“Would you two stop it,” Colton hissed.

  “Oh, Ace is coming back.” Nadine straightened, and Annie took a sip of her drink as he approached.

  “Here you go.” Ace handed Nadine her drink, and she beamed at him.

  “Thank you. I see you met Peter.”

  Ace nodded. “Yeah, friendly guy.”

  “A little too friendly, if you ask me,” Colton muttered before taking a sip of his cocktail.

  “Are you referring to this?” Ace held the napkin up between his index finger and middle finger, his eyes filled with mischief.

  “What does that say?” Colton plucked the napkin from him, squinted at it, then dropped it in his martini glass. He let out a gasp. “Oh, my goodness. How clumsy of me. I’m so sorry, Ace.”

  “I think it’s salvageable,” Ace said, laughing when Colton stabbed it with his finger and swirled it around until it was in pieces.

  “No, don’t think it is.” Colton sighed. “Such a shame.”

  The girls broke into laughter, and Ace playfully nudged Colton with his elbow. “Jealous?”

  Colton scoffed. “Of course not. It’s simply unprofessional to hit on someone who’s clearly here to do a very important job.”

  “Right,” Ace said, sounding amused. “So, if Peter were to give me his number again….”

  “Then I can’t be held responsible for whatever fate befalls that napkin. Lot of water around here.” Wait a second. Shit. Colton’s eyes widened, and he quickly cleared his throat. “Um, not that it’s any of my business. I mean, you’re, uh, single.” His cringe at the word single wasn’t going to win him any Oscars. He worried his bottom lip as he turned to Ace. “I’m so sorry.”

  Ace smiled warmly at him, easing Colton’s mind. “Relax. They clearly know. Peter isn’t the only one lacking in subtlety around here.” He gave them all a pointed look.

  Colton turned to his friends. “You can’t breathe a word to anyone. This could really hurt Ace’s career. We’re waiting until this is all over.”

  Annie made a zipping motion across her lips, and Nadine snorted oh so delicately.

  “If I didn’t know you were saying it because of how crazy about him you are, I’d be offended. When have I ever talked about your business to anyone?”

  This was true. Nadine was one of his closest confidants, not only at work, but as a friend.

  “You’re right. I’m sorry.” Colton took hold of her hand and kissed it. “Do you forgive me?”

  “I do. Only because I love you and want you to be happy.” She smiled sheepishly at him. “Also, I submitted a request for vacation time.”

  “And I would never tell anyone,” Annie promised, her eyes growing glassy. “After everything you did for Lily, for me? How could I ever do anything to jeopardize our friendship, Colton?”

  Colton hugged Annie tight, promising he wasn’t mad. How could he be? They wanted him to be happy, and after all these years of thinking he’d never find the right person for him, Ace had found him.

  “This looks like all kinds of trouble right here.” Nolan stepped up to them, and Annie hugged him tight, making him chuckle.

  “Hi, Dad.”

  “Hey, kiddo.”

  “I’ll have you know that the only troublemaker here is Colton,” Nadine said, winking at Colton.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m a paragon of class and sophistication.”

  Ace snorted, and Colton slowly turned to him, an eyebrow arched. Everyone burst into laughter, and Ace coughed into his fist.

  “Sorry, had something in my throat,” he said, pretending to wheeze. “Probably pollen or something.”

  “Or something all right,” Colton muttered, handing Ace his martini glass with the disintegrated napkin. “Just for that, you can get me a new drink.”

  Ace chuckled. “Sure.”

  “While you do that, I’ll go use the restroom.”

  “I’ll escort you,” Ace said with a frown. “I’ll grab your drink when we get back.”

  “Ace! There you are.” Jeremy, Annie’s husband, appeared behind them and patted Ace on the shoulder. “I wanted to ask you a couple of questions.”

  “Sure, but first I need to escort Colton—”

  “Ace, it’s fine. The bathroom is right there.” Colton pointed to the door near the hotel entrance.

  “I’m coming with you, or at least let me grab someone else.”

  “Dude, it’s right there,” Jeremy said, earning himself a scowl from Ace. “He’s a big boy. He’ll be fine.”

  “Ace, I really need to go. It’s fine.”

  “I need to visit the ladies room,” Annie said. “I’ll go with him. If I see or hear anything, I’ll get you right away.”

  “It’s not a big deal, Ace,” Colton assured him. There were a lot of guests here tonight, but plenty of security, and no one could get in without being on the list. It wasn’t like he was leaving the pool area.

  “Okay, but I’m sending someone to check on you.”

  Colton nodded and left with Annie at his side. He’d only had a few drinks, but he was desperate, and being stopped every few steps by people thanking him for the party, offering him congratulations, and wanting to chat was appreciated and valued, but not the best time for it. The ladies’ restroom was just next door.

  “I’ll meet you out here,” Annie said before disappearing inside.

  Colton reached for the door but noticed the small plaque. “Out of order?” Colton cursed under his breath. He was pretty sure he’d seen another bathroom inside. Ace was talking to Jeremy, and whatever it was, looked important. Jeremy mentioned wanting to hire Ace for a job, so Colton didn’t want to interrupt. Plus, he was about to pee himself. He hurried toward the glass doors leading into the hotel, and one of the guards standing by.

  “Excuse me. If Ace comes looking for me, can you let him know I’m in that bathroom there? The other one is out of order.”

  The man nodded, and Colton could hear him putting a call out to Ace.

  Hurrying inside the men’s room, Colton dashed over to the urinal. “Oh my God.” It was so good. He’d have to have a talk with the hotel. There had been no mention of a restroom being out of order, and it was terribly inconvenient for their guests. He supposed it could have happened tonight. The elegant bathroom he stood in was empty, and once Colton finished his business, he washed his hands and dried them. He checked himself over quickly in the mirror, then headed for the door.

  The door opened, and Colton moved out of the way so he wouldn’t run into the poor guy. “I’m so sorry. Excuse me.”

  “Colton, how good to see you,” the man said, his smile wide and friendly.

  “Oh, hello. I’m sorry, I don’t think we’ve met.” Colton was meeting several of the guests for the first time. They were mostly his dad’s golf buddies, or friends from his yacht club.

  “Your father and I spend a lot of time at the yacht club. He’s been interested in buying my Regulator 34.”

  “Ah, yes! I remember now.” A few weeks ago, his father had been rambling on about a thirty-nine-foot yacht one of his club buddies was selling. Colton held his hand out to shake. “Mr. Wells, right?”

  The man beamed at him. “That’s right.” He shook Colton’s hand before laughing. “Sorry, this is a very strange place to do this. How about we have a drink at the bar?”

  “Sure, I just need to return to the party and let my friend know.”

  Wells shrugged. “Call them from the bar.”

  Colton plastered a smile on his face. “It won’t take a minute. I can do that while you finish up here. Excuse me.”

  The smile disappeared from Wells’s face, replaced by a cold, dark stare. Colton quickly moved back when three other men in suits entered the bathroom, blocking the door behind them. Colton retreated toward the stalls, his eyes widening when Wells—or whoever the fuck he was—pulled a syringe from his jacket pocket.

  “It looks like you’ve had a little too much to drink, Mr. Connolly. Why don’t I help you?”

  “Stay the hell away from me,” Colton warned, scanning the bathroom for a way out. With no windows and only one door, which was currently blocked, he was trapped. Colton reached into his pocket as one of the men pulled a gun on him.

  “Hands where I can see them,” Wells said. He approached Colton, and Colton waited.

  Wells charged, throwing out an arm to grab him, which Colton snatched hold of, ducked under, and twisted behind the man, then shoved him face-first into the bathroom wall, the needle dropping to the floor. Remembering everything Ace had taught him, Colton kicked the side of the man’s knee, putting all his force behind the kick, and a crunching sound was quickly followed by a scream. If they were planning on drugging him, it meant they wanted him alive. Otherwise, they would have shot him already.

  The other men charged, but the door slammed open, and Ace thundered in like the god of war himself had been unleashed. The three men launched an attack on Ace, who used his skills to fend off their assault, making sure to disarm them. He thrust his palm up into one man’s nose, then dropped to one knee and punched the guy on the side of the knee before spinning and jumping to his feet. Colton took a step forward, terrified by the look in Ace’s eyes. He’d never seen them so dark, so cold. An arm wrapped around Colton’s neck, jerking him back into a hard body, and knocking them both into the wall.

  Wells attempted to jam the needle into Colton, who managed to grab his wrist. He reached into his pocket, pulled out his pen, and doing as Ace had taught him, stabbed the pen into the flesh of Wells’s thigh. The man let out a snarl, losing his grip on Colton’s neck and allowing him to get out from under the guy’s hold. Colton snatched the syringe, flipped off the cap, and stuck it into the man’s arm, then shoved the plunger down. Wells crumpled to the floor, and Colton turned, his heart beating in his ears. The men were all on the floor unconscious, and Ace stood over them, chest heaving, blood on his lip, his knuckles bloodied and bruised.

  “Ace?” The word came out as a whisper, and Colton started to shake.

  Seeming to snap out of it, Ace darted over, took hold of his arms, and followed him down to the floor as Colton’s knees gave out from under him.

  “Baby, are you okay? Are you hurt?”

  “I’m okay.” Colton nodded, his breathing heavy and his hands shaking.

  “Oh God, I was so scared I’d get here and find out I was too late. I don’t know what the hell I would have done if—”

  “Shsh, it’s okay, Ace. I’m okay.” Colton cupped his face and kissed him, needing to feel him close. Ace returned his kiss, but a sharp bellow startled them both.

  “What the hell is going on?”

  Oh fuck.

  “Dad.”

  Chapter 13

  This couldn’t be happening.

  Colton got ahold of himself, letting Ace help him to his feet but not pushing him away. Instead he leaned into Ace’s embrace as his father marched over and took hold of Colton’s arm. Ace released him, and Paxton looked Colton over, a mixture of fear and anger in his eyes.

  “Colton, are you all right?”

  “Yes, I’m fine.”

  “You’re bleeding.”

  Colton followed his father’s gaze to his right hand stained with blood. He shook his head. It was Wells’s, from when Colton had stabbed him with the pen. “It’s not mine.” Before he could utter another word, his father had Ace by the collar, shoving him against the wall.

  “You were supposed to protect my son!”

  “Dad, stop!” Colton pushed himself between his father and Ace. He’d never seen his father this furious, and he understood how freaked-out his dad must be, but Colton wasn’t going to let him take his anger out on Ace.

  Paxton thrust a finger at Ace. “I paid you to keep him safe, not sleep with him!”

  “Dad, that’s enough!”

  King came running in with Lucky and Red close behind him. “What’s going on?”

  Paxton rounded on them with a snarl. “Is that how you run your company, King? Your men sleep with their clients?”

  King held up his hands in front of him, his tone calm and soothing. “Mr. Paxton, I can assure you—”

  “You can forget about that contract with Connolly Maritime,” Paxton growled. “What’s more, you’re done in this business!”

  “Mr. Paxton, let’s discuss this.”

  “You’re done,” Paxton snapped, thrusting a finger at King. “Four Kings Security is done. Get my son to the hospitality suite. You’ll get paid, and then I want you all out of our lives for good.” Paxton stormed out, and Ace took a step toward King.

  “King, I’m sorry. I—”

  “Is it true?” King asked, his voice exuding nothing but calm. “Did you get involved with Colton?”

  Ace met King’s gaze. “It’s true, but, King—”

  “No,” King stated firmly, a finger held up to quash any argument. “I’m going to try and fix this.” He shook his head, his blue eyes filled with hurt when he met Ace’s gaze. “You’ve really disappointed me, Ace. We’ll discuss this later. Get this mess cleaned up.”

  Colton flinched along with Ace, his heart splintering for him when King walked out. Ace tried to go after him, but Red stopped him, his voice rough with emotion when he spoke.

  “Let him go, Ace. It’s not a good idea to talk to him right now.”

  Tears filled Ace’s eyes, his gaze on the door King had walked out of, but then Lucky exploded, shoving Ace.

  “You son of a bitch!”

  “I’m sorry,” Ace said softly. “I’m so sorry, Lucky.”

  “How could you? We’re family!”

  Ace closed his eyes. “I know.”

  “Do you? Because you don’t act like it sometimes. It’s bad enough you get involved with a client, but you lied to me, to my face! I knew something was going on, but I was like, no, Ace wouldn’t lie to me. We’ve never lied to each other. You’re a fucking asshole.” Lucky shoved Ace one more time before disappearing, not bothering to give Ace a chance to explain further.

  Ace gripped the edge of the granite counter, his head hanging down and his eyes shut. Colton kept his distance, which was a good thing, because after several heartbeats in complete silence, Ace let out a fierce cry and punched the mirror in front of him. The heartbreaking sound and the force behind Ace’s fist startled Colton, but he wasn’t scared of Ace.

  Colton’s heart squeezed as he slowly approached. He placed a hand on Ace’s shoulder, and for a split second, he worried Ace might shrug him off and walk away, but he didn’t. Ace turned to Colton, wrapped his arms around him, and pulled him close so he could bury his face in Colton’s neck. Colton held him tight, his cheek to Ace’s hair as he offered what comfort he could.

  “I’m so sorry,” Colton whispered, running his fingers through Ace’s hair. “I don’t seem to be having much luck with public bathrooms these days.”

  A hint of a smile tugged at Ace’s lips when he pulled back. “You should go. Red will take you to your father.”

  “What happens next. With us?”

  Ace brushed his fingers down Colton’s cheek. “Whatever happens, it won’t change how I feel about you, Colton.”

  “That’s all I needed to know.” He kissed Ace. It was passionate but brief. Reluctantly he left Ace in the bathroom and followed Red down the hall to the elevator.

  By the time they reached the hospitality suite, Colton was seething.

  “I’ll be outside if you need me,” Red said, and Colton thanked him before entering the room. His father was inside by the wall of windows that looked out onto the ocean. It was a starless night, no clouds, just darkness.

  “I need to talk to you.”

  “Not now. Unbelievable. I put my trust in them.” Paxton reached into his suit jacket and pulled out his cellphone.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Calling my lawyer.”

  Colton snatched the cell phone out of his father’s hand. “You’re not doing anything of the kind. What’s more, you’re going to apologize to King for threatening him, and we’re going through with the contract with the Kings for Connolly Maritime.”

  “Colton, you’re not thinking clearly. You were attacked, and that son of a bitch took advantage of you!”

  Colton prided himself on never losing his temper. This was not one of those times. “Don’t you dare! I know what taking advantage of feels like, so don’t even try it!”

  Paxton flinched, but Colton refused to back down.

  “Mick took advantage of me. He used me, betrayed me, planned to marry me so he and your father could control my life and my legacy. I am done. This is my life, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to let anyone tell me how to live it.”

  “You—”

  “Love him, Dad.”

  Paxton stared at him. “What?”

  Colton couldn’t help the small smile that tugged on his lips. “I’m in love with him.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” Paxton scoffed.

  Colton narrowed his eyes. Oh hell no. “Now you listen to me. I love you, but I’m a grown man, and no one tells me how I feel, who I get to love, how long that should take, or how to live my goddamn life. I was the one who started things with Ace. He was reluctant because he feared this exact thing would happen. Anston Sharpe is a damned good man who put up with all our bullshit to keep me safe. From the moment we met, there was something between us, and because of me, because I believed it would all work out, he took a chance on me. We were going to wait until this was all over to tell you and King, but those assholes took that from us. I want this. I want him.”

  “Colton—”

  “No,” Colton snapped. “It’s over.” Colton tapped at his phone, then put it to his ear. “King? Please come to the hospitality suite. My father has something he wants to discuss with you.”

  “You really love him?”

  Colton released a heavy sigh as he leaned against the back of the couch. “I know it seems fast, but sometimes you know. I was with Mick for years, and it turned out I didn’t know him as well as I thought I had. With Ace, it took me days to see the kind of man he is. He’s an open book, Dad.”