An Unlocked Heart(Collars & Cuffs Stories) (10 page)

Pietro became distracted at that point, however. “Leo Hart is
hot
!” he admitted, grinning. “You’re a very lucky boy.” His eyes gleamed wickedly. “So, did you and he…?”

Alex almost choked on his tea. “Like I’m gonna share stuff like that with you.” His cheeks heated up with embarrassment.

Pietro chuckled. “Well, that blush on your face tells me you got up to
something
last night.”

Alex was glad he couldn’t see his face right now.

“So, I take it this morning’s catalogue of fiascos has nothing to do with the date?”

Alex shook his head. He told Pietro the rest and watched as his face darkened.

“That fucking little….” Pietro’s eyes blazed. “That’s just plain evil.”

Alex nodded, sipping his tea. God, he was so
tired
. He could easily stretch out on the sofa and sleep for a couple of hours.

“What are you going to do?” asked Pietro earnestly.

Alex stared down at the mug in his hands. “I don’t know,” he said helplessly.

“Will you tell Leo?”

Alex recoiled. “Fuck, no!” Pietro was startled by his outburst. “Sorry,” he apologized. “I’ve not had much sleep—if any—and I am on a very short fuse today.” He met Pietro’s worried gaze. “In fact, I’ve been thinking….”

“Ooo, why do I not like the sound of this?”

Alex had been thinking about this all night. There was only one course of action open to him. “I’m going to tell Leo I can’t go out with him anymore.”

There was a moment of stunned silence. “Why, for God’s sake? You don’t
really
want to break up with him, do you?”

Alex felt miserable. It wasn’t what he wanted at all. But Rob had left him with no choice. “Pietro, there’s no way I’m telling my parents I’m gay. You don’t know them. I… I just can’t. Not right now, at least. And I don’t want to give Rob any more ammunition.”

“So you’re going to buy him a laptop, then? What next? ’Cause it won’t just end there, y’know. Blackmailers rarely stop once they see they can get what they want.” One look at Pietro’s face told Alex his friend was seething with rage.

Alex nodded unhappily. “It won’t be forever. Once I have enough money, I’ll be moving into a place of my own. No more Rob to worry about.” He gave Pietro a wan smile. “I’ll tell my parents eventually. Just… just not on his terms.”

“And what about Leo?” demanded Pietro. “How do you think he’s gonna feel?”

All night, he’d been thinking of what he would say to Leo, what excuse he would give. And as yet, he didn’t have one. He tried not to think about Leo’s reaction. Despite only having had two dates with him, Alex knew instinctively Leo would not take this lying down. This was a total fucking
nightmare
.

L
EO
sipped at his glass of iced tea, his eyes wandering over the tables. Though it was still relatively early, the restaurant was packed, which probably explained why he was still seated in the bar awaiting a free table. The odd thing was there’d been no sign of Alex. At all.

“Good evening, Leo.”

Sev was standing next to him. He looked different, and at first Leo couldn’t work out why. Then it hit him. Sev wasn’t smiling.

“Sev,” he said, acknowledging his friend. “Anything wrong?”

Sev let out a heavy sigh. “My friend, if this is what happens when you take Alex out on a date, I’d rather you didn’t do it again.”

Leo gaped at him in surprise. “What are you talking about?”

Sev paused for a moment before continuing, his manner cautious. “Did anything happen last night? Because Alex has been in a state all day. I sent him home early. Rather that than have him break anything else or mess up any more orders.”

Leo’s thoughts were racing. Something was wrong. “Sev, believe me when I tell you, Alex was a very happy boy when I took him home last night. Whatever happened to cause his behavior today must have taken place after that.”

Sev pursed his lips, apparently deep in thought. “Maybe Pietro knows something,” he said after a moment’s contemplation. “They were on a break together.”

Leo started. Surely not…. “Pietro?” There couldn’t be two boys with the same name; the coincidence seemed too great.

Sev tilted his head. “Do you know him?” he asked curiously. When Leo simply lifted one brow, Sev let out a low whistle. “One of your subs?” he whispered.

“Possibly. Though surely I would’ve seen him around here—”

Sev interrupted him. “He’s my trainee chef; no reason for you to have seen him.” He gave Leo a knowing glance. “Do you want to speak with him?”

Leo nodded eagerly. It was time he found out exactly what was going on with Alex.

P
IETRO
’
S
eyes widened considerably as he came into Sev’s office and found Leo waiting for him. Leo sighed. Yep, it was one of the subs from the club. He couldn’t help but smile as he watched Pietro fight the urge to kneel.
Good submissive
, he seemed to recall.

“Sit down, Pietro.” Leo gestured toward the chair facing Sev’s desk. Pietro moved swiftly into the chair, lowering his gaze. “Pietro, look at me. We’re not in the club. Right now I’m just Mr. Hart, okay?”

Pietro nodded, shyly raising his eyes to look directly at Leo, his cheeks flushed.

Leo decided to come straight to the point. “Pietro, what’s wrong with Alex?”

Pietro caught his breath. “I’m sorry, Sir….” Leo raised his eyebrows, and Pietro blushed. “Sorry, but can I call you Sir? It… it’s easier that way.” Amused, Leo nodded. “Sir, I’m not sure if I can break a confidence. Alex trusts me.”

Leo frowned. This was not going to be as easy as he thought. “Pietro, I’m very worried about him. So is Sev. If you can shed any light on what happened last night, I’d be very grateful.”

Pietro’s body language was speaking volumes right now. Leo noted his hands twisting nervously in his lap, his eyes flickering from left to right, and the uneasy shifting in his seat: the sub was clearly feeling conflicted. But Leo had to know. Time to play hardball. “Pietro.” Leo spoke in a low, firm voice, and Pietro’s eyes snapped down to the floor. “Tell me,” he insisted.

Pietro froze, and then the sub’s shoulders relaxed. “Yes, Sir,” he said softly.

A
LEX
sat in Platt Fields Park on one of the wooden benches around the boating lake. To an onlooker, he was studying the boats moored by the lakeside, but he didn’t even see them. He gazed out over the lake, his mind on Leo, Rob, his parents…. What a fucking mess.

Sev had told him to go home and get some sleep, but Alex couldn’t bear the thought of going anywhere near the place right now. The word was a joke. In his mind, home was a place where people loved you, cared for you, wanted the best for you. His was a place where he was ignored, blackmailed….

As a child, Alex had always felt as if he didn’t fit. All he’d craved was time to be by himself, with his own thoughts, but this had been frowned upon constantly by his parents—well, mostly his mother, if he were perfectly honest. Dad seemed to be a bit of a nonentity around the home. “Privacy” didn’t appear to be a word in their vocabulary. Alex liked being quiet, thoughtful, but his mother berated him for being shy, uncooperative, and even as he grew up, her condescending remarks had been a permanent feature of his life. Why couldn’t they treat him like an adult? Christ, four years at university, and they still talked to him as if he were twelve years old.

His phone rang, making him jump. He glanced down and frowned. It was an unknown number. He thought briefly about ignoring it, but there was that tiny bit of his mind that was curious. “Hello?” he said.

There was a pause. “Did you think you could hide something this big from me, boy?”

Oh hell. Leo. Alex swallowed. There was no way he could hang up, even though his guts knotted inside him once more. “How did you get this number?” he asked. Then he let out a bitter laugh. “Stupid question. Sev, of course.” He suddenly recalled Leo’s words. “Wait a minute. What are you talking about?” A wave of nausea rolled over him. Surely Pietro hadn’t….

“I’m referring to your shit of a brother and his blackmail attempts.” There was no hint of humor in Leo’s voice. “Not to mention your plans where I’m concerned. What were you thinking, Alex? Did you really believe I’d just give up on you?”

Alex felt sick. Pietro had told him? So much for him being a friend. “You weren’t supposed to find out,” he said quietly. “I was just going to walk away from you.” He raised his voice. “How did you get Pietro to tell you all this?”

“Never mind how I came by my information. The important thing is, I know.”

Alex leaned back against the bench, thoroughly miserable. Just when he thought his day could not get any worse….

“Alex.” The voice in his ear was softer now. “Where are you?”

Alex stared out across the lake once more. There was silence at the other end of the call. Leo was waiting. “I’m sitting in Platt Fields Park,” Alex said at last. “By the boating lake.”

“Stay there. I’m coming to get you.” Leo ended the call.

Alex stared at his phone in disbelief. Leo was coming for him? So much for walking away. But a small part of him rejoiced. Leo wasn’t letting him walk away. Leo didn’t want them to end.

Alex sat back, looking up at the early evening sky. The sun was just beginning to set, and the remaining wisps of cloud were tinged with varying shades of gold. It was going to be a beautiful evening.

After fifteen minutes or so, Leo strode purposefully through the park toward him, giving quick glances to his surroundings but mostly fixing his eyes on Alex. When he finally drew level with him, Alex could see from Leo’s expression he was anxious as he looked down. Leo’s eyes met his, and Alex was relieved to see there was no look of reproach in them.

Leo gazed at him, steadfast. “We need to talk.”

Oh fuck. This was
not
going to be good.

A
LEX
stirred sugar into his hot chocolate. Leo had offered to get him a coffee, but he didn’t need any more caffeine at this point. He’d drunk enough throughout the day in an effort to stay awake.

The coffee shop was quiet for a Saturday night, but Alex knew there’d be loads of people in later once the cinemas and theaters released their masses. He sat opposite Leo, watching Leo stirring his coffee.

Since leaving the park, Leo had hardly spoken. Normally Alex would have been content to sit quietly, waiting until Leo spoke. But this was killing him.

Leo removed the spoon from his cup and took a sip of the fragrant coffee.

Alex couldn’t bear the silence anymore. “Are you going to speak to me?” he demanded. He couldn’t bring himself to look Leo in the eye, however. His eyes remained fixed on the cup as Leo drank. Alex watched his throat as Leo swallowed. Christ, he was a sexy man.

Leo put down the cup. Alex could feel those blue eyes boring into him.

“Are you ready to speak to me, is more the question right now.” There was the merest hint of amusement in Leo’s voice, but it was enough. Leo wasn’t
too
pissed off with him.

Alex took a sip of his hot chocolate before taking a deep breath. “I’m sorry, Leo.” And he really was.

Leo reached across the table for his hand. Alex hesitated. He stared at the long, slim fingers, the open palm. It was just holding hands, for God’s sake. Alex glanced quickly around the coffee shop. They were sitting in a quiet corner, and there were few customers. No one was paying them any attention. Sighing, he held out his hand, and Leo grasped it firmly.

“Start at the beginning,” Leo said firmly. “What happened when you got home?”

Alex related the painful episode. He’d seen Rob’s cold stare in his mind all through the night. What he couldn’t get his head around was it was his
brother
doing this dreadful thing.

Leo sat patiently, listening, his fingers caressing the back of Alex’s hand. Alex had to admit, he found it very soothing. He could almost feel Leo’s peace flowing into him with every stroke. It made telling his tale easier.

When he finished speaking, Leo didn’t relinquish his hand. “I’m sorry too,” Leo said finally. Alex could hear his sincerity. “I can’t imagine how betrayed you must be feeling right now.”

Alex nodded. Betrayed was the perfect word. Of course, he was also feeling betrayed by a so-called friend.

Leo smiled, as if he could read Alex’s thoughts. “It wasn’t Pietro’s fault, by the way,” he said. “Let’s just say he couldn’t help himself.” The smile faded. “Now please tell me how breaking up with me is going to solve anything. Because I don’t understand, Alex.”

Alex bowed his head. “I figured if I wasn’t going out with you, Rob would have nothing to talk about.”

“He’d still have seen us, Alex. That wasn’t going to go away.” He paused. “I’m not sure you were thinking clearly. I’m going to put it down to lack of sleep and sheer panic.” His hand tightened around Alex’s. “Because we’re not breaking up, boy.” The words were whispered, but Alex felt their power. It felt so good to have Leo take control.

Leo let go of Alex’s hand to reach for his coffee cup. “The real question is, where do we go from here?”

Alex had to admit, that one little word, “we,” made all the difference.

“Why can’t you come out to your parents, Alex? All this goes away if you do that. It’s the one thing Rob is obviously counting on—that you won’t tell them. But tell them, and he’s lost his leverage.” Leo’s hand returned, and this time Alex took it without hesitation. “Talk to me, boy.”

Alex tried to change the subject. “Look, why do you call me that? Is it because of the age difference? You’re only thirty-seven.” He stopped, suddenly feeling uncomfortable, as if he’d overstepped a boundary. He’d asked Pietro how old Leo was, but it seemed rude to blurt it out like that. He waited anxiously.

Leo chuckled, and Alex breathed easily once more. “Answer me this: how does it make you feel when I call you ‘boy’?”

Alex sighed. “I don’t know.” The words almost came out like a whine. He paused for a second, reflecting. “I can’t explain it, but it feels… right. And sometimes, like”—Alex felt his cheeks heat up—“like when we were in bed, it was so… so….”