Selfless: Book Two (bxb) ✔️

Chapter One: Sins of the Ace

Cade Windsor

My mood was somewhere between murder and curling up in a ball, while the world continued to rotate. Maybe if I begged to whatever God was listening, they could get me out of this unbearable storm I found myself in.

Listen, I qualified myself as quite an understanding individual. I was there when others needed me, I was loyal, and compassionate. What I didn't like? My routine being thrown off its axis—or rather, slammed off the planet with a two-by-four.

Someone was playing a joke on me and I didn't like it. I screwed up, but why did I need to get caught by the media making a massive mistake? Not only did I ruin my brother's eventual engagement announcement. I was engaged. To my best friend.

My straight best friend.

"Stop pacing around my office, you're giving me anxiety."

Immediately, I sat in the chair and shoved my legs together, and started twisting my fingers out of anxiety. "Sorry. Carter kicked me out of his room for the same reason." I fumbled through my words like a toddler. "I know we aren't particularly close, but I call you a friend, and I need a friend."

Asher glanced at me before relenting and dropping his pen to his desk. "I hear a congratulations is in order?"

"I really don't find you funny."

"You might be the only one."

"Debatable." I smoothed out my pants. I needed something to control my intruding thoughts. Something that wasn't Ace. I couldn't think about Ace right now. "Ace confirmed it when he was asked, Asher. Why would he do that?"

Asher fixed his cuff link without looking away from me. "If I were to guess, I'd say it had something to do with wanting to help you. They're no longer concerned with what your parents did—they're happy for your engagement."

I pinned him with a look of bewilderment. "Carter is actually getting married, Asher. I ruined his engagement announcement. Though, I hardly think he cares. Pretty sure he would have to detach his hands from Alastair long enough to make an announcement—which, in fact, he has not done."

"They're newly engaged! They're supposed to have sex all the time. Either way, I think Ace wanted to help you. He's your best friend."

"And he's straight. Did you forget that tidbit of information?"

"No, as it so happens, I didn't. What does it matter? He's straight. It's not like you're in love with him." He laughed and when I didn't laugh, and instead downcast my eyes, he quickly stopped. "Oh, my god, you're in love with him."

I picked at the lint on my pants—keeping myself busy so I didn't have to look at Asher. "Yeah, I did the cardinal sin. It's not like I exactly planned for it to happen. He's amazing and he's sweet. Clearly he wants to help me. But I don't like change and this is a big change. It's not like I can combat against what he said. Ace has an issue with not thinking things through before he does them. He was stuck on helping me, it seems, so he went with it. Now, we're stuck in this predicament until enough time has passed. Then we can break it off."

"Cade, if you don't think you can do this, you know that you can say that Ace was only trying to protect you."

"I'm a fan of self-torture, it seems. I don't particularly hate the idea of this ruse and being engaged to someone I'll never have. At least, for a little bit, I'll know what it feels like to have him."

Asher sighed as he leaned back against his chair. "Cade, you're going to get hurt. I don't want you to get too caught up in this fantasy and end up heartbroken."