Bound to Liberty

by Kiru Taye

  Deceived too often, James couldn’t relent. “I’ll think about it. But even if we’re going to get back together, I’m going to do exactly what you’ve been doing. I’m going to fuck any guy I want.”

  Kezie shot to his feet. “What?”

  “Yes. You were doing it. You didn’t care about me. I’m going to start doing it, too.”

  “No, you can’t.” Kezie grabbed his arm. “No other man can touch you.”

  “Fuck off!” James snapped, anger resurrecting. “You can’t tell me what to do. We’re done. Over.”

  James shoved Kezie away just as his door pushed open.

  Ethan stood at the threshold, staring from James to Kezie.

  “Don’t you know how to knock?” James bit out. His blood boiled. What right did the man have to intrude?

  Ethan’s eyes narrowed. “I knocked. You didn’t answer. Henry wants you. I said I’d come and get you.”

  James muttered a curse under his breath as he shoved past Kezie and headed to the door.

  Ethan grabbed his arm and held him still.

  James’s heart pounded against his ribs. The man’s touch burned and grounded him at the same time. For some reason, the white noise in his head faded, his anger ebbing.

  Subdued, he didn’t protest about being restrained.

  “Kezie, Ify wants you downstairs, too,” Ethan said in a growly tone.

  Kezie glanced at James and muttered, “Okay,” before leaving, his shoulders slumped.

  The door lay ajar and the room was large. Still, James’s focus stayed on Ethan, his firm hold, his proximity, his scent—spice and cedar—familiar and safe, like home.

  His stomach quivered. The urge to move close to Ethan, to be wrapped in the strength of his embrace, skittered over his skin.

  He’d never felt such a visceral reaction to anyone, certainly not this intense and all-consuming feeling.

  What was wrong with him? What was he doing? Wasn’t it bad enough that Kezie was in the house with his new fiancée? Did James want to compound his problems by outing himself to a mere acquaintance, and one who seemed close to his family?

  Overwhelmed by everything, his skin flashed hot and then cold. He tugged his arm, and Ethan released him.

  His head swam as the white noise returned, making him dizzy. He stumbled back, his breathing accelerating.

  “James?” Ethan’s voice sounded from miles away.

  “Tell Henry I’ll be down in a minute.” Not wanting the man to see him go into full-blown panic mode, he staggered to the en suite, slammed the door and leaned over, trying to catch his breath.

  Legs weakened, he slid to the floor, clutching his head in his hands. He tried to recall the techniques he’d been taught for dealing with anxiety attacks. Slow, regular breaths in through his nose and easy exhalations through his mouth; he repeated the actions until his stomach stopped churning.

  Feeling less anxious, he levered his body to stand and splashed cold water on his face over the sink. As he dabbed it dry with a towel, he caught his reflection in the mirror. Dark rings bloomed around his eyes, and his skin looked sallow. He could do with some of Gloria’s makeup right now to help him conceal the sleeplessness and stress of the past week.

  Perhaps he should sleep and tell everyone he wasn’t feeling well.

  They would understand. They would also worry about him, which would take the focus away from Henry’s big day. He couldn’t ruin his brother’s party because he was anxious and angry.

  Best to just pull up his big boy shorts and get through the same as he’d been doing all week.

  Fixing a smile on his face, he checked his reflection. The smile felt tight, false.

  He needed happy thoughts, like Henry and Gloria earlier as she commented about his attire. The image made his lips curl upwards easily. The twinkle returned to his eyes.

  With a grin on his face, he opened the door and froze.

  Ethan was striding into his room. Again.

  Chapter Seven

  Ethan watched James stagger into the adjoining bathroom, hands curled into fists as he fought the urge to help the younger man.

  Many of his war-worn friends displayed similar signs, and he wasn’t immune to the ravages of battles himself. However, he’d mastered the trauma and didn’t allow them to overwhelm him.

  Seeing the distress in James’s actions, he’d recognised the symptoms of anxiety.

  Knowing that James had received threatening messages on Monday, he understood some of the man’s apprehension. Also, he’d heard some of his angry argument with his friend, which was why Ethan had restrained him when he’d wanted to stomp out of the room. He’d wanted to give James the time to calm down before going down to the party.

  Part of the reason he was here today–he’d been recruited to oversee the investigation into James’s stalker. This party was an opportunity for him to meet some of James’s close family and friends.

  Experience showed that perpetrators of certain crimes were usually people known to the victim. Therefore, everyone in this house today remained a suspect until Ethan eliminated him or her from the investigation.

  An ache bloomed in his throat. He hated that some unknown person was bullying James.

  He wanted to knock on the bathroom door and verify James’s wellbeing, but they didn’t have a close enough relationship for him to intrude on such a private moment.

  He glanced at his wristwatch. James had been in the washroom for five minutes.

  He checked the hallway; no one on this level. Sounds of music and conversations floated up from downstairs.

  Someone else would probably come to check on James, since the man had been up here for a while. Ethan had noticed he wasn’t with other revellers before he’d volunteered to get James.

  Ethan wanted to give James time to compose himself. So, he hurried down the steps and tapped on the open door to the home office which overlooked the front garden.

  Henry and Kamali looked up from where they sat in separate leather armchairs.

  “Didn’t you find James?” Henry asked, placing his porcelain cup on the saucer.

  “I did,” Ethan replied. “He spilled something on his shirt and needs to get changed. He won’t be long.”

  Ethan was recruited to safeguard James and he would do so by any means necessary, even if it meant telling a lie to buy his ward some time so no one intruded on him right now.

  “Okay,” Henry said, shifting in his seat. “I see you don’t have a drink. Let me get one for you.”

  “No, don’t worry, I’ll get it myself. Excuse me.” Ethan ducked out of the room and climbed the stairs. He just needed to check on James before he could relax.

  He’d left the bedroom door ajar and as he crossed the threshold, James came out of the bathroom.

  The younger man appeared composed and in one piece. He even had a smile on his face.

  Unexpectedly, the tense muscles in Ethan’s back loosened, and he puffed out a relieved breath.

  James’s face puckered in a frown and he averted his gaze. “What do you want?”

  “Came back to check on you,” Ethan replied. “You need to change your shirt quickly.”

  James looked down at his shirt, his frown deepening. “What’s wrong with my shirt?”

  “Nothing. I told your brother you were getting changed because you spilled something on it.”

  “Why?” James finally looked up at him, eyes narrowed.

  “I needed to buy you some time to compose yourself. Otherwise, he might have sent someone else up here to get you.”

  “Oh.” James blinked rapidly. “You lied for me. Why?”

  “It doesn’t matter. Just change your shirt.” Ethan turned to walk away. There was no need for him to be up here. James was safe.

  Also, he couldn’t explain his purpose for being in the house until James had spoken to his brother.

  “Ethan, wait.”

  He stopped and glanced at James. “Yes?”

  James tugged his r
ight ear. “Have we met before?”

  Ethan sighed. He’d wondered if James would bring that up. “You don’t remember?”

  His answering, “No,” explained why James had been cantankerous earlier.

  “You were at TJ’s on Sunday. I drove you home,” he said simply without judgement. Hopefully, the man had learned from his mistake.

  “It was you.” James looked down at his feet before tilting his chin up. “Thank you for Sunday night, and for today.”

  The James who’d greeted him on arrival—the stylish young man with an air of sweetness and a touch of shyness about him—was back. None of his troubles showed through the bright eyes staring up expectantly.

  Ethan’s lungs expanded fully, and he beamed a smile. “You’re welcome.”

  Then he swivelled and went downstairs. He entered the humongous family room where the women sat on sofas in one section while the men sat in armchairs in another section. He grabbed a glass, added ice from the dispenser and poured some Chapman cocktail from the jug on the sideboard. He sniffed it first to make sure it was the non-alcoholic variety made from Fanta, Sprite, cucumbers, lemons, Grenadine and Angostura bitters and took a sip.

  Unofficially on duty, he needed to keep his wits. In any case, he rarely drank alcohol, as he didn’t like getting intoxicated or feeling out of control.

  He excused himself from the conversation around him and returned to Henry’s office.

  “Just the man,” Kamali said when he appeared at the door.

  James had joined them and sat on the sofa, facing Henry and Kamali.

  “Is it okay to come in?” Ethan asked.

  “Perfect timing. Please, sit.” Henry waved at the sofa.

  Ethan shut the door, wanting to give James some privacy for the discussion. He strode over to the sofa and lowered his body beside James.

  ***

  James’s senses heightened the moment the new arrival settled beside him. He became aware of the loud thudding of his heartbeats, and his palms turned clammy.

  Ethan was his fantasy dark knight. Of course, he’d suspected earlier when the man arrived and he’d smelled his cologne. Having the confirmation made his stomach fluttery.

  The man proved to be a hero in real life, too.

  A week ago, Ethan had inconvenienced himself to bring James home safely. Today, he’d gone out of his way to make sure James had time to compose himself, without judgement.

  To complicate matters, James had just found out Ethan’s real purpose for being in the house, and he didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

  If his life hadn’t turned nightmarish over the last week, he probably would have laughed when Henry told him that Ethan had been recruited to privately investigate his stalker.

  He should be glad Mr. Big, Buff, and Badass was going to be hanging around.

  But he wasn’t.

  “We were just explaining to James your reason for being here today,” Kamali said, drawing James’s attention. His cousin leaned forward in his chair, elbows on thighs, palms clasped.

  James grasped for an opportunity to escape the situation. “And I said that I don’t need a minder. I’ve never needed one before. I don’t need one now.”

  “I know how you feel about a bodyguard,” Henry said. “But Ethan is more than a bodyguard. His job is to find the person who has been sending you those messages and stop them before they cause any harm to you.”

  James lifted his hand and let it fall. “Well, if he’s just investigating, then he doesn’t need to follow me around.”

  Having a full-time bodyguard would cramp his style, hence the reason he’d refused one previously. Granted, he hadn’t been anywhere but home and work in the past week. Still, he couldn’t risk his sexuality being discovered by the wrong person, everyone in this room included.

  “I’m investigating your stalker.” Ethan stared at him with piercing eyes. “As soon as he or she is found, I’ll be out of your hair.”

  “You don’t have to follow me around to do your investigating,” James retorted. He’d been willing to give Ethan the benefit of the doubt because he’d been nice to him twice already. Now, he realised it was just part of the job to him because he was James’s new minder.

  “I do. Your stalker could be anyone. It could be one of your friends. It could even be a member of your family.”

  The implication that someone in his close circle could send him such nasty things made James’s stomach roll.

  Ethan was just trying to scare him so he could stay.

  “No. Whoever is sending those messages is just a stranger. They are probably sending it to other random people. And it was probably a one-off.”

  “Perhaps. But a majority of stalkers have been in a relationship with their victims. So, it could be an ex-lover of yours, or as I said, a friend. And they commit repeat offences for a long period if they’re not caught. Sometimes it escalates to violence,” Ethan countered.

  James’s stomach dropped. “What? That can’t be right.”

  “It’s true,” Henry said. “I’ve seen the research. We can’t discount anyone. If you think about it, the person has your phone number. They must know what car you drive and where you work to be able to leave that note. This may not be a stranger, as you think.”

  “If it helps, I trust Ethan,” Kamali said in a gentle voice. “I wouldn’t have recommended him to do this job if I didn’t. He will protect you, and he will find whoever is doing this. Please allow him to do his job. We don’t want anything to happen to you.”

  Now even his cousin was intervening. How could he let them down?

  James scrubbed a hand over his head.

  How did his life get so messed up in just a few days?

  A week ago, he’d been happy.

  Now, he had a stalker as well as a break-up to deal with.

  Everything seemed to crash on top of him, and his chest felt constricted.

  “I need to get away,” he said. “I need to get out of this country.”

  “What do you mean?” Henry asked as he sat forward.

  “I need a break. A holiday.” Somewhere far away from here, where he could immerse himself in the environment and people. He needed to forget Kezie and the nightmare that his life was turning into. He needed to get away from the stalker.

  “Sure, you can take a holiday. There’s nothing major happening at work over the next month. Where did you have in mind?” Henry asked.

  “Europe. London. A week to ten days.” James shrugged. “I’ll work out the details when I go online.”

  “Ethan, will that be a problem for you?” Henry asked, looking at the man.

  “Not a problem. My passport is up-to-date and I can sort out any visa requirements at the same time as James.”

  James sighed. He should’ve known he couldn’t shake off the man so easily.

  “Good,” Henry said. “James?”

  “Yeah,” James sighed again. He didn’t have much of a choice. “Ethan can tag along.”

  “Great.” Henry pushed off his chair. “Let’s go and eat that dinner. This is still a party.”

  Everyone else got up and headed out of the lounge.

  Henry waited for James by the door and placed his hand on James’s shoulder.

  “We’re going to find the bastard harassing you. Don’t let this get you down,” Henry said.

  James nodded. “I know.”

  If only his brother knew that the stalker was the least of his worries.

  Nasty words didn’t really hurt him that much. He still thought the person had to be a stranger.

  Now he had to go out and sit at a dinner table with his ex and his fiancée and pretend everything would be okay.

  Things would never be okay.

  James joined the merriment and kept Kezie out of his vision. Luckily, the man didn’t say much, so he didn’t have to put up with hearing his voice, either.

  At the dinner table, Henry and Gloria sat at opposite ends. Ethan sat opposite James. Lara sat next to
James, and Ike opposite her. Kamali sat next to Lara and Ebun opposite him. Ify sat next to Kamali with Kezie opposite her. Joshua sat next to Ify with Christy opposite him.

  Gloria had been in charge of the seating arrangements and had unwittingly paired James with Ethan, considering every other person sat opposite their spouse.

  James was thankful that Kezie was down the table, although still in his line of vision. At least they weren’t sitting close enough to converse with each other.

  Gloria had hired a catering service. The meal and service were great. Conversation flowed.

  After dinner, they decanted to the great room.

  James got in the mood of merriment and forgot his problems for a while, except when someone mentioned Ify’s and Kezie’s engagement and everyone started chatting about weddings.

  Joshua and Christy were married the longest, followed by Ike and Lara, then Henry and Gloria, and most recently, Kamali and Ebun.

  Seeing all the happy couples, James wished he had the same.

  He made an excuse and went to the kitchen to grab a drink.

  He’d once dreamed that he and Kezie would live together like a monogamous couple. Of course, they couldn’t have an actual wedding, not in Nigeria, at least. Same-sex marriages were illegal here.

  But they could’ve been happy. He would’ve been happy.

  Unfortunately, that dream had died with Kezie’s engagement.

  “Penny for your thoughts.” Gloria stood beside him by the breakfast bar.

  James hadn’t seen her come in. “Oh, it’s nothing.”

  “It’s not.” She tilted her head to look at him. Then she took his hand and dragged him out of the kitchen down the hall into Henry’s office. She shut the door after them. “I noticed you’ve been off for the past few days. I know there’s the issue of the stalker. But I think it’s more than that. It started last Sunday when you got that phone call and left the house on movie night.”

  James tugged his hand free and walked to the window overlooking the garden. But he didn’t see the flowering plants or green shrubs.

  “Please talk to me. Is this about Kezie? You’ve hardly spoken to him since he arrived. Did you have a quarrel?”