Felipe smiles warmly in response to Kid’s concern for Celia. However, “He is none of your concern. Quiet now.” It’s an easy thing to collapse the younger man to the mattress by pulling on his supporting hand. It’s a far more difficult task to ignore the spark of arousal catching fire in his stomach as Kid submits with little more than an indignant huff, but he has more pressing matters. “Did she seem distressed?”
“No, sir.”
“Very well.” Felipe yawns and sifts through Kid’s hair, much to the boys chagrin. “Thank you for alerting me. I’ll take control of the situation. You may go.” He waits for Reynaldo to shut the door before he turns toward Kid. “Your mistress is never far from the middle of things.”
Kid sits up to grip Felipe’s arm. “Go get her, Felipe. Please. Caleb is a monster.” He swats the older man’s placating hand away from his head. He doesn’t want to be coddled while Celia is in danger.
“She’s fine, I assure you. Celia is the monster under that particular bed. She’s no doubt been planning this since Caleb arrived with Kitten.” He sets his gun on the nightstand with a yawn. Kid eyes the weapon with wide eyes. “The safety’s on.”
“It’s not that,” he says firmly. “S’just kinda weird you kept a loaded gun in here…with me…while you’re asleep.”
Felipe rolls his eyes. “I know killers, boy. The most you could manage would be to give me a bump on the head.” Kid’s mouth falls open, agape with shock. Felipe shakes his head. “I never get tired of your expressive face.”
“Whatever.” Kid pouts. “Can we focus on Celia now? I don’t get how you’re just sitting here while she’s alone with that asshole.”
“Watch it, boy. I’m awake now and more than willing to distract you below stairs until Celia has concluded her business.” Felipe waits for the words to sink in and for Kid to drop his shoulders. He may be young, but Kid is no one’s fool.
“You want her to find out something?”
“I want her to do more than that.” He rises from the bed and extends his hand toward Kid, who takes it without hesitation. They walk only a few steps to Felipe’s desk, where he motions Kid into a chair and types his convoluted password to view his laptop’s home screen. A few clicks later, they are watching Caleb go down on Celia in Kitten’s room.
“Holy fuck! You’ve got a camera in there.” Kid is scandalized by the invasion of privacy. “Does Celia know? Oh my God.”
“Language, boy! Yes, she knows,” Felipe says through a grin. Celia’s legs are spread to their limit, her eyes closed in ecstasy as Caleb sucks and licks noisily between her pillowy nether lips. Celia’s head rests in the lap of Caleb’s virgin slave; Kitten does not appear pleased by the situation. In the days of Rome, Celia would have seduced the rulers of nations. It’s Felipe’s gain that their fates are tied. He is always looking to expand his empire.
His train of thought is disrupted by Kid’s wince. On the screen, Kitten has just slapped Caleb and run off into the bathroom. He closes out the feed. “See that? She’s jealous.”
“So?” Kid asks seriously.
“If Caleb used Celia to solicit Kitten’s jealousy, we can use it to our advantage. A man will do anything to protect that which he holds dear. I only need to know if this girl is more valuable to Caleb than his business relationships.”
“What about Celia? Isn’t she more important to you than your business relationships?” Kid does nothing to disguise his revulsion toward Felipe’s cavalier attitude.
Felipe leans over until his nose nearly touches Kid’s. “Whose idea do you think it was to get close to Rafiq’s apprentice? Do not believe for a moment your mistress is incapable of intrigue. She knows more than you or I ever will about dealing with monstrous men. Understood?”
“I—I…yes, Felipe.” He wants to leave it there and discovers he’s unable. “But why?” Kid follows the older man back to bed and forgoes his floor pallet to climb beneath the blankets.
Felipe tucks the covers under Kid’s chin. “Keep this secret and one of these nights, I’ll tell you another.” He knows it isn’t the response the other man is looking for, but it’s the only one he is willing to give. “Until then, tell me something about you I don’t know.”
Kid sighs. He isn’t going to get more out of Felipe than the man wants to divulge, so he veers toward the path of least resistance. “My name’s Andrew. Andrew William Benson. I don’t think you’ve ever asked,” he mumbles accusingly.