Page 72 of Their Domme

“What did you do?” Atlas asked suspiciously, narrowing his eyes at his lover.

Blake slid it to the edge of the desk, moving it away from them and Em. “The moment I saw you and Oli in the same room, I suspected. I could tell Ansel did as well, or maybe he knew for sure? We’ll never know. But this moment was inevitable, soIneeded to be sure.”

“Sure of what?” Oli asked them.

“You did a DNA test?” I guessed. Atlas’ head whipped around to me as Oli stopped breathing. “To see if they were brothers or not. Are you fucking kidding me right now, Blake?!”

“Yes,” Blake answered, their voice and expression carefully blank. “I didn’t open it, by the way, but it’s here for you both.”

“I’m honestly surprised you didn’t look,” Emmerich commented dryly. “We should all go so you can figure this out.”

Atlas and Oli shared a glance, probably considering whether they wanted to open the envelope or not, and that’s when my phone started to ring. Oli mutteredthank godunder his breath as I answered the call.

“Nicholette.” Roderick’s voice surprised me. I hadn’t been expecting him to reach out to me, not so soon anyway. “Are you still at Ansel's?”

“Yes,” I answered slowly, drawing out the word. “Why?”

“There are some things I need you to handle and take over for Maeve’s estate,” Roderick replied, and papers rustled on the other end of the phone. “I’ll be there this afternoon. Also, I was contacted by Allen. He needs to continue his interview with you as soon as possible. I can arrange for that to be done at the house as well.”

“Just give me a heads up if that’s also arranged for this afternoon, and I’ll make sure I’m ready,” I told him smoothly. “When should I expect you?”

“Two hours?” he asked after a brief pause as if he’d checked his schedule.

“Sounds good. Do I get any idea of what you’re throwing in my lap?”

“Some things are better discussed in person. I’ll see you soon.”

Click.

Everything was a damn secret right now… as if I needed more of those in my life. Oli rested his chin on my shoulder and held me closer, ignoring the others for a moment to ask if everything was okay.

“Yes.” I let out a long sigh. “No. I don’t know. Guess I’ll find out in about two hours when he gets here. But that’s not important right now. What do you want to do?”

I shifted back enough to look him in the eyes. He was conflicted, his gaze shifting from me to Atlas to the others in the room. Reaching up, I cupped his face, hoping my expression told him that he didn’t have to do anything he didn’t want to. If he wasn’t ready to open that envelope, I’d get him out of this room, no questions asked. This wasn’t why I brought him up here, and I hoped he believed that.

As if he could read my mind, he turned his face to kiss the palm of my hand. “I should get going. I have a place in mind, and it’s going to take a bit to get to.”

I nodded slowly, sad that he was going to leave even though I understood why he wasn’t going to linger. He wasn’t ready to know. He might never be ready to open that envelope, but that wasn’t my choice to make.

Oli pulled away. Without looking at anyone, he walked out, brushing past Conrad in an effort to avoid getting anywhere near Atlas. His maybe-brother didn’t move, not toward Oli or the envelope that Blake had offered.

“Where is he going?” Atlas asked.

“I don’t know. He said he needs to go off the grid to do the digging he needs to. Something about leaving no traces back to us. I came here to see if you could help, then Blake dropped this bombshell on us.”

“Not a fan when you’re not the one dropping them, Nic?” Blake taunted.

“No,” I snapped, more than a little annoyed at their attitude. Oli retreating worried me. Without Bodhi here to help reach out to him, I wasn’t sure what he would be like when he came back. “It’s much more fun on the other side of things. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to call Bodhi before Oli leaves. He’ll want to know what’s going on.”

I slipped past them and hurried down the hallway. No Oli in sight.Shit.That wasn’t how I’d seen that going down at all, and I had no idea how Blake had gotten samples for a DNA test. Grabbing my phone, I hit Bodhi’s name and started a text.

Nicholette:Oli’s leaving

Bodhi:Going underground already? Alone?

Nicholette:I tried to see if Atlas would go with him… Then Blake happened.

Nicholette:Either way, I told someone, so now I’m not responsible for being left alone.

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