Dom had popped by one time a few months after it opened, then swore he’d never be back. He liked a place that got a little rowdy, but he didn’t want to worry about getting knifed in the back because someone didn’t like his shirt.
He might not have seen his brother in years, but he was sure James hadn’t changed that much. Jubilee was a good fit for him. The kind of place where he could shoot off his mouth without people taking any real notice of it. Where he could push people around and be a big shot, if that was what he wanted that night.
Stepping inside, Dom gave a curt nod to the doorman, who barely glanced up from his phone to see Dom as he walked by. Barely aware of his surroundings, he wasn’t checking IDs. Dom forced his thoughts away from the guy and stepped into the main bar. Music blared out from speakers spread around the dimly lit club. There was a little more light at the bar, where a pair of bartenders were furiously working to keep up with drink orders as customers stood nearly three-deep at the scarred oak.
A dance floor occupied the middle of the club, and it was packed with people sweating and gyrating in the intensely hot building. Dom could already feel his T-shirt starting to stick to his back as sweat ran down his spine. Not only was the owner hiring shit security, but he also wasn’t willing to put in adequate air conditioning to keep up with the number of bodies filling the small space.
Fuck it. He had to find James. His brother knew he was alive and where he was living. If he didn’t face him, James could quickly infiltrate the rest of his life. Dom didn’t want to risk the lives of his friends. He also didn’t want to risk the truth of his past getting out. Abe couldn’t know. Not yet. Preferably not ever, but definitely not yet.
Dom glanced over the customers at the bar, but it was easy to see that there was no one there resembling his brother. Frowning, he turned away and edged toward the dance floor. James had liked to dance a bit, mostly when he was completely lit and celebrating a successful job. There was still no sign of him among the people dancing to the throbbing beat of the music. Strobe lights flashed and colored lights swirled in a hypnotic kaleidoscope, but it wasn’t enough to distract him from seeking his target.
Rowe had trained them for these kinds of situations, showed them how to stay aware in a dark, crowded place with seemingly endless threats all around them. Of course, Rowe’s first bit of advice was to always get the package out of that situation as quickly as possible, but clients regularly refused to live a cloistered life just to make things easy on their bodyguard.
Confident that James wasn’t on the dance floor, Dom sidled through the throng of people to the far wall. If he remembered correctly, there were several booths and tables along the back wall of the place and then a pool table in the back room. He edged along the rough brick wall, trying to see around the partiers, when his heart lurched in his chest.
James.
It was like looking in a mirror. They were nearly identical. Only the scar running down the left side of Dom’s face marked their difference. He hadn’t been on an official job when it happened. The explosion at the house where local Instagram celebrity Geoffrey Ralse had been held had caught him by surprise, resulting in several scars running down the left side of his body. His first thought when he’d realized the scars were a permanent part of his appearance was relief. For the first time in his life, he knew he was different from his brother. Piercings and tattoos could be mimicked, but the scars made him unique.
More than ten years had passed since he’d last seen his twin brother, and the man still looked just like him. They had the same haircut and the same muscular build. How? He didn’t want to think about other personality similarities. Growing up, they’d liked the same foods, same music…and the same men.
Raising a shaking hand to his face, Dom roughly rubbed his eyes while leaning back against the brick wall. Thicker shadows cloaked him from the view of the table. He needed to get his head together. There was no doubt now. James was in Cincinnati, and he wasn’t alone.
He looked at the circular table again and did a quick count. His father wasn’t there, but again, he was sure the old man was probably gone. He’d been old when he’d fathered them. Besides James, there were five other men. None of them were familiar, he noted with a feeling of relief. None of Dom’s acquaintances had mistaken James for him, but that was only a matter of time the longer James remained in the area. Dom knew a lot of people, both former clients and friends. He couldn’t risk James impersonating him.
The other five men were muscular bruisers with matching cold, angry expressions as they leaned close over the table, talking. This wasn’t a relaxed bullshitting session where they conversed about a sporting event. They were planning something.
Fuck, six against one were horrible odds. He didn’t stand a chance if they caught sight of him. He should have brought backup. But who the hell was he going to ask to drag into this mess?
Abe.
The man’s handsome face came to mind instantly at that question. It both caused Dom’s heart to race and a chill to break out across his arms. He wanted to go to Abe with his problem, to share it with him and get his advice on what he should do next. But the idea of telling him about James, about everything from his life in California, was terrifying. The guy had just barely survived a horrible marriage. He had a perfect life now with his son and his woodworking business. Abe Stephens did not need the shitstorm that was crashing down on Dom’s life.
Swearing under his breath at himself, Dom looked back at the table where James and the other men continued to talk. It was hard to look away from his brother. Now that he’d gotten over his initial shock, it was becoming easier to see little differences between them. His brother’s expression was colder, harder. The lines around his mouth and eyes were deeper, making his face appear harsher than his own.
Watching James was like watching a ghost of himself, a talking image of what he would have been if he’d stayed in California and continued to steal and work cons with his brother. How much innocent blood would have been on his hands by now? How many lives would they have destroyed together?
He had to get out of there. He needed to go home, regroup, and come up with a smarter plan. James had a fucking crew now that he ran with. A low, bitter laugh rose up. James had needed to bring on five guys to replace him.
Regardless, he had to get out of there before someone noticed him. Tracking down James and telling him to get the fuck out of Cincinnati had to be a one-on-one conversation. He couldn’t win against James the way the odds were currently stacked.
Heading back the way he’d come, Dom carefully made it around the dance floor, keeping his head down. Being tall with red hair made him too damn easy to spot in a crowd. Progress slowed as he reached the bar. The number of people ordering drinks had increased, and no one was willing to let him ease his way through for fear that he was going to steal his place in line to get alcohol. He was sorely tempted to just shove his way through, but that was the last thing he wanted. Glancing to his right, he could see the front door not more than a few hundred feet away.
A heavy arm landed on his right shoulder from behind while a forearm came across his chest, pulling him in tight to another tall, large frame.
“Babe, I said I’d get the drinks on my way back to the table,” someone said in a laughing tone in his left ear.
Dom froze. His first instinct was to throw the arm off, but the stranger’s words proved that he thought Dom was James.
“I’ve got it. Go back to the table,” he replied in what he hoped was a tone that matched James’s.
“Or you can come back to the bathroom with me now. They’re not too crowded.” The stranger’s other hand slipped across Dom’s side, along his stomach, heading down toward his crotch. “I’ll get on my knees for you.” Disgust crawled along Dom’s skin. His brain panicked. What the fuck was he supposed to say?
He couldn’t take it. Roughly throwing off the man’s arms, Dom stepped away from the guy, pushing other people out of the way. “Ge
t off me and go back to the table.”
Dom’s heart gave a little flutter when he finally got a good look at the other man. They were about the same height, and he had rugged good looks with dark hair and deep brown eyes that would have called to him not so long ago. Yeah, he and his brother definitely had a type. But he’d found Abe, and that shit didn’t matter anymore.
A confused and hurt expression twisted up the man’s features, but it only lasted a second. Surprised pushed his eyes wide and parted his lips. He spoke, but Dom couldn’t hear his voice over the loud music. He read his lips, though.
You’re not James.
Dom smirked. “Still wanna suck my dick?”
The man’s face turned bright red and his mouth snapped shut. Like he’d let this asshole anywhere near his dick.
Dom grabbed a handful of the man’s shirt and shoved him backward through the crowd, toward the bathroom, down a small hall to the left of the bar. He knew the guy was going willingly. They were the same height and build. There was no way he could move the bastard if he didn’t want to go.
Inside the brightly lit and smelly bathroom, Dom slammed the guy’s back against the light gray wall. The fucker just smiled at him. Of course, he smiled. He knew that Dom was outnumbered badly. Dom hadn’t seen this guy at the table. He must have been in the bathroom when he’d spotted James. That meant James had a crew of six instead of five. Seven against one were still shitty odds. He had to get the hell out of there before anyone came looking for this asshole.
“Why is James in Cincinnati?” Dom snarled.
“John,” the man said with sickening pleasure. Dom shivered at the name. He’d given up that name when he “died.” One of the few people to ever use it was James. “He’s looking forward to talking to you.”
Dom ignored his comments. Tightening his fists in his shirt, Dom pulled him forward a little before slamming him back against the wall. The few people already in the bathroom zipped up their flies and hurried out of the restroom. Even with the lax security, he figured that he had only a minute or two before someone came in to investigate the disturbance. Or worse, before James or one of his other crew members came looking for this dickbag.
“What the fuck does he want?”
The guy just stood there, taking Dom’s anger, his smile growing on his face with each furious word. “We came to town for a job, but we’re staying for you. He’s not leaving without you.”
“Fuck you. And fuck him. I’m not going anywhere with him. Tell him to get the hell out of Cincy. Go back to California.”
Dom released James’s lover and took a step toward the door, but a hard hand clamped down on his right wrist, holding him in place. He didn’t think. He just reacted. Left hand fisted, Dom swung around and plowed it right into the man’s jaw. He instantly released Dom’s wrist and swung his own left. Dom blocked the blow with his forearm. The impact rattled bones and he gritted his teeth. The bastard was solid.
He couldn’t let this stretch. The guy was just trying to keep him there, so he could be discovered. Time to fight dirty. Dom almost smirked. Couldn’t get much dirtier than a bar bathroom fight.
Smashing his left forearm across the prick’s jaw, he grabbed his hair with both hands and pulled his head down while bringing his knee up. Cartilage and bone crunched. The man shouted, this deep voice echoing off the walls and porcelain. Keeping him bent over, Dom fisted his hand in the would-be attacker’s shirt. He stepped backward and propelled him into the partially closed metal door of an open stall, then threw him into the toilet. There was a clatter of noise and shouting along with the sound of flushing. Probably caught his hand on the handle as he attempted to straighten.
Dom didn’t wait around for the guy to climb out of the stall and take another swing at him. Darting for the door, Dom hurried back into the club. Music hammered his eardrums, and he blinked against the dark room broken by the flashing lights. People moved around but he couldn’t make out faces yet. Didn’t matter. He shoved his way through the crowd, tunneling through the people still gathered in front of the bar. There was no sign of a bouncer or other staff beyond the bartenders slinging drinks behind the bar. No sign of James yet.
Sliding past the last of the crowd, Dom rushed to the door and outside. Rain poured down in nearly blinding sheets of cool water. Streams rushed down the sidewalk and rushed through the debris-clogged gutters. He paused on the sidewalk for only a second, running his hand through his hair, slicking it back. Rain soaked into his clothes in a matter of seconds, plastering them to his frame.
He didn’t feel anything beyond relief to be out of there without catching his brother’s notice. He needed to get home. Regroup. Plan. There was no facing his brother while his crew was around. He had to catch James while he was alone if he was going to have any hope of reasoning with him. Of course, that hope might have died the moment he beat the shit out of the asshole who’d groped him while he was trying to get past the bar.
As the door started to close behind him, he heard a shout rise up above the music, angry and ruthless. He had to get the fuck out of there.
Chapter Six
He should have canceled the date.
Dom tightened his fingers on his steering wheel as he drove to Abe’s the next night. He’d wanted this for so long, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He’d always been a little pushy about the things he wanted. It came from a childhood where he never had anything he hadn’t taken for himself. Gifts had been few and far between, and even those had usually come with a price.
Especially when they came from his father or brother.
Their father had already been in his fifties when they’d been born, and he’d lived life hard. A grifter who’d been thrilled with identical twins because he could use them. Love hadn’t been a part of the picture, and by the time Dom had run, his father had already been withering away. Didn’t matter, he and James had grown up on the streets, so he had little attachment.
And their father had taught them plenty in the early years, forcing them to go along with his plans, which included nobody knowing they were twins. Two identical faces—one public one. And one public name.
Fuck, so many years had passed, and he’d grown complacent. Comfortable. There was no way in hell he was going to let James ruin this life he’d built.
Dom took a meandering, long route to Abe’s that night. Was he being overly cautious? Probably, but dragging James into Abe’s world was the very last thing he wanted.
By the time he parked in Abe’s driveway and knocked on the door, his adrenaline, worry, and anger had swirled into this volatile mix, and he knew he definitely shouldn’t have come. Damn. A first, real date with the man of his dreams and he was ready to take off someone’s head.
Then Abe opened the door and some of his tension eased at the sight of the gorgeous man. Some. Lust ramped it up as he took in the heather gray Henley that accented his muscular arms and wide chest, the low slung, loose and faded jeans that hugged his slimmer lower half, especially his ass when he turned to shut the door.
Dom leaned against the entryway wall, unable to take his eyes off the man. Abe turned and must have read the desire on Dom’s face, because he narrowed his eyes and stepped close. Dom shut his eyes, inhaling the fresh, showered scent and that aftershave that drove him a little crazy.
“I needed this,” he whispered.
“Bad day?” Abe stepped even closer, the heat of his body seeping in to warm Dom’s. Despite the summer temperature, he’d been cold since seeing his brother the night before.
“The worst.” He opened his eyes to find Abe’s gaze on his mouth and the punch of desire that hit his gut made him suck in a breath. He lifted his hands slowly, running them up Abe’s forearms. He’d bunched the sleeves up to his elbows, and he had soft hair on his arms that felt good against his palms. “You’re hairier than me.”
“Is that a good or bad thing?” Abe still watched his mouth.
“Oh, good. So, so good.” He wrapped his fingers aro
und thick biceps and pulled Abe into his body, sliding a leg between his. His heat, his scent, wrapped Dom in a cocoon of masculinity that went to his head. “You have this same hair on your chest?”
“It’s curlier,” Abe murmured as he took Dom’s hands and ran them up under the hem of his shirt.
Lovely warm skin and crinkly hair met his palms. Dom groaned and closed his eyes again. He dropped the top of his forehead onto Abe’s shoulder and explored his belly and chest under the shirt. He did have crisp, wavier hair on both sections. He slid his hands around to the smooth skin of his back. “Abe?”
“Yeah,” he said on a faint moan.
“You feel good.” He nuzzled into his neck. “You smell good.” He opened his mouth over Abe’s pulse, licked, then pulled back. “You taste good.”
“Fuck, Dominic.” Abe’s voice went guttural and he brought Dom’s face up to capture his mouth in a kiss. He nipped Dom’s lower lip, then lightly sucked it into his mouth, making it slippery and wet. Dom opened his mouth and Abe dipped his tongue in, running it over his lips again, mixing them together.
It was so fucking hot, he started to shake.
He speared his fingers into the curls on Abe’s head and thrust his tongue into Abe’s mouth. He tasted even better there, and before he could register the electricity tearing through him, Abe tugged him as close as possible and surprised the hell out of him when he grabbed one of Dom’s ass cheeks and kneaded with strong fingers.
Dom gasped against his mouth, groaning again when Abe licked into his own over and over, their tongues meeting in a hot, wicked dance that they both started to mimic with their hips.
He’d meant to take tonight slow. He hadn’t meant to ravage the guy before he got fully into his house. Fuck, he wondered what things Abe would like. Hoped he was verse because Dom wanted to sink into his body just as much as he wanted to feel the man inside him. That thought made him shudder, which caused Abe to pull back and press their foreheads together as they panted. He ran his hands up Dom’s back to his neck and cupped it. He held Dom’s head still as he nuzzled into his cheek, then kissed him—this time softly, with his mouth closed.
Sadistic Sherlock (Ward Security Book 4) Page 6
