Page 191 of Daddy's Pride

He’d have to get in line. “Does he…?”

Elya shook his head. “I haven’t talked to him about my suspicions regarding your past. I know how to keep a secret.”

“Thank you.” Something else clicked. “Wait, you worked in Baltimore on the police force before you came here. One of the suspects of the Pride Bombing was a Baltimore cop.”

“I can’t talk about it.”

Brody held up his hands. “I understand. Better than you know.”

“Milan said Josiah is heartbroken.”

“He did?” Brody rubbed his chest. “I’m sure he’ll get over it. We only met twice.”

Elya shook his head. “You’re delusional. You two had a connection that was as real for him as it was for you. He’s doing worse than three weeks ago.”

“Milan said that?”

“Denali is beside himself and about ready to head to Chicago to make sure Josiah is okay.”

God, it hurt, knowing that his boy was suffering. “I can’t allow him to get caught up in my mess…”

The image of Josiah’s bright-blue eyes and sun-kissed blond hair filled his mind, stirring a warmth in his chest that conflicted with the cold knot of fear in his stomach.

“I understand there’s a risk, and I’m not trying to downplay that,” Elya said. “But that would mean you’d be alone for the rest of your life. Lonely for the rest of your life. You’re both suffering, Brody. Wouldn’t it be worth the risk to be with him? To take that chance?”

Brody groaned. The thought of Josiah being alone and in pain—it was almost more than he could bear. What had he done? “Is it fair to get him all entangled in my mess?”

“Nobody’s life is free of tangles. But it’s those knots that make us who we are.” Elya rested his elbows on his knees, face earnest with concern. “Besides, some knots are meant to be tied, not untied. Maybe it’s time you find out which kind you have with him. My money is on this thing between you being a kind of forever-entanglement.”

If anyone deserved to find his forever Dom, it was Elya. How Brody wished he could’ve been that person, but the chemistry between Elya and him was nonexistent. He saw Elya as a younger brother, and that feeling was mutual. “Jesus, kid, when did you get so wise?”

Elya shrugged, a knowing smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Call me naïve, but I still believe in true love. And I may be wrong, but what you two had seemed like the real thing to me. Even watching you two dance, I felt it.”

The room seemed to hold its breath, waiting for Brody’s rebuttal, but none came. Instead, he nodded, an acknowledgment of the truth that rested in the balance between fear and longing. “Maybe it’s time I stop running from what I want,” Brody murmured, more to himself than to Elya. His confession held a raw edge, a vulnerability he rarely allowed anyone to see.

“Maybe it is. And can I add one more thing?”

Brody chuckled. “You’re on a roll, so have at it.”

“Why did you let me become your roommate and, moreover, your friend?”

Brody frowned. “Huh? I’m not following.”

“If close connections with others are risky, why didn’t you keep me at a distance? You don’t think you endangered me to be close to you? If they ever found you, they wouldn’t use me to get to you?”

Oh fuck. Brody had never even looked at it like that, but Elya was right. “But you’re a cop,” he said weakly.

“As if that would stop anyone. As if that means I’m untouchable or invincible.”

“You’re right. I guess you just slipped under my defenses with your sweetness. No offense, since I know you’re a bad-ass cop and all.”

Elya snorted. “Bad-ass. Right. The jury is still out on that.”

“All I’m saying is I didn’t mean for us to become this close. I needed a roommate to keep up certain pretenses, and it was my intention to keep you at a distance. Clearly, that didn’t work out as planned.”

“I’ll say. Look, I’m not trying to make you feel guilty about befriending me. On the contrary. You’re allowed to live, Brody, to love. No one will hold that against you. Not me, and my guess is not Josiah if you tell him.” Elya stood. “Just remember that you’re not alone in this. You’ve got people who have your back.” He strode to the door. “Think about it, Brody, please. Don’t let fear dictate your life.”

Left alone, Brody sat motionless, staring at the space where Elya had been. The echo of his roommate’s conviction resonated, seeping into Brody’s pores until it settled in his bones. A newfound determination stirred, mingling with the embers of desire that refused to be extinguished. He had been a man confined by the walls of his past, but now those barriers were crumbling under the weight of his yearning for Josiah.