by Eden Winters
Walter didn’t pause before answering, “The first time I saw you together in a conference room.”
Lucky’s jaw dropped. That couldn’t be right. “We weren’t involved then. We’d just met. He thought I was an asshole, and I thought he was a pampered mama’s boy.”
Walter grinned. “Yet the sparks flew. I must admit, I enjoyed the show, even if I couldn’t let on.”
“Why couldn’t you? You could’ve saved us from worrying.”
“Because then you wouldn’t have worked so hard at your relationship. Also, I had to comb the regulations to ensure there were no repercussions.” Moose butted his hand. Walter resumed the ear rubbing.
“Well, I appreciate that. Though it would’ve been nice to know how you felt.” All the time he’d spent, wondering and worrying about him and Bo getting found out, all the precautions they’d taken. For nothing?
“Now, Lucky, you don’t expect me to play favorites among my team, do you?” Walter raised one bushy eyebrow.
“No. Not you.” Damn it.
“Yet I’m about to.”
“What?”
“Please hear me out before you say anything. I understand my recent medical problems were induced, but it’s made me face reality. I’m not a young man. I’m past retirement age, and well, it’s time for me to pass the torch.”
“Nah, you got a lot of good years left. What will we do without you?” Oh, God. The SNB without Walter wouldn’t be the same. Nor would Lucky.
“Yes, and I’d like to spend those years puttering around the house, getting in my wife’s way. Or maybe seeing the world. I’ve been invited to visit Nice. I’m told it’s beautiful this time of year.”
Lucky grimaced. Visiting Nice meant visiting Victor. Between Walter and Victor, Lucky had no secrets. “If all that hadn’t happened, would you have allowed O’Donoghue to replace you?”
“I’ll be honest with you. O’Donoghue wasn’t my first choice, and without urging from the powers that be, I’d never have agreed to name him my successor.”
“Why not?” After the way Walter had sung the man’s praises?
“Because my best agent didn’t trust him, and I’ve learned to pay attention to his instincts.”
“Then who would you have named?” It had better not be Keith, uneasy truce or no.
“You, Lucky. You were my first choice.”
What the fuck? Oooo-kay. Not what Lucky expected. He rubbed at his neck, his insides twisting together like a bucketful of snakes. “No disrespect, Boss, but me wearing a suit and tie? Spending all day in a conference room? Besides, the rest of the team would go ape shit.” Lucky shuddered. Please let Walter not insist, please, please, please.
Walter shrugged. “Maybe they would, maybe they wouldn’t, but in the end, they’d accept my choice and they’d respect you for the job you would have done.”
“Would have done?” Lucky didn’t let out a relieved breath yet, but some of his anxiety lifted.
“Yes. Though I would love to see you fill my shoes, it’s not your way and not how you operate. After seeing the fine job you did with Bo and Loretta Johnson, you’re too valuable to the department as a trainer to lose.”
Whew! “Please tell me you’re not planning on naming Keith.” Keith would likely make Lucky’s life a living hell. But he’d better not mess with Bo or Johnson.
“Actually, he and I had a very enlightening talk the other day.”
Lucky pictured his career swirling down the drain. “You know me and him don’t get along.”
“Yes, I do. I also know he passed work off on others that he should have done himself. Not the action of a good leader. Yet he’s bright enough to realize he’d be unpopular and out of his depth. He made a suggestion that, I must admit, has a lot of merit.”
No telling who the little asswipe recommended, though apprehension swept through him. Something Keith said the night he’d invaded Lisa’s house. “Who?”
“A man who’s made his mark in the department and proven himself time after time. He’s smart, has impeccable integrity, and best of all, he’s managed to endear himself to the department without compromising his impartiality, mostly.” Walter had spoken so highly of Bo all those years ago, the day Bo and Lucky met.
A sinking feeling hit Lucky’s stomach. “Who?”
“A remarkable young agent named William Schollenberger. I believe you know him.” In all the years Lucky’d known Walter, he’d never witnessed such a playful smile. ‘Bout time the boss relaxed some.
But Bo? Job pressures. Dealing with suit and tie types? “He’s not ready.”
“No, he’s not. I plan to spend the next year grooming him. Once he’s in place and running the show, I’m retiring. Jameson has also committed himself to Bo’s training. He’ll be in good hands.”
Lucky still didn’t trust O’Donoghue and would never forgive him, but the man wasn’t likely to piss off Victor. Or Walter. “What about him and me?”
“What about the two of you?”
“We’re a couple.” He’d love to say, “Married couple.” Maybe one day. “We can’t work in the same department, can we?”
“No, you can’t, and you won’t. If he accepts the position, Bo will head the Department of Diversion Prevention and Control, and you’ll lead the Southeastern Narcotics Bureau’s training department. You’ll both answer to my current superior, who mostly stays on the eighth floor and seldom makes an appearance.”
Bo? And Lucky? In upper management? “What about…”
“I’m afraid that accepting the job will put an end to Bo’s undercover career, although he might still choose to act as handler from time to time to keep his skills sharp. Your training duties may occasionally require you to play an undercover role, but you’ll be home most nights.” Walter hid a grin by turning and ruffling Moose’s ear. “Who’s a good dog?”
If something sounded too good to be true… “What about the classroom part? And who’ll head up the undercovers? We got a lot of newbies wandering around.”
“I’ve read your reports on Loretta Johnson. I believe it’s time to see what she’s capable of. I’ve received more transfer requests from other branches of the bureau. Not to mention resumes from current members of the Atlanta police department. We’ll get along just fine.”
Lucky fought not to smile and give too much away. Boss offered him one sweet deal. “You’ve got everything all figured out, don’t you?”
“Don’t I always? Do you think Bo will agree?”
Being home at night? Not getting shot at? A vision flashed through Lucky’s mind of Bo, carrying a tiny squirming bundle into the unused nursery in their home, tucking a child—their child—into bed. Almost brought tears to his eyes. “He’ll agree. If for no other reason than you asked.” Lucky wasn’t above begging. Anything to see his man safe and sound.
“Then I believe it’s settled.” Walter gave Moose a final pat. “Now, if you’ll excuse me. I’ve noticed Loretta hovering around the door. I believe she wants to talk to you.”
Walter slid the door open and stepped inside the house. “Hello, Loretta. He’s all yours.”
Oh shit. Lucky had been instrumental in putting her lover in jail. Since then, she’d never once mentioned Phillip or his fate, had never acted any differently toward Lucky.
Sooner or later they had to talk.
Maybe he should warn Bo to keep an eye on the back deck in case of violence. Lucky’s weak knees made sitting down a rational decision.
Johnson plopped down into the chair next to him. Moose headbutted her hand. Fickle beast. He’d trained her as well as he had Walter, only Rett had nice long fingernails to scratch beneath Moose’s fur.
“Hi, Johnson.”
The air dropped ten degrees from her frigid tone. “Oh, so it’s Johnson again, is it?” She half-rose from the chair.
“What? Oh, no! Sorry, Rett. Got a lot going on in my head. Take a load off. What you got on your mind?” Let it not be punching him out for her boyfriend’s ar
rest.
“I just wanted to say that you did the right thing.” She propped her elbows on the chair arms. Moose abandoned her for Lucky.
“On?”
“It doesn’t matter if he was coerced or blindly following orders. The truth is, Phillip broke the law. Like it or not, I’m sworn to uphold those same laws.” Rett’s voice remained flat, emotionless.
At what cost? “He didn’t take a plea deal, so he’ll go to trial.” A trial hadn’t helped Lucky’s case any. He’d gotten ten years.
“He might wriggle free yet.” She closed her eyes, pulled in a deep breath, and whooshed it out. “His parents promised to hire the best attorneys they can find. If money can bribe Lady Justice, he won’t serve a day. He’s under house arrest and can’t leave the state.”
“I have a feeling there’s a ‘but’ or ‘and’ coming.”
Her weak smile couldn’t have fooled anybody. “He had to agree to go back to law school.”
“Doesn’t sound too bad to me, if they’re paying, and if he’ll be able to get past the bar with this on his record.” He’d also need to pull his grades up one hell of lot since the last time he’d tried higher education—if he found a decent school to accept him.
“Oh, they’re paying all right. If he isn’t convicted, it’ll be like nothing happened, as far as the bar is concerned.” Rett let out a breathy, humorless laugh. “I should’ve known better than to get involved with a man so far out of my league.”
Phillip? Out of her league? Never! “What the hell? If anything, you’re out of his.”
Rett patted the hand Lucky rested on Moose’s head. “Thanks, but I’ll never be the debutante his parents want for him.”
“Nope, you’re one hell of a lot better.” Why she stayed with such a loser as long as she had was anybody’s guess. The bastard was a fucking criminal, and Rett was class act enough to shoot her former lover to protect her kid.
A brief smile flitted over her lips. “Thank you for saying so, but his folks don’t agree. Another condition Mommy and Daddy put on helping him is that he can’t see me again.” She snorted. “His mother took great pleasure in telling me so. He didn’t even say goodbye.”
“Why that sonofa…”
Rett flopped against the back of her chair, staring at her hands as she twisted them together in her lap. “Wanna hear the stupid part?”
Anything dealing with a man dumb enough to dump Rett couldn’t get much stupider, could it?
She plowed on, not waiting for an answer. “The stupid part is that I knew I was only asking for trouble the first time I had drinks with him at the hotel when we both came here for training. Knew I should never have invited him up to my room. Knew with every kiss and—” she cut her eyes toward Lucky— “everything else, that we were riding a bus going nowhere.”
“Been there. Done that.” Usually by Lucky’s choosing.
Rett nodded and gave a sniffle. “Me too. Enough to have known better. But noooooo! I had to go and get involved with him, even though his parents didn’t like me.”
“What about your parents? What did they think of him?”
She gave him an “oh, please” face. “My mama said she done raised me right and trusts me to make my own decisions. She’s still there to help me pick up the pieces if things don’t work out.”
Sounded a lot like Lucky’s mother.
“Anyway, every time we went out I planned to break things off. I mean, he’s younger than me, comes from a whole different world, and it’d be hard for him to be a father-figure to my baby when, most days, Rone acts more mature.”
“You didn’t send him packing.”
Rett shook her head and stretched her legs out in front of her. “Here’s the reeeeeeeally stupid part. Even though my head said he was bad news, my heart…”
One moment they sat side by side. The next Lucky held an armful of weeping woman. “Oh, God, Lucky. It hurts. It hurts so damned much!”
Oh shit. He’d never been much good around people once the waterworks started. He hugged her, whispered, “It’s gonna be all right,” and ran a hand up and down her back like he’d seen his mother do to distressed folks back home.
His heart pounded. What could he do? What could he say? What would Bo do?
Bo’s voice answered in his head, “You don’t have to do or say anything. Just be there.”
Somewhere, mid-stroke, Lucky’s actions were no longer mimicked from his mother, nor the words taken from Bo. They were Lucky’s, soothing a friend.
“Yeah, we’re both gonna be all right.”
Epilogue
Lucky held a twenty-gallon trash bag in one hand, working his way through a living room that, no matter how hard he and Bo tried, never seemed to stay clean. Last night’s party hadn’t helped.
Bo hauled in an overflowing clothes basket and sank down on the couch. He folded a T-shirt with more skill than Lucky could have managed. Before Bo he’d simply tossed clothes into a drawer, considering wrinkles a given.
“Where’s Charlotte and Ty?” Lucky asked.
“Shopping.” Bo waggled his eyebrows. “Ty needed more school supplies.”
Lucky stopped mid-motion, as did Bo. Their eyes met and held.
Lucky dropped the trash bag, Bo tossed the T-shirt to the couch, and they both darted toward the bedroom.
“How long you reckon we got?” Lucky hopped on one foot while removing a shoe.
“All the time we need. I told Charlotte we’d meet them for lunch, then go test drive trucks.”
The Durango. May it rest in pieces.
T-shirts and shorts went flying, leaving Bo in Lucky’s preferred state: nekkid.
All the better when no clothes came between them. Lucky latched on to his favorite human with both hands on broad shoulders, rising up on his toes and melding his mouth with Bo’s.
Bo met Lucky’s challenge with brutal intensity, cock rising against Lucky’s stomach. Lucky shoved into Bo’s firm thigh, breathing in soap, fabric softener, and Bo.
He skated his fingers up Bo’s arms, the skin beneath his fingertips prickling with chill bumps. Their height difference put him at a disadvantage, so he stepped forward, crowding Bo into taking a step back, then another, until the bed stopped their progress.
Lucky grabbed Bo’s shoulders, toppled them over, then climbed on top of him to continue ravishing his mouth.
Bo gripped Lucky’s ass, urging him to move, to grind their erections together.
Oh, how Lucky loved the way Bo thought.
Grunts, groans, and the occasional “Oh, my God!” escaped them as they rutted together, a slight sheen of sweat loosening Lucky’s grip.
Bo bucked beneath him, wrapped a hand around their cocks and whimpered into Lucky’s mouth.
He’d never last. Given Bo’s frantic movements and moans, he and Lucky were on a collision course.
He licked, sucked, and bit Bo’s shoulders and neck, returning to his mouth again and again. Harder, faster. Nothing else existed in the world, just Lucky and Bo and the amazing brush of skin against skin, their mingled scents, the rightness of them together.
Tightness in Lucky’s groin grew and grew, becoming too much to hold back. Wrapping a hand around Bo’s and adjusting the rhythm, he shouted, “Ahh…,” spattering cum across Bo’s stomach.
Lucky scuttled backward on the bed, batted away Bo’s hand, and took Bo deep. Bo bowed off the bed, burying his fingers in Lucky’s hair, and pulsed down Lucky’s throat.
Lucky lay with his head on Bo’s thigh, too content to move.
“C’mon up here.” Bo patted the mattress beside him.
“Do I have to? I’m happy right here.” Besides, his position on Bo’s thigh gave Lucky an upfront and personal look at Bo’s softening cock, should it happen to rise again and need more attention.
“I can’t hold you if you’re down there.”
If Bo wanted to hold him, Lucky wouldn’t pass up the opportunity. Summoning strength, he squirmed up the bed and rested his head
on Bo’s shoulder.
Bo wrapped an arm around him.
Lucky had begun to drift off into a sated doze when Bo said, “You know we have to get up, don’t you? The house is still a mess.”
“You rounded up your lube stash, didn’t you?”
“Yup. I no longer keep one under the couch, don’t think anyone will go in the garage or car, and I’m not carrying packets in my pockets.”
Dang. Bo stayed prepared.
Lucky raised up far enough to take in the drying cum on Bo’s stomach. “We’re kind of a mess too.”
“Us first, then the house.”
Taking a deep breath, heart thudding, Lucky began a conversation he’d been meaning to have ever since things had returned to normal, or as normal as their lives got.
“You know, if we ever have kids, we’ll be picking up after ‘em, so extra housework, they might get mouthy, and get into trouble.” If Bo had witnessed Lucky’s teenaged years, he’d swear off kids forever.
True to form, Bo went into lecture mode. “That’s all part of being a parent, but in the end there’s this wonderful person you get to raise and watch as they go on to live their own life. You have to be there for the bad times and the good. I think it’ll be worth it, don’t you?” Bo jostled Lucky’s head against his arm.
Oh? Lucky’s heart pounded harder. “Yeah. Think you’d want to raise kids with a no-account ex-con like me?”
Bo rolled toward Lucky and lifted his chin with two fingers until their eyes met. “There’s no one else in this world I’d rather raise kids with.”
If Lucky’s heart kicked any harder it’d break out of his chest. “Charlotte talked to me a while back—”
“I know.”
What? Lucky sat up, staring down at Bo. “You know? How?”
A sheepish grin lit Bo’s face. “She talked to me too.”
“She did? Why didn’t you tell me?” Why didn’t she tell Lucky, more importantly?
Bo placed his warm palm against Lucky’s cheek. “Because I know how I felt about the matter, but if I’d mentioned it to you first, I worried you’d run. I needed to bide my time and wait for you to make the suggestion.”