Page 15

Ziggy

Something was most definitely off with Silas, but Ziggy was clueless to what it actually was.

He had attempted to ask subtle questions that might give him something to go on.

Any thoughts of getting Silas alone to work off his issues got thwarted at every turn.

It looked like Silas was doing it on purpose.

They’d had sex pretty much every day until Booker had lost his shit in front of Wilder.

Ziggy couldn’t fathom what that had to do with him. Wilder couldn’t help, as he’d not heard the conversation, and he’d been terrified by the way Booker had behaved. Ziggy figured it might have been similar to the incident with Rue, and had expected—wrongly—to help Silas offload the anger.

Only Silas had avoided him. The mask of indifference he used when they were together left Ziggy playing a guessing game that, up to now, he was failing at badly.

“Did you bring in the cake?” Isley asked as he walked into the coffee lounge, heading straight for the counter.

“Shit, I’m sorry I forgot it was my turn.” He checked his watch, flinching at Isley’s crestfallen expression. He still had half an hour of his lunch break left. “I could skip out to the bakery?”

“No, it’s okay. I… can have a cookie instead.” He reached for the cookie tin and Ziggy groaned, knowing it was empty after he’d seen Bowie take the last one not ten minutes ago.

“I’ll go. It’s not an issue,” he said before the lid was off the tin.

Isley gave him an uncertain look. “Are you sure?”

“I could do with some fresh air and walk some extra steps. I’m sure I’ve added several inches to my waistline with all the cake I’ve eaten since I started working here.”

“It’s impossible to resist, right?” His grin revealed his dimples.

“You’re not wrong. All you guys are super great at baking.” Ziggy added a heartfelt sigh that got a giggle from Isley. “I’ll be back as quick as I can.” He darted out the door and headed for the elevator.

Breathless and carrying two large boxes, Ziggy returned to the coffee lounge not fifteen minutes later. Isley was still there, as were Wilder and Lennon.

“Ohhh, wow! Did you buy out the bakery?”

Isley’s gleeful look was worth how his button-down stuck to his back from rushing. “I got a little of everything they had. That place, gosh the choices.” Ziggy groaned, his mouth watering at the cream and chocolate donut, which was bigger than his hand, he’d picked for himself.

The others crowded around him, vying to see what was in the bakery boxes.

“When you’ve quite finished in here, Ziggy, we have an important meeting to attend!” Silas’s tone wasn’t quite a snap, but Ziggy felt the sting all the same.

Isley jumped right in, defending Ziggy. “Sorry Silas, it’s my fault, Ziggy went to get me something from the bakery.”

Anger sparked in Silas’s eyes and stunned Ziggy as the man stared at Isley. “How nice of him.” It didn’t sound nice the way he said it.

Isley blinked owlishly at Silas. Wilder made a weird sound in the back of his throat. A cross between a gasp and a choked cough.

Ziggy placed a hand on Isley’s arm, giving it a gentle squeeze. Ziggy didn’t miss how Silas watched the move, his nostrils flaring. What the heck was his issue?

Making a show of checking his wristwatch, he gave Silas a polite smile. “I’ve ten minutes left of my lunch break. The meeting with Cresta is not for another twenty-five minutes. I’ll be in your office… on time, like always. ”

Ziggy twisted back to the counter and made a show of reaching for the donut, despite the fact he’d lost his appetite.

There was total silence as no one appeared to know what to do, before he heard the slap of shoes on the ground.

“Wow, what’s with him?” Wilder muttered, his eyes shifting to the door and back to Ziggy. “Do you think all the brothers living together is making them all grumpy? I mean, after Booker lost his shit and what Monty said happened with Rue, something’s gotta give.”

“Is Jupiter grumpy?” Isley asked as he took one of the huge chocolate chip cookies, groaning as he brought it up to sniff it.

“Jupiter is many things. Grumpy is not one of them.” Wilder flounced to one of the colorful sofas and sat, looking glum. “The man is…” he scowled, which just made him look even more adorable. The raccoon didn’t have a fierce bone in his body.

“A flirt?” It appeared to be Jupiter’s go to.

Ziggy hadn’t spent an awful lot of time with him, but Jupiter oozed sex appeal, like no other man Ziggy had met.

He wielded it like a weapon and men fell at his feet.

Ziggy suspected half the angst Wilder felt towards Jupiter was attraction.

And that Jupiter failed to give Wilder the attention he wanted…

craved. The pair were very similar, only Ziggy would never voice that aloud and upset the raccoon, who had a heart of gold hidden under his outer chaos gremlin.

“He’s a total man whore, is what he is. I’m expected to keep track of all the men he’s shagging. Do you know how hard that is? They ring up all the time. Is it my fault I can’t remember all the names?”

Ziggy’s lips clamped together as he met Isley’s gaze and witnessed his dramatic eye roll while he continued to nibble delicately at the cookie.

“Why can’t he just pick one and make my life easier?

It’s not my job to run around after his harem,” Wilder continued, and Ziggy watched him, fascinated.

Flushed and building a head of steam, choppy styled hair flew around his head as Wilder moved with agitation, stabbing his finger from Ziggy to Isley.

“I’ve told him he needs to recall the names himself. Do you know what he said?”

Ziggy shook his head, although that was pointless because Wilder never so much as glanced at him.

“That most cocks look the same! I mean, what kind of man says that? Tell me?”

It was too much, and Ziggy’s giggles escaped, shortly followed by Isley’s.

“The man is too much!”

“I’m sure you’re just the omega to show him the error of his ways,” Ziggy said around his next bout of giggles. He placed the forgotten donut back into the box, seeing he was out of time.

His stomach churned at what he might encounter in Silas’s office, and that ensured his good humor disappeared. He held back a sigh and waved at the others. “Catch ya later.”

Ziggy left, sucking off the chocolate that was smearing his fingers, and came face to face with Booker, who actually snarled and stomped past him. Ziggy glanced after him. Was there something in the damn water making everyone act crazy?

It fucking sure as hell seemed like it.

Files tucked under his arm, iPad in hand, he stood outside Silas’s office five minutes before the planned meeting.

“Wendy, is he free?” he asked, giving her an outgoing smile. Wendy wasn’t all that friendly towards him and he figured by the way she eyed his tattoos that she considered him to be some sort of thug.

Many people, when they first meet him, made assumptions based on his appearance.

Ziggy had started getting tattoos as a teenager as an expression of his true self.

All the artwork was his own, and he sold his artwork to others to have put on their bodies.

It was quite a profitable sideline. At one point, he’d considered making it a career, but it wasn’t a reliable source of income, so he did it purely for pleasure and extra cash for treats.

“Mr. Finne is with him. They are expecting you.”

Great, looks like Cresta’s representative got here early, the joy!

Pasting on a smile, Ziggy tapped on the closed door, waiting for Silas to invite him in.

Laughter floated through the door before he heard Silas say, “Come in.” Ziggy kept the smile plastered to his face when Silas aimed a killer smile at the suited, attractive man sitting opposite him and blatantly ignored Ziggy.

“Jacob, you’re exaggerating.”

“I kid you not, he went flying out the door like his ass was on fire,” Jacob replied, glancing at Ziggy, offering a cool smile before upping the wattage when he looked back at Silas.

By the scent of the man, he was an omega, and Ziggy bristled at the way he eye fucked Silas.

The urge to tell the other omega to keep his fucking eyes off Silas got him biting hard on the inside of his cheek as he took his seat. Only when he was sitting did Silas look at him.

Gone was the laughing man. In his place was this stoic hardness that hid all of Silas’s thoughts from Ziggy. “Jacob is filling in because of illness, so can you catch him up with where you are up to on the project?”

“Of course,” Ziggy said with exaggerated politeness. He plonked the iPad on his knees and offered the file he had to Jacob, giving him a smile that didn’t touch his eyes. When he took it, Ziggy flipped open the top of his iPad.

The other man didn’t so much as look at him when he explained the logistics of what they’d set up and instead made cow eyes at Silas.

It was going to be a very long afternoon if the shithead continued to wind him up.

Hours later, a very tired and pissed off Ziggy hated how his prediction had come true. Only it had worsened when Silas had offered to take Jacob out to dinner, and he wasn’t forthcoming in asking Ziggy to join them.

He seethed all the way home. “Dick,” he muttered.

“He’s an utter dick!” He slammed his front door, dropping his work bag on the bench by the door he used instead of a hall table.

Dragging off his jacket, Ziggy flung it on top of his bag.

Heading straight for the counter where he’d left a half bottle of red wine, he grabbed it and a glass from the cupboard, stomping to the couch.

He plonked himself down, placing his glass on the low, hand carved coffee table he’d found at a flea market, and took the cap off the bottle. Pouring half a glass, he reconsidered his mood and filled it to the brim.

Fuck it!

Fuck Silas Starling.