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Reaching over, Sven plucked the phone from Geoffrey’s hand and hit the speaker button before putting it down on the counter. Finn’s voice suddenly blasted out of the phone, filling the kitchen.
“You’re not fucking fine! Who the hell was that with you?”
“I don’t know,” Geoffrey replied. He leaned into Sven, both his hands tightly grasping the arm that Sven draped across his chest. “I was drugged one night at a club. I thought it was a friend who helped me home…but…it wasn’t. I’ve…I’ve got a stalker.”
“What? When? Why didn’t you fucking tell me?”
“I didn’t want you to worry. I’ve got this.”
“You don’t! I’m coming home.”
“No!” Geoffrey barked, lurching partially out of Sven’s arms to lean closer to the phone. Geoffrey’s heart beat frantically and the hand still holding him was trembling. “This is your last summer of freedom. You enjoy—”
“You’re my brother. I’m not fucking staying here. I need to be there.”
“No!”
“Finn,” Sven said evenly, cutting off Geoffrey’s next argument. “This is Sven Larsen. I’m the bodyguard your brother hired to protect him.”
The line went silent except for Finn’s ragged breathing for a few seconds. When he finally spoke, he’d stopped shouting, but anger still threaded his every word. “What are you doing to protect my brother?”
“A new security system has been installed at the house and I’m with him twenty-four hours a day. A technical team has been assigned to his case and is scouring through all his contacts to try to discover the identity of his stalker.”
Finn muttered something low about that taking an eternity, proving that Finn wasn’t at all blind to his brother’s Internet fame.
“I’m sorry about the pain Geoffrey has suffered as a result of the video,” Sven added softly. “We didn’t know about it. Didn’t expect him to hack his social media accounts. We won’t make that mistake again.”
“I’m still coming home.” Finn’s voice was softer and almost petulant.
Sven shifted so that he could look directly at Geoffrey’s face. The smaller man frowned, his lips pressed into a hard, thin line as he shook his head.
“It would be better if you didn’t,” Sven said. “The stalker has not become violent, but if you return to the States, we would need to put you with a bodyguard as well for both your and your brother’s protection. It’s better if we can keep our entire focus on your brother so we can stop this person.”
Finn swore for several seconds. “Fine. Geoff, you swear you’re okay?”
“I’ve got Sven. I’m safe.”
“I want his number.”
“I’ll send it to you along with my boss’s number,” Sven easily agreed. “We’ll send you an update anytime you want.”
“Okay. Call me later, Geoff. I love you.”
“Love you too,” Geoffrey murmured and then ended the call. He stared at the phone in his hands. Notifications continued to pop up again and again as more people commented on the video, but Geoffrey didn’t open any of the social media apps. He just stared silently at his phone as if he wasn’t really seeing it.
Sven’s heart broke to see him like this. He didn’t know what to say, didn’t know what to do to take this pain away. He didn’t deserve this. Why the stalker had gone to such lengths, had lashed out in such a way just to hurt Geoffrey didn’t make sense to him. If he was threatened by the presence of Sven, then he should have attacked Sven. Hurting Geoffrey didn’t bring him closer to the focus of his obsession. But he didn’t have any answers and even if he did, they wouldn’t ease Geoffrey’s suffering.
“Geoffrey…I’m so sorry. I—”
“It’s fine,” he said stiffly. His usually expressive voice was monotone as he spoke. Not short or angry. Or even hurt. Just dead to Sven’s ears.
“It’s not.”
Geoffrey unplugged the charging cable from the end of the counter and carefully wrapped it around the phone. “I’m going to my office.”
“Do you want me—”
“I want to be alone.”
That short sentence was like Geoffrey sliced through the tender bond they had been forming over the past few days, threatening to sever it completely. There were no flailing hands or shouted words. The same monotone voice as if all the life had been drained completely out of him. Sven knew he was hurting, but he would have felt better if Geoffrey were shouting or screaming at the world, threatening to rally lawyers and cops. This nothingness was suffocating. It wasn’t his Geoffrey and Sven refused to accept that Geoffrey had simply given up.
Geoffrey slowly crossed the living room, his phone loosely held in his hand, and disappeared into his office. The door closed behind him and Sven frowned. It couldn’t stay that way, not if he was going to keep Geoffrey safe. He’d allow him a few minutes of privacy and then he’d have to open the door just a crack so that he’d be able to easily check on him during his rounds.
