Gerald straightened, his cock going hard. Bur shook his head.
“This first, and then we mess up our own sheets.”
They finished making the bed.
“Why can’t you come with us to the show?” Gerald asked again.
“We have meetings about the center all day. So we have to do our usual daily walk-through of the construction at night.”
Gerald nodded. Bur had told him before, but Gerald still didn’t like it. Bur, his brothers, and the heads of the center had all been doing walk-throughs so they could make sure the project finished in the new timeframe. They split up the building, checking everything, and then meeting to compare notes. Gerald had been there more than once and had trailed Bur as he did the walk-through. He knew it took them time to get through the building, then discuss it.
“But you’re going to try and make it for dinner, right?” Gerald moved to his side of the bed.
The plan was for them to treat the ladies to dinner at Finley’s. They had been back to the club a few times. Although Bur hadn’t performed there again, Sampson still insisted on them not paying. Bur and Sampson had debated about it, and Bur had convinced Sampson to let him use some of his connections to get better-recognized bands to play at the club. They also discussed some of the bands waiting for their big break that currently played at the club. Bur had offered to come by and listen to them, and if there were any he thought had talent, he’d make arrangements so they would get heard. It was his way of paying it forward for what Shamus had done for TrebleBur. Sampson had agreed. There was also talk that once the rest of TrebleBur arrived, they might perform at the club. Nothing for that had been set up yet.
“Yes. You all might have to start without me, but I’ll be there.”
They walked toward the door. Gerald flipped down the light switch and followed Bur out.
“Hey. You’re going the wrong way,” Gerald said.
“Am I? I think we should see how many rooms we can fuck in now, since with your guest here, we can’t.”
“Don’t be sure of that. Lisa would watch. Probably get some popcorn.” Gerald laughed.
“I think I’m going to like her.” Bur chuckled.
“You all will get along fine. But no ganging up on me.” Gerald followed him.
“No promises. Meet you in the office.” Bur took off at a run.
“Cheater.” Gerald chased him.
“SNEAK,” BUR teased, poking Lisa in the shoulder.
“What? I wanted that painting for my house.” She shrugged.
“But using your wiles to con that poor salesman into giving it to you at such a large discount is bad.”
“Hey. You have to use what you got.” Lisa sighed, then said, “Not like I’m finding a house that I want. The picture will just be put into storage with the rest of my things.”
“Still no luck? Maybe I can build you one,” Bur said.
“Sugar daddy.” She leaned against him.
Bur hugged her, juggling the covered canvas he held. He was serious. He actually liked Gerald’s ex-fiancée. In the two weeks he’d gotten to know her, they had bonded. She had a wacky sense of humor, and most importantly, she could meet his potty mouth curse for curse. They had fun teasing Gerald with it. What Gerald had feared came true. They had ganged up on him. Although Lisa was staying at Gerald’s, she didn’t make herself intrusive to their time together. Bur still split his time between Harper’s and Gerald’s. The nights they stayed at Harper’s were getting fewer and fewer.
“If you want a house, I’d build it for you. Tell me where you want it to be located.”
Lisa stopped, pulling him to a stop too. Bur faced her.
“No, Bur. You’re very sweet to say so, but no.” Lisa shook her head.
He nodded, agreeing. Mentally, he decided to make some calls. He already had an idea of the type of house she liked. She’d mentioned Gerald’s was similar to what she was looking for, and she liked the neighborhood. He’d check to see if there were any lots there to buy.
“Come on. I want to make it to Gerald’s before he does. Need to hide this.” Bur lifted the wrapped painting.
“Am I going to get to see what it is?” Lisa asked.
“You already have.” Bur smirked.
“What?”
Bur turned away, laughing. He knocked into someone.
“Whoops. Sorry.” He moved back.
Fingers gripped his arm. “Wilbur, we’ve been looking for you.”
“You were always such a pretty child.” Another voice spoke.
Chills went up his spine. Bur focused on the man he’d hoped never to see again, then the woman he’d hoped the same thing about. Bur jerked away. He turned to Lisa and grabbed her.
“Come on.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” the man hissed, then put a hand on Bur’s shoulder.
Lisa’s eyes were wide. Bur shoved the painting at her, then pivoted. He led with his fist. The man stumbled back, then straightened.
“Is that any way to treat family, Wilbur?” The man smiled jovially.
In his eyes, Bur saw the truth. Hatred and smugness were there.
“You’re not my family. Don’t ever touch me again.” Bur breathed deep.
He needed to get away from them. Bur turned to Lisa. A hand dropped on his shoulder again.
“Wil—”
Bur had warned him. He turned again, and this time, he kicked out. He hit him on the side of the knee. Bur smiled as he felt it connect and the knee give. He wasn’t holding back. The man screamed, then collapsed. Bur stepped over him and clenched his fist. He lifted it and punched down. His shoulder was caught, and he was dragged back. Bur threw a punch with his other hand. It was caught, and he was spun into a bigger frame. Bur gasped as he recognized the familiar face.
“Cal—”
“Time for greeting later. Move, Bur.” Calhoun Buchanan, his friend and head of security, pulled him along. He stopped and grabbed Lisa’s arm, then pulled them both.
“Hey, who the hell are you?” Lisa asked.
“Stop struggling, I don’t want to deck a woman, but I will if I have to.”
“I’ll hit you back,” Lisa stated.
“Spitfire.” Cal laughed.
“Neanderthal.”
“If you were male, I’d take that as a challenge,” Cal retorted.
“Fu—”
“Lisa, it’s okay. This is Calhoun Buchanan.” Bur didn’t glance at her, instead focused on moving one foot in front of the other.
“Oh, the guitar player for your group,” Lisa said.
“We’re retired. I handle the security for our company now,” Cal said.
“What are you doing here, Cal? I thought you were still in England.” Bur met his green eyes.
“Been in America for a few weeks. Came to headhunt for the security we need in place when we move here. Arrived in Mapson a few days ago, and was getting the lay of the land.”
“You’ve been following me,” Bur accused.
“Yeah. That’s my job. Although someone ran off without a by-your-leave. It’s a good thing too,” Cal stated.
Bur didn’t even have to ask what he meant. Cal opened the door to an SUV.
“My car.”
“I’ll get it later. We need to get you out of here and someplace else before the shit storm hits,” Cal said.
“I’m not sorry,” Bur said.
“If you were, I’d deck you myself. But there was a crowd, and people took pictures. It’s only a matter of time before they piece together who you are.”
Bur groaned. He knew it would be a mess, but he didn’t care. He got in. Cal closed the door, and moments later, Lisa entered in the back seat. Cal opened the back and slid in the painting, closed it, then came and got in. In moments, he had them on their way.
“Bur, are you okay? Who is that man?”
“I’m fine.” Bur clenched his fist, biting his lip.
He started to shake.
“Like hell you�
��re okay,” Cal growled.
Bur ignored him, looking out the window.
“I’ve got it, Bur. Where do you want me to take you?”
“Gerald’s. I need to go to Gerald,” he said hollowly.
“I’ll call him,” Lisa said.
“I’m going to take care of the rest. Give me your cell.”
Bur handed it over.
“Lisa, call his brothers. Tell them to meet us at Gerald’s. Make sure to tell Del to bring the twins. They need to be protected,” Cal said.
“What? What’s going on? Who were those people?” Lisa demanded.
“My parents,” Bur replied.
He tuned out what else was said. Bur crossed his arms over his chest. Closing his eyes, he swallowed back the rage bubbling inside of him.
What are they doing in Mapson?
Chapter Eight
“WHAT THE fuck do you mean, they’re out on bail?” Del roared.
Bur continued to stare out the window. That answered how their parents had come to be here. Last year, when they had gotten arrested, he and his brothers had been preparing for them to come to Mapson. They had only been held a short while, and then their mother and father had been released. At that, Bur and Del had discussed what to do. Del had left the choice up to him. Bur had pressed charges. The cops in Connecticut had been checking into their parents. Their parents’ freedom hadn’t lasted long, and they were in even more trouble than abuse. More evidence of embezzlement, tax evasion, and numerous other offenses had come to light. After all the charges had been brought, they had been re-arrested.
He and Del had had a private discussion on what to do with the abuse charges. They hadn’t told Bernie the full details of the charges, or that Bur was the only one listed. They knew eventually they would have to tell Bernie the complete truth that they hadn’t shared with him all those years ago. That secret was between only Del and Bur. They hadn’t spoken of it, not even when they’d decided what to do about the abuse charges. In agreement, they had decided to go ahead, but wait to tell Bernie closer to when it was necessary. The brothers had found out that, with their financial situation, their parents wouldn’t be able to make bail. At least, that’s what they had been told.
Bur crossed his arms over his chest. In their initial conversation about their mother and father coming to Mapson, his brothers had each said they would be coming for them. Del especially was adamant it would be him since he had custody of their twin brothers. Even when Bur had filed a report so they could get charges brought against their parents, Del had told him he was still the one they would come for.
They were so wrong. I knew our parents would come for me.
Although he hadn’t said it then, Bur had known it without question. It had been years since he had seen them, or they’d had control over him, but he still remembered the possessiveness and how they kept him close.
“Bur.”
He turned. The room held his brothers, Tomas, and Cal. Lisa was upstairs keeping the twins busy. Bur focused on Del, whose cold expression matched the look in his eyes. Del was in full battle mode to deal with their parents. Del had been on the phone for two hours, calling to Connecticut to get answers on why their parents were free, much less able to leave the state.
“They’ve been looking for them. They skipped on bail, and there’s a warrant issued for their arrest. The DA assigned to the case said he’d tell his people where they were, and that the police here have the information.” Del gripped his cell tightly. “They also violated the orders of protection we all have in place here. We’ll go to the police station and fil—”
Bur interrupted. “I’m not leaving without Gerald.”
“We can’t get in touch with him. We can mee—”
“No. We wait.”
Lisa had called him numerous times. She’d been a rock to them all, helping out so much, and despite what she heard, she hadn’t asked any questions. Bur pulled out his cell, returning to face the window. He glanced at the screen. There was no missed call and no messages. Gerald usually had his cell on him and picked up.
Where are you, Gerald?
GERALD PULLED into the station and exited his vehicle. It was a beautiful mid-April day, a day when people got out and had fun. For some, too much. Gerald opened the back of his cruiser and helped his prisoner out. He held his breath as he got a whiff of the alcohol smell coming off the man.
What the hell did he do, take a bath in whatever he didn’t drink? Gerald closed the door and had to almost carry the intoxicated man toward the door.
The perp had been speeding down a one-way street when Gerald had spotted him. When he had finally pulled over and Gerald approached the car, he hadn’t even had to ask why he was driving down the street the wrong way. The smell had told him all he needed to know, but he’d followed procedure and told him to exit the vehicle. The man had tried to climb through the window instead of opening the door. After failed attempts, Gerald had taken him out and made arrangements for his car. Inside the station, Gerald handed him off and went to do his report. He was almost finished when a rush of footsteps came behind him. Curious, he glanced up. Spotting Miguel and his grim expression, he stood.
“Gerald, where have you been? I’ve been trying to call your cell.”
“I forgot it in my locker,” Gerald said.
“They’re on their way to arrest Bur for assault.”
Gerald stared at him, then laughed. “And I bet he broke their kneecap. Stop your messing around.”
“I’m not. I was trying to get in touch with you to tell you. They are on their way to pick him up. I saw them when I came in.”
Miguel’s seriousness penetrated Gerald’s amusement, and he sobered. “Who?”
“Derby and Monroe.”
Gerald turned and rushed toward the stairs. He raced down them, then passed the desk sergeant and bolted outside. Gerald saw the men he was looking for and slowed, but still hurried toward them.
“Sergeant Derby, heard you were going to pick up some big star. I’ll do it for you.” Gerald didn’t mention a name in case Miguel was wrong.
He didn’t know Sergeant Walker Derby that well, but he seemed more approachable than Lieutenant Taggart Monroe. The men slowed, and Gerald matched pace with them.
“Not necessary, Ramirez. We were ordered to do it.” Derby sneered.
“Seems strange. And why so quickly?”
“It just happened two hours ago. But the DA decided to get a judge to push through an arrest warrant, although we haven’t finished checking into anything yet. Claims he’s tired of stars getting better treatment. If you ask me, he’s prepping for his election. Usually, since we haven’t done our details on this, we wouldn’t be arresting anyone yet. The DA wouldn’t even listen when we mentioned what happened when we took the report. We told the man to wait while we got some more info but when we got back the complainant had left.” Derby shook his head. “Seems to me they were in a rush for some reason. One I would have liked to pursue further. But that’s not our call. This time, the DA has visual proof and with that he’s ready to go ahead.”
Gerald had a suspicion what he meant, but asked anyway. “What proof?”
“Seems as if everyone has a camera phone and an itchy finger to YouTube. It’s all there in vivid color for all to see,” Derby replied.
“Where are you going to pick him up?”
Derby rattled off the address. Gerald knew Bur wouldn’t be at Harper’s, the address Derby had said. He wondered how they had even gotten a location of where Bur was. Gerald remembered the conversation Bur and he had after the incident weeks ago at Destinations. Bur mentioned he was cautious about letting anyone know where he actually resided. Gerald’s gut clenched, and he kept his face clear, then spoke.
“He’s not going to be there. I know where he’ll be.”
“We haven’t mentioned a name of who it is. That’s being kept hush-hush. So how can you claim to know who we’re picking up?” Monroe spoke for the first time since
Gerald had approached them.
His tone and attitude were not friendly. Gerald stopped, and both men did as well, facing him. Derby had indeed not said a name. Gerald had noticed it and figured because of the politics involving in arresting a star, they were being cautious, at least in that aspect. In Gerald’s opinion, the quick movement to arrest pushed through by the DA was a stupid move. Even if it wasn’t Bur, he would have felt the same. When you made an arrest, you made sure you had your facts to make it stick.
“Wilbur Jenkins. Better known as Bur of the group TrebleBur,” Gerald stated.
The men exchanged glances, then focused on him. Gerald didn’t let his nervousness or anger show. If he did, what he planned to do would not happen.
I hope you understand, Bur. It’s my job.
Fifteen minutes later, Gerald got out of his cruiser. He frowned as Derby and Monroe exited their vehicle and joined him as he strode up the walk. The fast-talking and bullshit he had slung had gotten him in on the arrest. He’d hoped for time with Bur out of their earshot.
Oh, well. Can’t do anything about that. Why the fuck did you assault your father?
When they had told him who Bur was accused of assaulting, Gerald was surprised. Bur’s mother was a witness. The attack explained why Bur didn’t talk about his parents. The door opened as he reached it. Gerald stared at Bur, thinking of everything he wanted to say but couldn’t.
“Mister Wilbur Jenkins—”
Bur glanced at him, then the other men with him, then interrupted. “He pressed charges.” It wasn’t a question.
“No fucking way he did. You’re not taking him, G—”
Gerald cut Del’s tirade off. “Interfere and I’ll take you in.”
He glanced around at the people in the room. He paused, surprised to see the man he had only seen in pictures. Calhoun looked ready to commit bodily injury.
Gerald focused on Del, speaking directly to him. “Get Wilbur an attorney.” He returned his attention to Bur. “Bur doesn’t have to say anything without representation.” Gerald tried to make sure he understood.
Bur didn’t seem to. Gerald decided to forgo his plan to work from inside to help Bur.
Something in Common (Dreamspinner Press Bundles) Page 43