by Max Walker
Fred’s hand squeezed Caleb’s, whose lip was twitching as he fought back the tears.
“I won’t,” Caleb said, feeling a resolve settle into him. He was going to try and fix this. He needed to.
“Alright, go and get him,” Fred said, letting Caleb’s hand go. Caleb, smiling, got up and started walking toward the door. He was still feeling a little frustrated but a bit more hopeful. He was almost out the door when Fred called to him again.
“Oh, Caleb, can you tell that one doctor to stop coming into my room at night. It wakes me up every time.”
“Sure, which doctor?”
“I don’t know… they don’t say each other’s names.”
“Each other?” Caleb closed the door, walking back to the bed. “Who comes in here, Fred?”
Fred looked a little confused, now. He was racking his brain. “Sorry, it’s so dark when they come in, and I’m always half-asleep. I’m never even really sure what they’re checking up on.”
“No, don’t worry, take your time.”
“He’s tall. Comes in with a nurse. They always check something and then talk about fern—fent—fant—“
“Fentanyl?”
“Yes, that.”
Caleb’s alarm bells went off like sirens. Fentanyl was a drug used in anesthesia and was a common one used by drug-addicted physicians. There would be no reason to even have a dose of fentanyl near Fred, so if they were coming in here at night, it was only to do one thing.
“Fred, I need you to give me anything else you remember about these two. Something else they said, or maybe something they were wearing.”
“Well…” Fred looked up at the ceiling, frustrated.
“It’s ok, I can come back in a few minutes.”
“Gold.” Fred snapped to, remembering something. “It was dark in here, I couldn’t make out faces, but I do remember seeing a gold stethoscope. It caught the lights of the machine. I thought that was unusual.”
Because it was. There was only one person who wore a gold-plated stethoscope in Sierra View.
Jackson.
Caleb needed more though. He had to have proof that Jackson was taking the drugs. He must have thought taking them in a room guaranteed to not have any cameras would give him protection, without considering that Fred would wake up, but Fred’s hazy words weren’t enough.
Damn it.
Not like it really mattered. The way he saw it, getting rid of Jackson wouldn’t help him figure out what was going on with Red. Or would it? Jackson’s threatening words about Caleb staying away from jumped to mind again.
“Does that help?”
“Yes,” Caleb said, “it does. I don’t think there’s enough to get him, but I think I know who it is, and I don’t think they were coming in here to check on you, Fred. I think they were coming in here to take drugs.”
Fred’s eyes opened wide. Caleb jumped in, “I’m going to let someone know, so they can catch him the next time.”
“Good.” Fred smiled, completely unaware of the pain Jackson was responsible for inflicting. “He only came here a few times, though. They might be using different rooms.”
“They’ll find him.” Caleb reassured Fred and got up, telling him this would all get fixed as he left the room. He honestly wasn’t even that shocked to find out Jackson was stealing and using drugs.
That’s probably why he knows how to manipulate the system so well. He knows how to cover up his tracks.
Caleb was lost in thought as he walked down the hallway. He was done seeing patients, so now he could focus on figuring out what the hell happened with Red. Not only was his worry for Red spiraling out of control, but he also had to reckon with the news that Jackson doing drugs in his patients’ room. It was an overload of information and emotions.
So, needless to say, turning the corner and bumping into Jackson himself was the last thing that Caleb wanted. For a split second, he was going to spin on his heels and walk in the opposite direction. He wasn’t going to say a word to Jackson. Not yet.
But then, Jackson, still wearing his light blue surgery scrubs, opened his mouth and completely floored Caleb.
“You and Red are done, huh?”
Jackson just couldn’t keep his mouth shut, could he? Did TMZ already report on it? Was there some dumb fucking hashtag on Twitter talking about Red’s breakup? To top it off, it sounded like Jackson was gloating. His chest puffed up, proud of the pain and sadness in Caleb’s expression.
…He did have something to do with this.
Caleb understood then why Red punched Peter. He felt it rise up inside him. The anger. A primal urge to explode and give Jackson a taste of his own medicine. Make him feel it for a while. Have him taste the blood, understand that his actions had consequences.
But, there was no way. Not in the halls of the hospital. Their brawl would have been filmed and gone viral. Caleb would lose his job in a second and never get hired again. One of his biggest fears. He couldn’t picture a life where he couldn’t be a nurse. It was bleak.
Caleb had to swallow the rage. His aversion to conflict was being stifled by the anger. “That’s none of your business.”
“That’s what you think,” Jackson said, a menacing glare flashing over his intimidating features.
What the hell is that supposed to mean?
Thirty-Two
Red Miller
Red drove fast, much faster than he should have been going. His stunt-driver skills were kicked into full-throttle as he rocketed down the freeway. Thankfully, it was mostly empty at this time on a Sunday. He made it to Sierra View in record time, pulling up to the front and dropping his car off at the valet.
He had no time to wonder if any other hospitals had valets or if it was just a Los Angeles thing. Instead, he went in through the glass doors and right to the front desk. There was a woman sitting there, early thirties with a tight bun and pink glasses. She looked up and immediately recognized Red.
“Oh! Um, hello, hi, Red, Mr. Miller, what can we, who are you here to see?” She was grabbing papers around her desk that seemed to have nothing to do with anything.
“Caleb Forester. He’s a nurse here. Can you call him to the front?”
“Yes, oh of course. One second.” She grabbed the phone and pressed a few buttons with a shaking finger. “Caleb Forester, Red Miller is here to see you at the front desk.”
Red winced at the use of his name. He would have enjoyed keeping a sliver of anonymity, but knew the girl was too overwhelmed to think about it. He let it slide and stepped aside. The girl was readying her phone for a photo when the elevator doors dinged open from across the room and out walked Caleb.
Red’s heart dropped. Caleb’s face was etched with pain. He had never seen him look so defeated. And it was all because of Red. He was the reason behind Caleb’s puffy eyes and dragging feet.
Red was so taken by Caleb’s expression, he didn’t realize someone else got off the elevator behind Caleb.
“Caleb,” Red said, as Caleb got close enough to touch. He stopped himself from grabbing him in a hug. It was then he realized he wasn’t even sure what he was doing there.
He was sure of one thing, though: He would figure it out with Caleb. Not without him.
He grabbed Caleb and wrapped his arms tight around him, smelling the coconut in his hair and the spice in his cologne, feeling Caleb break down in his arms, happy that they were together again, terrified of those moments they spent apart. It felt so right, holding him in his arms. He knew, deep down, that this was how it was always meant to be.
“So, you’re Red Miller, huh?” a voice said. An oddly familiar voice. One that Red had burned into his memory, only because he wanted to find the owner of that voice so he could beat him into a bloody fucking pulp. “I thought you’d look a little buffer in person.”
Red looked up from Caleb’s head to the man who stood a few feet back. “Jackson.”
The air between them sparked with a dangerous current.
“Why di
d you follow me?” Caleb asked, separating from Red and turning to face Jackson.
“Because I wanted to see this all happen in person.” Jackson crossed his arms. He was enjoying this way too much. Red had to knock him down a few notches, and his fist was about to do just that, before he realized there were a few cameras sneakily pointed his direction.
He took a breath before he spoke. “Jackson, whatever you have, it’s useless.” Red was grasping at straws.
“What are you talking about?” Caleb asked, “What do you have?”
“As if you don’t know.” Jackson moved closer to Caleb, his voice sinister. “It would be a shame if Caleb’s recreational activities got out.” His voice rose at the suggestion of Caleb’s drug use, no doubt hoping the growing crowd would hear.
Red’s nails were digging into his palms. “Stop,” he growled.
“Wait, what are you talking about?” Caleb cocked his head, looking between Red and Jackson. “I have nothing to hide. You’re not pulling that same shit on me again.”
“Caleb, stop.” It was Red. He didn’t want Caleb to say something to provoke Jackson. Unfortunately, the monster had the upper hand. He still had the doctored evidence that could destroy Caleb’s career.
“No, I won’t stop. What’s going on?”
Jackson was enjoying this. “You should be saying bye to Red, that’s what’s going on.”
“Why? How did you know?” Caleb was shaking his head, trying to put the pieces together. “Were you behind the text?” Red wanted to tell him about the threat, but what if that backfired?
“Let’s talk outside,” Red said, grabbing Caleb’s hand. Caleb took his hand back, leaving a burning impression on Red’s palm.
“We’re talking here.” Caleb turned to Jackson. “You ruined my life once, you aren’t doing it again. What the hell is going on?”
Jackson looked over Caleb’s shoulder, right into Red’s eyes. He cocked his head and smiled. “Fine.” Shit. Red was scared of this. He was betting on Jackson keeping quiet so Peter wouldn’t lose his advantage over Red. If the accusations against Caleb were made public, then the blackmail was null and void.
Red didn’t take into account the fact that Jackson had no real loyalty to Peter. They may have been secretly fucking, but Jackson enjoyed sowing chaos more than seeds. He got off on causing trouble, and he wasn’t going to stop himself now.
“Caleb, why don’t you tell everyone about your drug use? You know? The drugs you’ve been stealing from patients.”
Jackson’s voice was loud, drawing everyone’s attention. Red took a step forward, past Caleb. He was a foot from of Jackson now.
“How fucking dare you.” Red felt like a pressure cooker, ready to blow. “Caleb is one of the most honest, loving, intelligent people here. He’s an excellent nurse and more of a man than you will ever be.” His hand came up and grabbed Jackson’s shirt, bundling it in his fist. “I don’t know what you have, but whatever it is, we can prove it’s fake.”
The entrance to the hospital was deathly quiet. No one spoke. Red didn’t see the security guard start walking toward them from across the room.
“He stole the drugs!” Jackson started to yell, pointing at Caleb. “I have photos! Caleb, you fucking drug addict, you’re going straight to jail! Say bye to your cock-suck—”
“Fuck you,” Red said, letting go of the front of Jackson’s scrubs before he lurched forward, hitting with him a fist under the jaw. The quiet in the room was replaced by a crack as his fist connected with bone. Jackson’s head snapped back as he stumbled into the security guard.
“Stop!” Caleb said, grabbing Red’s arm and stopping him from bursting one of Jackson’s kidneys. “I have proof you stole drugs, Jackson.” Caleb’s voice was dripping venom. Red looked to him in shock as more security guards ran onto the scene. The sound of police sirens rang from outside.
“You think you’re smart? Stealing fentanyl and using it in an elderly patient’s room in the dead of night? Thinking he’d never notice? Well, guess what, Jackson, your times up. Not only did he tell me he saw you, but he secretly recorded you. He’s smarter with a cellphone than you think.”
Jackson’s eyes were bulging. It was clear Caleb had caught him, but how?
“No, that’s not—how did—he was awake?”
The police came in then. The scene dispersed for the most part.
“What’s going on here?”
“He—!” Jackson tried to speak but Caleb cut him off.
“He’s been stealing drugs and using them next to sleeping patients. I’m sure if you search his office, you’ll find a stash.”
Red put an arm around Caleb. Caleb was scared, Red could feel it in the way he stood, the soft shake in his shoulders. He knew how much Caleb hated confrontation, and this must not have been easy.
The police went to question Jackson, who was sounding more and more belligerent as he tried to explain that he was being framed and that Caleb was the real drug-abuser. The cops didn’t believe it, cuffing Jackson when they found a needle of fentanyl in his pocket. Thankfully, the moron had decided to steal some from his most recent surgery, since Red learned later that Caleb was making up the whole ‘older man has cell footage of you doing drugs’ thing. It was quick thinking on Caleb’s part.
With Jackson cuffed, the cops dragged him to the police car outside.
Red still felt camera lenses pointed his way, no doubt looking for a juicy story. The cops came back to talk to them, deciding it was best to take them into the station to finish the interviews.
It was a long night. Too long. But Red had Caleb back. That was something he hadn’t envisioned happening, and for that, he didn’t care if the night dragged on into forever.
He had Caleb.
***
Night had fallen by the time Red and Caleb got back from the police station. The interrogation room had been stuffy and the coffee was shit, but at least the two men left the station feeling good about the future. They both gave the police everything they knew on Jackson as well as Peter, who Red was going to go after for blackmail and threats. Apparently, the police were already opening an investigation into Jackson for stealing drugs, so Caleb’s report of Fred’s statement only solidified their theory, and after a search of his office, no doctored photos of Caleb were found. For a moment there, before the hospital, Red had thought he once against lost it all, permanently. He thought he had to let Caleb go in order to save him, and that idea had devastated his being. Red felt broken and useless.
Now, with Caleb by his side as they entered his home, all of that was gone. It was time to rebuild now. Their foundation may have been rocked but it wasn’t destroyed, and Red had years to look forward to spending with Caleb.
But, instead of fast forwarding, Red wanted to enjoy every second of the current moment.
“We’re done,” he said, an exhausted smile coming on his face as the automatic lights clicked on while they walked through the house toward the bedroom. “Those two assholes are going to spend time behind bars and we’ll never have to worry about them again.”
“Damn,” Caleb said, a relieved laugh escaping him. “I can’t believe it.”
“I can’t believe how close I was to losing you,” Red said, his voice dropping as they entered the bedroom.
“You never lose someone you love,” Caleb said, suddenly sounding wise beyond his years. His hazel eyes reflected the white moonlight streaming in from outside. They stood next to the bed, holding both hands as they locked gazes.
“I’m sorry,” Red said, feeling a tear roll down his cheek. “For the pain I caused.”
“You did it for the right reasons under extreme circumstances,” Caleb was smiling. He brought a hand up to Red’s face, running a thumb over his scruff.
“I should have come to you, first. I was scared you’d take it into your own hands, though. I didn’t know what Jackson had.”
“You did the right thing,” Caleb said, reassuring Red. Hearing Caleb say that did
lift some of the weight from Red’s heart. But the kiss that followed was what erased all of the sorrow and replaced it with bliss.
Their kiss evolved, as they always did, into something deeper. But there was more heat between them now than ever before. Fingers started tearing at fabric. Jeans were practically ripped off. Underwear was thrown across the room. Hair was already getting messy and tangled.
Caleb broke from the kiss and started to kiss his way down to Red’s neck, one of his most sensitive spots. He felt a rush of warmth run through him when Caleb’s lips traveled across his neck, sucking at the area, using his teeth to send chills down Red’s spin.
Caleb moved down from sucking on Red’s sensitive neck. He licked his way down Red’s chest, stopping over the pebbled nipples. He took one in his mouth and rolled it with his teeth, sending jolts of pleasure shooting through his body, making his cock throb in the air, the tip wet with excitement.
From Red’s nipple, Caleb moved down to his thick dick, already rock hard and slick at the tip.
Caleb worshiped Red’s cock with his lips. Licking up and down the shaft, greedily sucking it into his warm, wet mouth. His tongue danced around the swollen head, making Red’s knees quiver and his balls tighten. He fucking loved seeing Caleb gobble him up without abandon. He looked like he wanted nothing else in the world except for Red’s cock, and that drove Red crazy. He reached down and twined his hands in Caleb’s messy head of thick hair. He pulled as Caleb tried to swallow even more of his cock, trying to get down to his heavy balls. Red wanted to see his cock disappear down Caleb’s throat, beginning to thrust his hips as Caleb opened up wider.
“Oh, fuck, that’s it.” Red let his head fall back for a moment as bliss overtook him. He quickly looked back down, not wanting to miss a second Caleb’s worshiping. He pulled up for a breath, his lips wet and plump and—fuck—he had to kiss him. He put his hand under his chin and brought Caleb up from between his legs. Their cocks pressed against each other, a delicious heat rolling over Red. Their lips pressed together. Red tasted himself on Caleb’s tongue, wanting more as he probed deeper.