“I still think it’s hilarious that you named them Dorothy and Toto,” Luca said, watching them do fast circles around each other on the armrest before jumping to the floor and charging off toward the kitchen to explore.
“I have my moments,” Kane replied with a smirk. Seeing a smile on Luca’s face sent such a wave of relief through him that he instantly felt a hell of a lot better.
The doorbell rang and Kane turned to Luca. “Keep an eye on the monsters while I get the food.” At Luca’s nod, he ran downstairs to open the door for Luca’s soup delivery. One thing about having a three-story townhome was that it forced Kane to walk several floors every day, keeping him in good shape. His car and bike were parked under the building and he walked up a flight of stairs to the entrance of his house and then once inside, another level to his main living area consisting of the living room, his master bedroom and bath, and kitchen.
Up a final flight of stairs was his second bedroom where the ferrets lived in their enclosures and a nice loft which looked down over a railing to the living area. His desk and some bookshelves were upstairs where he usually curled up in the soft armchair and read, unless it was too hot. In the living area there were more bookshelves and a TV with a nice old stereo that had been his mom and dad’s. It had a turntable which he loved and when he’d surprised his mom years back with a Bose radio that had a built in CD player, she’d insisted that he take the stereo and all of their old LPs. It was one of the reasons he loved 80s music so much. There was nothing like listening to Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” on vinyl.
He paid the driver for the food and closed the door, locking it before walking upstairs. Luca was sitting on the couch with both ferrets who were running all over him, jumping from his head to the couch, to the floor, only to repeat it all again. Kane chuckled as he unpacked Luca’s soup and pad Thai that he knew he loved, as well as his own red curry chicken, pineapple fried rice with shrimp, and several boxes of chicken and beef satay with peanut sauce that they both loved. He went to his cupboard and pulled out hot red chili sauce and then poured a couple of glasses of iced tea for them.
“Come on, baby. This looks good and you need to eat.”
“Okay, I’ll be there in a minute. Let me put them back upstairs before we eat,” Luca said, scooping up the ferrets and walking over to the stairs. As he put his foot on the first step, he stopped and turned to Kane. “Hey… Kane…” He hesitated until Kane looked up. Luca offered a sad smile. “Thanks so much for everything today. It meant a lot to me.”
Kane felt his heart do that flip-flop which was becoming so familiar to him. He stopped what he was doing and walked over to him. Luca’s upturned face was beautiful but his eyes were stormy and filled with deep sadness that Kane longed to wipe away. He reached out to cup his cheek.
“I only wish I could make all the hurt go away. I feel helpless. Besides, I know you’d do it for me in a heartbeat, love.”
The word slipped out before he could stop it and he opened his mouth to take it back, stopping when he recognized the expression on Luca’s face. He looked as though he was so deeply touched by Kane’s words, he would never want to take them back. He’d only realized how deeply his feelings ran for Luca earlier that day. Trying the word out on his tongue wasn’t as scary as he thought it might be.
｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆
After dinner, Kane cleaned up the dishes while Luca sat on the couch watching the Great British Baking Show. After turning out the lights in the kitchen, he walked over to the couch and sat down beside Luca, wrapping both arms around him, pulling him into the vee of his long legs as he stretched out. He sensed Luca didn’t want to talk about anything and he realized he’d been right when he immediately relaxed back against Kane’s bigger body. It felt good just to hold him close as long as he needed.
He rested his chin on top of Luca’s clean hair and inhaled the scent of him, noting how different he smelled when he used Kane’s body wash. Luca had his own pleasing natural scent which Kane attributed just to him. It was funny how quickly Kane had decided he loved Luca’s scent. Some of the women in his past wore cloyingly heavy perfume and he’d always hated it. His mind ran over the last few months of his life. He’d met and fallen for another man and it felt more natural to him than he’d ever felt with the many women he’d dated and taken to bed. Sinking deep inside Luca—a man ten years his junior—felt right in every way.
He caressed Luca’s flat belly under the too-large T-shirt he wore. Seeing Luca wearing his clothes gave him an inexplicable satisfaction he couldn’t express. Every time he looked at Luca he wanted to take him to bed. It didn’t matter what he wore. He was truly the most beautiful man Kane had ever seen.
Luca suddenly sighed and turned away from the TV, burrowing against Kane’s chest. He was asleep and Kane had been so preoccupied with thoughts of the man in his arms that he hadn’t even realized it. His arms tightened around Luca, satisfied to let him sleep right here on the couch all night, but as Paul Hollywood droned on about how wrong a Bakewell tart both looked and tasted, he decided it was time to turn off the TV and tuck him in.
Kane shifted Luca’s limp form enough that he could slide out from under him and then stood up, unfolding and stretching his long limbs. He reached forward and shut off the TV before looking down at Luca. He stood there for several seconds, deciding if he should wake him or just cover him with a blanket.
“I’m awake,” Luca said, startling Kane as his lids fluttered open. He smiled at him as Kane squatted in front of him, caressing one cheek with the backs of his fingers.
“I thought I was going to have to carry you to bed,” Kane said, teasing him.
Luca smiled and sat up slowly, reaching out a hand that Kane instantly took as he stood. He pulled Luca up off the couch and then wrapped an arm around him, leading him down the hall to his room. They stripped by lamp light and then Kane crawled between the sheets, shutting off the lamp and reaching for Luca as he slipped in beside him. Though neither of them wore clothes, Kane had no expectations of having sex with Luca. Holding him through the night was all he wanted and that’s just what he did.
｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆
Just before dawn, Kane woke with a start to the sound of whimpering. He opened his eyes in the dark room after checking the clock on the bedside table before searching for the source of the tiny sound. It was barely 4:30 a.m. and he didn’t have to be up for hours. In fact, he was determined to take the day off and be with Luca as long as nothing interfered with his plans. The whimper came again and he lifted his head, spotting Luca who had rolled away from him some time in the night. He’d thrown the bed covers off and lay naked on his stomach with his face buried in his pillow. The silhouette of his gorgeous round backside made Kane’s fingers itch to touch him. As Kane admired him, Luca’s face turned toward him and that’s when he realized his eyes were closed tighter than they should be as his lips formed silent words.
He’s dreaming.
Kane moved toward Luca, reaching out for him, almost afraid to wake him. When his lower lip suddenly stuck out and he let out another haunting sound of distress, Kane’s mind was made up. He slid closer and gathered Luca into his arms, only then realizing that his cheeks were streaked with the tears he’d been crying in his sleep.
“Oh, baby,” Kane whispered into his hair. “It’s okay. It’s going to be okay, sweetheart.” He held Luca close and eventually he stopped the pitying sound of his near silent, half-awake crying and relaxed against his chest. Kane held him close as he fell back asleep, sprawled out with one arm flung over his own broader chest.
The next time Kane opened his eyes, the room was bright with sunshine streaming through the slats of his Venetian blinds with Luca still asleep against his side. He slowly eased himself out from under his arm and slid to the floor, padding across the room and closing himself into the en suite bathroom to use the commode. In front of the mirror, he scrubbed a hand over his dark beard that had grown into a thick
shadow in the last twenty-four hours and decided not to shave. Just before bed, he’d sent Kelly a text telling her he’d be taking the day off to stay with Luca. He’d immediately gotten a smiley emoji back along with a cryptic “Take care of him. I’ll only call you if it’s an emergency” back from her.
He brushed his teeth and returned to the bedroom. Expecting to find Luca where he’d left him, Kane was surprised to see him sitting up in bed with the sheet pulled up around his waist, staring at the bathroom door. His eyes were red and looked unfocused. Kane walked over to the bed and climbed on, crawling over to Luca where he leaned in and grabbed him, pulling him down to lay out over his body. Luca smiled down at him as Kane leaned up, capturing his lips for a long, slow, thorough kiss. When their mouths finally separated, Luca sat up, straddling Kane’s naked body and resting both hands on his pectoral muscles.
“I should thank you for calling Sebastian, Kane. I really am more tired than I thought I was last night.”
Kane’s smile faltered and he reached up to gently push Luca’s bangs back from his eyes so he could gaze into the gray-blue pools.
“You dreamt last night and I don’t think they were happy dreams, baby.”
Luca’s eyes widened. “How did you know that, Kane?”
“I woke up just before dawn and you were crying,” Kane said quietly, watching him closely. There wasn’t a flicker of recollection in his eyes. “You don’t remember, do you?”
Luca shook his head. “No. I-I don’t remember much after we had dinner.”
“I cleaned up the dishes while you turned on the TV and got lost in British baking.”
Luca smiled just a little. “Now I remember. Never let it be said that Paul Hollywood isn’t a handsome bear.”
Kane wrinkled his nose. “I don’t know what a bear is in this context, but if you say so.”
Luca chuckled and then lowered himself until he’d stretched out over him again. He framed Kane’s face and kissed him slowly. When he pulled back, his eyes were twinkling.
“You’re quite the bear yourself, Delancey.”
“So, a bear is a handsome hunk of man?” Kane asked with a smile.
Luca nodded. “That’s it.” He paused. “Actually, in gay culture, it means you’re a big hairy hunk of man.”
Kane stopped rubbing Luca’s lower back where he’d started an almost unconscious caress up and down from ass to shoulder blades as the words “gay culture” cut into the cool morning like a knife through butter.
“You think I’m gay then? A gay bear?” Surprisingly, the thought of it didn’t bother him too much.
Luca frowned and reached up to press two fingers over his lips. “I don’t stereotype, ever, but sweetheart, judging by how much you love my ass, yeah, I’ll tap dance out onto a limb and say that you’re about as gay as a basket of May flowers, Kane.” He pressed his lips together and raised an eyebrow.
Kane stared at him for a few seconds and then suddenly burst into booming laughter, startling the hell out of Luca as he literally rolled off him whilst tangling his feet in the bed covers. Before Kane could catch his hand, Luca slid right off the bed and onto the floor with a loud thud. Fortunately, he’d landed on a thick area rug so there was plenty to cushion his fall. Kane rolled to the side of the bed and looked over. Luca lay naked, sprawled out on his back, with his knees bent. He looked terribly uncomfortable lying there with his eyes closed.
“Want a hand?” Kane ventured, reaching down to him with a barely-contained chuckle.
“Fucker,” Luca grumbled, opening his eyes and reaching to take his hand, letting Kane haul him up to sit beside him on the side of the bed.
Kane chuckled again. “You really should be more careful. You could hurt yourself leaping out of bed like that and getting your feet all tangled in the sheets.”
Luca shot him a dirty look. “Thank you, Captain Obvious.”
“That’s Special Agent Obvious, thank you,” Kane replied with a wink.
Luca’s lips twitched and Kane leaned in to kiss him tenderly. They kissed for a long time, eventually falling back on the bed as they got lost in each other’s bodies.
It was a good way to start the day.
Chapter Eighteen
Luca was on the phone with Madeline, listening to her talk about arrangements for her mother’s funeral when Kane’s phone rang. Since Kelly had promised not to call him unless it was a complete emergency, her number in his caller ID was alarming. He stood from the kitchen table where he’d been sitting across from Luca as he talked on the phone. He swiped the call as he walked back to his bedroom and answered, dreading what he was about to hear.
“You do understand the definition of an emergency, right, partner?”
“I’m sorry, Delancey. I debated whether to call you and finally settled on my definition of an emergency.”
“What is it? What happened?”
“There’s been another bombing. This time it’s a drug rehab clinic in Hollywood. I thought you’d want to know about it,” she said.
Kane reached up and scrubbed a hand over his face. “Were there any casualties?”
“Three. We’re still in the process of identifying all the dead and injured but we got a list of names from the owner and checked it with Marshal Brady just on a hunch,” she said.
“You said we. Does that mean Cassidy and Mike are on this also?”
“Cassidy, Mike, the ATF, and the entire LAPD, at this point.”
“I can assume that your definition of an emergency includes the fact that Brady confirmed another of WITSEC’s out of pocket witnesses was on the list of residents at the rehab?” Kane asked.
“Exactly.”
“Shit. Okay, Luca’s at my place but I’m gonna get ready and come in as soon as I can,” Kane said, turning to open his closet where he pulled his suit out and laid it on the bed.
“That’s fine. I’d say stay home but the captain wants all hands on deck, Delancey. I’m sorry.”
“It’ll take me less than an hour.”
“How’s Luca?”
“Pretty rattled to be honest. Thelma was a hell of a lot more than a driving instructor for him. They’d been friends for a long time so her accident was terrible for him.”
“We’re not so sure it was an accident at this point.”
Kane stopped pulling his shaver out of the bathroom drawer and stared at himself in the mirror. “What do you mean? I thought it was a traffic accident.”
“It was a traffic accident. Someone broadsided the car but this morning, they found drugs in the student driver’s system,” Kelly replied.
“Okay, what kind of drugs?”
“Heroin with a PCP chaser. It was weird. His family told the coroner he never used PCP though he’d dabbled in opiates for years after a football injury. They realized he’d moved on from pills to street drugs but he’d just gone through rehab and graduated after ninety days with a clean bill of health.”
“Isn’t ninety days a long time for rehab?”
“Not really. Usually thirty days is all insurance will pay for but his parents are prominent lawyers in Beverly Hills so they paid his way as long as his counselor said he needed it. What’s weird is that his parents were a supportive couple. They said he came out of rehab a few months ago, got himself a sponsor, and hadn’t relapsed at all. He went to three meetings a day.”
“That is commitment.”
“Kane…”
Kane spun around to find Luca standing in the doorway.
“Listen, Kelly, let me talk to Luca and I’ll see you soon.”
“No problem, Delancey. Give the kid a hug for me.”
“Sure and thanks for the call.” He swiped the call and looked up at Luca who was holding his phone up to show him a breaking news headline shouting about an LA area rehab in flames after a bomb went off.
“Is this what your call was about?”
Kane set down his phone and stepped close to Luca lifting his hands to frame his cheeks. “I’m sorry, baby.
I know I told you I’d stay with you today but that was Kelly and I just found out that not only does the LAPD want all detectives on this but at any moment, I’m probably gonna hear from my SAC at the ATF. I have to go.”
“It’s okay. I’m gonna go back to bed. For some reason, I just can’t stay awake,” Luca said, yawning.
Kane pulled him close, hugging him. “That’s okay, sweetheart. Grief is very draining. I’m surprised you even got out of bed if you want to be honest.” He ran his hand slowly up and down Luca’s back.
“I don’t know how people do it, Kane,” Luca said, turning his face up to Kane’s. He leaned down and met his lips, giving him a soft lingering kiss. He could feel the sorrow in the air around him. When he finally broke the kiss, he let him go.
“Sorry, Luca. I gotta get ready. I can take you home if you prefer but I’d like you to stay here where I know you’re safe.”
Luca frowned. “Is there a reason I wouldn’t be?”
Kane shook his head. “No. Not really but like I said, here you’re completely safe. When I first heard about a student driver in a Yugo yesterday over the radio, I almost had a heart attack.”
Luca reached up and placed a hand on Kane’s chest. “Oh, Kane, I never even thought about that. I should have realized that you would have thought it was me in Thelma’s car before you checked on me. I guess that’s why I have twelve voice mail messages to return. Shit. I bet a lot of people heard about Thelma. Her classes were very popular in West Hollywood. I’m so sorry if you were scared. You were, weren’t you?”
Kane nodded. “I was terrified. All the way to the accident scene, Kelly kept telling me it was okay, but when you didn’t pick up your phone…”
Play With Me Page 24