Once Upon a Rainbow, Volume One

by Mickie B. Ashling

  “Come here,” he said, thrilling when Dani complied, a soft blush in his face. Christian opened the glass door and ushered him under the hot spray, and climbed in after him. There was a showerhead in the ceiling as well, and he stood under that one while Dani faced him, leaning his head back to let the spray from the wall nozzle wash over his hair and shoulders. He grabbed up the bar of lavender soap and lathered Dani’s body, taking his time, enjoying his breathy moans.

  “God, Christian, how do you ever leave this bathroom?” Dani asked after a few moments, eyes closed, an expression of bliss on his sweet face.

  Christian chuckled. “You act like you’ve never showered before,” he teased, and then instantly could have bitten his tongue. But Dani merely shrugged.

  “If you call a drippy showerhead and lukewarm water a shower, sure I have,” he replied, and Christian hurt for his matter-of-fact tone. Their lives had been so different. He pulled Dani’s soapy body to him, loving the slide of skin. He ached to take him to his bed, but maybe they should do some research into Dani’s locket first. It’s what he’d come to do in the first place. But if Christian had his way, he’d be kissing those lush lips at midnight.

  They rinsed off and stepped out onto the thick bath rug, and Christian handed Dani a towel. He dried off on another one before tossing it carelessly into the hamper by the door. He’d do laundry the next day or the one after. Nothing was pressing until school started back up.

  Once dry, they returned to the bedroom and dressed, and Christian went to the desk, took the chair, and swiveled back to the computer. Glancing at Dani standing uncertainly beside him, he pushed the chair back a little, tugging Dani’s sleeve until he sat on his lap.

  “That’s better,” he murmured in Dani’s ear, placing a kiss on his blushing face. He liked Dani in this mood, soft and compliant, yet with that glint in his eyes that spoke of the strength right below the surface, ready to leap out if needed. Nothing like the few girls Christian had dated, all clingy and needy. He supposed he could date a strong woman, but wasn’t really interested. He liked a gentle personality, but knowing Dani could take care of himself and probably Christian as well, if necessary, was a heady rush.

  He heard Dani’s unsteady breathing and tapped the keyboard to wake up the computer. What was Dani thinking? Did he regret what they did? No, Dani snuggled against him as if content to stay there for hours. The computer screen brightened, displaying images of Dani’s locket. Christian clicked on a relevant link.

  “I thought it seemed familiar,” he said, excitement stirring in him. “This is the crest of a ranch about twenty miles outside of town. They have a small vineyard boasting an exclusive wine label that my parents drink, but the family mostly breeds horses.”

  “Is there a picture?” Dani asked, sounding strangled.

  “Let me check.” Christian clicked several different links until a picture of an elderly couple caught his attention. The man was handsome enough, but the woman had a strong resemblance to Dani, same sweet face and large gray eyes. Dani sucked in a breath, apparently catching the resemblance as well.

  “This could be my family,” he said in awe.

  “Could be,” Christian agreed. “The caption says they have a grown daughter, but there isn’t any further mention of her.”

  Dani shifted, standing suddenly. “I need to go out there.” He glanced at the window and bit his lip. It had grown darker as the storm front moved in, promising snow.

  “You’re not walking there, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Christian warned. No fucking way. He’d rescued the guy from the cold once already that day. “I’ll give you a ride, if you’re set on going.”

  “I need to see them,” Dani said, the quaver in his voice belying the firm words. He squared his shoulders, the softness leaving his face. “I have nowhere else to go.”

  Christian wanted to tell him to stay with him, but thought better of it. He knew Dani well enough to realize his pride would never accept it. Not yet. Not the way things were between them. Maybe if Dani found his family, he wouldn’t feel like he owed Christian anything. They’d be on a more equal footing.

  He pushed his chair away from the desk. “There isn’t a phone number to call, but maybe surprising them is better. Come on. Get your coat. We’d better hurry before the storm hits.”

  While throwing on coats, gloves, and hats in the other room, Dani hesitated, looking at the sack holding his candles.

  “You can get those tomorrow,” Christian assured him.

  Dani gave him a relieved smile. “I’ll take one to show them what Mother did,” he said, picking the smallest one and slipping it and a packet of matches into an inside pocket of his coat. They stepped out into the cold afternoon. Dani didn’t say much as they drove across town and took the backroad into the country—his hands, clutched in his lap, betrayed his anxiety.

  Christian slowed as they reached the twenty-mile marker and turned onto the gravel driveway leading to the Lundgren estate, the crest prominent overhead on an ornate wrought-iron archway. After several minutes, they cleared the pines and approached a sizable stone house with a wide cedar porch wrapping the building and wrought-iron work at the windows. It was a little too showy for Christian’s taste. He pulled to a stop in front of the dwelling, noting a three-car detached garage off to the right.

  “Ready?” he asked kindly. A shiver ran over Dani, but he nodded, swallowing hard. Christian exited the car and waited for Dani to round the hood before approaching the front door. He stayed a few steps back as Dani rang the doorbell. After a moment the door opened, and he was surprised to see a young man, not much older than themselves, on the threshold. He’d expected someone older. The guy raised a brow, his gaze raking over Dani before flicking to him, dismissing him. Christian disliked him on the spot.

  “Can I help you?” the man asked, sounding bored.

  “I’d like to speak with Mrs. Lundgren, please,” Dani asked, a trifle breathless. Christian silently urged him to be strong.

  “It’s New Year’s Eve. Couldn’t your business wait until after the holiday?” the guy asked rudely. He was attractive, all dark wavy hair and green intense eyes, but Christian didn’t like the way he stared at Dani. He curled a hand, wanting to smash the smug expression off his face.

  “Patrick, who’s there?” A voice reached them from the hallway.

  “Not sure, Nana,” Patrick called over his shoulder. “What do you want?” he asked, his glance once again going to Christian, calculating.

  The door opened farther and Christian caught his breath. The elderly woman peering at them looked so much like Dani the resemblance couldn’t be denied. Patrick saw it too, animosity flashing green before he controlled his features.

  The woman’s gray eyes widened on seeing them. “Why… You’re… Is Cindy with you?” she asked, voice trembling. She reached a hand for Dani and then pulled it back. “Please, will you come in? Will you talk to us?”

  Dani shot Christian an uncertain look, and Christian nodded encouragingly. “Go on. Call me when you need a ride home. Whatever time that is,” he reiterated, waiting until Dani bobbed his head in agreement. He noted that Dani’s eyes were bright with a shimmer of tears. His friend was at his most vulnerable, shy and soft, heart on his sleeve. Then he firmed his lips and Christian’s heart leapt. Dani’s strength was one of the things he loved most about him.

  The thought startled him, and he didn’t remember saying goodbye as the door closed, separating them. Love? For the little match girl? The street fairy he’d spent a year avoiding? Was it possible?

  He was thoughtful on the drive home and almost didn’t answer his phone when it buzzed on the seat beside him. Jordan? It wasn’t time to pick him up yet, was it? “Hello?”

  “Hey, man, what’s up? I’ve been trying to call you for like an hour.”

  Christian guiltily viewed the list of text messages he’d been ignoring. “I had something come up. What do you need?”

  “Not much. Just bored to
death. Want to get something to eat before heading out to the Grange?”

  “Sure. Give me half hour to change, and I’ll pick you up.” He hung up and scrolled through the list of messages. Nothing from Dani. He’d been secretly hoping Dani would change his mind about his family and call him. Maybe he was overreacting, but he didn’t trust that Patrick guy. He hadn’t liked the leer on his face when he regarded Dani.

  Once home, he dressed in skinny jeans and a button-down red shirt. It took a minute to lace up his Converse, and then he threw on a jacket and headed back out. A few snowflakes struck his face, but so far the weather was holding. Anyway, he could always call a cab if it got worse. No way would he stay home. He’d only worry about Dani. What was going on? Would Dani ever get in touch with him again? He sincerely hoped so.

  Chapter Eight

  DANI STOOD AWKWARDLY in the living room while the elderly couple—his grandparents—asked him questions from their seat on the couch. Patrick, his cousin, visiting on holiday, watched him closely from his position off to one side, making him uncomfortable.

  “So Cindy is dead?” his grandfather asked shakily, peering at the locket Dani had given him while the gray-haired woman beside him sobbed into a linen handkerchief.

  “Yes, sir. A year ago. She had ovarian cancer that had already spread before it was diagnosed.” Dani swallowed the hurtful lump forming in his throat. He’d begged her to see the doctor so many times, but there was never any money…

  He wished he’d asked Christian to stay. He could have held his hand through this.

  “A year ago?” Patrick cut in harshly. “And you’re telling us only now?” A sneer entered his voice. “What of your father? Did he put you up to this? Get some money from her family?”

  Dani shook his head, giving his grandparents a pleading glance. “It’s not like that. I don’t have anything to do with my father anymore. I just wanted to see you. I miss Mother so much and I thought…I wanted to see my family.”

  Patrick made an impatient sound, but his grandfather’s face crumpled and he held out his hand. “Come here.”

  Dani hurried over, dropping to his knees. Grandfather rumpled his hair while his grandmother held his hands.

  “You look exactly like her,” she whispered, voice quavering, and leaned forward to give him a kiss on the cheek. “Will you stay to supper and tell us more about her? We tried to convince her to come home, you know. Those first few years. But she wouldn’t leave him. And any money we gave her, he took, so we couldn’t even do that.”

  “Hush, Janet,” Grandfather warned. “That’s all in the past. Dani’s here now. The least we can do is make him feel welcomed.” He smiled at Dani, handing him back the locket. “We gave her this on her sixteenth birthday. Dinner is in an hour. Will you stay?”

  “Thank you, sir,” Dani said, emotion making it hard to speak. He nibbled his lip, uncertain. “Can I borrow a phone to call my friend? Let him know I’m staying?”

  “Of course. I’m sure Patrick can lend you his. And you’ll need to go outside. The reception is much better out back.”

  Dani glanced at Patrick, who gave him a sour smile. His voice dripped honey when he spoke to their grandparents, though. “Of course, Grandfather. Dani, if you’ll come with me?”

  He walked toward the front door, and Dani smiled at his grandparents and hurried after him. They took a moment to pull on coats and gloves and hats, then stepped outside. Snow had begun to fall in earnest, and Patrick turned up the collar of his coat.

  “This way, cousin,” he said dryly and led Dani around to the side of the house. Once there, they crossed the large expanse of lawn to a border of blackberry bushes where they stopped. The land dropped off steeply there, and Dani heard the rush of water far below.

  “There was a landslide here in the fall, but we can’t do much to repair the embankment until summer,” Patrick explained. “But that doesn’t concern you. So tell me, Dani, what’s your real reason for dropping in on us like this? You’ve certainly gained the old crones’ trust quickly enough.”

  “Honestly, I only wanted to see them. I don’t have any other family…” He let his voice trail off, feeling a prickle of irritation at Patrick’s continued suspicion. “So what’s your story, cousin? You don’t seem to like them very much, so why are you here?”

  Something flashed in Patrick’s green eyes, and he stepped right up to Dani, backing him against the hedge, too close to the slippery ledge for his comfort.

  “Again, that’s none of your business, but since you’re so curious… With your mother gone, I would be next in line to inherit. Or at least I was until you appeared out of the blue like this. Still, I’ve spent the last five years making myself indispensable. I’m sure I’m in Grandfather’s will, and I’m not about to jeopardize that to you.”

  “I’ve told you, I’m not interested—”

  “Can’t take that chance,” Patrick interrupted. “I think you need to go.” Unexpectedly, he lunged as if to grab him, startling Dani into taking a step back. Too far. He clutched at the thorny blackberry bushes, but his feet went out from under him and he was over the edge. Patrick made an attempt to catch him, but his jacket slipped out of his hands. A scream tore from Dani, wind whipping past his face, and then suddenly he struck ground, hard, knocking the breath out of his body.

  Dizzy with pain, he gazed upward. Patrick’s face was a dark blur overhead. He seemed to be gazing downstream as if he didn’t see Dani clinging to the small ledge thirty feet below him. He tried to call, but his voice came out a croak, and after a long moment of searching, Patrick walked away. Snow struck Dani’s face, and he watched it fall as he waited for his heart to quit pounding.

  What to do? He tried to sit up and cried out, nearly fainting as pain stabbed from his shoulder down his arm. Didn’t feel like a break—he’d had those before. But his shoulder might be dislocated. Great. When his head stopped spinning, he eased carefully to a sitting position, leaning against the muddy wall of the landslide. The ledge he perched on was all rock and mud with a few blackberry bushes clinging to the wall, holding it all in place. He scowled at the blackberries, feeling the sting of a cut on his face and another on his wrist from the sharp thorns.

  Afraid to move and send the precarious ledge sliding into the river, Dani took stock of his options. Daylight was going quickly. He’d be in the dark soon. A few bushes stuck out here and there on the slick walls of the slide, but none near enough for him to reach safely. He peered overhead, blinking at the snow striking his face. The roots of a blackberry bush jutted out about five feet above him. Could he reach that and maybe pull himself up?

  He climbed gingerly to his feet, trying not to move his shoulder but failing. A groan escaped his lips into the cold air, and he stopped a moment, back pressed against the muddy wall. Once the worst of the pain ebbed, he looked up again. The exposed roots were beside him, but he couldn’t see anything more between himself and the ledge far over his head. There was no chance of him climbing out on his own.

  Oh shit. Panic started to settle over him, his gut churning, and he took several deep breaths. What were his options?

  “Hello?” he called out, but his voice was muffled by the falling snow. He yelled again, louder this time, but his voice floated off on the wind. This wasn’t good. For a while, he gave in to fear, screaming for help, begging someone to hear him, but his voice never carried far. No one answered. At last, exhausted, weepy, he slid down the wall until he was sitting cross-legged on the shelf. It had grown almost pitch-dark down there, the snow numbing his feet and hands despite shoes and gloves.

  Shivering, he wrapped his arms around his knees.

  “Christian?” he whispered, throat raw. He wished he were back at the apartment, wrapped in Christian’s strong embrace, safe, warm. Was there a fireplace in the living room? He couldn’t remember. His heavy lids closed, and he imagined the warmth radiating from the hearth, heard the crackle of the fire. He watched sparks fly up the chimney while Christian nibb
led on his earlobe, teasing him into a kiss. He wanted to share a thousand with him.

  Dani’s stomach rumbled. His grandparents would be sitting down to dinner now. Probably a huge feast: ham and potatoes, vegetables and fruit and fresh bread. A table of desserts when done. Afterward, they’d have coffee in the living room next to the huge floor-to-ceiling tree still decorated in Christmas splendor. Would there be gifts for him next year? Probably not. No one had come searching for him. Patrick must have told them he’d left without a word. Despair settled over him. Why had things gone so wrong?

  The cold kept him from sleeping. Mind sluggish, he dug in his coat pocket for the candle and matches he’d put in earlier. Tears filled his eyes. He’d been going to show it to his grandparents at dinner. His mother had made such beautiful candles. They would have been proud of her. She’d kept him safe from Carl’s anger. Made sure he had food and clothing and what schooling she could give him. He’d loved selling candles with her, talking with the customers, sharing a piece of fruit or sweet offered by a kind stranger.

  Sticking the candle in the ice-coated mud in front of him, he huddled over it to protect it from the wind and snow. With his hands numb, it took several tries to light the wick, and he accidentally caught the whole matchbook on fire. Giving a yelp of surprise, he dropped it and it fell like a shooting star into the abyss.

  The candle’s flame warmed his heart, and he stared at the flickering, hypnotic light. The temperature had dropped below freezing, he knew the numbing cold of it very well. The skin on his face hurt, which was a good sign, he supposed. But he could no longer feel his feet, and his hands were blocks of ice. Dangerous tears filled his eyes again. He’d be a frozen lump in the morning, buried in snow. An unpleasant find for his grandparents when the snow melted in a day or two.

  The candle’s flame flickered in a gust of wind, and Dani cupped his hands around it. Leaning close, he felt the warmth of it on his face.