A Deadly Game

by J. P. Bowie

  “Turn over,” he said, his voice thick with desire. “So I can do your front.”

  “I don’t want to scare you.”

  “Show off.” Eric pretended to look startled as Nick turned over, exposing his impressive erection. “Yum,” he breathed. “Does all that belong to you?”

  “C’mere,” Nick growled, pulling Eric down on top of him and holding him in a crushing embrace. He kissed Eric’s lower lip, teasing it with his own. “Do you know how much I love you?”

  “Tell me,” Eric whispered, holding him tight.

  “Well, today when Garcia had me all tied up and no place to go, all I could think of was you. D’you remember, last year, when Jeff was kidnapped by that lunatic Lefevre?”

  Eric nodded and nuzzled Nick’s left nipple.

  “Well, he told me later that the worst part of all of that was the thought that he might never see Peter again. That he would never have the chance to tell him how much he loved him. That’s what I kept thinking today, that I never really tell you enough how much your love means to me—what you mean to me. But today, it all came to me in a rush, and suddenly, I knew that the one thing about dying that was really going to piss me off, was the fact that I would never see you again, never hold you in my arms, never get the chance to tell you how much I love you.”

  Eric laid a kiss on Nick’s chest. “You’ll have me in tears in a minute.” He smiled into Nick’s eyes. “But it was wonderful to hear you say all that.”

  “Yeah, maybe those cracks on my head have beaten some sense into me.” He laughed and kissed Eric hard on the lips. The smile faded from his eyes, replaced with a sensuality that made Eric smile with anticipation. “Let me make love to you,” Nick whispered against Eric’s mouth. “Let me show you how much I love you.”

  He lowered Eric onto his back, his hands slowly caressing the contours of Eric’s chest. He lowered his head to press a soft kiss just above Eric’s right nipple, then flicked at it with his tongue, taking pleasure in the scent and taste of his lover’s skin. He moved south, tracing an erotic pattern of kisses over Eric’s smooth, lithe torso ’til his lips nudged at the head of Eric’s straining erection. One quick move and he was kneeling between Eric’s thighs, his fingers curling around the base of the hard length, his tongue lapping at the glistening crown. A soft whimper from Eric and Nick drew the pulsing flesh into his mouth, sucking with long slow strokes. Eric writhed under him, spreading his legs apart, pushing his hips upward, his cock sliding in and out of Nick’s mouth. Nick slipped his hands under Eric’s butt, fingers delving into the moist crack, circling the ring of muscle around his hole.

  Eric groaned and gasped out Nick’s name as he lost control, pouring his salty cream into Nick’s mouth. Nick drank him in, relishing the throbbing of his lover’s cock on his tongue, savoring the unique flavor of his cum. He held Eric in his mouth until every drop had been wrung from him, then he slowly released him, laying a trail of kisses back up to Eric’s lips, capturing them with a long, deep kiss. Eric rolled Nick onto his back and sat astride him. With a knowing smile he reached for the lube, covering Nick’s now raging erection with the slippery gel. He guided it into the cleft between his buttocks, easing himself down on the slick shaft. Their eyes locked on one another, their bodies began to rock together, gently at first, then as need took over with a fervor that had them both moaning out loud.

  Eric bore down, his ass muscles pulsing around Nick’s cock.

  “Oh yes, Nick…feels so good,” he moaned.

  Nick thrust upward driving himself deep inside Eric, who leaned back, supporting himself with his hands flat on the mattress while he moved rhythmically up and down on the hard length of Nick’s cock. His eyes rolled back in his head and he moaned out his bliss, giving himself up to the incredible sensation being joined to Nick was bringing him. Nick grasped Eric’s hips, ramming into him, hard and fast. His body stiffened between Eric’s thighs as he climaxed, and Eric hissed out a “Yesss” as he felt the heat of Nick’s semen surge into him. He fell forward into Nick’s embrace, burrowing his face against Nick’s neck, pressing his lips to the warm skin.

  “I love you,” he whispered.

  “Love you, too.”

  Eric traced the outline of Nick’s mouth with his fingertips, smiling as he gazed at his lover’s face, the strain and tension of the past few hours now smoothed by the repose sleep had brought him. He looks so young when he’s asleep, Eric thought, kissing his lips gently. Young and vulnerable—so different from the hard-ass image he projected in his daily life. He moved closer so that every part of their bodies touched, and he smiled as Nick’s arm enfolded him in its shelter. He sighed with contentment and, at least for the moment, almost forgot the danger that might still surround them. Danger and darkness in the form of Garcia, or any other ally he could find to help him with his dirty work. He could only hope and pray that the police found the madman before he could kill anyone else—or try to do harm to the man Eric loved with all his heart and soul.

  Better stay away from us, Mr. Garcia, he thought, moving even further into Nick’s embrace, or I might just kill you myself.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Two weeks later:

  “’Morning Monica,” Nick greeted his secretary with a jaunty wave as he pushed in through the glass doors of his office.

  “Someone’s in a good mood,” she observed, handing him his mail and messages.

  “Yeah. Jeff’s back tomorrow, so you’ll have to toe the line again,” he said with a grin. “No more taking advantage of his easy-going partner.”

  “Huh. Just for that I’ll tell him how his business has gone to hell in his absence.”

  “Oh no—not that!”

  They laughed together then Monica rose from her desk to pour Nick a cup of coffee. “You got those FBI guys out of your hair at last?” she asked.

  “Finally. They left for LA yesterday.”

  She handed Nick his mug. “And still no sign of Garcia. He sure did a Houdini on them.”

  “Yeah…” Nick was quiet for a moment. “It’s been two weeks since he disappeared. He must have made it out of the country somehow, but I’d feel a whole lot better if he was safely behind bars again.”

  “I bet.”

  Nick had told Monica some of what had happened in his confrontation with Garcia and how he had drugged Eric in order to lure him up to the house on Mystic Hills.

  “Still,” she said. “He’s bound to be miles from here now. At least you can relax and not worry that he might try any of those stunts again.”

  “Stunts that include killing people,” Nick said, his demeanor suddenly grim, remembering. “So far, that we know of, he’s killed four people since he got out of jail, not to mention wounding that cop at the cemetery.”

  “How’s he doing?”

  “Better. They’re releasing him later this week. I talked with his wife a couple of days ago.” He glanced at the mail he was holding. “Okay. Better get some work done.”

  He walked into his office and began sifting through his mail.

  “Bill,” he muttered, “another bill…junk…another bill.” He paused as he came across a handwritten envelope with Dr. Norman Phelps name and address in the left corner. “Norman…” With a vague feeling of unease, he ripped open the envelope and began reading.

  Hi Nick. This is probably unexpected—people don’t write letters much anymore in this age of cell phones and emails—but I wanted to express a few thoughts to you as privately as I could. You can tear this up after you’ve read it if you like—and I certainly don’t expect a written reply. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking recently about my life…and yours…and I’ve come to the decision that I’m not about to give you up quite as easily as I first intended.

  “Oh Doc,” Nick said aloud. “What the…?”

  You see, I’ve never really been able to get you out of mind, and seeing you when you were in Pittsburgh recently just seemed to emphasize the way I feel about you—and I’m not about t
o throw all that away. I know you have a lover—Eric—and I know you said you had found the “right one” in him. But, I got the feeling when we were alone together, that something between us had been rekindled. Was I wrong? Somehow, I don’t think so.

  “Yes, Doc, you were wrong. Oh, for Pete sake’s…”

  Anyway, by the time you receive this letter, I will be in California, staying quite close by, actually. The phone number is 949-555-2121. If you would like to see me, and pursue this train of thought further, please call me. If I am wrong and you do not wish to see me again, please just ignore this letter, but like I said, I don’t think I was wrong. Maybe we could have a life together—maybe it would be grand. I know it would be, for me.

  Warmest regards and love,

  Norman

  Nick slumped back in his chair with a groan. Norman was here, and he was just supposed to ignore this fact if he didn’t want to deal with it? Of course he would call him—how could he not? How could he just ignore what was plainly a cry for help—but what the hell was he going to tell Eric?

  “Hey Eric, this is Norman—he thinks he’s in love with me and wants you to get lost.”

  No, that would not do at all. Jeez, why did all this have to happen right now? Just when he was thinking that things were getting back to normal. Garcia probably gone, Jeff coming back to work tomorrow, Eric and he talking about a little vacation together; a boat, some R&R, it all seemed so great, and now, another complication—Norman. Well, he wasn’t about to just push this to one side. Norman had been a good friend to him, and now he was hurting. He couldn’t just ignore this. He picked up the phone and dialed the number on the letter. Norman answered on the second ring.

  “Hello?”

  “Norman, it’s Nick. How are you?”

  “Feeling surprised that you actually called me.”

  “Of course I called you. What kind of jerk do you think I am?”

  “I don’t think you’re any kind of a jerk, Nick. I just thought you might want to avoid this conversation.”

  “Well, I don’t. Where are you?”

  “I rented a place in South Laguna.”

  “Why are you here? Are you on vacation, or somethin’?”

  “No. Like I told you when I saw you in Pittsburgh, I wanted out from what I’ve been doing for so many years. So I decided to move to California.”

  “What about the guy you said you were dating?”

  “That didn’t work out…”

  “So you’ve moved here, permanently?”

  “Well, as permanent as anything is in my life anymore. I just needed to get away from what was bothering me. So, can you come for lunch or something?”

  “Uh…okay. Today?”

  “Yes, today Nick. I really need to talk to you. Say around eleven-thirty?”

  “Okay. What’s the address?”

  After Nick put the phone down, he pondered the strange situation in which he now found himself. This was something he had not been expecting. Just what was it that Norman had felt happened between them when they last met? He had told Nick of his feelings for him, but Nick had been upfront from the beginning of his involvement with Eric. Did Norman really think he could break them up? Would he try?

  “Christ,” Nick muttered aloud. Should he call Eric right now and tell him what was going on, or should he wait until after he had met Norman face-to-face and told him what he wanted was impossible? Should he tell Eric? Suggest that he meet with Norman and get it all out in the open? No, that might just cause a mini-disaster. Eric would feel threatened—and after everything they had been through recently, Nick did not want to throw any more stress at him. Okay, he’d just have to meet with Norman and put him straight regarding his feelings. He would tell him that they could never be more than just friends—good friends. He sighed at the thought of the coming confrontation. Norman had come a long way on the assumption that Nick harbored more than just friendly feelings for him, and now he, Nick, was going to have to tell him that he was wrong.

  § § § §

  The address Norman had given him led Nick to a lavish enclave on the cliffs of South Laguna. “Wow,” he muttered as he drove into the driveway just south of the house Jeff and Peter’s British friends, Rod and “A,” owned, and which Nick had visited on a couple of occasions. Norman had called it “a place,” but the edifice that Nick now approached was obviously much more than that.

  More like a palace, he thought, ringing the doorbell.

  The front door was made of solid glass, and Nick groaned inwardly as he saw Norman approach him down the long hallway. He was wearing a loose robe, under which it was clear he was wearing nothing at all. For a moment, Nick was tempted to just shrug and retrace his footsteps back to his car, but because he felt he still owed Norman, he stood stoically, waiting for the door to open.

  “Nick…” Norman’s smile was open and genuine, and hard to resist.

  “Hey, Norman.” Nick let himself be pulled into the other man’s embrace. He did not resist as Norman’s lips found his, and the kiss that followed was much more than just friendly.

  “Uh, Norman—” Nick caught his breath and stepped back. “It’s good to see you but…”

  “I know.” Norman smiled and took his arm, leading him down a long, marbled hallway into a living room that looked like it belonged on an edition of “Homes of the Rich and Famous.”

  “This is some place,” Nick said, looking around.

  Norman laughed. “It’s a bit much, isn’t it? I rented it online. It’s owned by some rock star who hardly ever uses it. It’ll do till I find something more permanent.”

  “You’re planning to stay here, then?”

  “Uh huh.” Norman guided him out onto the balcony that overlooked the blue Pacific. “You can’t have all this to yourself,” he said. “I didn’t know Laguna was quite as beautiful as this.”

  “It’s beautiful all right,” Nick agreed. He looked beyond the house next door as he spotted a tall, slim older man with a shock of silver hair walk out onto the terrace that jutted out over the cliff edge.

  “Hey, Rod!” he yelled, recognizing Peter and Jeff’s friend from England. Rod stood shading his eyes, trying to discern who was calling him.

  “It’s Nick. Jeff’s partner!”

  “Why, hello there.” Rod waved his greeting. “I didn’t know there was anyone living there. Are you moving in?”

  “No. My friend Norman, from Pittsburgh, just moved here. Uh, we’re having lunch. This is Norman,” he added. “Maybe you guys can visit, seeing you’re neighbors…”

  “Hello, Norman,” Rod said, with a smile. “Of course, please feel free to call anytime.”

  Norman, smiling through clenched teeth, waved hello, at the same time muttering, “What are you doing?”

  “Just trying to make you some friends, is all. They’re really nice guys. They’re friends of Peter and Jeff’s.” He waved to Rod. “Okay, good seeing you…”

  “Indeed,” Rod said. “Bring your friend over for a drink later, if you like.”

  “Thanks.” He turned to look at Norman with a happy smile. “They’re such great guys. You couldn’t have better neighbors. Rod, and his friend A, they used to be in the theater in England and—”

  Norman laid a finger on Nick’s lips. “I’m sorry. Am I making you that nervous?”

  “No, no of course not.”

  Norman watched as Rod gave them another wave and went back into his house. He sighed as he looked out over the ocean. “You are so lucky, Nick,” he said, putting his arm around Nick’s waist.

  “Yeah. Eric and me…we both love it here.”

  Almost as though he had not heard those words, Norman unfastened the front of his robe and pressed his naked body against Nick. “We could be so happy here,” he whispered into Nick’s ear, putting his arms around his neck and holding him close. “Look at all that we could have together.”

  “Norman…cut it out.” Nick grabbed Norman’s wrists and gently pulled away from his emb
race. “You know this is wrong. I’ve told you how I feel about Eric. Please respect that.”

  Norman stepped back as if stung. Flushing with embarrassment, he fastened his robe around himself and walked back into the living room. Nick followed, catching him by the arm and turning him so that they were face to face.