Set Ablaze

by KC Burn

  “Are you a wrestler?” Jez asked tentatively.

  Paul scoffed and twisted his hip. “No. Check out the handcuffs.”

  “Handcuffs,” Tyson repeated. There were indeed plastic handcuffs hanging from Paul’s hip.

  “I’m sorry. I still don’t know.” Nothing about it screamed sexy cop. No cop he’d ever seen had worn pumpkin orange.

  “Sexy prison inmate. Honestly, you guys.”

  “You do know they don’t just hang handcuffs from prison jumpsuits, right?” Tyson asked, only slightly mockingly.

  Paul rolled his eyes. “Artistic license. Obviously.”

  Oh, obviously. “Paul, I don’t know what kind of prison porn you’ve been watching, but you look great.” Getting prison inmate out of that scrap of fabric and plastic was a bit of a stretch, but Paul was not going to have any problems getting under a new man tonight.

  Chapter 9

  HAYDEN SWUNG out of his truck feeling every one of his thirty-one years—times two. Working Halloween was the fucking worst. Nah. Maybe it was third-worst. The Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve were the worst.

  As much as he’d like to get Jez to model his Halloween costume—the selfie he’d sent last night from Tyson’s had been a total tease—Hayden was too beat. Maybe after a nap.

  He opened the door to find Fang lying near the door. Was it possible for a dog to look chagrined?

  “Hey there, little man. How’s my Fang?”

  Fang gave him a halfhearted butt wiggle and a grunting bark but didn’t move.

  “Are you okay?” Hayden’s heart started to thump. Had Jez chosen a vet yet? If not, what was the closest one? He didn’t bother taking off his shoes, just stepped fully into the entryway. “Jez? What’s wrong with Fang?”

  There wasn’t an answer. Frowning, he looked back outside, but Jez’s red Prius was nowhere in sight. He pulled out his phone and started pacing as it rang. Just when it went to voicemail, his heel skidded on something slippery.

  “Call me,” he barked into the phone before disconnecting and staring at the floor. A puddle. Was that pee?

  “Fang? Did you do this?”

  Fang whimpered, and Hayden couldn’t find it in his heart to be upset. At least he’d peed on the tile. Hayden kicked off his shoes—they’d need cleaning later—picked up Fang, and carried him right out to the backyard.

  Almost immediately, Fang squatted. After, he perked up, relieving Hayden. Poor pup just needed to go to the bathroom, he wasn’t sick. Hayden let out a sigh, amazed at the burst of adrenaline that concern had sent through his system.

  Now he just had to worry about Jez. He’d been planning to crash at Tyson’s last night, but Hayden had expected him home by now, if only because Fang couldn’t hold his bladder for so long.

  He checked his phone again while Fang frolicked, but the selfie of Jez in sailor garb was the last message he’d had.

  “Okay, buddy, let’s go inside and get you fed.” And get the pee cleaned up before it did anything permanent to the tile or his shoes.

  His phone rang as he was washing his hands after dealing with the pee. He wiped his hands quickly on the towel before grabbing the phone, frantic to answer before it went to voicemail.

  “Jez? Where are you?”

  “Funny you should ask that,” a voice that was not Jez replied.

  “Who is this?”

  “Marco, you idiot. Surely you have caller ID?”

  Hayden blinked, recognizing Marco’s voice now. “Oh. Yeah, sorry. Long night last night. I just got home.”

  “Well, buddy, it’s about to get longer.”

  Then it registered. Marco was a police officer, and he seemed to be aware Jez wasn’t home. The adrenaline spike he’d gotten from worrying about Fang returned with a vengeance. “Shit. Marco. Is Jez okay?”

  “Yeah, bud. He’s fine. In the sense that he’s alive and unhurt.”

  Hayden squinted as he processed those words. “And what other sense would he not be fine?”

  “He’s been arrested. I think it can be cleared up pretty quick, but you’re going to have to come to the station and fix this in person.”

  “Arrested? Why would you arrest him?”

  Marco snorted out a laugh. “I didn’t do it. I just got here, and you’re lucky I even noticed he’d been detained. He was arrested, well, breaking into your house.”

  “What? That doesn’t make sense.”

  “I just skimmed the report. He was drunk, lost his keys somewhere, decided to break in, and one of the neighbors called the cops.”

  “Did he get mugged or something? Where was his ID?”

  “Oh, he had ID, but it was a New York driver’s license. Didn’t have anything with your address, so the officer who responded arrested him. For B and E.”

  “Can’t you just tell them it’s a mistake?”

  “No can do, bud. It’s all official-like now. As the homeowner, you’re the one who’s going to have to fix this mess.”

  He didn’t know why Jez wouldn’t have called him when this all happened. Maybe it wouldn’t have had to get to the point of being all “official-like.” But he supposed getting arrested was a good reason for not being home. After filming started, he’d have to get used to Jez not being there when his shift ended, but this was a ridiculous test run.

  “I’ll be there in a few minutes.” At least he’d been arrested in Pasadena, so Hayden didn’t have far to go.

  “Be good, Fang, I’m going to get your daddy.”

  Fang wagged his little corkscrew tail before waddling upstairs.

  HAYDEN TEXTED Marco as soon as he arrived, and Marco met him at the door. Hayden waved and nodded to a number of officers he knew either from social events or from coming across them on the job, but how many of them knew why he was here? Obviously it was all some big misunderstanding, but that didn’t stop it from feeling like a walk of shame. Poor Jez. This would be a hundred times worse for him.

  Marco led him to a small room with a table, a couple of chairs, and some filing cabinets lurking in the corner.

  “Where’s Jez? Don’t I have to sign something?”

  “Sit down for a minute. I’ll get you the paperwork, but I wanted to talk to you about something first.”

  Now he had Hayden concerned. Again. At this rate, he was going to have adrenaline poisoning before he managed to get a nap. But he sat, because it would be the fastest way to spring Jez and get back home. One day this would be funny. He hoped.

  “Talk, Marco.”

  “How well do you know this guy? I mean, sure, he’s Miguel’s brother, but I hadn’t even heard that Miguel had a brother in New York until he was living with you.”

  “Is this an interrogation?” Hayden was incredulous. What the fuck was going on?

  “No, no. Sorry. One of the hazards of, well, interrogating people.”

  “Why do you want to know? I mean, I hadn’t seen him in years when he showed up, but he’s Miguel’s brother. I’ve known him since he was born. And although he was a gangly, awkward preteen the last time I saw him, there are enough similarities between that kid and the guy who showed up on my doorstep.” Even Miguel wouldn’t have faked that, some random guy pretending to be his brother.

  “Just, when they were running his information, a record of a protection order came back.”

  Hayden frowned. “Protection order.”

  “Restraining order.”

  “Huh. He told me he tried to file one against an ex-boyfriend but got laughed out of the police station. Would it have gone through without him knowing?”

  “No, man, I mean someone took out a restraining order against Jez.”

  Hayden started shaking his head before Marco had finished talking. “That can’t be right.”

  “I don’t know what to say. It’s public record. Guy named Jayson Bain. It has nothing to do with this arrest, and as long as you sign the appropriate paperwork, the arrest will all go away. But this restraining order worries me a bit. If Jez is a stalker,
well, they don’t tend to change their stripes. And it doesn’t take much to get one fixated. Be careful. Don’t get too involved with him.”

  Right. A little late for that. He’d need to talk to Jez about it, but when? Jez wouldn’t be happy, at all, about more doubts directed at him. But the coincidence with the guy Jez told him about and the one who’d taken out the restraining order both being named Jayson? That was a little too much to ignore.

  Whatever had happened, it seemed like Jez was over the relationship with Jayson, and Hayden didn’t see anything scary about Jez. In fact, being with Jez was turning out to be the least scary thing he’d ever done. Just like the arrest for breaking and entering, the restraining order must be some sort of colossal misunderstanding.

  “I’ll keep your advice in mind. Where’s the paperwork I have to sign?”

  Marco gave him a stern cop stare like he could hear Hayden’s thoughts and that he wasn’t taking the whole thing seriously. He was, but Marco was acting like Jez was one step from being a serial killer. Whatever a typical “stalker” was, Jez wasn’t it. There was a good explanation for this, Hayden was absolutely certain.

  “I’ll go get it.”

  The paperwork took far longer than he expected, but finally Marco led him to an interview room. Hayden opened it to find Jez, still wearing his costume, a little worse for wear, slumped in a chair, elbows on the table, head resting in his palms.

  “Hey,” Hayden said softly. Jez jolted to attention and looked at him. His eyes were bloodshot, his color not good, and smudged eyeliner gave him a distinct “raccoon with a hangover” look. Scratch that, a seafaring raccoon with a hangover. Hayden couldn’t help himself.

  “C’mere.” He held his arms out, and Jez leaped at him, wrapping his arms tightly around Hayden’s waist.

  Holding him close, he let Jez shake and sob. Mistake or no, this had to have been scary. Hayden would have been scared, spending the night in jail. He stroked Jez’s back and made soothing noises. Once they got home, he’d figure out what had happened. For now, all that mattered was that Jez was coming home with him.

  AS SOON as they got home, Fang nearly levitated in his joy at seeing Jez. Jez sniffled and apologized to the pup in baby talk, and then Hayden sent Jez upstairs to shower while he heated up some minestrone soup and made sandwiches—grilled cheese for him, hummus and cucumber for Jez.

  His eyes were practically grainy with exhaustion, but they’d both sleep better once Jez had told his story. Hayden dashed upstairs to change into sweatpants and was back in the kitchen, dishing up lunch, long before Jez returned, clean, damp, and wearing pajamas.

  Hayden didn’t begrudge him one ounce of hot water.

  They ate in focused silence at the kitchen table before Hayden ushered them into the den. He needed Jez in his arms every bit as much as he suspected Jez needed to be there.

  If it weren’t for the limb-deadening exhaustion, Hayden would take them up to bed, but the second he was horizontal, he’d be out cold. Marco hadn’t been kidding when he’d said Hayden’s day was gonna be long.

  Hayden tucked Jez into his side—he didn’t dare even lie down.

  “So…,” Hayden prompted.

  A gusty sigh erupted from Jez. “I am so, so sorry. I can’t believe everything went so wrong.”

  “What the hell happened?”

  “Fuck. I mean, it was so fucked-up I hardly know how to begin.”

  “Just start somewhere.”

  “My costume had only one tiny pocket, and I was planning to crash at Tyson’s. Paul wasn’t sure—he wanted to hook up, maybe a couple of times, so he didn’t know if he was going back to Tyson’s, but I definitely was.”

  Hayden had no idea where Jez was going with this, but then, he couldn’t envision any scenario that ended with Jez getting arrested for trying to break into his house.

  “My car was at Tyson’s, and we weren’t going to drive to the bar, so I left my keys with my wallet and change of clothes at Ty’s. I only brought my ID, my phone, and a bit of cash for drinks. But, see, Tyson and I have the same phone, and at some point during the night, we accidentally swapped. Tyson hadn’t been planning to hook up, but he did, and just after midnight I found myself tipsy, tired, and alone. So I decided to leave. Tyson had told me that if we got separated for whatever reason, I could just head back to his place and let myself in with the key in the fake rock by his door.”

  So far, Hayden was following. “And why didn’t you go there?”

  “Well, I told you I had Tyson’s phone. I was drunk, you realize. Fortunately his phone wasn’t locked, so I was able to call an Uber, but I couldn’t remember his address. I had the bright idea that I would just come home and pick my car up in the morning. Sounded great, but after the Uber left, I realized I didn’t have any keys. And I still didn’t remember Tyson’s address. I tried calling my own phone, but no one answered. And I was just too out of it to try and figure out on Tyson’s phone where the fuck he lived.”

  “And breaking in was the answer?”

  Jez lifted a shoulder in a halfhearted shrug. “I couldn’t remember your number, so I couldn’t call you. And Fang had a little accident in the bedroom, so I’d opened the window. I was pretty certain that the window was still open, and I was also certain I could hoist myself up to the roof of the porch, then use that to walk over to the bedroom window.”

  And Hayden saw precisely when this little caper had veered out of control. “And that’s when you got caught?”

  “More or less. It took me… a large number of attempts to get on top of the porch, and I don’t think I was particularly quiet. It never occurred to me that the optics of the thing were incredibly damning.”

  “They sure were. I guess it wouldn’t hurt to let the neighbors know you live here now.”

  “Ha. Maybe.” Jez sounded a bit more like himself. “Anyway, I guess you know the rest. I tried to explain I lived here, but without any proof, and no one I could call on Tyson’s phone who could vouch for me, the cop booked me.”

  “Well, I guess we can’t blame him for doing his job. I’m just glad you’re okay.” Because the night could have gone far worse. “Did you at least have a good time?”

  “I did. It would have been more fun if you’d been there.”

  Hayden smiled and gave Jez a little kiss. “Next time.”

  “Yeah. Next time. Paul and Tyson want to meet you, by the way. I said maybe we could have a barbecue or something?”

  “We’ll definitely plan something. Maybe have Kevin and Maria over. Your brother. Make it a bit of a party.”

  Jez hugged him. “Sounds like fun.”

  It did. Hayden was looking forward to hosting a party with his boyfriend. And there would be no sports. Not that Hayden was swearing off sports—far from it. But he didn’t want to backslide into the types of caveman events he’d had before.

  “Was your night as bad as you thought it would be?” Jez’s voice had a sleepy note, and if they weren’t careful, they’d pass out down here.

  “It was busy, sure, but it was coming home finding a Fang puddle and you not here that made things really bad.”

  “I’m so sorry. I can’t apologize enough.”

  “No need. It was one of those things. I mean, your judgment was maybe a little suspect, but not bad enough you deserved a night in jail.”

  Jez yawned loudly.

  “Well, I’m ready for a nap, and I think you didn’t get much sleep either.”

  A bitter laugh told Hayden all he needed to know. They got up from the couch, only to hear the faint sounds of “You Think You’re a Man” by Divine.

  “That’s Tyson’s phone.” Jez dashed to the table in the front hall where they’d left it. “It’s Paul.” Jez was positively gleeful.

  “Hello? Oh, hey, Tyson.”

  Hayden waited. Paul must have ended up back at Tyson’s the way Jez should have.

  “Yeah, I ended up going home instead.” Jez smiled at Hayden. “Yes, I know. It’s a long story, and
I’m about ready to crash. I don’t need my stuff until tomorrow. Are you okay to wait until then to swap phones?”

  There was another slight pause.

  “What? You’ve got to be kidding me.”

  Hayden frowned. What else could have happened last night?

  “Thanks. I’ll be over as soon as I can.”

  Jez disconnected the call and grimaced. “So, how do you feel about postponing the nap?”

  God no. “Like maybe I want to cry? Why, what can’t wait until tomorrow?”

  “Tyson brought a hookup home. He wasn’t awake when the guy left, but he thinks the guy slashed my tires.”

  Lack of sleep was making Hayden delirious. “Are you telling me the tires on your car are slashed? Why does Tyson think his hookup did it?”

  “Dunno. Said his neighbors are good people and he didn’t even know the guy’s name. Might have taken his phone number, except he didn’t have his own phone, so there’s not even that lead. I need to get over there and get the car towed or something. Do you think I should call the police?”

  “Probably nothing they can do to catch whoever did it, but I’ll drive you over there and we can call Marco while we’re waiting for the tow truck.”

  “You know, I can Uber over. I know you’re exhausted and this wasn’t what you wanted to do with your day.”

  “Nope. I may not know much about relationships, but I’m betting a good boyfriend would go with you, despite turning into a zombie from lack of sleep.”

  Jez smiled. “You’re a good man, Hayden. I’m glad we found each other.”

  “Me too.” Bringing up the restraining order was pointless. Jez had too much on his plate right now, and Hayden didn’t believe it was an issue anyway. “Hey, on the plus side, this will end up being a super memorable Halloween.”

  “Too true. Right, well, let’s get changed and head out. The sooner it’s done, the sooner we can sleep.”

  Jez led the way upstairs, his butt every bit as mesmerizing in pajamas as it was in jeans. Hayden would have to make sure not to even look at the bed, or his chivalrous resolve to keep Jez company would fall by the wayside as he dove into the pillowy goodness of his mattress.