Page 153 of Studs Up
“Okay,” Quinn Taylor said slowly. “There’s a lot to unpack there. But what’s with Marcel? Is this some kind of crazy love triangle gone wrong?”
It was time to let it all out.
“For the last six years, someone has been blackmailing me.” With the urge to vomit subsiding, I stood, and Nolan refused to let my hand go. I didn’t fight it. I needed him.
I picked up my phone and read aloud the texts I received. The cruel ones, the hateful ones, the ones that threatened Nolan.
Alex dragged his hand down his face. I felt the attitude of the room shift as I finished. It was filled with horror, and the sympathy in Charlemagne’s eyes was so intense I thought he would hug me again.
“Fuck,” Rafa spoke quietly and slowly. Letting it all out was having a slightly therapeutic effect. There was nothing left to hide or hold me back or keep me from Nolan.
Everyone knew the truth, and they heard it all from me.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Alex asked.
“I couldn’t burden you with this,” I said, tossing my phone into my cubby. It landed with a clunk. “And there was nothing you could do.”
Nolan’s thumb was stroking again and looking at me as though we’d been separated for years instead of days.
“Is that weird to anyone else?” Diaz asked.
“Too fucking weird,” Santos agreed.
“Two men together?” Alex challenged.
“No,” Diaz shook his head and waved his hand at Nolan. “Him being all, affectionate and in a relationship.”
“Apparently,” Alex relaxed and smiled like it was his time to shine. “He’s very sweet and is so good in bed. Monroe’s toes were still cramped two days later.”
A chorus of laughs, cringes, and wolf whistles filled the room. The slow turn Nolan made on Alex almost made me laugh, but I squeezed his hand instead, silently insisting that he not jump Alex.
“And we were just starting to be friends,” Nolan said in that quiet, dangerous way of his.
“It’s fucking disgusting how into each other they are.” A grin spread across Alex’s face. He was really enjoying this.
“You saw us for all of what? Five minutes,” Nolan grunted.
“Five minutes too many,” Alex muttered.
“You knew about this?” Rafa demanded.
“Oh yeah, and believe me, this is way better than how I found out.” I felt that was pretty subjective. Charlemagne was the one to ask.
“How did you find out?”
I closed my eyes and prayed Alex wouldn’t say it. As it turned out, I was not in the soccer god’s favor.
“Oh, when Nolan walked out of Holden’s bedroom in his birthday suit.”
There was a moment of levity as everyone snickered or laughed.
Like Teflon, Nolan let it slide right off of him.
“Believe me, that was not my favorite day,” Alex muttered.
As horrible as it was to stand before the two teams and take their fifth degree, this could have gone worse.
“Ah,” Charlemagne breathed. “So Nolan Reed is a lover and a fighter?”
