by Lissa Kasey
After a while the sun really began to heat up his skin. He sighed, trying to turn his head and open his eyes. Only he was no longer in a forest. He was in a bed, and one that wasn’t his or Candy’s.
He panicked, smacking someone in the head in his scramble to get up. A curse assaulted his ears, but he found himself trapped by the weight of another body against him. He saw a bare foot that led to a bare leg, only a blanket separated him from touching someone’s naked skin. What if they touched? Aki began to shove at the other person. “Let me up!”
“Would you stop fidgeting? You’re like a damn squirrel trying to fight for the last nut in his sleep. Not letting a man get a wink.”
Aki froze at the sound of the voice, which was unmistakable. “McNaughton?”
“You find yourself in many other men’s beds come morning, kid? Never mind, don’t answer that. I don’t want to know.”
“How am I in your bed? I don’t understand.” Aki frowned at the blanket that moved until McNaughton finally turned to gaze down on him. Yeah, he was pretty sure the cop was naked. He shouldn’t have been embarrassed—after all, he’d serviced the man many times before—but the intimacy of winding up in his bed with the man naked and lying on top of him was something he never imagined. He couldn’t understand why seeing the man in all his glory made him suddenly shy. It had to be the lack of control. Unlike at the Gem, here there were no rules and barriers in place to protect him. That’s what made a good whore, making the client feel like they were leading things, when really it was all in the hands of the companion. Literally in Aki’s case. If McNaughton shifted a little, he’d really be holding Aki down, an idea that had Aki embarrassingly hard.
“Your guess is as good as mine. Came home to find you curled up on my couch. I figured the bed was more comfortable than the sofa.” His eyes weren’t as dark today, though his scruff was heavy. The man was just hairy in general: face, chest, abs…. “Been ages since I’ve had a man in my bed. And such an attractive one is definitely a bonus.”
Aki felt the heat flood his cheeks, not just because McNaughton was flirting, but because he acknowledged him as a man when so many others treated him like a girl because of the way he dressed. “Hard to service you like this, plus I’m pretty sure Bart would get mad at me for giving freebies to regular clients.”
McNaughton smiled that horribly wonderful dimpled grin and rolled more firmly in place over Aki, holding him down. He settled his weight in between Aki’s legs until the companion moved them apart enough to make room for him. The blanket and Aki’s clothes separated them, but their lips hovered only inches apart.
“What if I want to service you?”
Aki gulped and blinked at the idea. “Probably not a good idea. If Bart finds out, he’ll get mad. And the touching and all…. Unless maybe you have gloves?”
“I’m thinking we don’t need gloves.” McNaughton pressed his hips into Aki’s, letting his erection rub against the companion’s. The heavy weight of the man and slow drag of his large cock across Aki’s groin made him moan. No one ever paid to pleasure him; it was always about them. But even a little rubbing was better than his hand on the rare occasion he jerked himself off. If only he could feel the warmth of McNaughton’s skin against his own, the smooth silken heat that encased his cock, the hairy pubes that often tickled his nose when Aki went down on him, and the thick skin that wrapped the tip of him.
“Frottage is good,” Aki sighed as the detective found a good rhythm. McNaughton carefully kept the blanket between them, but increased the pace. Aki spread his legs wider, wrapping his thighs around the detective’s hips and struggling to find a place to put his hands.
“Blanket’s clean, try that, Peanut,” McNaughton whispered, his hot breath sliding across Aki’s skin the way he wished his hands could. Aki wove his fingers into the heavy woven blanket, gripping it tight, and moving his hips to gain more friction, happy that he got no memories from the object.
“No kissing,” Aki reminded McNaughton as the man ducked his head close to Aki’s neck. “Bad memories equal no pleasure for Aki.”
McNaughton’s grumbled laughter shook them both. “Wouldn’t want that, would we? Don’t hold back. Just let go.”
Aki tightened his thighs, pressing his erection hard against the other man until it was almost pain, and then finally he exploded a long release. His hands went slack, and he could swear he saw stars. It’d been a while, a few months at least. The worst part about a job in the sex industry was that it made sex a chore. Only in rare moments like these could he take things out of the box that was packaged for work and drop a bit of it into the one he stored up for pleasure. His body convulsed gently for a minute or so. Too sensitive to be touched, he eased his hips away. The detective’s heavy breaths let Aki know he’d finished as well. He could almost see the racing pulse in McNaughton’s neck ease and wanted to bite him, suck on the flesh until a nice little mark appeared, letting the world know what they had done.
McNaughton brushed his hair across Aki’s face, strong shoulders and thickly muscled arms only centimeters away. Aki longed to lick his flesh, taste the juncture between shoulder and neck, or even rub his nose into the crook under the man’s chin. Instead he got almost painful distance and soggy pants. Sometimes being a psi really sucked.
He sighed. “I didn’t bring any other underwear. Wasn’t planning on spending the night out. Bathroom?”
McNaughton rolled off the bed and wiped himself with the blanket before balling it up and throwing it into a laundry basket. He pointed toward a door to the side of the room while he stood there in all his naked glory. Even though he’d come, the man was still hard. If Aki had a pair of gloves and a condom, he’d drop to his knees and finish the man off a second time.
Something must have shown on his face because the detective’s smile grew. “Your boss would kill me. Best go get cleaned up. I should call and let them know where you are anyway. They’re probably worried.”
Aki stared at him a few moments longer. He dreamed of letting the man have him. Literally had dreams of it, right down to the feel of the man’s huge cock pounding into him. Was it sad to wish there was a way? To think that one man was so beautiful he’d suffer just about any pain to try it? Yeah, there had been that kiss. It had filled his mouth with the taste of blood, raw meat, and his bones with a vicious need to tear, hurt, and kill. Still, Aki knew there was more to the man than violence.
McNaughton growled when Aki finally moved. “Someday, kid.”
Not likely. It was just too hard to ensure no one touched him flesh to flesh. He sought out his mentor Paris when the desire got to be too much. It still took a lot of thought for Aki to not crawl inside the man’s head as the man pumped into his body, and Paris usually only showed him rainclouds. Occasionally Aki found his way beyond the clouds. Most of the time he could just get lost in the rain for hours and forget where he was. How much worse would it be with McNaughton, who gave him blood and pain with the barest of kisses?
In the bathroom he stripped out of his pants and underwear and tried to rinse the delicate fabric in the small sink. Somehow he couldn’t see himself trying to dry his lacy underwear with a hair dryer in McNaughton’s bathroom, if the man even had a hair dryer, so he spread them out on the side of the tub to dry and put his pants back on after searching the drawers and finding nothing but towels and a first aid kit. His pants were clean at least, even if he hated going commando outside the Gem. The leggings weren’t jeans but a soft cotton, so not uncomfortable. Unfortunately they were a bit on the snug side, hugging his ass and outlining his package a little more than he liked for normal everyday wear. He tugged the sweater down to cover more. His clothes were just fine for the bonfire, but not so much for a trip back to the Gem through public streets.
Aki left the bathroom feeling a little self-conscious. He’d finger-combed his hair and washed his face, but he was a mess. He was surprised he hadn’t scared McNaughton away the second the man took one look at him. Raccoon eyes
, sleep lines, and bed hair did not a companion make.
“Manny’s on his way over to pick you up,” McNaughton told him. He picked up one blue heel and then dug through the stack of bedding until he found the other and handed them over. Aki gripped his shoes. He loved them so much. His little escape from the world. He slid them onto his feet and buckled them. Maybe if no one looked up from his shoes he’d be good. No, no, don’t stare at the companion, he’s had a bad night, chased by a dog, broke into someone’s home, came in his pants like some untried brat, and couldn’t even make himself presentable because the man he found himself with didn’t own a brush or a hair dryer.
“Thanks,” Aki grumbled as he made his way downstairs. The heavy steps behind him said that McNaughton followed. At least he had put on a pair of jeans so he wasn’t taunting Aki everywhere he went. “I won’t tell Bart if you don’t.”
McNaughton’s lips curved up into another of those oh-so-sexy smiles. “I’m pretty sure frottage is not on your price list. Maybe we can make it a specialty for when I come to see you.”
Aki felt his cheeks warm again. It couldn’t have been that good. It was just a little rubbing.
“Though I love your pretty little mouth wrapped around me. The memory gives me something to jack off to for days after I visit. You should probably charge more for how many times I come from your skills even when you’re not there. The sounds you make when I grip your hair and slide in between your warm lips….”
“Your words are sweet as honey, McNaughton.”
He laughed, a heavy belly laugh that seemed so out of place in a rough man like him, but he crossed the room and backed Aki into the wall. “Visit my house again, and we’ll see who’s got the honey, Peanut. I like being able to milk you for a change.” The doorbell rang just as Aki was sure he’d give in and kiss the detective again. McNaughton pulled away and opened the front door. Manny stood there looking stern. He frowned at Aki, but Aki just shrugged and headed toward the guard.
“Thanks for letting me stay,” Aki told McNaughton as he passed. “Sorry if I was trouble.”
“Nothing to be sorry for. Nothing at all.”
Aki followed Manny to the waiting car with his ears burning. Once they were encased in the secure darkness of the vehicle, he let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding. Obviously too much time with the big DM messed with his head.
“Why didn’t you call me? I would have come to get you,” Manny said quietly from the driver’s seat.
Aki sunk down in the back, spreading out his legs. His body ached, legs, back, arms. He remembered running, which explained the odd feeling. “I didn’t have my phone. Left it in my room, I think.”
“Why didn’t you come home? You know Bart doesn’t like any of the companions going home with a client without arrangements or a guard. It’s against the rules. Things can happen….”
“I didn’t go home with him. Something chased me through the woods as I was headed back to the Gem. I found my way to the house—which was unlocked—and barricaded myself inside, woke up with him this morning telling me it was his house I’d stumbled into.” Aki watched the neighborhood go by. It was a nice area, houses all looking the same, only a few blocks from the Gem. Odd how such normalcy could exist so close to him. The people who surrounded McNaughton appeared to have nine-to-five jobs, two point three kids, and picket fences. It seemed an odd place for him.
“Something chased you? Like a person? Did you get a look at him?”
“Not a person. It was a dog. Not like those little yippy things you see all the time, but like the ones in horror movies. It was bigger than me, claws and fangs and all that.” Aki remembered only vague bits of it. He also remembered briefly talking to a boulder.
“How much did you have to drink?”
Too much, obviously. “I saw something.”
Manny smiled. “A squirrel.”
“That would be one big-ass squirrel.”
“Size is relative when you’re sloshed.”
Aki sighed. Okay, yeah, that happened, but really that much? “I’m surprised I don’t have a hangover if I was that drunk.” Or maybe the morning sex had helped with that.
“You feeling okay?”
He could use an aspirin and some more time in bed, but nothing he couldn’t handle. “Manageable. How’s Candy?”
Manny shook his head. “We shall see, eh?”
Aki wondered how many companions would be sick tonight. He figured he’d return home and curl up with Candy for a bit before the two of them took over the hot tub in the main bathing area to work out the rest of the booze. He totally needed the heat to sweat all the crap out and the massage of the water to wash away the ache from his run. Note to self: running bad, drinking too much bad, waking up with a sexy Irishman good.
NINE
WHEN SHANE stepped into the station, he knew something was up. Page gave him a warning glance just before Senator Biniski stepped out of the chief’s office ready to rage. Shane sighed and headed to his office, the man following.
“How dare you look into my background,” the senator began.
“You wanted me to find your little girl.”
“And you did! After she’d been mutilated by a monster! Then you go digging into my private records, financials, and history. For what? You think I slaughtered my own little girl?”
Shane wondered briefly what exactly had been found. He hadn’t had a chance to review it yet, but obviously they’d dug up something the senator didn’t want known. “I’m looking for enemies you might have. Anyone with a grudge or who may have crossed your path. Someone with a bad taste in their mouth who wanted to take it out on you in the worst way possible. In order to do that, I need to know everything.”
“Mandy’s surgery has to remain private. The press can’t know. No one can know. She’s already dead. Don’t crucify her.” The senator collapsed in the chair opposite Shane’s desk looking defeated. He was a large man, clean-cut, probably close to sixty, and showing every one of those years because he’d just lost his only daughter to a madman.
“I’m just trying to find a killer, Senator.” He opened the files that Page had left on his desk, glancing through for whatever surgery the man had mentioned. Holy shit. “Your daughter was a psi.” She’d had the pupil-dyeing surgery.
“And we’ve done all we could to give her every opportunity to live a normal life. She never exhibited any unusual abilities. Just because her eyes were off does not mean she was a deviant.”
Psis weren’t deviant in general unless they were forced to be so, but Shane wisely kept his mouth shut. Maybe this was a clue. They’d all been missing their eyes. Maybe they were all psis in hiding.
“Do you know if any of the other missing children had the same surgery?”
“It’s not something we discuss at government meetings, Detective McNaughton. My wife is terrified that everyone will find out.”
And what? Mandy was dead. The worst it could do was hinder Biniski from getting elected again. “I guess she’s better use to you dead. Since now no one has to know she was a psi and your political standing is good. Almost seems a good enough reason for murder.” Shane watched the man’s face turn red with rage at his biting words.
“How dare you! She was my only child.”
“Who was a psi. I recall about two months ago you spitting on the Hidden Gem companion Misaki Itou and calling him an infidel, nearly demanding that he be dragged out into the streets and beaten to death because he’s a psi with obvious psi eyes. Yet because your daughter’s eyes were dyed, it’s okay for her to be a psi?” Shane shook his head. “I am sorry for your loss, but I will continue to unbury information as needed until I find who is killing these children. This may be a link. Perhaps they all had the same surgery. By hiding this from the police, you have been hindering the case. Knowing this sooner could have saved lives. Maybe even Mandy’s.” Damn. How many other of these dead kids had that surgery?
Biniski hung his head. “I don’t
know if any of the others were the same or not….”
Shane tapped the files. “Well, that’s my job. How about you go back to yours? Make some laws, oppress some people, and let me get back to mine.”
“You joke, Detective. But I know what you are.”
“I know what I am too. And unlike you, I don’t fear it. Now get out of my office. If I need anything else from you, I’ll come with a warrant.” Shane stood up, crossed the room, and opened the door. “In the meantime, stay away from the Gem. If I hear of you agitating any more psis, you go to the top of my very short suspect list.”
“I could have your job, you know.”
“And what a shitty job you’d do at it. Now get out.” Once the senator was gone, Shane sat back down and began running through the files. He had ME reports and identification. Page was opening the door and sneaking in just as he was opening the file.
“Prepare yourself,” she told him as she sat down.
For what, he began to ask, but the first report was for Cameron Michaelson Jr. He’d been one of the two unidentified victims. “What the hell?”
“I know. It freaked me out a little too. I called Rothnow, and he assured me Candy is home safe at the Gem.”
But the DNA match on this victim was dead-on. “Does he have a twin or something?” What other explanation could there be? But even that didn’t make sense. What the hell?
“Not according to his birth record. In fact he’s the only male child born to their family in the last twenty years. No cousins or distant relatives that could explain the resemblance. Even if that was all it was. This would have to be some sort of clone. And we both know that’s not it.” Jenny flipped her red hair out of her face and nervously tapped her fingers on the table. “Only way to know more would be to get a sample of Candy’s DNA and try to match it. Maybe the guy we think of as Candy isn’t Michaelson.”