Page 51 of The Playboy Billionaire

Samuel disappears into the room at the back, reappearing with his phone.

“Damn, nothing.” He presses the phone to his ear and huffs when I assume it goes straight to voicemail. He does something else and then sinks down onto the sofa, staring at his phone with a look ofhorror.

“GPS last has her phone at Sunny Down. She clearly left it,” he says, talking more to himself than to me. “Where are you, baby girl? Why didn’t you come here?”

The front door opens behind me, and another man walks in.

“Samuel,” he calls before spotting us.

He stares over at me, his expression hard. “Samuel?”

“Dan. Meet Caleb Frazer. He’s here looking for April. She’s missing,”

His voice catches. Something flickers across Dan’s face before he masks it.

“Caleb Frazer? As in Frazer Development?” He steps forward and holds out a hand, which I shake.

“I’m looking for April Wilson,” I say.

“What’s she done now?” he asks, turning to Samuel, the contempt in his voice making my jaw clench.

Samuel looks up, and I wonder what he sees in this man. One who has so little affection for the one person he adores.

“Her dance studio burned down overnight.” Samuel’s voice catches.

“That was hers? I heard it on the news. I’m sure she’s fine,” he says, turning away but placing a hand on Samuel’s shoulder, giving it a squeeze. His lack of eye contact. I see aflash of guilt cross his features. I’m good at reading people, and Dan clearly knows more than he’s letting on.

“You haven’t heard from her?” Samuel probes as if sensing his partner’s distance.

“She called this morning.” I’m surprised by his honesty. “It was before you got home. I was getting ready for work.”

“Called?”

“Maybe not called. She turned up…” He rubs a hand down his face, guilt written all over his features.

“Why didn’t you let her in?”

Dan raises his eyebrow at Samuel, and I watch as he schools his features, his nostrils flaring and his eyes cold.

“What the hell, Dan? Why the fuck didn’t you let her in?” he asks again, and I’m amazed to see the older man squirm.

“How was I to know her building burned down?” he says, holding out his hands.

He turns to me as if for support, but whatever he sees on my face has him turning away. I grit my teeth, letting Samuel deal with this.

Samuel is now on his feet. He’s half a head taller and looms over his partner.

“Did you even bother to ask why she was here so early in the morning?”

“No, I didn’t really care. I was getting ready for work.” The two men are now squaring off against one another. Dan looks shocked, so I’m not sure this has ever happened before.

“She’s my best friend,” Samuel hisses.

“No, she’s not. She drags you down.” Dan rests his hands on Samuel’s chest, but he shoves him off. “You could be so much more. She holds you back. You’ve left that part of your life behind. Risen above it.”

His tone is pacifying, but it’s clear Samuel is past being pacified.

Instead, he spins on his lover. “What? Being homeless? Being alone in the world? Or is it my dancing? That is who I am… what I do. April was there for me when I had nothing. She supported me, helped me get back on my feet.” He steps back from the man in his life. “I’m not changing Dan. You either accept me for who I am, or I leave. I’m fed up with your shit.” Samuel’s jaw flexes. “Do you know what? I’m going to leave before I say something I may regret. I’m going to go out and find the one person who accepts me for me. I spent too many years hiding who I am. I’m only with you because April helped me to accept myself. If not, I’d still be hiding at the back of that very dark and lonely closet. So when you throw dirt in her direction… oh, why do I bother?” He leaves us and slams into the bedroom, returning with a jacket.

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