Dinner that night at Bing’s was turning out far better than he expected; especially given the day he and Jane had survived. On top of their apartment drama, they’d had to put in several hours in the office, and that had probably taken longer than necessary because of his hangover. He was grateful the Lees dined late, though really he would have been grateful for order-in pizza—anything that didn’t require him to do anything other than sit and eat. The bitch session of old wedding-war stories was proving cathartic as well.

“It was horrible. I walked in to give the bride a fifteen minute warning and knew the wedding was simply off,” Jane said.

Eliot lifted his glass to sip again, listening as Louisa, Bing, and Carter all demanded further details of the wedding gone to hell. Not that he’d soon forget the moment a wide-eyed Jane and Charlie arrived at his side.

“Eliot was inspecting the cake for spiders—”

“Spiders?”

It was Darcy who asked. Eliot hadn’t thought he’d been paying attention. “Our mother thinks spiders bring a couple good luck. She’s been putting them on the cakes or in the floral arrangements for the last several years.”

“My god, that’s simply awful,” Carter commented. Eliot thought he looked ready to burst out laughing. “You should make her stop immediately. You’ll lose business if such a thing were to get out.”

Sirens went off in Eliot’s mind about the literal damage a gossipy Carter could cause his business. He straightened, realizing he had to clarify before the situation got out of control.

“It’s only those plastic ones,” Jane assured them. Her look said all too clearly that Eliot was not alone in his thoughts.

“Black plastic spiders! That’s amazing.” Bing leaned back in his chair, clearly besotted with the idea.

“It seems that it is a universal truth that one cannot control their parents,” Darcy said dryly, which snapped Carter’s mouth shut.

Eliot gave the man, who he still refused to think overly well of, a nod of thanks. It occurred to him that maybe he should ask Charlie for a little bit more dirt on the Pemberly family.

Eliot looked up suddenly, aware that all eyes were once more on him. “Sorry,” he yawned. “I was lost in thought.”

Carter smiled tightly. “It sounds like you had a rather trying day.”

Eliot barely smiled back.

“When they hired you, did you have any idea they were going to be such a nightmare?” Bing asked.

Eliot nodded. “Thankfully, this wasn’t our first rodeo. I’d insisted on a larger than normal upfront sum to take the job and payment in full the day of.”

Darcy nodded without speaking. Eliot caught the motion of approval and felt himself grow warm. He pushed the feeling aside. Why should Darcy’s approval matter to him?

“The couple was strange from day one,” Jane added.

Carter leaned forward. “How so?”

He was far too interested in other people’s misery, Eliot decided.

“A Tuesday night wedding, for starters.”

Jane added the explanation that the bridal couple wanted to commemorate the date they met in college. Louisa sighed and said, “Ah, young love.” The look she cast at her fiance spoke of something else.

“But, really, the main issue was that we never actually saw them together the entire five months of planning the wedding.”

Carter’s eyes flew wide. “Not once?”

Eliot raised his glass. “Not one single time.”

“And that’s unusual?” Darcy asked. “I was under the impression that in most couples, the omega plans the wedding.”

Eliot shrugged. “It’s not uncommon for one person of the party to take the lead. It’s highly unusual for them to never be present together for any decisions. Cake tasting—solo. Picking the location—solo.”

“And it was even odder that it was the alpha who did everything,” Jane added. “I’m not trying to be sexist or anything, but you’re right, Darcy. It’s generally the omegas who have a firm idea of what they want their ceremony to look like.”

“How bad was it?” Carter gushed, his need for salacious news demanding an answer.

“The bride was in the dressing room in full wedding attire. Something borrowed. Something blue. Something old...” Jane paused, giving the moment over to Eliot.

“And a brand new strap-on rainbow dildo, fucking the groom’s sister.”

Gasps and awkward laughter echoed around the room from everyone except Darcy. But his eyes did flicker with surprise.

Eliot felt the corners of his mouth twist up in an unhappy smile. He hated it when a wedding didn’t play out like it should with his clients getting their happily ever after. And this couple was one for the books in failure. “Let’s just say the groom wasn’t interested in that threesome.”

Silence fell around the table. Into it, Eliot pushed his chair back causing a loud screech. “Sorry, folks, but I’m done in.”

Bing jumped to his feet. “Of course, of course. I just got so caught up in your stories, I forgot, I’ll show you both to your rooms.”

Standing wasn’t easy. Between the night out clubbing and running around trying to get work done after their late start, plus a few glasses of wine at dinner, Eliot was feeling the effects. He did his best not to show it, staying close to the wall as he walked.

The sound of Darcy uttering a goodnight to those still seated at the table surprised him. Eliot turned slightly as Darcy walked over. Neither man spoke, but Eliot noted that Darcy kept pace with him as they climbed the stairs to the second floor, Bing talking, mainly to Jane, about the house all the way. Though Darcy’s legs were longer, he took slower steps, and his stride matched Eliot’s. Eliot sped up to put a slight distance between them.

They headed down the hallway to the left, Bing noting that these were the guest quarters.

“Quarters?” Eliot muttered. “How many guests does he expect?”

“Bing does a fair amount of entertaining,” Darcy replied.

Eliot’s head whipped around to stare at Darcy. “I said that aloud?” He whispered.

A faint smile barely crossed Darcy’s firm lips. “You did.”

“Too much to drink.”

“Undoubtedly.”

“Two nights in a row is two too many for me these days.” Eliot felt himself duty bound to defend himself. “Even with drinking just cokes for the last half of the night.”

Jane turned. “What? You weren’t drinking just cokes, Eliot. You were downing rum and coke the last half of the night.”

Eliot frowned. “I distinctly remember telling Liam to order me cokes.” He also remembered feeling too drunk to stand up and order them for himself.

“Liam and George kept ordering you rum and cokes.”

They had paused outside a door, and Eliot took the opportunity to prop himself against the wall. “The next time I see Liam…” Eliot left the threat unfinished. His brother ought to know better than that.

Bing showed Jane into her room, while Darcy and Eliot waited outside.

“I would suggest being a bit more distant with George in future,” Darcy said quietly.

Eliot snickered and pushed away from the wall. He was still feeling the exhaustion, but there was something about Darcy that made him want to ruffle the man’s stern exterior. He acted as if he were a statue, immoveable. The king of distance. Eliot did his best to saunter toward him, sober enough to realize he probably wasn’t as smooth as he thought he was.

“You like distance, don’t you?” Eliot saw the moment he’d crossed Darcy’s invisible bubble. Eliot wasn’t sure what he expected, but it wasn’t what he got. Instead of unsettling Darcy, the man hardened even further, and without a word, turned and walked back the direction they had come, passing the stairs and heading down the hall.

Bing showed up at Eliot’s elbow. “Darcy off for the night then? He’s got a set of permanent rooms upstairs. Man works all hours. I think I’d never see him if he had his own place.”

Eliot trailed a step behind Bing, absorbing all this new information about the taciturn Darcy.

“As for George, well, that’s some nasty business.”

Eliot’s ears perked up. “How so?”

“Well, I don’t know all of the details since Darcy won’t spill about family messes, but he used to work for Darcy. Long time family friend and all that. And then,” Bing snapped his fingers, “poof. Nothing. Darcy never speaks of him.” Bing stopped in front of an open door one down from Jane’s and looked at Eliot. “Well, never before tonight.”

Eliot shrugged, thinking he should play it cool. “Tonight has been a first in more than one way.”

Bing laughed at the reference. “I don’t doubt. Fucking the groom’s sister. Wow. Never would have expected that. Enjoy the night. Sleep tight.”

Bing left him and Eliot glanced toward the darkened hallway Darcy had entered. He could barely make out a sliver of light before a door closed. Eliot turned away, closing his own door behind him. He walked over to the bed and crashed face first into it. Never had quick sleep been such a gift.