Page 5 of Reveal Me
Next time, in an expensive little black dress and a mask.
Chapter Three
SEAN
‘You coming to the club tonight?’ Rian, my younger brother, pops his head in through my office doorway—my office in my ‘day job’ that is. Beckett Enterprises operates from a majestic Georgian building just off Grafton Street. My brothers and I each occupy a different floor with our different subsidiaries. James has the top floor because he’s the eldest. Caelon has the fourth floor, Killian has the third, and I occupy the second. Rian occupies the ground floor—something which I know for a fact irritates the shit out of him.
I look up from the computer screen in front of me. I’m bidding on a site in Cork and trying to pass the time until tonight—Submissive Night. Property isn’t the only thing I’ll be acquiring today. It’s been four days since the incident with my last sub, and the prospect of picking the next one brings out the beast in me.
‘I can’t tonight. I have plans.’
Rian snorts, leaning against the thick wooden doorframe. Like all of us Beckett boys, he has dark hair, dark eyes and a large physique—courtesy of our father. ‘Like what? WatchingPride and Prejudiceand having a wank?’
My brothers regard me as the ‘proper’ brother. I’m not proper, I’m private. They have no idea of my kinks, and that’s the way I want it to stay. They’re curious at my lack of interest in dating. James all but came out and asked if I was gay. Said it wouldn’t change the way he, or any of my brothers, regarded me. It was a battle not to laugh in his face.
I’m not gay, I’m just guarded about my preferences.
But now James, Caelon and Killian are all loved up, they seem intent on seeing everyone settle down. It’s never going to happen. I made peace years ago with the fact that my two worlds—above ground and below—must remain forever separate. Who I am in darkness and who I am in daylight don’t mix.
‘Or is it one of those fucking cooking shows that you love?’ Rian tuts in disgust.
‘Just because you can’t even boil an egg.’ I snort.
‘Seriously, what are you up to? What’s with the perpetual mystery?’
‘No mystery, just none of your business.’ My eyes flick back to the computer. Someone bid against me. I click to up my bid by a million. I want that site, and I always get what I want. ‘Why don’t you ask Anthony to go out with you instead?’
Anthony De Courcy is Rian’s best friend, a banker—and a bit of a wanker—if you ask me, but he and Rian have been firm friends since they were in nappies. They attended the same school, the same college, and they behave like they never left, drinking themselves senseless most weekends. Even marriage didn’t calm Anthony down. His wife, Rebekka, must have the patience of a saint.
A dark expression flickers over my brother’s features. ‘He’s away.’
‘With Rebekka?’
‘No.’ Rian shakes his head. Disapproval radiates from his every pore. ‘With someone else.’
‘The guy’s an asshole.’ I might have my kinks, but I’m not unfaithful. None of my brothers are—our mother brought us up better than that.
‘Yeah, I’m starting to get that impression.’ Rian glowers. It’s not like him to be sullen. Out of all my brothers, he’s usually the sunny one. The joker. The one who acquired a chain of bars and nightclubs just so he could party seven nights a week and tell our father he’s “working”.
I check my screen again. I won. Satisfaction sweeps through me. The auction is over. A smug smile lifts my lips as I close down my computer. Rian’s staring into space in front of me. What is wrong with him?
‘Come on, let’s go for lunch.’ I might have plans for tonight, but today, my workload is light. I stand, strut towards the door, grabbing my thick coat on the way. January in Ireland can be bitterly cold. James and Scarlett’s wedding in St. Barth’s a couple of months back feels like a lifetime ago.
‘Fine, but you’re buying.’ Rian shoves his hands in his pockets, and stalks out the door in front of me.
‘Tight bastard,’ I give him a playful shove, following him out into the high wide corridor. I pause at the next open doorway where Michelle, my twenty-four-year-old, blonde PA, is typing furiously on her keyboard. ‘I’m heading off for the afternoon. You should do the same. It’s Friday, after all.’
Michelle’s fingers halt their tapping, and she glances up with a smile. ‘Thanks, Mr Beckett. I will do once I finish this report.’
‘Have a good weekend.’ I nod, then quicken my step to catch up with Rian, who’s hovering by the elevator.
‘You should tap that ass.’ Rian gestures towards Michelle’s office. ‘I would.’
My eyes roll up to the expensive coving lining the doubleheight ceiling. ‘Fuck’s sake. Is that all you think about? Even if I wasn’t concerned about a sexual harassment case, mixing business with pleasure is never a wise idea.’
‘I don’t know.’ Rian smirks, hitting the button. ‘It seems to work for James.’
Our oldest brother hired his now wife to work beside him the second she graduated from Trinity. His theory was clear. He didn’t want some slippery CEO perving over his woman when he was perfectly capable of doing that himself.
