Redeeming Rafe
Sloane Kennedy
Redeeming Rafe is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Copyright © 2015 by Sloane Kennedy
Published in the United States by Sloane Kennedy
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover Images: © Improvisor, Julia Gurevich| Shutterstock.com
Cover Design: Cover to Cover Designs
Trademarks Acknowledgement
The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:
Call of Duty
Acknowledgements
A big thank you to Stephanie, Michele, Samantha, Jenn and Fiona for being such amazing Beta Readers!
Table of Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Epilogue
Prologue
Cade Gamble studied his quarry as the man examined the newspaper in front of him, the coffee the waiter had brought him remaining untouched. When he finally did take a sip, Cade felt his dick tighten at the sight of those firm lips closing over the ceramic edge of the mug. As he swallowed, Cade actually had to stifle a moan because he instantly imagined what it would be like to have his cock shoved down the man’s throat as he drank him down the same way he was languidly doing with the coffee. His attraction to the man had surprised him since he was nothing like the men Cade usually went for – soft, eager, submissive and unashamedly gay.
No¸ this man was anything but those things. He was hard all over with a lean build and toned muscles that filled out the expensive business suit that looked like it had been made just for him. Carefully groomed, dirty blonde hair curled just a little bit above his ears and suggested, when mussed, it would be the perfect length for gripping as Cade thrust into him from behind. A strong, hard jaw was covered with the slightest bit of stubble that would feel rough on Cade’s thighs as the man worked that mouth up and down his shaft and the sapphire blue eyes that currently drifted over the paper he was holding would darken to near black with passion as Cade fucked him until he was begging for relief.
Cade shook himself from his thoughts and focused on the newspaper the man was holding. That in itself was unusual since few in this day and age tore themselves away from their phones or tablets long enough to pick up a newspaper, let alone read the whole fucking thing like this guy seemed to plan on doing. The fact that he was supposed to be some computer genius made it even stranger that he’d resort to paper as his medium for learning about what horrible things people were doing to each other in the world today. Cade could have told him it was the same shit they’d done yesterday, the same shit they’d do tomorrow.
The man shifted in his chair as he opened the newspaper and lust clawed at Cade as he watched the long fingers smooth over the paper. Cade searched his pockets for his cigarettes, then remembered Logan had thrown away his last one this morning – a habit that grated on Cade’s nerves, but also made a smile tug at his lips. Protecting Logan Bradshaw had been an interesting job from day one and coming to count the man as one of his closest friends had been an unexpected benefit.
Logan’s lover, Dominic Barretti had hired Cade to make sure that a threat from Logan’s past never got a chance to make another attempt on Logan’s life like the one last fall when the man had shot Logan and left him for dead in his burning bar while trying to abduct Logan’s sister. Fortunately that threat was gone now, but his friendship with Logan had lingered and the man was determined to get Cade to quit smoking his ‘cancer sticks’.
He’d been attracted to Logan too when he’d first started playing bodyguard and the other man had been far from his usual type as well so he was starting to wonder if this was some strange work related fantasy. Of course, Logan hadn’t been into him at all since his eyes and heart had belonged to Dom from the get go, but it had been interesting to watch Logan and Dom try to figure out they were meant for each other – something Cade had discovered after he’d gotten a brief taste of Logan’s perfect lips – lips a lot like the man he’d been following for the past three hours sported.
Cade was seriously beginning to hate the crowded, smoggy streets of L.A., but the man seemed to thrive on them and moved among the hordes of people seamlessly, his confident, powerful swagger on full display as men and women alike moved out of his way, some of them openly gaping at his stunning good looks. He’d responded to neither gender with any kind of sexual interest so Cade still had no idea if the guy was straight or gay or a little bit of both. Not that it mattered to Cade because fucking around on the job wasn’t an option and fucking the actual mark was even less of one.
At this point they didn’t even know the guy’s name – it had been an IP address that had led them to a small, cloistered office smack dab in the heart of the busy city. It had been easy to pick up the mark from there since he was the only one in the small, windowless space. But three hours of endless, pointless errands and numerous stops for coffee had Cade wanting to rip his hair out…or better yet, rip the guy’s perfect fucking hair out. There was no way this guy was the one they were looking for – he was just too damn boring, good looks aside. The chances that he was actually the one hacking Barretti Security Group’s servers and stealing sensitive information from them seemed unlikely, but there was always the possibility that he would lead Cade to the head of the operation.
Cade took another sip of his own coffee and watched as the man finally closed the newspaper and then pulled out some money and dropped it on the table. Preparing to move himself, Cade was caught off guard when the man suddenly approached him and casually dropped a business card down in front of him. So much for not being made, Cade thought to himself as the guy flashed him a quick smile, the invitation clear in his eyes. Definitely not one hundred percent straight Cade mused as he glanced at the card as he stood to follow. On the front was the symbol of a spade that looked exactly like what one would find in a deck of cards. The back had just an address and a time. So he had been made, but not because the guy knew he was trailing him but because the guy thought Cade was looking for a hook-up.
The directive from Dom had been clear – pursue, but don’t engage. But what could a little in-depth recon hurt? Maybe a good hard fuck was exactly what was called for.
***
Cade glanced at the address on the card as he neared the non-descript building. Nothing about it stood out and if he hadn’t followed the guy after he’d left his office, Cade would have guessed the whole thing had been a set up. It still could be, he realized as he knocked on the door. It opened within seconds and he held out the business card to the burly looking bouncer that was covered in tattoos and piercings. The behemoth glanced at the card, then motioned him inside without a word. Cade kept his hands relaxed but at the ready. It would take him just milliseconds to pull the gun he kept tucked in the back waistband of his pants. He followed the bouncer down a short hallway and another door was pushed open. The scent of smoke and sex assaulted him instantly, as did the heat of the writhing bodies before him.
The room was cast in shadows and garish purple and red hangings lined what he guess
ed were otherwise plain walls. Red velvet furniture with tacky gold trim took up the outer edges of the space and formed a half-circle around a stage where two young men in leather fetish wear were grinding against each other. They were just two of what Cade guessed to be a dozen or so similarly clad men in various states of service to what he assumed were the patrons. The customers were all dressed in black tie and consisted mostly of men, but he did spy a couple of women as well. As he followed the bouncer past each station, he couldn’t help but get turned on by the sight of lap dances, blow jobs and in one case, actual full on fucking surrounded by several onlookers. Some type of eerie, string music was playing in the background but it was mostly drowned out by all the moaning and gasping going on.
Cade was led down a back hallway that had no decoration or frill whatsoever – just a single playing card taped to each door. His body tightened as they neared the Ace of Spades card. He stopped in front of the door and the bouncer nodded briefly at him, then went back the way they’d come. Since he wasn’t one to give away the element of surprise, he threw open the door without knocking and froze at the sight before him.
His mark had started without him. Blue eyes locked with his as he stepped into the room and closed the door. There were only three pieces of furniture in the room – a small bed with a red and gold bedspread with a tiny nightstand next to it and an oversized armchair in the same exhausting shade of red as the rest of the place. But his eyes weren’t on any of those things – they were stuck on those hooded eyes that latched onto his as the young man kneeling at the man’s feet bobbed vigorously up and down on the cock Cade wanted to taste now more than ever.
Cade felt his dick harden to uncomfortable new heights as he stepped further inside the room. He couldn’t tell much about the man on his knees other than he was young, slim and completely naked. Under any other circumstances, Cade would have been picturing that perfect ass bent over the bed in front of him. But he only had eyes for the man getting his cock sucked and Cade felt an almost irresistible urge to push the kid out of the way and take over because what he didn’t see in those dark eyes was the lust he would have expected – the overwhelming passion that would take those eyes from blue to black with one good, hard swallow. No, the man sat there lazily, his big hand gently stroking the bobbing head beneath his fingers, not holding it as he thrust in as deep as he could. It was a fucking waste of a perfectly good mouth.
“Jamie, our guest has arrived,” the man drawled as he petted the younger man once more. Jamie released the man’s cock and then turned to smile at Cade as his pink tongue came out to lick the taste of the other man from his lips.
Cade moved closer, his eyes on the long, thick cock that lay neglected in the man’s lap. He came to a stop in front of the two men and glanced briefly at Jamie who watched him hungrily. One word and he knew that hot little mouth would suck him in to the root.
“Jamie,” the man murmured, his eyes on Cade’s. “Make our guest feel welcome.”
Cade felt Jamie’s hands reach for his zipper, but before he could draw it down, Cade snagged him by the hair and forced his head back. Jamie moaned at the sting of pain Cade made sure to inflict and the younger man’s eyes glazed over with lust. “Leave us,” he said as he released Jamie.
Jamie looked at him with a mix of confusion and disappointment, then glanced back at the man lounging comfortably in the chair. At his slight nod, Jamie stood and hurried from the room.
“I went through a lot of trouble to book Jamie for tonight,” the man said casually.
Cade stepped closer so their legs were touching. He glanced pointedly at the other man’s cock which wasn’t anywhere near as thick and hard as it should have been under Jamie’s likely expert touch. “Looks like you should ask for your money back.”
A flash of something went through the other man’s eyes, but then he chuckled, the sound grating on Cade’s nerves because it too, like everything else that had happened since he opened the door, seemed forced. He let his leg brush against the man’s and the chuckle disappeared and every muscle in the man’s body tensed. His lips drew tight and his eyes darkened. Finally, Cade thought with an inward smirk, a reaction the man hadn’t been able to control.
Cade leaned over the chair and put his nose against the man’s neck and inhaled his musky scent. He’d expected some type of fancy cologne or aftershave, but it was just the sweet, tantalizing smell of man. It was tempting to taste the skin with his tongue, but the man was drawn so tight that Cade didn’t want to risk losing the opportunity to lavish attention on what he really wanted. He pulled back and felt satisfaction go through him at the look of desire and confusion on the other man’s expression. Cade dropped his eyes to the man’s mouth and wondered if the lips would be as soft as they looked. But no time for that either.
Without any additional warning, Cade dropped to his knees and placed his hands on the man’s thighs before lowering his mouth to his crotch and running his tongue along the long, hard shaft. He felt the muscles beneath his fingers bunch and a whisper of air escaped from between the man’s lips.
Giving head wasn’t something Cade did often so he was surprised at the pleasure that flooded through him when the man’s salty flavor exploded over his tongue as he sucked the flared head into his mouth. He circled the tip with his tongue and flicked over the slit, then swallowed more of the hot flesh into his mouth. He felt the man’s hand settle over his head, those long fingers skimming through his hair. Petting him much like he’d petted Jamie. But the cock in his mouth was anything but uninterested as it had seemed to be with the younger man. No, it was full and rigid now with just the slightest curve to it. He pulled off and allowed some of his saliva to dribble down the steely length before swallowing more of it down, automatically relaxing his gag reflex so he could take more in. The fingers on his head flexed, then suddenly they were grabbing his hair and pulling hard, forcing Cade to release the delicious piece of meat he’d so been enjoying.
The man tipped Cade’s head back far enough so their eyes could connect and Cade saw the indecision and anger there. The man stood, forcing Cade up with him as he maintained his grip on Cade’s head. He could have easily gotten free of the brutal hold, but a dark part of him was actually enjoying it. He’d wanted a reaction from the other man and he was definitely getting it.
The man backed him up until Cade hit the wall by the door and then the hand disappeared from his head and closed around his throat. His grip wasn’t tight though; in fact, the man’s thumb was rubbing back and forth in an almost soothing gesture. But his eyes were cold and dark with furious passion. Cade felt the man’s cock brush his through his pants. Then the hand from his throat was moving up and that thick thumb traced his lips which were still damp with the pre-come that had started leaking from the man’s cock the moment Cade put his lips on him.
“Open,” he heard the man say. The order should’ve bothered Cade since he was usually the one giving them, but his curiosity was too peaked not to play along so he did. And when that thumb pressed into his mouth, he closed around it and sucked hard, his tongue mimicking what it had been doing to his cock just seconds ago. The man’s free hand brushed over Cade’s erection.
“Harder,” the man ordered and Cade bit down on the fleshy pad of the man’s thumb. He was rewarded with a hard rub from the man’s hand on his shaft and then that hand was releasing his own dick from his pants and stroking him.
Cade matched the man’s pace with his mouth until the thumb was pulled free and the hand closed once more around his throat, holding him in place as the other hand worked its magic. Lust went through him at the display of dominance and he began thrusting shamelessly with his hips. He had no idea what the hell was happening to him; he just knew he needed relief and this man could give it to him. It was a startling realization because no man had ever been the one to control his pleasure before. Cade always took and it was up to his partner to find his own release before Cade finished with him. It made him a selfish son of a bi
tch, but the supply of men who would take the little he was willing to give was endless.
The hand around his cock slowed to a torturous pace that had him riding the edge of agony and bliss. “Tell me what you want,” the man said in a harsh whisper.
“Your mouth on me,” Cade answered.
Something in the other man changed with those words and Cade saw the walls come up instantly, shuddered by a mask of hollow indifference. The hand on his dick kept moving, but Cade knew the man had checked out. He was surprised when the man leaned in and placed his lips against his ear. The hand on his shaft stopped, then released him. He felt a warm breath skitter over his ear before the man said in a cold, deadly voice, “Tell my brothers I’ll see them soon.”
Several long seconds passed as the words sank in, enough time for the man to leave through the door right next to them. By the time he got his painfully hard cock shoved in his pants and opened the door, the man was long gone and the bouncer stood there, arms crossed, a warning look on his face. It took Cade all of twenty seconds to put the man on the ground and hurry down the hall past the orgy in the front room, but he was too late. Rafe Barretti was already gone.
Chapter 1
“It was not Rafe!” Dom shouted at him as he threw his glass against the office wall.
Cade had been friends with Dom long enough to know that interjecting at this point wouldn’t get him anywhere so he threw back the shot of whiskey and placed the glass on Dom’s desk.
“Dom-” Vin said from somewhere behind him.
“No, Vin! No!” Dom yelled as he paced back and forth behind his desk. “It’s not him,” he repeated, his voice slightly dulled as the truth began to sink in.
Cade didn’t need to look behind him to know that Vin had already reached that point and was now nursing his second drink as he fought to accept the new reality that Cade had just thrust upon the two brothers. Rafe Barretti, their long lost baby brother was the same man threatening to destroy not only their business, but their personal lives as well.
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