Page 53 of Not Your Golden Boy

“I believe you,” Nikky said, head tilted down slightly so that he smiled impishly up at Harry through his long lashes, like the wickedest angel that had ever fallen from Heaven.

Harry couldn’t resist kissing him again.

He couldn’t stop his heart from pounding and his stomach from twisting either. He needed to tell Nikky everything about the phone call and about Holberg’s threat. He needed to let his lover know Holberg was holding them for ransom.

He would. He’d tell him everything. But not yet. Not until he was certain Nikky could handle it. He might even figure out how to tell Drew Oberlin first so he had backup when Nikky inevitably panicked about the whole thing.

He took a step back and sucked in a deep breath. “Right,” he said. “Let’s get showered and dressed and we’ll head over to the hotel to pack up your stuff.”

Only then did Harry realize he’d gone through the whole intense conversation with Holberg while nude. It was just one more thing that made the whole threat surreal.

Nikky headed back to the shower first while Harry plugged in his phone to get as much of a charge to it as he could before they headed out. As much as sense told him to keep the phone turned off so Holberg couldn’t access anything else, another part of him was certain the man already had everything his phone had to give. If there was any chance of the arsehole calling him back to make a deal, or make more threats, then Harry wanted to get that call. One glance at his phone once it was plugged in showed Holberg hadn’t tried to call back yet.

As soon as he was showered and dressed along with Nikky, his phone had enough charge to leave the house. He tucked the device that had betrayed him into his back pocket as he and Nikky left the flat and headed for the Tube.

“I should be grateful for all the gifts life has given me,” Nikky said with innocent enthusiasm that deeply contrasted with the sense of doom roiling in Harry’s gut as they walked through Notting Hill. “This Lubavitch film could be everything for me. It’s a dream project,”

“I thought you wanted to focus on your music career instead of acting,” Harry said, fighting to seem casual and happy while darting looks around them into every alley and shadow like he was a member of His Majesty’s Secret Service.

“I do,” Nikky said with a shrug, thrusting his hands in his pockets as they turned a corner. “Or I did. But that was before Lubavitch’s offer came in.”

Harry dragged his eyes away from a mother and daughter shopping across the street who seemed to clock who Nikky was and smiled. “You didn’t think offers like that for juicy films or TV shows would come your way?”

Nikky looked adorably bashful. “I know, I know. Drew says I need to have more faith in myself and my talent all the time. My agent, Glen, keeps telling me offers are coming in like lightning, and he’s sent me scripts for some amazing stuff. I’m actually pretty booked for the rest of the year.”

The smile dropped from his face. Harry guessed why and reached for his hand, threading their fingers together. “But you love music, too,” he said, not so much asking but knowing in his heart. He felt the same way about music.

“I still can’t believe any of this is happening to me,” Nikky said. They were forced to let go of each other as they reached the station and passed through the barrier. “I’m nobody, you know? I’m just some kid from foster care.”

Those words broke Harry’s heart. Nikky was a generational talent. Not once since they’d come together had he gone unnoticed when the two of them walked out together. Even now, as they took the escalator down to the train platform, half a dozen people recognized him. Harry warned them off with a hard look.

“Nikky, you’re amazing,” Harry said as they found a place to wait for the next train. “I don’t want to hear you put yourself down like that again.”

Nikky tensed for a split second, then relaxed into a self-effacing laugh. “I don’t try,” he said, rubbing absently at the spot on his neck where Harry had left his mark. “It’s just one of those things that sticks with you when you had the childhood I had.”

Harry leaned closer to him and took his hand, glad that the platform wasn’t that busy. “You’re allowed to grow beyond your past,” he said, then daringly kissed Nikky’s cheek.

Whatever echoes of pain he might have felt for the way those words applied to him, too, was stopped as he noticed someone several yards away discreetly pulling out his phone to snap a pic of them. He glared at the man, which put a look of apology on the stranger’s face, but he didn’t take further action.

The train arrived with a whoosh of forced air and a screech of brakes. He and Nikky got on, choosing to stand at the back of the car instead of taking some of the free seats.

“So what’s it going to be now?” Harry asked, crossing his arms and glaring at anyone who dared to look their way too long as the train lurched into motion. “Music or acting?”

“I can still have both, can’t I?” Nikky asked, leaning against Harry as the train rattled on.

“You can absolutely have both, baby.” Harry nodded. “But it sounds like acting is going to keep you busy, at least for the foreseeable future.”

Nikky went from smiling to chewing his lip with worry in a flash. “All these movie roles are filming in the US,” he said. “I have a few weeks off between jobs, and these days I have enough money to fly to England to spend time here, but I don’t know….”

His words trailed off, but Harry knew what he was saying. He bumped Nikky’s hip and stretched an arm behind his back. “We’ll figure it out,” he said. “There’s no point in borrowing trouble from the future when we’re not even there yet.”

There was no point in worrying about anything beyond Holberg’s threat, even though Nikky didn’t know that yet. Hollywood was fickle, and if the video ended up everywhere, Nikky might not have as much work ahead of him as he thought.

Which wouldn’t be so bad, would it, the selfish part of him asked. If Nikky’s career crashed, he could have his young lover all to himself. They could be has-beens together.

He shook his head as they reached their stop, angry at himself for even considering that level of selfishness. But it was hard not to want perfection when it was handed straight into his arms.

As soon as they reached the street level, Nikky’s phone buzzed with a message. As they walked toward his hotel, he pulled out his phone and stared at it with trepidation. “Charlotte tried to call me when we were underground,” he said, glancing at Harry like he needed help.