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He couldn’t work either. The emails were annoying, and the new artist he was starting to research created just blurs of color. He couldn’t concentrate. Not when Royce was dealing with some family emergency, and there was nothing he could do to help.
The encounter was also a major wake-up call. He didn’t know anything about Royce. He knew Royce had a mom, but that was about it. Did he have siblings? Had he grown up around aunts, uncles, and cousins?
Two weeks of pretending to be dating, living in their cozy little bubble had left Marc buying into the illusion. He’d started to believe the lies that he’d met this guy and that they got along on so many wonderful levels. That Royce cared about whether he was eating properly and whether he was sleeping at night. Marc had shifted his own diet to include more fish and vegetables to suit Royce. They worked out together and had the same taste in movies.
It didn’t feel fake. The kissing and touches and the fucking sex didn’t feel faked. The laughs when they were alone and long conversations over shared bowls of popcorn while watching movies had all felt real. Their soft talks after they turned off the light at night that left him wishing every time that Royce would just crawl into bed with him.
He couldn’t silence the sigh that slipped from his lips as he pulled out his phone and checked, but he knew there were no messages from Royce. It was nearly one in the afternoon. He didn’t know where Royce had gone or what was going on. He’d overheard from Royce’s conversation with Dominic that he was expecting to be out for only a few hours.
“You wanna watch a movie? Geoffrey’s got a pretty sweet setup on the second floor,” Dom offered.
“No, thank you,” he murmured, shoving his phone back into his pocket.
“Royce can handle himself.”
Marc glanced over his shoulder to find that Dom had lowered his phone and was now watching him. “Should I be worried?”
“Nah. Royce is good.”
Yeah, Royce was good at what he did. Marc never doubted that. He felt safe whenever the man was around. Strong. Always in control of any situation, even when they’d been surprised by the fire alarm the night of the gallery showing.
And maybe things had started out fake, but it didn’t mean that everything that had been said or done between them was. When Marc’s life returned to some semblance of normal, they could try to build something from what had already started between them. Geoffrey and Sven were proof of that. So were Andrei and Lucas. It was clichéd as hell, but it didn’t mean it wasn’t real. What did it matter how they first met? The important thing was what happened during the time they spent together.
“Is Royce single?” Marc suddenly demanded before he could convince himself to keep his mouth shut. He really hoped that Royce was. The man didn’t seem the type to cheat, but he could be in an open relationship with someone.
Marc turned completely around to find Dominic staring at him with his mouth hanging open in shock. “Seriously? I mean, I saw you guys at the gallery, and I thought you put on a damn good show, but really? Royce?”
“What? Why are you so surprised?”
“Royce is good at what he does, but he’s not so great with the social skills, if you get my meaning.” Dominic winked, but Marc just continued to stare at him. Sure, Royce didn’t talk a lot, and he tended to glare more than smile, but it just meant that the man wasn’t filling the air with a lot of useless chatter. When he did speak, you knew it was something important.
Dominic was his exact opposite. The man was happy to talk about nothing at all—as if he just liked the sound of his voice. He was entertaining and boisterous, giving off a harmless vibe despite his size.
“Most clients are happy for his expertise but glad to be rid of him at the end.” Dominic paused and scratched his chin. “You’ve got to be the first to ask if he’s single.”
“I’m sure there were others he worked for…”
“Nope. Really doubtful.”
Marc just grunted and walked back over to where he had his laptop on the dining room table. Maybe it was best that Royce didn’t have a lot of former clients chasing after him. He’d enjoyed their time together, knew it couldn’t all be because of Marc’s case. There was something there. As he sat down, Dom jumped to his feet and crossed to the dining room table. He leaned his forearms on the back of the chair across from him, his green eyes intently staring.
“Are you thinking of pulling a Geoffrey?”
“What?” Marc’s head snapped up, wiping all thoughts of work from his brain.
