Page 1

CHAPTER 1

Levi stumbled out of the club and sighed in relief at the icy winter air.

The club had been unbearably hot and crowded. It was 2:00 a.m. in one of the city’s most popular nightclubs, and Levi still couldn’t remember its name. He could only go to so many clubs in so many cities before they started blurring together. All of Levi’s model friends were still in there, fucked up on multiple drugs as they danced off the calories they had eaten in celebration of a runway well-walked. Once upon a time, Levi would have been dancing right along with them. But his high was fading, and lately he’d had the bizarre urge to go to bed rather than keep the high going.

Levi blamed old age. He turned twenty-six last month. When he mentioned his old-age theory to his big brother, thirty-four-year-old Austin, he laughed so hard he sprayed pineapple juice all over the cafe table. Then he threw his glass at Levi, who dodged it easily. The paparazzi had a field day with those photos, claiming that movie star Austin had started a fight with his model little brother, and that their relationship was falling apart. Which was bullshit. The glass was plastic, and they had been grinning the whole time. Of course, the paparazzi had used a photo where nobody could see their faces, so it looked like a real fight.

Across the street, a man was in an alleyway, shrouded in shadows as he smoked a cigarette. He started walking as Levi turned the corner, but Levi didn’t pay him any attention as he looked around for the luxury hotel he was staying at. It was only a few blocks away, and it was definitely in this direction. But he couldn’t remember which street it was on.

Levi’s phone buzzed in his pocket as he strode down the next street. He checked it and was pleasantly surprised to see several of the friends he’d left at the club had texted him, telling him to get to bed safely. And calling him boring, because anyone Levi liked had to be a bit of a bitch. Levi heart-reacted to those messages and swiped away an alert that popped up telling him there was another article about him being a hardcore party kid. Maybe in his late teens and early twenties, sure. But look at him now—walking home from a club at 2:00 a.m. without causing a scene. Not unless the tabloids wanted to take a photo out of context and invent a story. They always called him “Lev,” in whatever stupid headline they made up for clicks. Which was Levi’s own fault for going by that nickname in his professional life. He never expected to hate it this much, but he always found himself biting his tongue to stop himself from correcting people. Literally everyone in his life called him Lev now, except for Austin and their actor-turned-politician dad. And, of course, Austin’s new boyfriend, Dominic, who had been his bodyguard before they shacked up.

Levi sighed, rubbing his sweaty arms as the winter chill started to set in. He could call an Uber, but he wanted to work off the last of his high. He’d had the tiniest line of coke and hadn’t been particularly interested in doing any more. But even a small amount of coke made it hard to sleep until it was out of his system.

He took his phone back out of his pocket and started doing time zone math. Then he remembered he didn’t need to because he was in LA. He’d spent so long traveling internationally for shoots that he had developed a habit of doing time zone math every time he called his brother.

Austin answered after three rings. “Hey, man, what’s up? Still in LA? Ignore the noise, I’m heading out of a photoshoot.”

“Nothing much,” Levi said. “Walking back to my hotel. I’m going to be in LA for a while. We should catch up. Hey, you don’t party much these days, right? Is life super boring?”

Austin laughed. “Is this about you not doing your all-nighter parties anymore? Dude, it’s natural. It’s way worse if you keep that shit up into your thirties and forties. Ever see a forty-something who still parties all weekend? They’re not doing it for fun; they’re doing it to escape the shitshow of their lives when the party stops.”

Levi hummed, tugging idly at the choker necklace around his neck. He’d worn it during his first proper photoshoot and contacted the designer afterward to send him one. It was pretty old by now, but it was oddly comforting.

“How are you healing up?” Levi asked as he squinted at the skyscrapers that rose high over the icy streets, trying to spot his hotel. “Any new stalkers?”

“I’m healing fine,” Austin replied. “And no new stalkers. Nobody dangerous, anyway.”

Levi hummed again, distractedly examining the skyscrapers. They always joked about stalkers—it was part of being in the public eye—but they’d gotten a harsh wake-up call when Austin had gotten shot by his most aggressive stalker. The only good thing that came out of that mess was Dominic and Austin finally getting together after pussyfooting around their relationship for ages. But it was still terrifying. Levi had actually cried at Austin’s bedside when he found out Austin would be okay. Not that Levi was ever going to tell Austin that.

He turned down another street. The man who had been smoking a cigarette in the alleyway started walking faster; however, Levi was too distracted avoiding a woman who was, for some reason, walking her Pomeranians after midnight to notice.

“Good thing you have a built-in bodyguard at your side,” Levi said as he set off down what he was pretty sure was the correct street. “Nothing’s happening to you with Dominic around. Unless you throw yourself in front of him again. You get that’s what a bodyguard is for, right? Guarding your body?”

“What was I meant to do, let him get shot?”

“Yes! That’s his job!”

Austin laughed. In the background, someone asked him a muffled question. Austin covered the phone and said something back, then his voice returned, clear and focused. “Dude, I gotta go. Call me tomorrow. We’ll go somewhere.”

“Bye, bye, bye,” Levi said mindlessly. Then he paused awkwardly. He did want to say it, after the near-death experience thing, but it was still uncomfortable. “Love you.”

“Love you too,” said Austin, who had taken to the whole saying-it-out-loud thing shockingly well. So had their father, which was a surprise. But the old man had really grown soft in his old age. Levi just wished it had happened earlier. It could have saved both him and Austin all the internalized homophobia. It was easy for Levi, with all his willowy looks, makeup, and feminine charm, to pretend that it never touched him. But, of course, it did. He didn’t know any gay guy who didn’t experience it at some point in his life, even in their “enlightened” age where sexuality supposedly didn’t matter.

Levi hung up and stuffed his phone into his tight silver jeans. Then, and only then, did he realize somebody was following him.

Levi had aimlessly turned down several streets until he found his hotel, which was waiting at the end of the street they were walking down. But he was almost certain the guy with the cigarette had been there for the entirety of his walk. He’d been subtle about it, staying far enough away that Levi hadn’t clocked him until now.

Levi’s heart raced as he remembered walking out of the club. The guy had been leaning against a nearby alleyway, smoking a cigarette. He’d only started walking when Levi had come out of the club. He’d given it long enough that Levi didn’t put it together until now. But the man was walking faster.

Gaining ground, Levi thought. His stomach lurched. Fuck. Right after all his talk about stalkers, too. But was this an obsessed fan, or just some guy who wanted his wallet? He shouldn’t have hung up on Austin. You didn’t attack a guy who was on the phone; you waited until the call ended. Like right now.

Was he going to have to defend himself? He hoped not. He hadn’t been in a real fight since high school, and he’d made a complete ass of himself after the guy started bleeding and Levi, with his stupid blood phobia, had passed out right there in the cafeteria. His peers laughed at him for months.

Levi looked around, trying to seem casual. He wasn’t going to let the guy know he was onto him. The streets were suddenly empty. Except for the silver fox walking in his direction, eyes aimed straight ahead.

Levi didn’t think. He walked straight up to the guy and linked their arms together. “Hey, sweet cheeks. Took you long enough. I was getting worried.”

The silver fox, thankfully, didn’t immediately shake him off. Instead, he stumbled to a stop and stared at Levi, whose heart skipped a beat for reasons that had nothing to do with fear. This man was even hotter up close. Even when he was frowning down at Levi with those dark, severe eyes. He was in his mid-forties, dressed in a tight-fitting tank top, sweatpants, and a winter coat that felt both expensive and functional. His arm was thick and muscled against Levi’s, streaks of grey running over his luscious hair and stubble. Interestingly, his brows were almost entirely grey. It made him look both distinguished and domineering, a combination that made Levi imagine this man pushing him to his knees.