Trevor’s eyes widened with a hopeful stare. “Can I?”
“No!” He flashed a mischievous grin. “Peter O’Toole. Naked, hard, and licking your nipples.”
“Oh. Gross! Master!” He wrinkled his nose as Drake’s rich, buttery laughter slid down his spine. Glancing at his crotch, he shook his head. “That did the trick. We can go in now, Master.”
“What? No thank you?” Drake taunted.
“For making me want to bleach my brain?” Trevor grinned. “I might not ever get hard again after that visual.”
A feral smile tugged the corners of Drake’s mouth. “Oh, I’ll get you hard again, boy. Don’t doubt that for a second.”
He didn’t, and if Trevor stayed inside the car listening to Drake’s velvet voice, he’d be hard again in seconds flat.
When they entered Tony’s office, the doctor was waiting. He motioned for them both to follow him back. Trevor wrinkled his forehead in confusion. Drake looked equally perplexed but willingly walked down the hall beside him.
When the three men were seated in Tony’s private office, the doctor smiled. “I asked Drake to join us today because I wanted to start working toward better communication and repairing your relationship. Are you both okay with that?”
He and Drake nodded.
“Good. So, have you recovered from the incident at the club this morning?”
“Yes. With Daddy’s help, that is.”
“I confess. I watched the hot, steamy sex you two had in my room at the club,” Tony said with a chuckle. “Drake used you kind of roughly, but it didn’t seem to trigger any flashbacks. Is that still the case?”
It was no secret the two enjoyed playing on the edge, both sexually and when engaging in BDSM scenes. While not everyone desired to give or receive pain, Drake and Trevor achieved untold fulfillment that way. It was the beauty of the lifestyle. One size didn’t fit all.
“None,” Trevor assured. “In fact, you’ll be happy to know, I finally get what you’ve been trying to pound inside my head all these months.”
Tony looked surprised. “What part?”
“I’m not responsible for what happened to me. Neither is Drake. And the longer I stay stuck in my fear, the more power I’m giving to those pricks.”
“Halle-fucking-lujah. I’m proud of you, Trev.” Tony beamed.
Drake reached out and gripped Trevor’s hand and gave it a firm squeeze. A look of optimism lined his handsome face. “I’m proud of you, too, my love.”
Satisfaction and peace infused Trevor’s body in a wave of warmth. He fleetingly wondered if healing could be this damn easy. He wasn’t sure, but he wanted to believe it possible.
Tony asked several more probing questions that Trevor was happy to answer. But when the doctor mentioned the trial, he felt his body tense. Though Reed had assured them Trevor wouldn’t have to face the five bastards and testify, he might possibly have to share the courtroom with the monsters. He knew that fear would take more determination to battle and defeat.
“You once mentioned wanting to adopt a baby. Do you still want a child someday?” Tony asked.
As he felt Drake’s body stiffen, Trevor’s mouth went dry. He’d hoped the more time his Master spent with Tristan, the more open he might be to the idea. But Trevor knew now wasn’t the time or the place to brook that discussion. Instead of answering, he simply issued a shrug of indifference. Tony pinned him with a probing gaze. The room grew uncomfortably silent.
Beside him, Drake swiveled in his chair. An expectant expression was etched on his face. Trevor pinched his lips together, refusing to respond.
“Answer him, boy,” Drake instructed. “I know you want a child. Let’s talk about it.”
“Why?” he snipped. “You already know I do, and I know that you don’t. There’s nothing to talk about. Let it alone.”
Dammit. He’d let his insecurities bait him and given in to the knee-jerk reaction. Trevor exhaled on a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry for snapping at you, Daddy.”
One corner of Drake’s mouth kicked up. “At least you apologized this time. That’s progress, my love. Now getting back to the topic of children. What if I told you I’ve changed my mind?”
Trevor’s heart skipped a beat as he stared slack-jawed at his lover. Hope, excitement, and shock raced through his bloodstream. “Are you serious?”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The look on Trevor’s face was priceless. Drake wanted to laugh but simply grinned and nodded. His sub launched out of his seat with an ear-piercing squeal before nearly knocking Drake out of his chair with a tackle-hug.
While Tony laughed, Drake sent up a silent thank you to Mika for reaching out to the psychologist and putting their devious plan in motion.
“Are you serious?” Trevor asked once more in disbelief. “Please tell me you’re not kidding or messing with me.”
“No, boy. I’m dead serious. But…” Drake’s heart clutched as he watched Trevor’s face fall when he uttered the caveat. “We’re not doing anything until your night terrors are gone and we’re sure you’re on stable ground.”
A flash of heartbreak darted across Trevor’s face before he resolutely lifted his chin and gave Drake a firm nod.
He couldn’t help but smile at his boy’s courage. “In the meantime, we will work diligently on our communication skills. Get them back on track the way they used to be. We’ll have no more walking on eggshells. That goes for both of us. And we’ll begin to breathe life into our Master/slave relationship. I see now that taking away my control over you has done more harm than good. That will definitely change.”
Trevor met all of Drake’s conditions with another resolute nod.
“We have to start talking, love. I need to know everything you’re feeling, because I want you back with me, boy. All the fucking way.” Drake’s throat closed up so quickly he barely got out the last few words.
Trevor’s eyes filled with tears, but he bravely blinked them away.
“I know these past months have been a living hell, for both of us. But I promise, I’ll do whatever it takes to fight my way back to you, Daddy.” Sniffing, Trevor turned and faced Tony. “I refuse to let those bastards control my happiness or my future.”
A wide grin speared the psychologist’s mouth. “That a boy.”
The three discussed the upcoming trial, Trevor’s fugue during Sanna’s karate lesson the day before, and more about adoption. Drake remained silent about Julianna’s offer as surrogate. If Trevor’s recovery started to backslide, Drake didn’t want the man faking growth in order to become a father.
On the drive back to Mika’s house, Trevor was more animated and talkative. A visible transformation had taken place. Drake was happy but still guarded. Yet something inside told him that Trevor had turned the tide.
Keeping his promise, after dinner, Drake led Trevor to the spacious dungeon in Mika and Julianna’s house. He’d decided if all went well, he would take his boy to the club, but for now, Drake wanted total privacy as he pushed Trevor fast and hard. He didn’t want an audience or to put his sub through public embarrassment if his ghosts returned during their session.
They didn’t. And as they lay together, spent, panting, and sweating, Drake welcomed the new shining dawn breaking over the horizon inside his soul.
The next morning they thanked Mika and Julianna, kissed Tristan good-bye, and drove back home. The days passed quickly. Trevor made good on his promise. The two men spent more time away from home. They took long walks and talked in the open, honest fashion they’d done from the start. As Drake had planned, they frequented Club Genesis more often as well. And though he had to hand down a couple of punishments when Trevor tossed aside his filter and the boy’s sassy attitude returned, Drake found himself smiling and laughing more. Welcoming the peace and contentment that continued to settle deep inside him.
But the most encouraging sign was when Trevor flushed his sleeping pills down the toilet. Drake was wary of that decision, but when his boy slept s
oundly though the nights instead of thrashing and whimpering in fear, he knew the man had made the right choice.
Though Trevor had made mind-boggling strides, a little voice inside Drake’s head warned him not to get too complacent. The court date loomed, only days away, and Drake felt himself waiting for the proverbial other shoe to drop. If Trevor took a header off his cliff of recovery, Drake wasn’t sure either of them would survive that kind of blow.
Two days later, he stood at the dresser, adjusting his tie in the mirror before glancing at his watch. Trevor had been in the bathroom a long time. Drake knew the man didn’t have enough facial hair to warrant a shave taking this long. Filled with trepidation, he turned the knob and pushed the bathroom door open. To his relief, Trevor stood at the sink. He wore a bath towel around his waist and was gliding the razor over his chin with a steady hand.
“You need to hurry it up. We have to be at Reed’s office in forty-five minutes.”
Trevor darted a glance over his shoulder. Drake’s blood ran cold. For the first time in weeks, that haunted look had returned to his lover’s eyes.
Fuck.
Stepping in behind his boy, Drake wrapped his arms around Trevor’s waist. Leaning in, he rained tender kisses over his boy’s soft shoulders and up his neck. Latching his teeth on to the lobe of one ear, Drake bit down and gave it a little tug.
“I’ll be right beside you all the way, my love,” he assured. “You’re going to do just fine. I have faith in my sweet slut.”
He felt a slight tremor shake Trevor’s body. Closing his eyes, Drake kissed the slope of one shoulder before biting the thin flesh there. Raising his head, he captured the man’s gaze in the mirror.
“No one controls you but me. Remember that, my brave, sweet boy.”
The worry and fear evaporated from Trevor’s eyes. The sparkle returned, and a slow smile kicked up the corners of his sexy mouth. “I’ll never forget that. I love you.”
“I love you, too,” he assured.
Grabbing the hand towel that lay beside the sink, Drake wiped the dollops of shaving cream still clinging to Trevor’s face. With one hand gripping his lover’s nape, he pulled him in for a long, hard kiss. His other hand cupped Trevor’s flaccid cock and balls. Breaking from the kiss, he held his sub’s gaze in the mirror as the man’s dick stirred to life in his palm.
“Mine!” Drake bellowed with an unforgiving squeeze.
Trevor gasped, then melted back against Drake’s chest with a wistful sigh.
An hour later, with Reed Landes by his side, Trevor sat in the private chamber of Honorable Judge Pratt. Two high-priced defense attorneys the rich frat boys’ parents had hired sat next to Reed. Drake had taken a chair off to one side of the room and silently watched his boy for any outward signs of distress.
Trevor was nervous, but that was to be expected. Still, he sat with his back ramrod straight as the judge engaged the recording device positioned in the center of his desk. He recorded the date, time, and names of the people within his chamber, then the judge began asking Trevor questions.
After several minutes, his boy visibly relaxed as he politely answered the judge.
“And you never enticed the five boys in any way, is that correct?” Pratt asked.
“No, sir. In fact, I tried to ignore them, but they ran toward me, surrounding me in the alley.”
“What happened next?” Pratt sat back in his big leather chair and listened.
Step by step, Trevor recounted the horrific events of that fateful night. Though the judge’s face remained impassive, his eyes gave away the revulsion of the frat boys’ abhorrent abuse.
The judge’s sympathy didn’t stop Drake’s heart from weeping when Trevor’s voice quivered, or when his boy quickly brushed away his tears. Drake found himself digging his fingers into the arms of his chair, holding on with a white-knuckle grip, and fighting the overwhelming urge to rush to Trevor’s side.
In a show of compassion, Reed slung his arm around Trevor’s shoulder several times. Sitting there, helplessly watching was a torture worse than death for Drake. He should be the one comforting his boy, but if they were going to move past this ugly blackness in their lives, Trevor had to chart his own course. Had to take the lead on his recovery, alone this time.
When Pratt asked the defense attorneys if they had any questions, Trevor visibly stiffened. Drake clenched his jaw. He’d already slashed the suits several threatening death stares before the judge stepped into his chambers. And as one attorney shuffled papers in his briefcase, Drake drilled into the side of the man’s head with an even more venomous stare. God help him if he began berating Trevor. Nothing, not Reed or the judge, would keep Drake from pounding the shit out of the pompous prick.
“I only have one question, your honor.” The defense lawyer handed Trevor a stack of photographs. “Do you know who is responsible for doing this?”
Drake could only assume the lawyer handed off photos of the frat boys’ faces tattooed with gay slurs. His suspicion was confirmed when Reed shot a covert glance his direction. Trevor’s hands shook as he stared at the photos. Absolute shock was written over his face as he slowly shook his head. His body trembled.
“No, sir. I’m sorry. I don’t.” Trevor shoved the photos back to the lawyer as if they were hot coals.
The defense attorney cast a glance in Drake’s direction and was met with a stony stare and narrowed eyes.
“Perhaps your clients beat the crap out of a less helpless…faggot,” Reed interjected derisively.
“That’s enough, gentlemen,” Pratt intervened.
“Your honor, I can prove that both Mr. Hammond and Mr. Abram were at Highland Park Hospital before, during, and after these…men were marked.”
“They were tattooed. Permanently inked,” the defense lawyer spat. “These derogatory slurs weren’t made with a Sharpie pen.”
Reed’s chest bowed. His face grew red as he stood and tossed several photos of Trevor bloodied and beaten as he lay in the ER. “The inhumane beating sustained by my client, both physically and mentally, is far more brutal than a couple of embarrassing tattoos.”
“Gentlemen!” Pratt warned, pinning the defense lawyer with an angry scowl. “This debate will not be entertained, either in my chamber or the courtroom. Those photos have no bearing on this case. I don’t want to see them again unless it’s during a different trial. Is that clear?”
Drake wanted to drive a fist pump into the air. Instead, he sat like a statue, turning his attention on Trevor, who was staring at him with a look of confusion.
Fuck. He’d have to come clean about what he and Frank had done. Biting back a growl, he simply shot Trevor a wink and a solemn nod, silently assuring his boy they would talk, after the trial was over.
The judge turned a fatherly smile Trevor’s way. “Thank you, son. I know reliving that night wasn’t easy. I’m sorry you had to endure such a vicious hate crime. I’ll do everything in my power to see that justice is served on your behalf. You are free to go now.”
“Thank you, Your Honor.” Trevor softly nodded.
Drake stood. He had to hold himself back to keep from running to Trevor. Instead, he took long, measured strides toward his boy, then wrapped him tightly in his arms.
“I’m so fucking proud of you, sweetheart,” he whispered in Trevor’s ear. “Let’s go home.”
“One more thing, Mr. Hammond,” Pratt called out. Pausing, he and Trevor both turned to the man behind the desk. “I’ve lived a lot of life. Made mistakes, and let smaller events than the ones you’re facing drag me down. If you don’t mind a little advice from an old man…find a way to put the past behind you. Set your sights on a brighter, happier future. I can feel the love you and Mr. Abram share. That, like life, is a gift. Do whatever you can not to waste it on those things you can’t go back and change.”
Trevor sent the judge a trembling smile. “I will, sir. I promise.”
Pratt smiled in return, then darted a glance at the two attorneys in fro
nt of him. “Gentlemen, if you’d please take a seat. There are a few things I think we should discuss.”
Reed shot Drake and Trevor a grin and a wink. “I’ll come by the house when I’m through.”
“We’ll be there,” Drake assured. “Thanks, man.”
Trevor didn’t say a word as they walked back to the car. Drake knew the photos weighed heavily on his mind. They were a few blocks from the house when he broke the silence.
“I’ll tell you about it after the trial is over, my love,” he soothed.
“You had Frank do that to them, didn’t you?”
“I said we’d discuss it after the trial, boy,” Drake reiterated firmly.
“You don’t have to. I already know.”
“No. You don’t. You might suspect, but that’s all for right now. If something goes haywire, and you end up having to take the witness stand, the less you know right now, the better. I won’t let you perjure yourself. Is that understood?”
A nod was his only reply. When they pulled up to the house, Trevor shot out of the car and raced inside. Cursing under his breath, Drake stormed inside as his gut churned. He found Trevor at the kitchen sink, gulping down a glass of water. His hands were shaking and his face was pale.
Drake clenched his jaw, fearing all the headway Trevor had made over the past few weeks was crumbling at their feet. Stepping up behind him, Drake wrapped his boy in his arms. “I’m sorry, baby. I didn’t mean to upset you after all you’ve been through today.”
Trevor dropped his head back on Drake’s shoulder. He closed his eyes. The tension palpably slid from his body. “You didn’t upset me, Daddy. Shocked me? Yes. I’m actually stunned those pricks are still breathing.”
“I don’t want them to be,” Drake quietly admitted as he stroked Trevor’s cheek.
A slow smile tugged the corners of his sensual mouth. “No. I’m sure you don’t after what they did to me…to us. The tattoo idea was epic, but I pegged you for something a bit more final.” Trevor turned and shot him a sassy smile. “I thought you might…well, you know…cut off their cocks and shove them down their throats, or maybe…make them sleep with the fishies or something.”
Bound To Surrender BN Page 10