Page 68 of Prodigal

“Hey, all that’s being handled as we speak.” Gideon pinched his chin lightly, tugging him close to kiss him. “I know where all the bodies are buried. You don’t have to do shit but look good while you take your rightful place.”

And if André was going to do this, then he would have to switch up his thinking, wouldn’t he? If the members of The Council had weaknesses, he needed to know it too because he had no doubt that they were poking around in his life, searching for his weak spots at that very moment. “Tell me.” He nudged Gideon. “Whatever I need to know about those people in there, tell me.”

He listened intently as Gideon schooled him, sharing dark, depraved shit about members of The Council. It was still too early for André to be able to put faces to names but Gideon helped by taking out his phone and pulling up images. So many secrets, each one darker than the last. Each one turning André’s stomach, some filling his eyes with tears as he was exposed to how vile and corrupt people could be.

Those were the people he would soon be peers with.

Who cared only about themselves and their bottom line. Motherfuckers who orchestrated disasters for profit. The wealthy and the powerful. His father was one of them. Gideon was one of them. And now, André.

Was this really what he wanted? Could he do this?

“Hey.” Gideon touched his face. “I know it’s a lot?—”

“A lot?” He scoffed, shuddering. “Gideon, it’s… I don’t have the word for what it is.” He wanted to throw up.

“I know.” Gideon nodded, expression solemn. “I have plans for The Council, but that’s a long-term strategy I’ll share with you another time. For now, this is what it is. Can you handle it?”

Could he? As he stared into the eyes of the man he loved, André didn’t know.

A knock came on the back passenger-side door, then it opened and Samir peered in. “They’re ready for the swearing in.”

André’s heart shot up into his throat.

Gideon took his hand. “It’s time to decide.”

22

Honestly,Gideon didn’t care what André chose to do—agree to officially become his father’s proxy or walk away from it all—Gideon would support him either way. And he would deal with The Council the way he planned to, eventually.

But this was André’s choice to make.

So Gideon waited for him to make it. He held André’s hand, staring into the other man’s eyes. They were wide, a little spooked, a little unsure. “It’s your choice,” Gideon told him softly. “Your decision. Whatever you want to do.”

André huffed out a breath. Then he jerked a nod. “Okay, I’m in.”

“You’re sure?” He tightened his grip on André. “There’s no out except for death,” he warned. Not that he would allow anyone to even breathe hard in André’s direction, but the other man had to know the risks. “You can’t change your mind a month from now or even ten years from now. That’s not how this works.” He wanted to make sure André understood the severity of his decision. “By walking into the barn earlier, you already know way too much. Once you’re sworn in, that’s it.”

André’s face looked a little pale, but he nodded again. “I’m sure.” He patted Gideon’s cheek. “As long as I have you, I’m sure.”

Gideon kissed him, quick and brutal. “You will always have me.” There was no doubt about that. “C’mon then. Let’s get this over with so we can go home.” He wanted to get André in a bed. On any flat surface really. One last lingering kiss and he opened the SUV door to find Samir and Ennis standing out there glaring at each other. Gideon ignored the tension between them and turned, holding out his hand to André and helping him out of the vehicle.

Once André stood at his side, Gideon addressed Ennis. “Any holdouts?” They had to know the names of any members of The Council who didn’t plan on voting for André. That way Gideon could get down to the threats and blackmail because nobody was gonna stand in André’s way.

“Three,” Ennis answered in a surly tone.

“Names?” After Ennis called them out, Gideon asked him, “What do you have on them?” He knew what he had on each member of The Council, but it wouldn’t hurt to add more bullets to his gun.

“Why should I share?—”

“If you want me to go through with this proxy shit, you will share any information you have with him,” André informed his father. “Now.”

Gideon didn’t bother hiding his smile. This side of André was sexy as fuck, he couldn’t lie. It was amazing, seeing how much he’d grown. He still maintained his goodness, his softness at the core of his being, but he’d definitely hardened. Maybe it was because his eyes had opened to an entirely new world around him and he’d adjusted to fit. Whatever it was, Gideon loved it.

He loved, too, that Ennis immediately did as his son bade, grudgingly spilling information. Most of it Gideon already knew, but there were still some gems he hadn’t been privy to.

“I think we’re all set,” he said once Ennis finished talking. Holding André’s hand, Gideon started walking back to the barn. This time it was just the three of them—him, André, and Ennis—since bodyguards couldn’t be present for the swearing in. When they crossed the barn’s threshold, André’s grip tightened on him, but Gideon swiped his thumb over his knuckles, trying to soothe him.

No one would hurt him. Gideon had already vowed it.

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