Page 23

This was ridiculous. Freddie had been with him for four days and he was already cramping his style. Anthony wouldn’t let his red-headed albatross stop him. He started up the stairs, moving ahead of Freddie, pretending that he was alone.

Soon enough, he was breathing heavily again. He was taking the stairs faster than he normally would, trying to stay in front of the ever-present bodyguard.

“You are ruining everything!” Anthony stopped and gasped for air as he reached a landing.

Freddie stepped up next to him. He said nothing, of course, but he wore a compassionate expression. It stoked Anthony’s anger even further. He didn’t need Freddie’s pity!

“I didn’t want a bodyguard. Now I can’t enjoy one of my favorite places in the city because I’ve got you trailing behind me. It’s not fair.”

“I’m sorry?” Confusion flashed across Freddie’s face, and something else. Had Anthony hurt him? Two warring emotions burned in Anthony’s gut. He was furious that he had to deal with this, but underneath that, he wanted Freddie to stop looking wounded, to go back to his impenetrable, stony neutral.

Anthony sighed, releasing some of his rage. “It’s not your fault. It’s whoever is sending those stupid letters, and Uncle Danny for being so overprotective. Although maybe it is your fault because you could have just left once you realized I didn’t want you here. I don’t want any of this!”

Tears welled up in Anthony’s eyes. He hadn’t realized how overwhelmed he was. Underneath the facade, he was actually freaked out by everything that had happened. He’d been hiding that even from himself.

The loss of freedom exacerbated the issue. There’s nothing Anthony treasured as much as agency over his own life. Since he was old enough to understand the death of his parents, he’d committed to forging his own path, to not being at the mercy of the world around him. Now that was being taken from him. It was all too much.

Freddie stepped closer, his eyes connecting with Anthony’s. There was compassion there, but also something burning underneath.