The Price of Loyalty

"WHAT THE HELL is this?" Shiloh snarled holding up a thick envelope.

Lucian lowered his weapon. "It's nothing that concerns you."

"The hell it doesn't!" Shiloh roared, throwing the paper onto his desk. "What are all of these Lucian? Huh? Tax recites and forms? All of them in your fucking name?"

"Just calm down for a second—"

"Don't tell me to calm down, you lying son of a bitch!" Shiloh yelled. "This entire apartment has been rented out in your name! Nothing is mine here! Even the goddamned magazines that come weekly are yours! I deserve to know where the hell my money has been going!"

"Shiloh, please, just relax. I can explain everything—"

"No, I don't want to hear any of your lies." Shiloh glared at him. "How could you do this? I thought we were building a life together—"

"We are—"

"No, you just want to control me," Shiloh said, tears now gathering in his eyes. "Well, fuck you! I won't be treated like this!" Moving hastily, he almost ran out of the room, but Lucian caught him around the waist. "Let me go!" He cried.

"Listen," Lucian hissed. "Non farei mai nulla per farti del male— have I ever done anything to make you feel like I am treating you poorly?"

"Prove it! You lying sack of shit!" Shiloh spit.

Releasing his hold, Lucian walked over to his desk and pulled out an envelope. "There." He threw it at Shiloh, making it land on the floor with a thud. "Open that, and then call me a liar!"

For a moment Shiloh stared at it, but curiosity got the best of him, so he picked it up and opened it hastily. Loosening his tie, Lucian watched as his fiancé's face changed from anger, to shock, and then finally regret.

"That's where all your money's been going," Lucian spat, tugging roughly on his tie.

"Lucian..." Shiloh whispered, tears streaming down his face. "You did this...?"

"Of course, I did," Lucian fumed. "I did it all for you and you couldn't even..." He huffed. "Why can't you ever trust me? Have I ever lied to you?"

"No…God, I'm so sorry...I can't believe it...This is after we get married?"

"Well, I don't want to stay in the city forever. And you always talked about your dream house, so."

"This was more than I could ever imagine," Shiloh said, his voice sounding small. "Baby, I'm sorry—"

"Forget it," Lucian snapped, grinding his teeth together. "It's late and I don't particularly want to talk to you right now."

When Shiloh didn't respond, Lucian stormed out of the room. It had seriously been one hell of a long day for him, and to come home and find his fiancé snooping through his things...That just ultimately made everything worse. Now, he wasn't sure if he could trust Shiloh—not that he did, to begin with—but he did offer some lenience when it came to their relationship. Shrugging off his jacket, he nearly tore off his silk button-up shirt, frustrated when the clothes wouldn't get off his body fast enough. This entire day had been a clusterfuck, and with Shiloh disobeying him like that, it was just the icing on the cake. Lucian grumbled as he took off his pants, standing ass naked in the room, fuming. The door creaked open and Shiloh slide through, looking completely solemn and remorseful.

"Lucian..." He said quietly, wringing his hands. "I'm sorry I blamed you—"

"Shiloh," Lucian warned. "I don't want to talk about this right now. I've had a hell of a day and coming home to you going through my things wasn't exactly what I was expecting."

"I didn't mean to…Invade your privacy..." Shiloh said slowly. "I was just...I need answers, okay? Why won't you tell me where you work? Why do I have to hear from Chris and Kyle that you won't be home for dinner?"

"Enough!" Lucian roared. "What part of not right now do you not understand?"

"I don't understand why everything has to be on your terms!" Shiloh screamed back.

Lucian scoffed, strutting into the bathroom to splash cold water onto his face.

"I'm not finished!" Shiloh called. "We have to talk about this."

"There is nothing to say," Lucian said as he came out of the bathroom. "Questa conversazione è finite —I'm done Shiloh."

"You haven't said anything yet!" He replied. "I love you but…I can't, I won't..."

"You can't what…?" Lucian snarled, taking a step forward.

Shiloh swatted tears away from his eyes. "Tell me what's going on or else…There isn't going to be a wedding."

Lucian gave him a hard look, hurt mixed with betrayal slashed across his face before he masked it quickly. Eerily calm, his eyes darkened and his face twisted into determination. "Are you giving me an ultimatum?"

Shiloh wanted to stand his ground because he deserved answers, but Lucian was making everything so difficult. "Yes, I am." He replied with a shaky voice.

Lucian could see that Shiloh had no intention of leaving him; he was trying to assert his right to have a say in their relationship, which he did have. It was just that Lucian didn't want to discuss this matter right now.

"Fine," he said, storming into the closet and beginning to take his clothes off the hooks.

"What are you doing?" Shiloh asked astounded when his fiancé started to throw all of his suits onto the bed.

"I'm leaving," Lucian said shortly.

Shiloh paled visibly. "W-what do you mean? No, Lucian, stop!" He walked towards his fiancé and frantically pushed his hands away from the suitcase he got from underneath the bed.

"If you can't appreciate—"

"I do!" Shiloh said quickly. "Don't go…Let's work this out. I'm sorry for saying that there isn't going to be a wedding."

"You very damn well should be," Lucian snarled. "This isn't some fucking game Shiloh. When I tell you that I'm tired and we can discuss this tomorrow, I mean it!"

"I know…I'm sorry," Shiloh beseeched.

Lucian calmed down. "Good. Now, I'm going to take a shower and then we can discuss this." He waltzed into the bathroom slamming the door behind him.

Taking in a shaky breath, he braced his hands against the counter. This was not how he imagined things to be going. Shiloh was becoming increasingly inquisitive, which could only be problematic in the future. Growling, he slammed his fist against the counter; things just would be so much easier if Shiloh knew what was going on. Yet, knowing could put him in danger. Turning on the water, he stepped under the spray, allowing the hot water to massage the knots in his back. It dawned on him that Shiloh had almost canceled their wedding because of his deception.

Sighing deeply, he knew it was probably time to start telling the truth.

iIi

IN ALL OF 48 hours Shiloh had a gun pointed at his head, fought with Lucian, and found out he now owned a house. To say he was exhausted was a complete understatement.

The whole situation was downright infuriating.

Why did Lucian insist on keeping secrets?

Of course, he was grateful for the house, but that was something they should have picked out together. Although Lucian had said it was a surprise that still didn't change the fact that he wasn't included in any of the planning. Didn't Lucian want his opinion on the house structure? Interior design? Matching sheets? Frowning, he sat at his vanity trying to do his skin routine when the bathroom door swung open and his boyfriend came out with only a towel wrapped around his waist. Silently, Lucian walked towards the closet and threw the towel inside, walking naked to their bed.

"Come to bed," he demanded.

Shiloh turned to look at his fiancé. Noticing the brooding expression, he quickly finished up and crawled into bed. Without wasting time, Lucian wrapped his arm around him, nearly crushing his body to his chest.

"Curious George, eh...?" Lucian joked. "I guess that makes me the man in the yellow hat left to explain everything."

"I'm sorry I went through your things."

"It's okay. I should have told you about the house...it was Niccolò's idea actually, but we all thought it would be a good gift once we returned from our honeymoon. I wanted things to be special for you—il mio amore."

"It's beautiful," Shiloh said wistfully. "I can't thank you enough."

"I'm sorry about the gun, Shiloh…I shouldn't have…Well, I thought you were an intruder…but that doesn't excuse my actions... I want you to know that there are things about my life that you wouldn't understand…"

Shiloh twisted in his arms to look up at him. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that…my job isn't the safest…or the most conventional. And to keep you safe, you have to be aware that I won't be able to share information."

"What information?" Shiloh asked slowly.

"Information about what I do, specifically, and who's involved," Lucian explained. "There are a lot of people who wouldn't like you knowing, and I don't want things to be dangerous for you."

"Lucian," Shiloh hissed, agitation seeping through his tone. "I'm not a child! I'm an adult and your fiancé…Your life partner! I deserve to know what's going on, regardless of how dangerous it could be." Shiloh huffed. "I need you to trust me."

"I do." Lucian lied. "That's all I can share right now and I promise I'll tell you more, just... Right now, it's not safe. Not just for you, but for everyone else involved, okay?" He kissed Shiloh's forehead.

"Alright," Shiloh replied, not fully satisfied with that answer. "But I want to know everything."

"You will, in time," Lucian said, running his hands up and down Shiloh's smooth skin in a slightly placating way. "Now get undressed."

Shiloh hesitated, unsure if they should be having sex after such a huge argument. The look on Lucian's face though, made him think twice about it.

"Okay." with shakings hands Shiloh took off his skirt, pants, and underwear, throwing them on the floor before snuggling back into the bed.

"You've been bad," Lucian said, eyes darkening. "Wouldn't you agree? Snooping through things that don't belong to you is a punishable offense. We'll have to do something about it."

Shiloh shrunk under his gaze. "We do?"

"Indeed."

"What?" Shiloh breathed.

"You know what," Lucian snarled, slapping Shiloh's ass roughly. "You'll have to pay for that."