Page 14 of The Broker

Not that anyone else ever came to this part of the château. It was a little hidden area not far from where the maintenance crew did most of their work fixing things that were too big or too noisy to fix onsite.

This was his little slice of heaven. This was where he came to chill out, relax, and get some boarding done.

A couple of years ago, a few of the guys had helped him build a mini skate park. It wasn’t anything too crazy. Just a few ramps and open spaces in which he could work on his tricks without killing anyone or anyone having to bear witness to his own scraped knees or cracked-open skull. Apparently, blood was bad for business, and a dead skater boy even more so.

Most of the guys had their own individual hobbies. Teo had his yoga, Jared had his gym, Diesel had his… vices. And Isaac… he had his skateboarding.

Turning his attention back to the device that tried to end his life, he scowled.

The wheel on his board had come loose again, even after he had just spent the last ten minutes fixing the damn thing. The board was old and on its last leg, but he refused to get rid of it because it held… sentimental value.

Running his hands through his hair, he walked over to where the piece of shit board rested, mocking his sorry ass for nearly killing him.

“Come here, you little asshole,” Isaac growled before bending down and scooping up the little bastard.

Sitting back down on the concrete, he picked up the screwdriver and began unscrewing the wheel once again. He inspected the wheel, trying to figure out why the fucker kept trying to leave the rest of the board. Clearly, the wheel had issues and was no longer happy living with the rest of his compadres.

Not finding anything wrong, he picked up the screw he had just removed and noticed that the edge looked stripped. Perhaps that was the reason it kept loosening while he was trying to board. He would have to see if one of the maintenance guys had a spare screw he could use to replace this worn-out one.

Staring at the skateboard, Isaac thought back to when he had first received this board.

It was two weeks after he arrived at the château, and he was still trying to get his bearings and adjust to not having to live his life on the streets. Food was plentiful, he had a roof over his head, a warm bed to sleep in, and a shit ton of people around him to keep him entertained.

It was all so… overwhelming.

He’d been seeing a therapist for about a week now, which was also weird and a bit tough to get used to, but he trusted Matteo and wanted to give this whole legit life a fair trial.

Needing a break from all the chaos, he decided to venture off into the back of the château, where some of the maintenance guys like to do their work—fixing machines, working on cars, even smoking a joint or two.

It was mid-afternoon, the sun was shining, and there was no one around to interrupt his thoughts and feelings.

Perfect.

Isaac lay down on the concrete, took a deep breath, then stared up at the sky.

It was peaceful.

Warm.

Quiet.

No one was shouting. No one was trying to steal his stuff. No one was…

Then it finally dawned on him.

Being here, he could finally relax. He didn’t need to always be so on guard. So up in arms all the time.

Here, no one was out to get him.

Feeling safe and relaxed, for the first time in a long time, he closed his eyes and just… breathed.

“You know, there are much more comfortable places to sleep than on the cold hard concrete,” a voice said from above him.

Isaac opened an eye and stared up at the silhouette of a large beast of a man. The man was tall, with bulging arms and deliciously thick thighs. The whole view was… yummy.

He raised a hand to shield the sun from his eyes. He hoped to get a better look at the hunk standing over him.

Large brown eyes smiled back from under a neatly shaved head of hair. The man wore tight black jeans and a white crew-cut T-shirt that clung to every muscular curve of his body.

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