by J. P. Bowie
“He’s awake,” she murmured in Sam’s ear, hugging him.
Sam grinned and moved to Martin’s bedside. “Hey, partner.”
“Hey yourself.” Martin’s voice was no more than a whisper.
“You look awful,” Sam said, forcing himself to keep grinning.
“Thanks, ugly.”
Sam took his hand and sat on the chair by the bed. “God, Martin, you scared the crap outta me. I thought you were going to die and what was I supposed to do without you?” He swiped at the tears that had sprung to his eyes as he gazed at Martin.
“Stop that, you sissy.” A tear trickled down Martin’s face. “You can’t get rid of me that easy.”
“Never want rid of you. You’re my best friend…my bro.”
“Yeah, and I guess you’re mine.” His gaze flicked to Liz, who was standing watching them with damp eyes. “That okay with you, hon? We can have a white boy in the family?”
“We already do.” She stroked Sam’s hair. “I’m gonna take you up on your offer and lie down on the couch for a few minutes, if that’s okay.”
Sam smiled up at her. “Of course.”
“You still seeing the guy that makes you look like a goofball when you talk to him?” Martin asked.
Liz, who had turned away to leave them, froze. “What’s this?”
Sam groaned. “Martin, what in hell are you thinking? Liz was going to take a nap, now she’s gonna give me the third degree.”
“You go over to the couch with her. I need to sleep anyway.” He closed his eyes. “Go on, off with you.”
Sam sighed and followed Liz over to where the window gave a great view of the hospital campus. They sat together and Liz looked at him expectantly.
“So, who is this, and when do we get to meet him?”
Sam chuckled. “I’ve known him for just over a week and I am not scaring him off by having him meet the family.”
“You say it like that and he’ll be a mite surprised when he does meet us.” She poked his arm. “So tell me somethin’.”
“Okay. His name is Justin.”
“Nice name.”
“Yeah. He’s a designer, works for a fashion house downtown. Este-something.”
“Okay, that’s nice, he has a job. But what’s he look like? Dark or blond, blue or brown?
“Jeez, Liz…oh wait, I can show you.” He pulled out his phone and scrolled to the selfie then showed it to her.
She clamped a hand over her mouth to muffle her laughter. “Oh, my God, Sam. What do you look like? Now him, he’s gorgeous, all those curls and that smile. Oh, my Lord. But what in hell happened to you?”
“Well, I was drunk.”
“For all the world to see by the looks of you, and yet you managed to land this delicious specimen of man. How did you do it?”
“I dunno. Maybe even with me drunk, my natural charm shines through.”
Liz snorted. “Amazing you can say that with a perfectly straight face. So, you met in a bar?”
“Right, the night before I had dinner with you guys, we went out celebrating, remember?”
“Mmm. Martin said you got hammered.”
“What I didn’t tell him was I went over to a gay bar after. I Ubered,” he added, seeing the accusatory look in her eyes. “Anyway, Justin was sitting at the bar and apparently I was moxie enough in my drunken state to strike up a conversation…one I have no memory of at all.”
Liz laughed. “Oh, the image you are creating, Sam. But go on.”
“Yeah, he said he had fun listening to me trying to form coherent sentences. Well, next day he called me and I didn’t know who the hell he was. Then he started telling me about what we’d talked about and the fact that I had kissed him and told him to call me, and he did.”
“Glutton for punishment, huh?”
“Hey.” Sam’s cheeks warmed. “As a matter of fact, he said I kissed so good he wanted more. Christ, I can’t believe I told you that and now I’m blushing like a little girl.”
Liz hooted then slapped a hand over her mouth. “Shit, can’t wake Martin. But that’s great, Sam, and obviously you’ve seen him since then.”
“Yeah, a few times. It’s been difficult with the case Martin and I have been working.”
Liz nodded. “Yeah, so sad…Martin told me he was just a kid.”
“Yeah… Anyway, I had lunch with Justin today and we have a date for tonight, and that’s brought you up-to-date.”
“Without the details.”
“You’re not getting no details, lady. You saw me blush before. That’d be nothing compared to detail blushing.”
They giggled together then Liz fought back a big yawn. “Oh, I think I will lie down if you don’t mind.”
“Of course not.” He kissed her cheek. “Get forty winks at least.”
“Thanks, Sam.”
He picked up a magazine and went to sit by Martin.
Chapter Twelve
If he’d seen it coming, he would have been quicker to defend himself, but the blow to the back of his head caught him unawares and he went down on the ground on his hands and knees alongside his car in the hospital parking lot.
What the fuck…? The slam of a heavy boot to his ribs rolled him onto his side and he looked up at his assailants. Teenagers, by the looks of their slim bodies under baggy T-shirts. They had covered their faces below their eyes with bandanas. One of them raised his foot, intending on bringing it down on Sam’s chest, but Sam wasn’t so dazed that he couldn’t react fast. He grabbed the guy’s foot and twisted…hard. The nasty sound of cartilage tearing was followed by a howl of pain and the guy fell away, wailing.
Two more took his place, aiming kicks at Sam’s head and torso, but only one landed with any force and Sam was able to heave himself to his feet and lash out with a closed fist at the nearest masked face. Whoever it was staggered back from the blow to his chin and into the guy behind him. They both went down and one of them yelped, “Let’s go!”
“I can’t move!” the one whose foot Sam had twisted cried out, but his buddies had already taken off, leaving him to his fate. Sam waited until his head cleared then bent down to rip off the guy’s mask.
Fuck me. Sanders’ nephew, Kirby grip. The kid stared up at him with a mixture of defiance and fear. “Your uncle put you up to this?” Could Sanders be this ridiculously vindictive…and stupid?
“He said you were going to wreck his career. We weren’t going to let a faggot get away with that!”
“Well, I think you just put the last nail in the coffin of his career.” Sam grabbed Kirby by the front of his T-shirt and yanked him to his feet. Kirby howled as he put weight on his ankle. “Lucky for you we’re outside a hospital.” He opened his car door and shoved Kirby inside, ignoring the kid’s wails and name-calling. He drove around to the Emergency entrance, parked, hauled Kirby out then supported him while he hopped to the glass doors.
“Kid’s got a busted ankle,” he told the registration nurse. He showed her his badge. “I’m going to call his uncle to come down and take care of him.”
The nurse nodded. “I’ll get an orderly to bring a wheelchair.”
Sam looked at Kirby’s pain-filled face, wishing he could feel sorry for him. “You know, kid, you’d best ditch those so-called friends of yours. They tried to set you up in that park the other night and now they leave you to fend for yourself with a busted ankle. With friends like that, you don’t need enemies.”
“Fuck off.”
“That I am going to do after I speak with your uncle. Being around creepy kids like you reminds me too much of everything I hated growing up.” He punched in the number for the precinct. “Yeah, Detective Walker. Is Detective Sanders still there? Oh good, put him on please…
“Hey, Sanders, thought you should know your nephew and his punk friends tried to put me out of commission in the hospital parking lot as I was leaving after visiting Martin. He’s doing really good, by the way, not that you care. Of course, I didn’t know it was your n
ephew until I took off the mask he was wearing. I’m afraid I had to fight back, the result of which Kirby has a bad ankle. You should teach him not to telegraph his moves when attacking someone. Anyway, thought you might want to come visit him in Emergency. That’s it.” He hung up before Sanders could fill his ear with bluster.
“See you, Kirby. They’ll take good care of you here.”
He could have called it in, maybe he should have. He didn’t owe Sanders or his nasty nephew a damned thing. But things were bad enough for Sanders as it was and Sam wasn’t about to add to his burden. That wasn’t his way.
He supposed he looked a bit disheveled when Justin opened his door, because his lover’s eyes widened at the sight of him.
“What happened? Oh, you’re hurt,” he added when Sam winced as they hugged.
“Nothing that a kiss from you won’t cure.”
“Let me see.” Justin opened Sam’s shirt. “Fuck, Sam, that’s some bruise. Who did this?”
“Some punks who won’t try anything like it again, if they have any sense. Now where’s that kiss?”
“Right here.” Justin cupped Sam’s face between his hands and kissed him, gently at first as if he was afraid it would hurt.
“More,” Sam murmured, parting his lips, inviting Justin’s tongue, which slid in, warm and sensuous, tussling with Sam’s as their kiss deepened, becoming more aggressive and erotic. Despite the pain in his ribs, Sam wanted nothing more than to feel Justin wrapped in his arms, their mouths and groins pressed together in a union that made everything else inconsequential. All that mattered was now. All that he wanted was here.
“Sam,” Justin breathed into his mouth. “Sam…”
He sagged in Justin’s arms, all of a sudden disoriented. It was as if his legs wouldn’t hold him up.
“Justin…”
“I’m here, babe. Can you make it to the couch?” Justin’s voice seemed to come from far away.
“Yeah…think so…”
Justin half-carried, half-dragged Sam’s big body over to the couch and helped him lie down. He wasn’t sure what was wrong, but it must have had to do with the attack. Was he suffering from concussion? He didn’t know much about stuff like that, but Kevin would know. Oh, why are the people I trust so damned far away?
He grabbed his cell and punched in Kevin’s number. “Kevin?” Shit, they’re two hours ahead of us! “Sorry to call so late,” he said when his brother-in-law answered sleepily.
“Justin? What’s up?”
“It’s my friend, Sam. He was attacked tonight. He seemed okay when he first came over, but he suddenly collapsed. I’ve got him on the couch. What can I do?”
“Okay, Justin, deep breaths, stay calm. Is he conscious?”
“Yes, but he keeps closing his eyes.”
“Right, don’t let him fall asleep. See if you can find evidence of a blow to the head.”
Justin ran his hands over Sam’s short cropped hair. “Oh, yeah, there’s like a big bump on the back of his head.”
“Okay, ask him his name.”
“What?”
“Ask him his name.”
“Okay. Sam, what’s your name?”
Sam opened his eyes and stared at Justin. “Huh?”
“Oh shit, I did it wrong,” Justin told Kevin. “I told him his name then asked him what it was.”
Kevin chuckled. “What did he say?”
“He just looked at me funny and said, huh?”
“Ask him if he knows what time it is.”
“Sam, what time is it?”
“Why are you asking me all these questions?”
“To make sure you don’t have a concussion. My brother-in-law’s a doctor and he’s on the line telling me what to do.”
“Oh. Let’s see, it was seven when I left the hospital, so seven forty-five maybe?”
Justin glanced at his watch. Almost eight. Good enough. “I think he’s okay, Kevin.”
“One more. Ask him how old he is.”
“How old are you, Sam?”
“Thirty. How old are you?”
Justin laughed. “Twenty-five.”
“He sounds okay, Justin,” Kevin said. “Just don’t let him fall asleep for another hour or so. Get him some aspirin, if you have it.”
“I do.”
“Give him a couple, let him rest, talk to him. If he shows signs of distress, call 9-1-1. Let me know how he does.”
“Will do, thanks, Kev. I love you.”
“Love you, too. G’night.”
“Who are you saying I love you to?” Sam asked, sounding decidedly possessive.
“I told you, my brother-in-law, Kevin.” He kissed Sam’s forehead. “I’ve to give you a couple of aspirin. I’ll be right back. Don’t fall asleep.”
“’Kay.”
Justin hurried, not wanting to leave Sam alone too long. He carried the aspirin and a tumbler of water back to the couch and was glad to see Sam’s eyes open and watching him.
“Here you are. Can you sit up?”
“Yeah.” Sam scooched up a little and gave Justin a rueful smile. “Sorry ’bout this. Not how we thought we’d spend our time together.”
“We’ll have lots more time together. Right now, take these.” Sam swallowed the pills and emptied the water glass. “Okay, now I’ll put the TV on and we can watch a movie or something. Kevin said to keep you awake for at least an hour.”
“I can think of other ways to keep me awake.”
“I bet you can, but that will have to wait until we’re sure you’re okay.” He bent to give Sam’s lips a light kiss. “Got that?”
“Got it, doc.”
“I’m gonna get you an ice pack for your side. Would you like something to drink? I have green tea. That actually might help you heal.”
“Sounds good.” Sam sat up some more. “I’m starting to feel better. Not so woozy.” He grinned. “Must be your ministrations.”
“Yeah well, don’t get too cocky, Detective. I’m following Doctor Kevin’s orders and by default so are you.”
Sam groaned. “I kinda figured you for the bossy type.”
“That’s right.” He chuckled. “But only when it’s of benefit to you. Believe me, I want you all better real soon so we can get down to business.”
“Business?” Sam snorted. “Never have I thought of making love to you as business.”
Justin returned with the ice pack and sat by him on the couch. He pushed Sam’s shirt open and placed the pack over the bruised area. Smiling, he took Sam’s hand and kissed it gently. “Making love. That’s nice.”
“Better than nice.” He pulled Justin down and took his lips. “Mmm. Even in my wounded state, I think I could manage.”
“Later.” Justin got up at the sound of the kettle whistling. “Be right back.” He poured the water over the teabags in large mugs and brought one over for Sam. “Careful, it’ll be hot.” He went to the kitchen for his own mug. “So tell me,” he said, sitting next to Sam. “What was all this about tonight? Do you know who attacked you?”
Sam sipped his tea carefully then nodded. “One of our fearless detective’s nephew and his buddies. Lucky for me they were really badly organized. The blow to my head was a lucky shot ’cause everything they did after that was for shit. Even the kick to my side had no power behind it.”
“Let’s be grateful for that at least. You might have ended up with broken ribs instead of just a bruise. But why did they do it? What have they got against you?”
Sam sighed but explained the deal with Sanders and his homophobia. “He’s got his nephew thinking the same thing, which is a shame, but there it is. Honestly, after this, I can’t see a future for Sanders in the department.”
“It’s kinda scary when the guys who swear to serve and protect turn out to be the villains.”
“But to be fair, they are in the minority,” Sam said, stroking Justin’s cheek. “Some people’s hatred and phobias are hard to change, but there are always good people out there to countera
ct the bad. Sometimes it feels like a losing battle, but then we get a break and it feels worthwhile.”
“How’s your partner doing?”
“Real good,” Sam said, glad of the change of subject. “He’s a survivor, thank the gods. And a nosy parker. He wheedled it outta me that I was seeing you. He heard me on the phone with you, but worse than that he told Liz, who of course had to give me the third degree. She wants to meet you, like yesterday.”
Justin laughed, that rich throaty sound that made Sam’s toes curl. No doubt about it, he was up for whatever Justin had in mind. Except Justin didn’t seem to have that in mind, or at least not so it showed. Maybe I shouldn’t push…
He cleared his throat. “Uh, I don’t think I ever said you have a really nice place.” He looked around the living room, taking in the colorful wall art and subtle lighting. “I like that chest over on that wall with the brass handles. Is it mahogany?”
“Supposed to be. I got it through Amazon for about a third of the price in the high-end stores. I’m glad you like it. It’s mostly veneer but there is some real wood in there too.”
“You definitely have a flair for putting things together.”
“I wouldn’t be much of a designer if I didn’t.”
“True, that.” He grinned at Justin. “I’m feeling kinda woozy again. Maybe a kiss will help revive me.”
“Faker.” But Justin moved closer and laid a kiss on Sam’s lips. “Just so you know,” he said when his lips left Sam’s, “you are staying here tonight. No argument please. I want to make sure you don’t have a relapse of any kind.”
“If you insist. I don’t want to start being a pain in the ass this early on in our relationship.”
“Listen to me, Sam.” Justin placed his hands on either side of Sam’s face. “I know we’ve known each other for less than two weeks, but you’ve become very important to me and I don’t want to see anything bad happen to you. I also know that you’re a cop and the nature of your job puts you in jeopardy sometimes. I just want you to know that whatever I can do to keep you safe, I will do it. Don’t laugh…I know you’re the big and brave one out of the two of us, but I mean it, so don’t think for a minute that you are somehow a pain in the ass…” His green eyes twinkled and a smile lifted the corner of his mouth. “Except when I want you to be, of course.”