by CJ Bishop
“Hey, babe, it’s me.”
“How’d it go?” Anxiety pinched Abel’s voice. “Was there any evidence…?”
Devlin rubbed his mouth and sighed. “No,” he murmured. “There was no physical signs of sexual abuse.” He shook his head. “I’m relieved, for sure. But I don’t get it. You saw how he reacted when we I asked him if Jim had abused him that way.”
“Maybe…” Abel hesitated. “…it didn’t go that far. Maybe it was just touching and…stuff. That can still be traumatizing for a kid, especially if he forced him to perform…” a sick note crept into his tone. “…oral sex.”
Devlin felt as sick at the vile thought. “Yeah. Maybe. But with Noah fully under Jim’s control, not even going to public school anymore, completely cut off from anyone else…what would stop him from taking it all the way? If he’d do some, it’s hard to believe he wouldn’t go as far as…penetrating him.” He wanted to puke as thoughts of Noah’s abuse morphed with past images of Craig sexually assaulting 13-year-old Abel. His head sank into his hand as his eyes squeezed shut, a fierce ache cutting through his chest. Why the fuck couldn’t grown men leave these kids alone? How fucking sick did a man have to be to rape a child?
Devlin’s head swarmed with scenarios of what the cowboy would do to Jim Evers if it turned out he had sexually abused Noah in any way. A chilling satisfaction surged through him at the thought. He could conjure no sense of sympathy for anyone who would harm a child in a such vile, disgusting way. Or harm a child at all.
“Dev?” Abel’s voice brought him out of his troubled thoughts. “You still there?”
“Yeah.” Devlin cleared his throat and blinked, his eyes damp.
“You okay?”
“I’m okay.”
“Maybe we misinterpreted Noah’s behavior,” he offered quietly, hopeful. “Maybe Jim didn’t…”
Devlin sniffed and swallowed. “I want to believe that, Abel,” he whispered. “But something was wrong.”
Abel was silent a moment, then asked, “Did he say anything about the phone?”
“No.” Devlin slid his fingers through his hair. “Maybe we’ll talk to him when we get home. I know I said we should give him some time to tell us himself, but I have a bad feeling in my gut.”
“Me, too,” Abel admitted.
Devlin stood up. “We’ll be home soon. Noah’s up at x-ray right now. When he’s finished there, we’ll head back home.”
“Okay,” Abel said. “I’ll see you soon. I love you.”
“Love you, too, beautiful.” Devlin smiled. “Talk to you later, babe.”
“Bye.”
Tucking away the phone, Devlin stared distantly across the parking lot, brow tense. The bad feeling slowly swelled, pressing up into his chest. Please talk to us, Noah. We can’t help you if we don’t know what’s wrong.
♦
“Aren’t you going to offer me some coffee or something?” Patrice sat down at the table.
“I don’t have any made yet,” Nolan mumbled. His heart refused to calm and he feared it was beating so hard and loud Patrice would hear it. His focus remained on Grid, hiding in his closet. What the hell had he been thinking bringing Grid here? What the hell had he been doing with him at all?
Having the most mind-blowing sex you’ll ever experience.
His brow pinched as he forcibly thrust the thought away before it could affect his body. But wasn’t it already too late for that? He had been buried inside Grid when Patrice had walked in the apartment, and he could still feel the tightness of the man’s body squeezing his cock.
Stop it! Fuck.
“You feeling okay?” Patrice asked. “You look a bit under the weather.”
Nolan shrugged and turned his back to her as he began preparing the coffee maker. “Headache,” he murmured. “Didn’t…sleep much last night.”
“That’s because you need a warm body next to you.” She was right behind him suddenly, having made no sound in moving from the table to the counter. She rested her hands on his waist and kissed his shoulder. “We used to be so good together,” she whispered. “Don’t you remember? I never understood why we broke up.”
Nolan remembered. Though he didn’t recall them ever being good together—in any respect.
“This is our destiny.” She nuzzled the nape of his neck. “It always has been. Everyone knew it but you.”
Nolan didn’t respond and scooped coffee into the filter. He tensed when Patrice pushed up against him and slipped her arms around his body.
“We don’t have to wait till we’re married to make love,” she cooed. “It isn’t like we’ve never been together.” She nipped his earlobe. “We could make love right now.”
“No.” His response came a little quick and sharp, and he cringed. “I-I mean…I really don’t feel so good. My head is killing me.” How long did she plan to stay? Grid was stuck in the closet until she left. He wanted her gone as soon as possible, yet her presence there prevented him from having to face Grid about what had happened this morning. Last night, he could blame the liquor. Today…there was nothing to fall back on. He lost his bearings, lost sight of what was important—if only for a moment—and had been on the verge of surrendering more than just his body to Grid.
Patrice isn’t stupid. If you try to play both ends, she will figure it out and you’ll lose everything.
A slight stiffness marbled Patrice’s touch and she withdrew, returning to the table. “I hope you plan to be my husband in every sense of the word once we’re married,” she said. “I don’t intend to live the life of a nun.”
As if. Nolan turned around and leaned his hips against the counter. “Of course I’ll be a real husband to you.” He sounded confident. Sort of. Much more than he felt, anyway. What if he couldn’t get it up for her? And honestly, he couldn’t imagine it at this precise moment. But maybe that was simply because of his recent session with Grid. Once the man was gone and out of his life for good, far away in another state…maybe Nolan could go back to the way he was.
The way you were? And how was that? Do you recall the first time you had sex with Patrice? Do you remember how it left you feeling once it was over? How many women did you fuck “after” you broke up with her? Any??
He’d been focused on his studies. He hadn’t had time for a relationship. His future was at stake and he put that first—like any responsible person would do.
But not even “one” fuck now and then to relax you? It wasn’t as if you didn’t have offers.
“You seem distracted.” Patrice’s voice broke through his mental haze.
“Huh?”
“Something on your mind?” she asked.
A lot of something, but nothing he could share with her. “No,” he lied and rubbed his eyes. “Just tired.” He glanced at the clock. “I have to get ready for work in a few minutes.” Would she take the cue and leave?
She didn’t move. Just stared at him. “This Samuel you work with…” she said. “Is he an intern? He looks too young to have gone through law school already.”
Nolan nodded. “Yeah. An intern.” He supposed he technically was. Samuel was still doing his legal studies, though Nolan suspected that once Nick and Christian’s cases were dealt with, the young man would seek an alternate career. Law wasn’t his passion, as it was Nolan’s. The kid was damn good and would make a formidable attorney, but his heart just wasn’t in it. He would never be happy spending his life in the courtroom. Nolan was aware that Samuel’s stepfather, Brock Coulson, had pushed him into the field of law, when his passion lay in the culinary arts; Samuel wanted to be a chef.
“Is he married?”
“No.” Nolan didn’t want to talk about Samuel’s personal life, but felt compelled to offer something. He chose to be vague. “He’s in a serious relationship, but not married yet.”
Patrice nodded. “What’s his girlfriend do?”
Why did she care? “I don’t know,” Nolan murmured. “Samuel and I just work together, we don’t discuss
personal matters.” That used to be true. He knew much more about Samuel now than he had a few months ago. Although Samuel didn’t really know a lot more about him. Nolan wasn’t a fan of sharing his personal life, not that he’d had much to share in that respect. He had more to share now, but couldn’t.
Patrice stood up. “On second thought, I don’t have time for coffee.” She tapped her fingertip on the large manila envelope she’d brought with her, which now lay on the table. “As soon as you sign these, bring them to the firm and we can proceed.”
“I told you…” Nolan pushed off the counter. “I’m not signing them until I get what I want.”
The woman sighed. “You already have the evidence.”
“I don’t care,” he said, unwilling to budge. “Those are my stipulations. You agreed to them.”
“Out of the goodness of my heart.” She smiled coolly. “Not because I had to.” She shrugged. “But, as you wish.” She stared at him, a warning in her eyes. “But if you try to pull anything behind my back, we will shut you down and cut you out so fast your head will spin. Do you understand?”
Nolan nodded. “Yeah,” he whispered. “I’m not going to try anything.”
“Good.” Patrice smiled and walked over. She kissed his mouth. “I will see you tomorrow, bright and early.”
Nolan waited a good ten minutes after she left before returning to the bedroom. Grid was dressed and sitting on the floor of the closet, his back against the wall and knees drawn up casually, when Nolan opened the door. “You can come out,” Nolan mumbled and moved away from the closet.
Grid climbed to his feet—wearing only socks, as Nolan hadn’t managed to grab his shoes in the rush to hide him. The young man stepped out of the closet and stretched, then scooped up his sneakers and sat down on the bed to put them on. “Did she suspect anything?” Grid asked low, his eyes on his shoes as he tied the laces.
“No.” Nolan lingered near the bedroom door, avoiding direct glances at the man.
“Good.” Grid sighed and straightened up. “I wouldn’t want to get you in trouble.” He left the bed and walked over to Nolan. “I wouldn’t want that at all.” Before Nolan could stop him, Grid’s fingers were in his hair and his lips on Nolan’s mouth.
God, your kiss tastes so much better than hers. The thought took root against his will and made it impossible to pull away. Grid leaned into the kiss, gently pinning Nolan against the doorframe, a soft groan rumbling in Grid’s chest.
Grid drew back a fraction, their lips touching as he whispered, “What were you going to say before she walked in?” he kissed him softly. “Tell me.”
Those were words he should’ve never considered uttering. And Nolan knew that now. He turned his head from Grid’s kiss and moved away from him, out of the bedroom. “You need to leave.”
“Why are you marrying her?” Grid followed him. “It isn’t what you want. You think I can’t see that? If it was what you wanted, I wouldn’t be here right now. You would’ve never gone to a gay strip club looking to get laid by a man.” Nolan could feel the young man’s frustration, his desperation to take this further. “I know it’s none of my business, but…” He stepped quickly around Nolan, halting him in his tracks. “After last night and…this morning…” he shook his head. “I know you felt what I felt. We weren’t just fucking, Nolan.” He caressed his palm along Nolan’s cheek. “It was more than that. A lot more.”
Trembling, Nolan briefly turned his face into Grid’s hand, then met his eyes. “You’re right,” he murmured unsteadily as he slowly withdrew. “It’s none of your business.” He looked away as his chest began to knot with pressure. “Please just…leave.” His eyes stung as he stared blankly at the carpet. “And don’t come back.”
Chapter 6
“Busy?” Dane poked his head into the office, a smile on his handsome face that weakened before it reached his solemn dark eyes.
“Never too busy for you,” Max offered him a warm smile and rose from behind the desk. He moved around front as Dane stepped inside and closed the door, muffling the sounds of the club. “I talked to Angel earlier when he came over to see Maddy.”
Dane nodded. “I take it he told you about our adventures into the twilight zone?” The humor was heavy and weighed down his words.
“Yeah.” Max walked over to him and hugged him hard. The young man embraced him without hesitation and clutched him tightly. “You’re a treasure to us, Dane,” Max whispered and kissed his hair. “Some people will always be blinded by their prejudices, but that’s on them and it has no bearing on your worth.”
His breath uneven, Dane murmured, “I know.”
Max tightened his arms, a thin film of tears forming. “You are one of the cornerstones of our family, babe. That’s how important and necessary you are to all of us. If you were gone, it would cripple this family. I know it hurts to be rejected by the ones who should be the first to love you unconditionally, but know that they are wrong. Their view of you is distorted, warped by their uneducated beliefs. I can imagine God is getting pretty sick and tired of people claiming to speak for Him, and in turn ruining His reputation. I know I would be.” Max drew back and smiled. “Of course, I’m not God.”
Clearing his throat, Dane chuckled softly, his eyes damp. “I don’t think you’d make such a bad god.”
Max laughed quietly and kissed him. “Thank you. That’s very high praise.” He rubbed his palm down Dane’s cheek as the young man gazed back at him. “You’re a special man, Dane. All a person has to do is watch the way Angel looks at you to know you are one in a million. And it was your loving heart that inspired you to reconnect with your parents. Their actions don’t take away from that. And as I explained to Angel, your decision was the key factor that led Abel to Noah. A boy’s life was saved because you cared enough to want to heal your relationship with your family.”
Dane swallowed thickly. “Then it wasn’t all in vain.”
“Not even close.”
Dane rubbed his face and took a seat on the sofa. “How is he doing?”
Taking a seat in the high-back leather chair adjacent to the leather sofa, Max said, “Good. As far as I know. Devlin took him in to the hospital today for an examination and some x-rays. Did Angel explain about his injuries?”
“Yeah.” Dane nodded, then smiled. “I can’t believe Clint didn’t separate that man’s head from his body.”
“He was tempted, to say the least,” Max chuckled.
“I wonder if he comprehends how close to death he came?”
Max shook his head. “I don’t know.”
“God probably frowns on the whole vengeance thing, huh?” Dane wondered, amused.
Max sighed. “The Bible does say ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, sayeth the Lord’.”
A slow smile crept across Dane’s lips. “In our case…sayeth the cowboy.”
Max laughed and shrugged. “Well, sometimes you have to break the rules. God knows we’re not perfect. And I have to admit, it’s rather comforting knowing we have that cowboy standing vigilant. Him and Cochise.”
“I agree,” Dane murmured. “This world’s a dangerous place. Seems to be damn hard on our youngsters, especially. Can’t say I’m not glad to have a couple vigilante gangsters watching our backs.”
“Amen. God’s blessings come in all forms.” He smiled and nodded. “Sometimes on the wings of an angel, and other times…in cowboy boots and a hat.”
♦
“Where the hell have you been all night?”
Grid had tried to prepare himself for the questions on his way back to the penthouse, but every lie he came up with sounded fake even to him. He’d told Seth and Jamie about his first encounter with Nolan and sworn them to silence…maybe he could just tell them the truth?
“You, Ricky, and the guys didn’t have the party without us, did you?” Jamie eyed him, scowling. “You better not have.”
“No,” Grid chuckled. “I wasn’t with them.”
Seth perched on a stool
at the wet-bar and stared at him thoughtfully. “So who were you with?”
“Who says I was with anyone?”
“You didn’t sleep here last night,” Seth pointed out. “You have to have slept somewhere.”
“Yeah.” Jamie grinned. “Where did you stay last night?”
Grid hesitated; he felt like he was betraying Nolan’s confidence in telling them the truth, though Nolan hadn’t confided in him. And Seth and Jamie already knew about the other. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I was with…Nolan.”
“What?” Seth stared at him wide-eyed. “Seriously? You mean with with? As in, the two of you…”
“Yeah.”
“He made a gay man out of you?” Jamie smiled.
Oh hell, did he ever. “As much of a gay man as I can possibly be,” Grid chuckled quietly.
“It was that good?” Seth grinned.
Grid released a hard breath and nodded. “Fuck, yeah, it was that good.”
“So…” Seth pursed his lips, uncertainty seeping into his eyes. “What about his fiancée?”
Shaking his head slowly, Grid shrugged. “What about her? They’re still getting married. Last night…this morning…it was a one-time thing.” He cleared his throat, his heart sinking. “He told me not to come back.”
Jamie frowned, clearly confused. “What the hell? He’s totally into guys, obviously, but he’s marrying a woman? What’s the deal?”
“I don’t know,” Grid mumbled. “He said there was a part of her he was deeply in love with.”
“A part of her?” Jamie’s frowned knit tighter. “What does that mean?”
Grid chuffed. “No fucking clue. He doesn’t want to marry her.”
“He said that?” Seth asked.
“No,” Grid replied. “But he didn’t have to. I mean – fuck – he was at the club last night, powering down whiskey shots again. A happily engaged straight man doesn’t escape to a gay strip club in search of a man to fuck. And back at his apartment…” Grid shivered, his entire body instantly warming to the memory. “I guarantee you, he wasn’t thinking about any woman.” Grid recalled that moment when Nolan was about to offer him his heart, and it twisted him up inside that it hadn’t happened.