by Onley James
“Old guy?”
“Yeah. Big, overweight, sweaty, and out of breath. He came in not long after the kid and his queens. I only remember him because he ordered ice water. Nobody comes to a place this loud to drink water alone.”
So, the guy from the break-in had been there that night. Had been following Robby. “So, what started the fight?”
“I don’t know, man. I only know that the guy was pulling on the kid, like he was trying to get him alone, and the kid threw a drink in his face. Then all hell broke loose. Next thing I know, your boy is slapping the shit out of a cop with a fucking dildo the size of my arm.”
Calder slid the money across the bar to Caleb. He didn’t ask any further questions. It wasn’t worth it. He had what he needed. The dead man had clearly been following Robby, even if it was only from the street. Calder wasn’t sure what scenario worried him more. That this was a random encounter that had turned violent or that this man had an agenda when he followed Robby into the club that night. That he’d possibly been following him for days without the boy’s knowledge. Robby was always so certain the world didn’t see him that it would never occur to him he was in danger, that somebody stalked him.
He returned to the table and flopped into his seat. Shep nodded at Calder, who did the same before they all returned their gaze to the dance floor. The music had morphed into a song with a slow, throbbing rhythm. Charlie was dirty dancing with a girl dressed like Gwen Stefani, but it was the boys who had Calder’s undivided attention. Robby was somehow the meat in an Elijah and Wyatt sandwich.
It was all in good fun. They were laughing and constantly losing rhythm. Robby looked like he was having a blast. It was the first time in a long time that Robby’s infectious smile seemed on full display. Elijah had made him smile like that. Knowing that knifed at something inside Calder.
“You okay, hoss?” Linc asked.
Calder glanced at his boss. “Yeah, why?”
“You look like you’re two seconds away from flipping this table. You wouldn’t be jealous by any chance, would you?”
Yes. “What? No. He’s a client.” Christ. Even he didn’t buy that delivery.
“Precisely why I’m concerned,” Linc reminded him. “Please, tell me you’re not fucking this kid.”
Calder looked Linc in the eye. “I’m not fucking this kid.” Yet.
Linc studied him for a minute. “Good. That’s good.”
“Doesn’t it bother either of you that your husbands are all over another man?”
Shep and Linc exchanged a glance. “No,” they said in unison.
“Oh,” was all Calder could manage.
It bothered Calder. Robby faced Wyatt, his arms around his neck. Wyatt’s hands shared space on Robby’s hips with Elijah’s hands. He was crowded up on Robby, pelvis pressed to his ass. They moved in unison now, having found a rhythm. Calder would have found it hot if he wasn’t picturing ripping the boys’ arms off and beating them to death with them.
The muscle in Calder’s jaw ticked as he watched them, the rational part of his brain at war with the part of him that screamed mine.
“I should probably get him out of here. Jasmine and his attorney didn’t want him out in public. This is going to be all over the tabloids tomorrow, and his team’s going to be pissed.”
Linc and Shep both smirked at him but said nothing. Fuck them. It was easy to be smug when they knew that Wyatt and Elijah were going home with them tonight, would be lying in bed with them, would wake up with them. They had access to their boys any time they liked. That’s what marriage was.
Images flooded Calder’s brain. Waking up next to Robby every day. Drinking coffee together. Feeding the dogs. Getting kids off to school. Having sex in the shower. Calder felt like he’d been mule kicked. Fuck. What was happening to him?
On the dance floor, Wyatt broke away from the trio to dance with Charlie, leaving Robby and Elijah to dance together. Robby leaned back, winding his arms around Elijah’s neck, still facing away from him. Elijah’s hands squeezed Robby’s hips before sliding up under his shirt.
Nope. That was it. Calder couldn’t sit there and watch this one more second. He stood, his chair rocketing back violently enough for Linc to have to snatch it before it hit the ground. He could feel the wait of Linc and Shep’s judgment, as well as their amusement, but he just didn’t give a shit. This stopped. Now.
Robby swayed against Elijah, eyes closed, enjoying the music and the easy weightless feeling inside him. This was the first time he felt on even footing. The first time he was part of the group. He had friends. He had Calder. He wasn’t the fifth wheel for once. It made him giddy. The music was too loud to think about all the shitty things happening in his life. He could just feel. Could feel the heat of Elijah’s body, could feel the weight of Calder’s stare as he watched. It was perfect.
It was nice to see Elijah and not feel that seething jealousy, to know that just once, Elijah actually acknowledged he was there and feel as though he belonged there. Wyatt and Charlie were his friends too. Calder was there, protecting him, just as Linc and Shepherd had for them. It might have sounded stupid if he’d said it out loud, but he allowed himself to just appreciate the feeling of not being alone.
Robby’s eyes popped open as a hand closed around his upper arm and the warmth of Elijah’s body disappeared.
Calder stood there in the center of the dance floor. He leaned in close enough for Robby to hear. “We need to get going, angel. There are cameras everywhere.”
Robby’s heart sank. “I don’t want to go yet. I’m having fun. Dance with me.”
Calder gave Robby a half smile. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. Linc’s watching.”
“I don’t care. It’s just dancing. Please? One dance and I’ll go without a fight. Pretty please?” Robby begged, blinking up at Calder with as much innocence as he could muster.
“Fuck, kid. You are killing me.”
Glory Box started playing, and Robby clutched at Calder’s shirt. “Please. I love this song. Please, Calder? Dance with me?” He could see him wavering. He bit down on his lower lip.
Calder barked out a laugh. “Oh, you little fucking tease. Fine. One dance. You’re so going to get me fired.”
Robby cheered a bit in his head as Calder pulled him to a shadowy corner of the dance floor, away from prying eyes. Nobody had ever responded to Robby like Calder. When he spun Robby away, his heart sank, but then Calder’s chest was against Robby’s back, his hips pressed to Robby’s ass, just the way he’d danced with Elijah. Had that made Calder jealous? Robby’s heart tripped at the thought. He pressed his ass back against Calder, looping his arms around his neck just as he’d done to Elijah, only this time the dance felt so much more…personal.
Robby closed his eyes, swaying his hips in time to the music. Calder gripped his hips, pulling him in close. Robby sucked in a breath at the feel of Calder’s semi-hard-on pressing against him. With his hands looped around Calder’s neck, it left him free to touch Robby anywhere. His hand slid up under Robby’s shirt, playing with the steel bars in his nipples as teeth tugged at his earlobe.
“Oh, fuck,” Robby whispered, knowing it would get lost in the music.
He was happy the others on the dance floor couldn’t see them, couldn’t see how easily his body reacted to Calder’s touch. He was already so hard, his cock straining against the zipper of Wyatt’s borrowed jeans. At the rate he was going, he was going to owe Wyatt a new wardrobe. Could you return somebody’s clothes after you’d come in them? What was the proper etiquette there?
Robby gasped as Calder’s hand slipped into his jeans and closed around his erection. “Fuck, baby. Are you already hard? God, that’s hot. Come on.”
Robby whined as Calder’s hand disappeared, but then he was being dragged into a darkened hallway that led to the restrooms. There were a few people lingering in the shadows, but it was too dark to see their faces. Robby frowned as Calder pushed him inside the restroom and into the large stal
l at the end.
As soon as the lock fell into place, Calder slammed him against the wall and kissed him, his hands cupping Robby’s face. He could only hang on. Calder was usually frustratingly slow and patient, but this time he was frantic, his mouth biting kisses along Robby’s jaw and throat that felt like they might leave bruises. Part of him hoped they did.
Calder’s hands worked free the buttons on Robby’s jeans. “What are you—”
“You have to be quiet, angel. Can you do that for me?”
As Calder went to his knees before him, Robby could only think to say, “I don’t know.”
Calder grinned, tugging the tight jeans and underwear down to mid-thigh. Robby slapped his hand over his own mouth as lips closed around his cock. His eyes rolled in pleasure as Calder’s mouth enveloped him in this perfect tight wet suction.
Robby gripped the metal bar on the wall with his free hand to keep himself up on his feet. He whined as Calder’s tongue played with his foreskin. “Oh, my God. Oh, my God,” he mumbled behind his own hand.
The door opened and somebody walked in to use the urinal. Robby squeezed his eyes shut. It took all his willpower to stay quiet until the toilet flushed and the door closed once more. Two more people came and went as Robby’s ability to stay quiet waned.
It wasn’t a blowjob. It was a full on assault on Robby’s senses. The tile was cold against his ass and Calder’s mouth was so warm and his hands were digging bruises into Robby’s thighs and he wanted to scream at the waves of pleasure sparking along his body. When Calder took him deep and swallowed, Robby dropped his hands to Calder’s hair bundled on top of his head, gripping him tight, his hips thrusting almost against his will as he fucked into his mouth.
Robby finally pried his eyes open enough to look down and make sure he wasn’t hurting Calder. That was all it took. The sight of Calder on his knees before him, Robby’s cock disappearing between his lips. His orgasm slammed into him without warning. He didn’t have time to say a thing before he was flooding Calder’s mouth, his throat convulsing around Robby as he swallowed it all.
He heard the door open but couldn’t stop himself from chanting, “Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.”
When Calder finally stood, he kissed Robby, tongue thrusting into his mouth so he could taste himself. Why was that so hot? He didn’t waste too much time on the thought, instead dropping to his knees before Calder, glancing up to whisper, “I don’t really know what I’m doing.”
He unbuttoned Calder’s jeans, noting he hadn’t bothered with underwear.
“Don’t worry about it, angel. You’re not going to get your first lesson in a dirty club bathroom. Let’s go home.”
“But I want to take care of you too,” Robby said firmly, cognizant of somebody washing their hands in the sink.
Robby watched as Calder seemed to war with himself. “Fuck,” he finally muttered.
Then his hand tangled in Robby’s hair, tilting his head back. His other hand fisted his cock, jerking himself roughly. “Just open your mouth for me, angel.” Robby did as he was told. Would probably always do what Calder said without question. “Oh, fuck. Good boy. Stick out your tongue.”
Fuck. Robby would never, in his wildest dreams, have imagined a scenario where somebody like Calder would have him on his knees. He’d never been so turned on in his life. If he hadn’t just come two seconds ago, this would have pushed him over the edge. Calder was beautiful in a raw and rugged way but feeling his fist in Robby’s hair and seeing the heated way he looked at Robby while he worked himself, there was nobody sexier in the world. Not to Robby.
“Oh, fuck. Fuck. Yeah,” Calder panted, and then he was painting Robby’s face, his lips, his tongue, even his lashes with his release.
It was the hottest thing that had ever happened to Robby, hands down. He was still reeling from it when Calder carefully helped him to his feet and gently cleaned him up with a paper towel. When he was finished, he kissed Robby’s lips. “Are you okay, angel? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”
The question caught Robby off guard. “Hurt me? No? How?”
“I was a little rough with you. I dragged you into a bathroom. I just lost control for a second. I’m sorry.”
Robby frowned. “I-I liked it. It was hot. Nobody ever loses control over somebody like me.”
Calder shook his head in a way Robby didn’t quite understand.
Robby yawned despite their four hour nap just hours earlier. “Can we go home and watch a movie?”
“Sure, angel.”
“Oh, and can we stop at Del Taco? I’m starving.”
Calder gave him a strange smile. “Sure, angel.”
“You’re being weirdly agreeable,” Robby said, tone suspicious.
Calder guided him from the bathroom and out the side door immediately to their left, which dumped them out the side of the building. There was the sound of shouting, and then Robby was blinded by bright flashes of light.
“Robby, did you kill that man in self-defense?” a woman’s voice asked, shoving a huge microphone in his face.
The lights made Robby disoriented, and he could only see tiny lights dancing before his eyes. “What?”
“Get back,” Calder yelled. “All of you back off. If you have questions, talk to his attorneys.”
“Come on, Robby. Just a statement. Why did you lie about who your father was? Are you a member of his church? Do you bear the mark? Just answer the question.”
Robby startled as an arm came around his shoulder before he realized it was Calder. The short trek to Calder’s truck seemed to take an hour, and even once he was safely inside, cameras went off at his window, muted voices shouting questions he didn’t understand.
Calder yanked his door open and hopped inside, shouting, “Back up or get run over,” before slamming the door shut and turning over the engine. He hit a button on his steering wheel as he backed out of the spot, forcing the reporters to move to the side.
“Yeah?” came a gruff response through the truck’s speakers.
“Hey, boss. I got a situation out back. There are a shit ton of vultures out here. I don’t want them following us back to my place.”
“Fuck. Alright. Give me five minutes before you take off.”
“Roger that.”
The five minute wait took five hours. Robby bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from crying, crossing his arms over his chest to keep from sticking his fingers in his ears to drown out the incessant chatter as they lobbed questions at him, screaming over each other, and snapped photos.
But then, suddenly, they were running away from them. Calder was right, they were vultures. Vultures who’d just found another meal. Elijah was leaving out the same side entrance, hand in hand with Shepherd. He gave a friendly wave to the reporters, seeming to bask in the attention of the flashing lights. Robby had never been so grateful for Elijah’s celebrity status. He knew there would be all kinds of stories tomorrow talking about him and Elijah dancing together, but he just couldn’t care. He didn’t put his seatbelt on. He just let himself slump over until his head rested on Calder’s thigh, curling himself up in a ball and letting his eyes fall shut. Calder’s fingers threaded in his hair, gently combing through the strands in a way that made Robby’s chest hurt.
He’d just wanted one good night.
After their run in with the press, Calder had taken the long way home, looping around blocks to ensure nobody followed, before finally parking and getting Robby inside his apartment. They’d skipped the tacos. Calder had managed to coax a drained Robby into the shower before tucking him into bed.
“Where are you going?” Robby asked.
“I have some leads to run down. Get some sleep. I’ll be right outside the door.”
It wasn’t a lie. Calder’s apartment was painfully small. He could easily keep an ear out for Robby while trying to figure out what he was missing with this mysterious dead guy who’d stumbled into Robby’s life.
Robby made a whiny noise and sat up. “I don’
t want to sleep alone. Stay with me.”
It wasn’t a request.
“Fine. But I need to work and you need to rest.” Calder couldn’t imagine giving in to anybody else so easily. This kid was a menace, a wrecking ball crashing through all his walls.
Robby smiled, flopping back and nestling beneath Calder’s mismatched sheets and his oversized blue comforter. Robby looked good in Calder’s bed. Too good. Calder shook the thought away, leaving long enough to grab his laptop. He hadn’t bothered to dress after their shower, just sliding on a pair of navy blue boxer briefs. Robby hadn’t even managed that, and knowing Robby was naked under those blankets all but ensured Calder would have a hard time concentrating on work.
Once Calder was in bed, he extinguished the light and set his laptop to night mode, shrouding the room in almost total darkness. Robby rolled onto his belly, his head turned away from Calder, and soon, his breathing became rhythmic. Calder lost himself in the chase. He emailed a list of information he needed from Webster, including any closed circuit camera footage from the locations Robby had been the day he went to jail. He did more research on Magnus Dei. There was a chat thread with horror stories from various members who’d escaped. Calder couldn’t help but wonder what Robby’s childhood was like. He finally gave up, closing his laptop and setting it on his side table.
Calder startled as Robby spoke. “Who is it you don’t want to pick up at the funeral home?”
His heart raced. “Jesus, angel. I thought you were sleeping.”
Robby rolled over, sneaking under Calder’s arm and putting his head on his chest. “I can’t sleep. We took a four hour nap. Who is it?” he prodded.
“How do you even know about that?” Calder asked, not mad, just curious.
Robby peeked up at him, his long lashes forming shadows along his cheeks in the thin sliver of moonlight. “I heard you listening to your voicemail the other day. Is it family?”