Page 17 of Convenient Rivals

“You can sort this out and then let us help him. If you don’t want to do it for him, then do it for your mother.”

He looked through the window at his brother, unconscious, with tubes coming out of every orifice and his mother sitting next to him, completely broken.

“I don’t have that kind of money.”

“Bullshit. You helped him out before.”

“Exactly, and when am I ever seeing that money again?”

“I wasn’t aware we did loans for family. We gave you enough growing up. We’ve never asked you for that back, have we?”

Was he being serious? By the look on his face, he was. Barty was in deep shit this time. He’d taken a severe beating, which he’d brought on himself, but how this was Gregory’s problem was a mystery. He knew if he had the money, he’d probably give it to him, just for the sake of a quiet life. This time, he didn’t. All his spare cash was invested in his new venture with Langdon and Sebastian. They were opening a restaurant bar in the City of London, which was for the queer community. There was nothing like it in the city, and it would provide a safe hub for the community to socialise and have business meetings. They were due to open in March, and he was excited about it, but there was no way he was telling his father. They’d have another family member in the hospital if he did.

Langdon was project managing the building works – definitely more his forte. Gregory had initially wanted to build the place in Soho, as it was a place he knew well, but that market was already saturated, so it made better business sense to open in the city. Sebastian had invested in the project with them. Gregory had spoken to him for some financial advice, when he’d needed to find money for his brother last time, and Sebastian had suggested he go into the venture with them as he had the capital to invest. It was also something he cared about, and would leave Gregory with some ready cash to deal with his brother’s crap. Sebastian hadn’t asked what that crap was, but had probably guessed. He must have kept it from Charlie, though, because if Charlie had known Gregory had given his brother that sort of money, he would have told the others and they’d all have piled in with their opinions on the matter.

This was one of those situations where there was nothing he could do. Once he’d had money, it was like it could solve all problems, but this time he didn’t have money available to just make the problem go away. That was always his preferred solution – minimal drama and fuss.

“I don’t have the money,” said Gregory.

“You mean you don’t want to help your brother?”

“No, I mean I don’t have the money. Everything is invested in the business.”

“What about that flat?”

“What about it?”

“That’s got to be worth two million. You don’t need all that space.”

“You know I’m not the only person who lives there.”

“You’d leave your brother to those monsters so you can keep that cesspit you let those degenerates live in for free?”

Gregory felt like he’d been punched in the heart. Deep down, he knew his parents had only reconciled with him for his money, but there had always been a sliver of hope that they were sorry for what they’d done. That hope had just been obliterated.

Unable to process the plethora of emotions that were fighting inside him, he did the only he could – he ran. If his father had shouted after him, he’d never know, as his ears blocked out any sound other than his heartbeat. He ran out of the hospital and just kept running as fast as he could. On the busy streets of Central London, he wasn’t sure how he didn’t bang into people or get hit by a car, but he had to get somewhere safe. It was like his legs were on autopilot as he headed to the only place he’d ever felt that way.

He burst through the door of the flat, the adrenalin crash hitting him hard. Gregory couldn’t move any further, even though his private sanctuary was just a few feet away. His legs gave out, and his back slid against the front door as he crumpled into a heap on the floor. It was the middle of the day, so he wasn’t sure if anyone else was in the flat. Hopefully, they were all at work. Gregory was looking down at his hands, which were shaking, as he tried to regulate his breathing. He shivered, realising he was dripping with sweat. He wasn’t a big one for exercise, but he could run. Gregory had been running from bullies since he could walk.

He jumped when he felt a warm arm around his shoulder. Looking up, it was Jason, concern in his eyes, but he said nothing, just pulled Gregory towards him. He rested his head on Jason’s chest, and his brother gently stroked his sodden hair. It was comforting. Jason might be mouthy and appear to have a one-track mind, but he would always be there for you if you needed him. Gregory wasn’t a hugger, but this was comforting. It was always amusing when Jason tried to cajole Langdon into a hug, and thinking about it made him chuckle.

“What’s funny?” asked Jason, his tone playful.

“Just thinking of all the times you’ve tried to do this with Langdon.”

Jason snorted. “That man’s a big softie, no matter what he thinks.”

It was true. Langdon was fiercely protective of all of them, and took to the big-brother role with ease, but he had the kindest heart.

“Do you need me to send an SOS?” asked Jason.

“Can we just keep this between us?”

“Of course. Where did you run from?”

“The Royal Free.”

“That’s four miles away. You’re gonna feel that for the next few days.”

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