’t know if that was a good or bad thing. He was vaguely aware that Soren had gotten hurt when a man he was dating was killed due to Soren’s job. Dating again was good.
But dating an assassin didn’t sound…safe.
He swallowed all those thoughts and comments down and pushed on. “I’m sorry you’re missing out on the assassins and Amsterdam fun.” Yeah, there was a sentence he never thought he’d say.
“It’s okay, because West and I are in Ankara checking some shit out.”
That didn’t sound good.
“You actually had to go there?” He’d thought Kairo would be able to do all his research and digging on the Internet.
“Yeah, well…you see…” Edison drew out. This was sounding worse by the second. “The good news is that your boy checks out, according to Kairo. Both him and his parents. Everything is clean.”
Stephen released a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. What would he have done if Kairo had found something? Stephen shook his head. Thankfully he didn’t have to answer that question, but he had a sneaking suspicion that it might not have made a difference. He was starting to fall for Ehren, and he had no desire to pump the brakes.
“The bad news?”
“Your boy’s uncle was Yusuf Badem, a very well-known and accomplished art expert who also did a lot of restoration work. A lot of art passed through his hands. But the art world is a very nasty place at times. A lot of money rides on this shit. Plus, it looks like he’s crossed paths with more than a few forgers.”
“You think—” Stephen paused and glanced over his shoulder to make sure he was still alone. When he continued, his voice was even lower. “You think he was doing something illegal?”
“We don’t know. That’s why we’re in Ankara. It might be nothing. He might be totally clean, but we want to be sure. Kairo says it’s hard to be totally legit in this business without some of the dirt rubbing off. Lots of illegal activities and wars have been paid for with art.”
“Yeah, I get that.”
“Your boy there with you?”
Stephen had figured Edison would catch the whispering and guess that. “Yeah. I plan to tell him you’re digging into this tomorrow. Just keep me posted.” It was on the tip of his tongue to tell him that Ehren was being followed, but he had a feeling that information would find its way to Charlie, and he did not want his brother breathing down his neck. Particularly when he was busy with assassins and the KGB and whatever.
“Will do. You watch your back.”
Edison ended the call, but Stephen continued to sit on the stairs naked, thinking about what he’d been told. Even if Yusuf Badem had been into something illegal, he couldn’t see how any of that could hurt Ehren. He wasn’t involved in his uncle’s world.
Unfortunately, his biggest concern at the moment was telling Ehren that he’d asked people to look into his uncle. He prayed he’d take the news well.
Chapter Six
Ehren should have known that a Monday morning couldn’t be trusted.
The night had been perfect with cuddles, a blowjob, more cuddles, and then sleeping next to Stephen. And to be honest, he hadn’t expected much for the morning. He desperately needed to return to work, and Stephen had appointments to keep with his patients. He’d been hoping for nothing more than a few lingering kisses and a cup of coffee before Stephen dropped him off at his building.