“Oh, I think you’ve found him,” he murmured. He was trying so damn hard to be sexy but he was nothing compared to the man sitting at Snow’s elbow.
Snow smiled, moving one hand around to cup his face. “Later, I promise. But right now, I’m looking for a man by the name of Dwight Gratton. My friend just flew into the country to meet with him here. Have you seen him?”
There was no missing the flinch that went through the young man or the way his expression shut down just the tiniest bit at the mention of Gratton’s name while staring at Jude. The paramedic had perfected a bored, slightly irritated expression as if everything was a complete waste of his time. Snow didn’t know where that was coming from, but it was working for their ruse.
“Sorry. People aren’t big on names here,” the young man said with a little shrug.
Snow lightly increased the pressure on his jaw, turning his face so that he looked at Snow again. “True, but you’d know him if you saw him. He has a long scar cutting across his cheek right here.” As he spoke, he dragged his thumb nail down the flawless skin of the young man’s cheek, leaving behind a faint red mark that faded a second later. “Have you seen him?”
“Yes,” he whispered, shivering. For a moment, the young man’s eyes became haunted and Snow wanted to kill Gratton all over again. “But you’ve just missed him. I swear he left not twenty minutes ago.”
Snow growled and Jude shifted in his chair, swearing softly under his breath. All this fucking trouble for nothing.
“Do you know where he was going?” Snow asked, not bothering to rein in his temper.
“No, but...but…” the young man paused and licked his lips. He lowered his voice even more, leaning closer to Snow. “If your friend is in town for the auction, then he doesn’t need to talk to Gratton. Marcus is up in the green room. He has all the information you need.”
Snow’s heart hammered in his chest at the mention of an auction and his stomach roiled. It wasn’t Gratton, but this was incredibly valuable news. He tamped down the urge to pepper the young man for information about the upcoming auction. It was unlikely he knew much more than the fact that an auction was happening and Snow didn’t want to risk raising any suspicions.
Slipping a hand into his slacks pocket, Snow grabbed a couple more hundred dollar bills and pressed them into the young man’s hand. “My friend is very grateful for your help. Maybe you should take the rest of the night off.”
The young man stared at Snow, his head cocked slightly to the side. A soft crinkling sound rose between them as he tightened his fingers around the bills. “Thank you, sir. That sounds like a wonderful idea.” His smile trembled on his lips before he slid off Snow’s lap and casually strolled back out of the room.
Jude waited until the young man had disappeared through the curtain before he shifted to the edge of his seat, his arms on the table. “Auction?”
Snow gave a single shake of his head before shoving to his feet. Grabbing the folio, he led the way back out of the room with Jude following close on his heels. He could feel the eyes of the guards on him as he moved back up the hall to the wide staircase leading to the second floor. They were running out of time. He had no doubt that someone somewhere in the Southgate House was checking names and pictures they had of existing club members. In a matter of minutes, they would be found out to be intruders and not members. Snow preferred to be the hell out of Newport before that happened.
“We just need a when and where,” Snow muttered as Jude walked up the stairs beside him. “Then we get out of here.”
The floor creaked under them and their footsteps echoed as they moved from Persian rugs to hardwood and then back again. Cries of both pleasure and pain drifted out from behind the closed doors, but Snow ignored the sounds as he walked to the one room where the door was open. The green room was exactly that, a small green room that served as a place for bands to relax before they were expected to perform.
Seated on a worn leather loveseat was a large man tapping away at a tablet in his hand. His bald head glistened with sweat in the harsh overhead light. As their footsteps echoed across the hardwood floor, the man looked up and frowned at them.
“I’m sorry but guests aren’t supposed to be back here.”
“You Marcus?” Snow asked.
“Yeah…”
“Gratton told us you had the information we needed.”
The man hesitated, his eyes darting from Snow to Jude. Before Snow could open his mouth to press Marcus further, Jude growled and stomped closer. He grabbed a chair and slammed it down in front of Marcus, who jumped at the violent motions, his eyes locked on Jude as threw himself in the chair. Loudly sighing, Jude sprawled in the chair, his legs spread wide, while glaring at Marcus.
“I just spent half my day on a fucking plane to get here, because fucking Gratton called me at the last minute and said I had to be here now,” Jude ranted in an accent Snow knew damn well wasn’t Spanish. Sounded a lot more like Greek. He narrowed his eyes, intrigued. The accent was thick and extravagant, and Jude was playing up the role of the irate, put-out spoiled socialite perfectly. “I want a fucking blowjob, a fucking shower, and a fucking meal that doesn’t taste like the damn chef keeps his head up his ass when he cooks. But I can’t have any of that until I’m done with you.”
Marcus had paled during Jude’s rant, staring at him with his mouth hanging open slightly. “You don’t sound Russian. I thought Gratton said you’d be Russian.”
“Fucking Gratton!” Jude snapped, launching to his feet to stand over Marcus like some dark avenging angel. It was all Snow could do to keep the smile off his face. Jude really was impressive. “I summer in Russia with my aunt. I was in Madrid with my sister’s family because who the fuck wants to be in Russia during the winter? But I’m from Greece. Anything else you need to know?”
“I-I-I’m sorry, sir. I didn’t mean any disrespect.”
Jude swore under his breath and flopped back down in his chair, glaring at Marcus. He rattled off a few sentences in Greek, ending in that accented English with, “What the hell do you need so we can do this?”
Marcus reached into his suit jacket pocket and pulled out a white card that had a pair of long numbers on it. “The half-million deposit needs to be made to this bank account within the next forty-eight hours. The moment that the deposit is cleared, you’ll receive an email with the time and location.”
Jude took the card and yawned as he stretched his hand up and over his shoulder, waving the card at Snow. “Here. Take care of this,” he mumbled carelessly. “I want it done before I’m out of my shower.”
“Yes, sir,” Snow murmured, tucking the card away in his jacket pocket.
Jude rose from his chair, straightening his jacket. Marcus rose as well. “I’m very sorry for the confusion, sir,” Marcus continued
“I just hope the other business isn’t such a fucking headache,” Jude muttered, leading the way out of the room.
“Left,” Snow whispered the second Jude stepped into the doorway, directing him away from the main staircase. They continued wordlessly down the hall to a back staircase that would have been a servants’ path back when the building had been occupied by the Thompson family decades ago. Snow wanted to shove Jude against the wall right there on the stairs and kiss him, he was so damn impressed by the man’s performance, but he kept his hands to himself. They had to get the hell out of there before their luck ran out.
At the bottom of the stairs, they paused for a second. To the left, the hall led back to the front door, while the right led deeper into the house. Snow was sure there had to be a back exit, but he didn’t have a clue as to where it was and he wasn’t excited about the idea of fumbling around the house until they did locate it. Unfortunately, a broad shouldered guard was briskly heading in their direction with a frown cutting across his already ugly face.
“Right,” Snow ground out between clenched teeth, directing Jude to head in the opposite direction of the guard. He could pray that the gua
rd wasn’t looking for them, but his hopes weren’t high.
“Hey! You two!” the guard barked in a low voice as if he still trying to avoid disturbing the other guests. Snow kept them moving, searching for what might be an empty room to duck into because there was little room to maneuver in the narrow halls.
A heavy hand slapped down on Snow’s shoulder and he didn’t even hesitate. Spinning around, he slammed the leather folio still clutched in his right hand into the man’s throat. He gasped and instinctively bent forward, choking for air against the pain of his wounded windpipe. Snow slipped behind him, wrapping his arm around the man’s throat while locking his hand on his opposite arm. With careful, steady pressure to key arteries in his neck, Snow cut off both blood and oxygen. The guard struggled against Snow’s hold, but there was no getting free. Snow closed his eyes, straining to hear any footsteps approaching, any voices raised in alarm, while counting each second. If anyone happened upon them at that moment, they were fucked. Snow still had Rowe’s gun tucked in the back of his pants, but he was one person against at least two dozen security guards, all armed well enough to subdue a small village.
Four seconds was all it took to knock out the guard, leaving him hanging limp in Snow’s arms. Relief that they remained undiscovered hit Snow so hard that his body shook for a second and he struggled to unlock his hold.
“Here!” Jude said in a low, harsh voice.
Snow’s head jerked up to find Jude holding open a door marked MEN’S just a few feet down from where they stood. With help from Jude, they silently placed the unconscious guard in the bathroom and shut the door.
“Do you know where the back exit is?” Snow asked. He carefully straightened his tie and smoothed a hand through his hair.
Jude frowned. “Just the one in the main concert hall and I’m sure we’d have to pass a hell of a lot more security between here and there.”
Snow looked over his shoulder, down the hall toward the front door. There were no other guards in sight and no one had looked out of the rooms at the noise they had made. Turning back to Jude, Snow smirked. “I guess we go out the front door.”
Jude rolled his eyes and motioned for Snow to precede him down the hall. He took a deep breath, smoothed his hands down his jacket to settle it one last time before forcing himself to casually walk down the hall and to the front door. The young man looked a little confused that they seemed to be leaving so soon after arriving, but he said nothing as he pushed open the door for both Jude and Snow while accepting the leather folio back from Jude.
They made it down the long concrete stairs to the sidewalk. No one raised an additional alarm or shot at them. And they walked out with some great information. Rowe’s hacker would be able to do something with this and it would get them one step closer to Gratton.
Chapter 9
Snow glanced at Jude once he’d pulled into the small back lot behind the shops and parked. Moonlight streamed through the windshield, bathing Jude in enough light to show Snow that he hadn’t calmed down during the drive. He sat still, silent, and stiff, his hands fisted in his lap. He hadn’t said a word other than his clipped, “Just take me home” when they’d reached Snow’s Lexus.
Now, he abruptly turned, his lips in an angry snarl as he shook his head. “You’re coming inside. I have questions.”
Snow stared at him silently. He owed the man some kind of explanation for tonight, but he acted like he had a right to more than that and that pissed Snow off.
And kind of intrigued him, too.
Damn, Jude was a walking contradiction. Most of the time, he seemed good natured, with this hassle-free air about him at the hospital during his down times. He had an engaging, wide smile and he showed hints of a great sense of humor. But Snow had seen him in action with patients and knew he was sharp under pressure. And strong. Damned strong and that got Snow hot like nothing else. Snow had once lost his train of thought after watching Jude tackle a patient tripping on PCP and beating the hell out of everyone in his path.
And now, he kept sharing these glimpses of dominance that were wreaking havoc with Snow’s common sense. Hot was too tame a word for what those hints made him feel.
What really messed with him was that sometimes, he reminded Snow of Lucas and he didn’t know how to compute that. Snow found his friend attractive but outside of one experience he’d give anything to forget, his relationship with Lucas had never been about sex. It was something completely different. Deeper even than that of brothers sometimes. Maybe it was because they’d met as children, he didn’t know. There really was no way to explain or understand it. And Snow was so fucking thankful for it, the thought of losing Lucas terrified him. Snow knew damn good and well that he leaned on the other man in ways a weaker man couldn’t have handled all these years. He knew that the darkness that lurked in his soul might have taken him out years ago if it hadn’t been for his bond with Lucas. It wasn’t something he was proud of. It just was.
And that was the reason he didn’t date beyond random hookups. But then…tonight… several times, he’d seen something in Jude that made him think this man could possibly handle him. Not just physically…but possibly, emotionally.
And that turned his crank like nothing he’d ever felt in his life. Jude made him want things he had no business wanting. Like a relationship.
He broke out into a cold sweat and quickly shoved that petrifying thought aside. Hell, he hadn’t even slept with the man.
Before hope rose like some monster wave from his past—back when he’d felt there was still something of himself worthy of true love and lifetime pledges—Snow shoved out of his car. He ground his teeth and followed Jude up the narrow stairwell to his apartment. He’d thank the man for putting himself in danger and helping him out. That was it. He’d then leave and not entertain any more thoughts of the happily ever after he’d given up on long ago. He’d hit a bar tomorrow night and find someone he could fuck without any of these annoying feelings creeping up on him.
Once inside the apartment, Jude threw his keys onto a small table by the door, shrugged out of his winter coat, then leaned against the wall. He stared at Snow, an angry flush darkening his neck under the dark stubble already filling out his face. He looked good with the scruff —dark and sexy. Snow had a sudden image of Jude rubbing that new beard growth down his stomach and over his balls and his body instantly responded. He swallowed back a groan and looked instead at Jude’s place.
It was kind of chilly and it reminded him a bit of the apartment he’d shared with Lucas when they’d first left the army. What a pit that had been. At least they’d had bedrooms. Everything here fit into one big room. It had brick walls, a kitchenette, and a small two-seater table next to the bed-slash-couch that was currently pulled out in the bed shape. A dark blue comforter and white sheets lay in disarray, and it was all too easy to picture Jude’s long, muscled form stretched out there.
The most interesting parts of the entire room were the shelves along one wall that held wooden boxes in all shapes and sizes. He looked back to find Jude still watching him.
The paramedic growled, ran his hands through his hair, his agitation obvious. “I honestly don’t know what the hell to feel or think right now, Frost.” He closed his eyes, leaned his head back. “I didn’t want you to go to that place alone, but seeing you there and…knowing that you…. That you’ve been there before and— ” He cursed, and pushed away from the wall. “I feel like I need a shower to wash away that place and I just can’t understand why you’d ever be mixed up in that.”
“You don’t know me,” Snow snapped as hot resentment and shame rushed into his throat.
Jude stepped closer, his nostrils flaring, his hands in fists at his side. “No, I don’t. I don’t know you and I’ve been trying like hell to get the chance. But now,” he paused, took a deep breath and the groan that came from his throat was deep with obvious disappointment. He gave Snow a bitter half smile. “I’m not so sure I want that chance.”
Snow
bared his teeth, his nails biting into his palms as anger, comforting and familiar, flowed into him and pushed out all the hurt trying to rise up inside him. The bitterness riding the flood shouldn’t have surprised him, but it did. He had somehow let this man in just enough to actually wound him. “You know what, Torres? Thanks for helping me tonight. I appreciate you having my back, but I don’t need this shit.” He turned to leave.
“Oh no you don’t.” Jude’s hand slammed into the door right beside Snow’s head. He stopped and barely kept his eyes from rolling into the back of his head when Jude pressed his body against the back of Snow’s. He crowded him into the door, his hard as nails dick poking into Snow’s ass.
“Feels a lot like you haven’t changed your mind,” Snow said between gritted teeth. Inwardly, he cursed when he couldn’t stop himself from rubbing just the slightest bit against that heat in his crease.
Jude, the strong fucker, turned him around, manhandling him like his own six-foot-three frame weighed nothing—and just like he had in the alley earlier, he put his hand on Snow’s throat. “God, you piss me off! And you make me so damn hot, I just want to top the hell out of you.” He pressed his body close. “I don’t know what to do with you and it’s tearing me up!”
The twinge of pain in Snow’s gut scared the shit out of him. “Then let me go.”
Jude stared at him, breath coming fast and hard. “I can’t.” His hand tightened on Snow’s throat. “God help me, I can’t. I can’t seem to shake this…need you raise in me. I want you, General.”
“Stop calling me that.”
“But it fits. I watch you at UC, always so bossy. You lord it all over everyone. So damn arrogant.” Jude leaned over and pressed his lips against the dimple in Snow’s chin. Then he kissed Snow’s lips, his anger a direct contrast to the softness of the kiss. “Orders barked out of such a sexy, sexy mouth. I’ve spent a hell of a lot of time imaging your mouth too full to spit out demands. Too full of my cock. But you know what? Right now, I don’t know if I’m even the right type. You seemed awfully at home at that disgusting place. I might be too old. Too much of a man for you.”
Shatter (Unbreakable Bonds Series Book 2) Page 10