Page 99 of Notorious Park Avenue Prince

“I’d like to come with you, if that’s okay? But if you’d rather I didn’t, I?—”

“It’s okay with me if East is fine with it.”

East gave a clipped nod, but the sigh that followed seemed full of relief.Interesting.The idea of Zac’s coming with us was a source of comfort he hadn’t known he’d been waiting for. The tension in his body eased somewhat as we finally pulled into a nondescript driveway with a garage door. It opened the second Jorge pulled up in front of it, and when he drove us inside, it shut behind us.

“You have agaragein Manhattan?” East asked.

“No,” I said as the whirring sound of machinery started, and the floor below us began to move up. “I have a personal car elevator.”

“A what?”Zac said. “Are you kidding me?”

The elevator came to a stop in under sixty seconds in a car space that had some of the most impressive views of New York City.

“Holy shit…” East said as he reached for the handle of the car, but then stopped. “Is it safe to get out?”

I nodded, pleased that for a second he’d forgotten the shitstorm that had brought him to this spot. “Yes, it’s safe to get out. It’s essentially a garage?—”

“In the fucking sky.”

“That’s right—it adjoins directly with my place.”

East shook his head and shoved open the door, mumbling, “A fucking Batcave, that’s what this is.”

“It helps with privacy.”

“Right.”

“Still want to stay?” I asked Zac. I’d understand if he didn’t. He’d had a lot thrown at him over the last two weeks. A lot to digest about someone he thought he knew. But I found myself hoping he’d be curious enough to at least get out of the car. “Jorge can take you home if you’d rather not.”

“That’s not it.” Zac turned to look out the window at East staring down at the city. “I’m just not sure how I can help or what I’m doing here.”

“Just being here with him helps,” I said as the door that led into my penthouse opened, and I nodded for him to follow. “Trust me.”

We stepped into the sky vault, a glass-enclosed space that also served as a stairwell into the main living area, and East followed. I led them up the stairs and caught a glimpse of their reflections. East’s brows were pulled together pensively, and I felt the need to reassure him.

“I’ve got a secure line for you to call who you need to.”

“You think I know their numbers off the top of my head?”

That showed the gap between our generations. I could still rattle off the numbers of those closest to me, but no one had to memorize anything these days.

Shit, was this what it was like to feel old?

“Tell me who you need and I’ll get it for you,” I said.

“Just like that?”

“Just like that.”

“Okay.” East rubbed a tired hand over his face and sighed. “Maybe just West and my mother.”

“Done.” I left him with Zac, both of them standing by the windows that overlooked the Hudson River, and reached out to just the person who could get those numbers in a heartbeat and secure the other side of the connections. East wasn’t the only one who had people with information at their fingertips.

I came back with a slip of paper and the secured cell in my palm to find Zac had managed to pull East into a hug, holding him tightly even though East’s arms were still crossed over his chest like that was keeping his emotions in check.

Not wanting to interrupt the moment, I watched them from the doorway until Zac looked up and saw me.

“You have free rein of the house, so take your time, and if you need anything, let us know,” I said, handing everything over to East.

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