VAUGHN'S POVI was so engrossed in work when Gideon and Elaine busted into my office. "What is it?""Wade Malkiel is something else. Have you watched the news?" Gideon laughed."I have been busy working as you can see. What is happening?" I asked Elaine. She took the remote and switched on the TV, searching for the Malta Daily channel. Auden's face came into view. "The Malkiel Holding will keep supporting the Valletta community by introducing the art school under the Museum of Arts and Gallery. We invite everyone interested to come for the registration. Thank you all." And then the press briefing ended. I raised my eyebrows in question and Gideon smiled. "It is what he said before. That they have withdrawn from the Bexley Foundation. And that they will be investing in the Everette hotels and opening a new hotel in Gozo. Your boyfriend is going all out."Elaine beamed. "My brother-in-law is outstanding. But Vaughn you don't seem excited by the news."I leaned back on the se
I tried to open my eyes, but they seemed too heavy. I could not move my body. The light above seemed to hit my eyes and then I blacked out again. When I came to again, I was lying on a bed. I opened my eyes and looked at my surroundings trying to get my bearing when I realized that I was still at the hotel, in one of the rooms. I tried to sit up, but my body was burning. I was in my underwear and all my clothes were placed by the seat. I could not remember what happened but there was a clear smell of perfume in the room. Vera Bexley's perfume! I hated that smell and I deduced that she had drugged me. I staggered to the couch and struggled to get dressed. I slowly walked to the bathroom and put my head under the sink. I needed to sober up. What did the damn woman do to me?After five minutes the haze had cleared, and I felt a little bit better. I walked to the door of the room and realized that she had chosen the room that Elaine and I used when we needed to rest. That f*cking b*
"Vaughn, Wade, wake up." I heard Auden's voice as it boomed loud in my ear. "Go away," Wade sleepily said."The police are here. You better wake up," Auden scolded. "Get out and give us a few minutes," Wade said.Auden groaned in response. We listened to his footsteps walk away and then the door closed. I opened my eyes and when I tried to move, I felt Wade's hard-on pressing on my crotch. "You can't be serious," I whispered. "There is nothing wrong with my body. I am a healthy male." I felt the tremors of his body as he laughed. Disentangling from his hold, I stood up and walked straight to the bathroom to wash my face. A minute later he joined me and pressed his body against my back. "Did you want Auden to see the state of my c*ck?" "Shut up." I covered my face in embarrassment. He laughed and then moved to the sink to wash his face. After brushing our teeth, we stood staring at each other through the mirror. "Can we talk?" Wade asked. I nodded and then turned to
WADE'S POV Pacing up and down the office, I cursed. Vaughn had been compromised in this war that I had started when I returned to Valletta. The panic in Elaine's voice when she called me to say she couldn't reach Vaughn and that he had a meeting with Vera made my skin crawl.My mind raced back to Gideon's call demanding I rush up to the penthouse suite and when I walked into the room and saw Vaughn lying on the bed, I felt fear for the first time in ten years. My body trembled all the way to the hospital. The test results came, and I heaved a sigh of relief. But something kept nagging me at the back of my head.What was Vera's goal? I could not put a finger on it, but I knew that she would reveal it sooner or later. Auden walked into the office and immediately advised, "You need to calm down, Wade. Only then can you be rational and think of a plan to counteract this." "How? They drugged him, carried him to the hotel, and God knows what they did to him. Cleaned him up and then l
The house was bursting with food by the time we got there as Pa was setting the dinner table with the maids. Vaughn, Mayor Everette, and Gideon had already arrived. When we entered the house, Pa rushed over to Damien as usual and pulled him to the dining room. He had been hovering over Damien since the adoption papers were validated and Damien was now a Malkiel. "Pa, sorry, but I have to take a shower. The smell of the Valletta jail cell is still on my clothes," Damien stated as he pulled away.There was pin-drop silence in the dining room. "What? Jail?" Pa asked.Damien turned to look at me and I shook my head. We had not told Pa that Damien had been arrested. Pa turned to stare at me and asked, "Wade, why was my little son arrested? What is going on?" Vaughn, Gideon, and Mayor Everrete all stared at us. Auden fidgeted. I closed my eyes while Elaine looked away. "Two of your paintings were stolen last night. Damien was accused since his fingerprints were at the scene at
With it being a weekend, we all slept in. My phone rang and there was a text message from Uncle that made my body freeze. 'Wade, urgently come to my room.'Getting slowly out of bed so as not to wake Vaughn up, I rushed to the shower and a few minutes later I was strolling through the villa, headed to the west part of Uncle Malkiel's room.When I approached the wing, he was pacing up and down outside his door. I increased my steps and when he saw me, pulled me into the room and locked it. He paced by the couch and then said, "Wade, we have a huge problem. One of my friends from the congress party called me. Yesterday Sam met with some members, and he discredited the Malkiels. He said he had evidence to bring us down and that we should not be trusted. I suspect that is why Gideon left immediately after dinner because he accused the Secretary of State of supporting Beth Everette. The way his tone sounded in the accusation led to everyone believing that Mayor Beth and the Secretary of
We all sat in the vast living room waiting for Mayor Everette and Elaine to join us. The way Auden paced up and down by the large windows, I knew that Uncle Malkiel had already briefed him. After leaving Pa's room, I went to get Vaughn and told him everything that happened. We sat next to each other and I could feel the tension in the room. Damien walked in and went to sit next to Pa while Gideon walked to where Auden was. His face was masked with anger and his fists were clenched, ready for battle. Auden put an arm on his shoulder and mouthed, "You need to be calm, for now." Gideon nodded and then after a short while Mayor Everette and Elaine joined us. "Let us all sit down. I have some news to share," Uncle Malkiel said. After everyone was seated he said, "This morning, I received news from the congress party that Sam Bexley met with almost ninety percent of the party members. They plan to support him in the senatorial seat in the coming election. Beth, they unanimously agree
Sam Bexley succeeded in releasing the picture to the media. A few media houses co-operated and pulled the article down. Only the bloggers remained adamant, and the articles were still online.Uncle Malkiel, Elaine, and Auden worked to quiet the story by releasing news of the art theft at the museum was a suspected inside job. We left Valletta the next day for Milan. Vaughn seemed to be in a better mood when we got to the house in Silo. He beamed with happiness. "You lived here for the past ten years?" he asked in wonder."Yes. Godfather bought this house when we settled here," I responded. Damien walked in and looked like a zombie as he toured the house. Vaughn scolded Gideon. "Don't leave him alone. You know that he will be sentimental since this was Morrice's house." "What the f*ck do you take me for? I am already threatened by the fact they were each other's first love. Who will understand me?" Gideon huffed. "Sorry." Vaughn put his arm across Gideon's shoulder. He nodde