B01MUG7DJX EBOK

by Mathew Ortiz

  “Wha-wha-why ya cryin’, babe?” I asked between the barrage of questions. Caleb’s gaze snapped to mine.

  “You were shot! Shot protecting me! You could die,” he bleated and brought my hand to his mouth and kissed it.

  “No, he won’t,” the burly EMT said, his blue eyes twinkled at me. Fucker!

  “He could,” Caleb insisted.

  “No… he couldn’t,” the man reiterated and he adjusted my IV.

  “I could,” I slurred. He was pissing me off.

  “Not gonna happen,” he snickered and he punched information into his pad. I swore I heard laughter from the front of the ambulance and Caleb telling the two guys to ‘sod off’ as darkness claimed me.

  I came to in a small exam room in a hospital, lying on my side At least I think it was an exam room. It was full of medical crap, and people dressed in scrubs milled around me while machines beeped. I groggily turned my head from side to side and realized I was in the City of Hope ER. Their logo was embossed on anything that would stand still and things that moved, too. A young woman leaned down and the emblem of City of Hope had been embossed on her uniform.

  “What the fuck’s goin’ on,” I croaked out and a tall elegant African woman crouched down to speak to me eye to eye.

  “Welcome back to the waking world, Mr. Myer. You’re at City of Hope ER and I’m Dr. Ondine Jackson. I just finished cleaning up your wound. You’ve slept through the whole thing.”

  “I’m not gonna die?” I hated the fear in my voice.

  She didn’t laugh at least but she did bite her lip. “Not today Mr. Myer. Not today. Are you feelin’ up to visitors?” Oh God, no. No, no, no, no, no! They’re here and they know! “I don’t think I can hold them off much longer. Especially a young Englishman who is claiming to be your husband.” She shook her head, at Caleb and my families shenanigans.

  I closed my eyes and counted to ten. Then another ten… and ten more. “Let them in.” Might as well get this over with now. I closed my eyes and prayed I’d pass out again but, damn it, from the shuffling of feet, I was still conscious. A soft hand touched my face and a body squatted down to my eye level. Caleb. His big blue eyes, wide with worry, stared hard at me and I wiggled my brows at him.

  “You come here often, Snookerdoodle?” I asked. Got to love the pain medication, they were giving me.

  “Snookerdoodle? Snooker—oh Cotton, you scared the hell out of me,” Caleb cried and pressed his cheek to mine. “I love you so much. Don’t scare me like that again.”

  “I couldn’t let her hurt you, Caleb. You’re my world.” I bore my heart to him and gave him the honesty from my soul. I meant it, he had become my world. He pecked a quick kiss and sat back on his legs.

  “Your family is outside.” I sighed wearily. “I had to tell them about—”

  “Just let them in.” I resigned myself to my fate. Caleb nodded and seconds later my family came in like a heard of elephants. I smelled my mother’s perfume.

  “My baby!” My mother threw herself across my body and sobbed.

  “Momma, relax,” Boone chided.

  “I will not. You never stop being a parent!”

  “Get offa him, Lynnie!” Mawmaw’s voice cut the air and my mother moved off me. “Boy, are you tryin’ to give an old lady a heart attack?”

  “No Ma’am.” Meek as a mouse, I kept my eyes closed. This was only going to get worse.

  “Avery calls and tells your Momma and me that Cotton’s been shot and we run cryin’ and shit, only to find out you got shot in the—”

  “Ass!” Boone crowed and Avery started laughing.

  “Stop laughin’!” Momma yelled but it only made it worse.

  “Aw Momma, come on. This is freakin’ awesome! Shot in the ass!” Boone brayed like a donkey.

  “It doesn’t matter!” Momma replied hotly. “That bitch shot my boy!” Oh boy, Momma was cursing.

  “’M fine, Momma.” I lifted a hand to get their attention and hopefully calm her down. “Only sore.”

  “Boone take me home,” Mawmaw commanded and padded to the trolley. The scent of Benson & Hedges grew stronger and—

  “Fuck!” I screamed as Mawmaw slapped my thigh making it jiggle. That jiggle transferred to my injured butt cheek and it fucking hurt.

  “Next time you better be shot in the leg or something, Cottonball! Boone, let’s go!!” With that she swept from the room. Boone bent at the waist and looked me in the eye.

  “I’m glad you’re okay and I can’t wait to tell Robbie. I just thought of somethin’. You have two buttholes now, you always wanted to be DP’ed! Now’s your chance.” I reached out and tried to swat him. Avery beat me to it and hauled Boone up by his collar. “’Bye numbnuts… oh wait…numb butt! You know, where they numbed him up to do the stiches.” He was having way too much fun at my expense.

  “He didn’t get stitches! Go on, git Mawmaw home, Boone!” Avery shooed him out and reached out to ruffle my hair. “Don’t ever scare me like that again baby brother. I lost Daisy and barely made it back to the livin’. If I lost you, I can’t imagine—”

  Seeing Avery tear up broke my tenuous control and my own eyes watered. “Cain’t get rid of me that easy, bro. I’m a Myer Man. We’re hard to kill.” He grabbed my head and pressed his forehead to mine. “Love you, Avery.”

  “Love you, Cottonball.” He pressed a quick kiss to my forehead and stood up.

  Caleb brought his face closer to mine and whispered with a devil’s grin. “Cottonball?”

  I moaned and closed my eyes. Could the day get any worse?

  The clicking of heels told me someone had entered the room and I peered up to see Dr. Jackson and a young woman in green scrubs.

  “Well Mr. Myer. I’m going to keep you here for overnight. This is the surgery resident, Dr. Harricks, and she’s here to examine you and if all goes well, you’ll go to surgery tomorrow morning to close up the bullet hole properly. It went through your buttock and came out cleanly but I’d feel better if surgery washed it out properly and stitched you up. Right now, all I have in is packing.”

  I winced as I pushed myself up onto my elbows. Momma and Avery stood to one side and Caleb sat next to me. Dr. Jackson smiled down at me and Dr. Harricks, who looked nineteen, waved at me.

  “Are you old enough to do surgery?” I asked and she blushed as all of us turned to stare at her.

  “I’m twenty-eight. I look way younger than I am. I’m going to clean the wound and stitch you up. You’re in good hands, Mr. Myer,” she assured me and I relaxed. “I’m having you put on the schedule for seven-thirty tomorrow. Barring complications, I’ll send you home later in the evening. Any questions?”

  “No. Thank you, Dr. Harricks.” I held out my hand and Caleb instantly took it. Dr. Harricks left and Dr. Jackson cleared her throat.

  “Mr. Myer, the police are here to take your statement and a Detective Wirzbowski is also here.” She glanced at the door and Caleb’s trembled in mine. I squeezed his hand and turned back to her.

  “Send them in, Dr. Jackson. Might as well get this over with.”

  “Do you want us to leave, Cotton?” Momma asked and I looked at Caleb and he nodded.

  “No Momma, I want you and Avery here. We have nothin’ to hide.” Caleb gave me a weak smile. We were in this together.

  *

  The next few weeks were a roller coaster for me and Caleb.

  I had surgery the following morning and it took all of an hour, according to Momma. My time in the recovery room blurred in a haze of pain and anesthesia and I only became coherent once I got back to my room and Caleb kissed me. I grumbled about having dragon breath and he only laughed and kissed me again. Six hours later, I sat perched on a plastic blowup donut as Caleb drove me back to his place—yep, his place. Momma wasn’t too happy and I thought for a minute she would argue more but she must have seen the determination in Caleb’s gaze. So, I spent the week at his place being fussed over, loved and spoiled rotten. He made me my favorite foods, bro
ught my computer to his place and let me watch ‘Difficult People’ and at night he did nasty things to me that didn’t require me to move… only cum. Damn, his flexibility had no limit! Overall, he treated me like gold. Pretty sweet, huh?

  Three days after I got to Caleb’s place, I hobbled into the bathroom, grabbed a hand mirror and took my first look at my ass. I had two sets of stitches on my left butt cheek which were going to leave me with two small scars. The bullet had gone in and come out through fat and not muscle. Shoot, I’m amazed it found any fat at all. I don’t have an ass to speak of. Caleb said the scar would make me look dangerous. I pointed out that, what with it being on my ass, he would be the only who could see it. Little shit pinched my nipple and told me he’d better be the only one who saw it. Caleb told me that the surgeon said I could go back to running and working on my bikes in about two weeks and not to strain. I already wanted to go running. Boredom and too much TV was turning my brain into guacamole. I am not the type of person to sit around and laze about, so this infirmed time made me want to climb the walls.

  Lily Burr, my crazed shooter, was in jail right now. Hopefully getting stuck up the butt with a toilet brush by some big dyke named Betty. The woman wasn’t working with a full deck. Detective Wirzbowski let me know Lily had been linked to one of the unsolved deaths of a man Robert had been dating and possibly more. It seemed she had an obsessive need to make him happy and protect him at any cost. After Robert’s trial, we had hers to go. Yeah, more time in court… about as much fun as a prostate exam, with no lube.

  The trial of Robert Davenport IV devolved into a spectator sport. The media frenzy around the trial bore a resemblance to a shark feeding frenzy. Davenport had his supporters and his detractors wanted their time to speak. One supporter had been cut from the list despite her protest that she had to be heard. Lily actually thought she would be allowed to take the stand after trying to kill one of the witnesses for the prosecution. What a moron. Me and my family sat with Caleb’s kin, save his mother, in the back of the court room. I’d hoped his mother would remove her head from her uptight ass and support her son. She didn’t and no one in his family had even mentioned her name. I think they’d all had enough.

  Caleb was set to testify after Alex King. I met Alex’s fiancé and the whole Gaither clan, some in the court room, some outside and I marveled at the strength of those people. They staunchly rallied around Alex and his Emmett, and made no bones about condemning Davenport. When he took the stand, Alex spoke eloquently, his voice cracking at points, his face pale and anguish clear in his eyes. I thought he was going to break, especially when the defense dug into him. Not the case at all. His jaw set, his eyes narrowed and any tears he had vanished as Alex basically ripped into the defense. Watching the defense and Alex go at each other was like watching tennis. In the end, the defense gave up and let Alex go since he wasn’t getting what he wanted.

  Caleb’s time came and he walked to the stand, his spine ramrod straight. It struck me how each of the four witnesses were all blond and… well, pretty. Caleb’s gaze darted to me and I smiled, hoping he knew how much I loved him. The next hour hurt and enraged me, and made me want to shout with joy. My babe kicked ass! Like Alex, he refused to be bullied, refused to be shut down even to the point of yelling at the defense.

  “I was verbally abused enough by one man, I won’t let you do the same to me!” He screamed at the defense and the whole court room grew quiet. The judge ordered his statement stricken, but the effect was profound. The defense lost some of his credibility and the shift in the feeling of the jury was palpable. Caleb looked like he wanted to rip the throat out of the smarmy lawyer and so did all of Caleb’s family and mine. Me, I sat back and grinned like a proud fool.

  The trial lasted for a total of four weeks as the defense tried to rip down the witnesses. The prosecution refused to be cowed and fought back all the time. Davenport’s poor parents wilted a little more each day. I kind of felt sorry for them. In every interview, they supported their son but never proclaimed his innocence. The media vilified them and at one point, Caleb told an obnoxious reporter to leave them alone and be respectful. No matter how much of a shit Robert was, he was still their son. Despite everything, Caleb still showed more class than Davenport.

  Jesus, Mary and Joseph, Davenport was a class ‘A’ fucktard. He swaggered into the court room every day, mugged for the cameras, called the witness poor, white trash, gold diggers, alluded to his sexual prowess and over all, came across as a major douche. More than once, he interrupted a witness when they were speaking, while his attorney vainly attempted to shush him. When he finally had his turn on the stand, he basically put the nail in his own coffin. He painted a picture of the poor little rich boy, who was being hunted by the money hungry queers, his words, and only fought back when threatened. Even when pictures of his ex-boyfriends’ injuries were shown, all he would say was that they got them from fighting back. The jury’s faces, hooded and vaguely hostile, didn’t waver much and yet he never once tried to endear himself or humble himself before them.

  In the end, the jury recessed for only two hours before coming back with their verdict. Guilty on two counts of rape, four counts of assault, one count of sodomizing a minor and two counts of drugging a minor. The smug expression disappeared from his face as each count was read. I guess he really thought he was going to get away with it, that his family’s name and money would put him above the law. His poor parents looked like they aged ten years during the trial and quietly left after the sentencing as their son screamed obscenities at the judge and jury. The sentencing pissed me off. He got twenty years with the possibility of parole in ten. Seemed kind of light to me but Momma reminded me that he was going to jail and that’s what mattered. He would never hurt Caleb again. Gritting my teeth, I grudgingly agreed.

  I breathed a sigh of relief and did all I could to move forward. I was basically living with Caleb by now. I’d been the one to say we should wait and I’d stood by my decision, until I got shot. I spent two weeks recuperating at his place and, as time passed, more and more of my things ended up there. My laptop, most of my grooming products, a good chunk of my underwear collection. Hell, very little remained at Momma’s house. The only things still there were my tools and the bike I was currently working on, and the only reason it was still there was because Caleb didn’t have a garage. Which I groused about one night as we sat on Avery and Martin’s couch.

  “Babe, it’s a pain to drive back and forth to Momma’s to work on my bike.” I stuffed another handful of popcorn into my mouth and glowered at him. He had limited parking at his place and I could either bring my bike or my car over but not both.

  “I know Cotton but moving into your mother’s house is not an option!” he sniped back. My sweet little English rose could argue a donkey into moving.

  “You’re being ridic—”

  “Guys! Guys!” Avery shouted and we both turned to him. “I may have a solution.”

  We both turned to look at him and Avery grinned. I glared once more at Caleb. “Why don’t you use our garage? We’re not using all of it and we’re closer than Momma,” he offered. Martin nodded in agreement.

  “That’s only a bandage,” I grumbled and Caleb took my hand in his.

  “How about this, we take Avery and Martin up on their offer and in a few months, we start looking for a place together.”

  Sometimes, he just takes the wind out of my sails. My anger fled and I pulled him closer.

  “But what about your place?”

  He shrugged and leaned in and kissed me. “I can sell it. I’m sure it would sell quickly.”

  I turned to him. “Caleb, you love your place.” He did. He had put so much work into his condo, I hadn’t even entertained the notion of him moving out of it anytime soon. I figured we would be living there for a spell.

  He only laughed and tugged at my beard with his free hand. “I love you more and I want to start a life with you. Maybe getting a place, a new place, together
is a step in the right direction. Someplace we both like… with a two car garage.” He wiggled his eyebrows and blew me a kiss.

  I snorted and kissed him soundly. As I pulled back I said, “You say the most romantic things.” I kissed his nose. “You had me at two car garage.”

  “A good blowjob, a good meal, a two car garage plus a new pair of knickers and you’re a happy camper aren’t you?” he teased. I ran my fingers along his sides turning him into a puddle of giggles.

  “Were we ever that sickeningly in love?” Avery asked Martin.

  Martin grabbed his fiancé and kissed the living hell out of him. Their lips popped audibly apart and Martin gasped, “Nah…” They both chuckled.

  Caleb pushed off me, a wicked gleam in his eye. “I meant to tell you something. Some juicy gossip!”

  I smirked at his pure glee. “About who?”

  “Annie!” He literally squealed and that made me sit up and pay attention. The little princess had been by Caleb’s side during the trial and had covered for him multiple times when he had last minute things to do for the court case.

  “Spill.” I basically bounced in my chair.

  “Well it happened when I got back two days ago, from Rome. Stephanie and I were heading to the back of the plane to get our bags. We’d done economy while Annie and Alan were in business class. Well, I saw the call light go off for the cockpit. I mentioned to Stephanie that was odd since the pilots had left with the first class attendants over twenty minutes ago. The whole plane should have been empty. So, we go up to the cockpit and we hear this odd grunting and groaning. Now, mind you, this is on the second floor of the plane. As Stephanie and I round the top of the staircase we spot Annie!” He paused for dramatic effect. “She had her legs wrapped around a very vigorous Captain Merritt in flagrante delicto!”