FORGE WONDERED why in the hell he’d opened up like that. For eight months he’d stewed and wondered what he’d done wrong.
“My mother abandoned me,” Forge said out of the blue. His mouth seemed to have developed a case of verbal diarrhea, and he couldn’t control the path between his brain and mouth.
Gage grew sad. “I know that. You and I spent all that time alone, talking to each other. Your mother had a lot of nervous issues and had difficulties coping, so your dad raised you. I know that your favorite color is green and that you blamed yourself for her going away, just like you blame yourself for Granger’s cheating. I know that you love strawberry ice cream but don’t eat it because you didn’t want the guys to see you eating pink food. I bet you still look at it longingly in the store and pass it by.” Gage pulled him closer, and the vulnerability that had engulfed him lessened.
“There’s a lot about me you don’t know,” Forge challenged. A hell of a lot had changed in the seventeen years they’d been apart. “And I bought strawberry ice cream… once.” He held Gage a little tighter. “Granger hated it and asked why I bought the pink shit.”
Gage shook his head. “You can get any kind of ice cream you want.” He tilted Forge’s head up until his gaze bored into him. “When you were with me for that night, you slept on the right side of the bed, but I noticed that your things were on the left upstairs. I’m willing to bet that was what Granger preferred and you went along with it.”
“Damn.” Forge needed to remember that old eagle eyes here saw everything.
“I know you’re the kindest, most un-self-serving man I’ve ever met, and Granger made you think you needed him, when I bet he was the one who needed you.” Gage leaned closer to touch his lips to Forge’s. “What makes me angry is that Granger took the man I loved, the one I fell in love with all those years ago, and made him doubt himself. And the bastard did that to cover up his own doubts and fears. I’m guessing he had to be the best at whatever he did, and that meant you had to come in second… all the damn time.”
As much as Forge wanted to argue with Gage, he couldn’t. He and Granger had been happy, but Gage was right. They’d been happy as long as Forge was willing to support Granger’s career and aspirations. Once Forge’s career took off and he had a larger clientele, Granger had become needy and desperate for as much attention as possible. “How do you know all this?”
“I watch you and I see you for who you are. I bet Granger never did.”
Forge closed his eyes, considering if what Gage had said was true. Sure, he’d loved Granger, and they had spent many years together, but now he wondered if maybe he’d only been convenient. Granger had said that he’d only cheated the one time, but what if that wasn’t true? “Granger was the master of his own reality. I think that’s what made him a good lawyer.”
Gage hummed his agreement. “What did you fall in love with? What was it about Granger that attracted you in the first place?”
Forge stilled for a few seconds. “Back then, Granger was driven and ready to take on the world.” He lifted his gaze, tilting his head to the side. “You should have seen him. I think in some ways, at least then, he was a lot like you. He made his career by taking on one of the huge automobile companies because they didn’t want to take financial responsibility for faulty door latches. They kept trying to pass it off on the supplier even though they knew the latches they were receiving were bad. They installed them anyway. Granger worked night and day for months, not even knowing if he was ever going to see a dime out of it. But he said it was the right thing to do.” Forge groaned slightly when he heard the admiration that crept into his voice. For a second he hoped Gage didn’t, but he had admired and been blown away by Granger, at least the Granger he’d been then.
“I think I remember that case. It was all over the news at the time. I thought it was impressive.” Gage squeezed him a little nearer. “What happened to that Granger?”
Forge huffed. “I don’t really know. I was just wondering that myself. That was the man I fell in love with. The one who put himself and everything he was on the line to help someone else. His clients had nothing at all. There was no way they could pay him up front, but when the latch failed, they lost their daughter because of it. After that….” He shrugged. “I don’t know…. He seemed to chase the money, I guess. He was well-known and a lot of people clamored for him, and I thought things were good…. Maybe I was completely oblivious to how he had changed….”
“I don’t think so. It’s more likely Granger changed gradually.” Gage really seemed to understand.
“And now I know he was keeping a lot of things from me.” He and Granger had been fighting for months, but now that he really thought about it, their relationship had been over a long time before the actual breakup. “Granger used to talk to me about his cases. Not details or anything, but we used to talk and laugh about things. I used to tell him some of the weird requests I’d get from people. Like the high-profile doctor who’d seen a piece in a museum and decided he liked it so much, I was to try to find a desk just like it. The thing was, the desk was a museum piece, one of a kind, and he didn’t want a reproduction. I had to explain to him that they weren’t available. There was only one.” Forge smiled as he shook his head. “Or the guy who wanted a Chihuly light fixture, but didn’t want to pay the many thousands of dollars, so I was supposed to find someone who would make one for him. Granger and I used to laugh together over things like that.” He paused as his thoughts wandered. “I think I loved the man I could laugh with and play silly word games and make up bad puns with. But I hadn’t seen that man in years.”
A knock on the door caused Forge to jump. Gage stood and went to open it, looking back before stepping out of the room. Forge sat back, his mind racing over what he’d said and how amazingly comfortable he felt with Gage, like the years that had separated them had suddenly disappeared. What a waste all that time had been.
“Forge,” Gage said softly. “We have company.” He motioned to him, and Forge went over to a bank of monitors at Margie’s desk. Gage pointed to one. A dark car approached the building, circled it, and then pulled to a stop.
“I’d say you picked up some sort of electronic tail,” Margie said.
Gage groaned. “I should have figured that out a while ago.”
A phone rang, and Margie answered it before handing the receiver to Gage. He listened and smiled, then handed it back.
“The car outside your house is gone.”
“What did Harv do?” Forge asked.
“He didn’t say specifically. But the men inside were surprised when they discovered four flat tires and a wrecker showing up to tow them away. The beauty of it is that they never saw Harv at all.” Gage turned to Margie, who was already back at work.
“What do you want to do about our guests?” Margie asked.
Gage turned to him, and Forge stared for a few moments.
Forge wrung his hands nervously. “Gage, can you find the tracking device?”
“I’ll see. What do you have in mind?”
“You have a back door, right? And is there a way to shield the signal?”
“Yes.” The edges of Gage’s lips curled upward. “I like the way you think. Let me see if I can find our unwanted passenger.”
“Then sneak out the back and throw it in the bed of a passing truck or something. Let’s lead the bastards on a wild goose chase.”
Margie slid the other desk chair over to him. “You sit here with me while he does his thing.” She smiled, and Forge thanked her, chuckling, as Gage left the office area. “Okay,” she said, never taking her gaze from the monitors. “What’s going on with you two?”
“Is this an inquisition?” Forge teased.
“You better believe it.” She wasn’t threatening, but very serious. “Is this some client-protector thing for you?”
“Not for me. I knew him when we were in the service, and we reconnected a few days ago.” He most certainly wasn’t going to tell her how he was feeling when he wasn’t totally sure himself, and if he was going to make some grand emotional declaration, Gage deserved to be the first to hear it.
“I see, and now your husband is dead and you’re looking to replace him.”
Forge wasn’t sure how to take that, then figured what the hell. “Please. I already had one of those, and he turned out to be a lying, cheating, secret-keeping pain in the ass. So if I was looking to replace him, I’d put an ad in Manhunt. I figure I could get a clone of Granger in about three minutes.”
She turned to him, her mouth a thin line for two seconds, and then she smiled. “Damn, I like you. He needs someone with a quick wit who’ll challenge him and not put up with any of his crap.”
“I’ve put up with enough shit the last eight months, I think I’m a fucking expert at shoveling the stuff. I think I can handle him.” Actually, he was looking forward to it.
“Gage is a good man. Better than the first one I married. Hell, if he were older and I were younger… and he liked girls, I’d snap up that boy in a heartbeat. He’s one amazing man, despite everything his family put him through.” She pointed to one of the monitors, and sure enough Gage closed the door to the back of the building and ran for the shrubbery that lined the property. Margie pulled on a set of headphones. “Our visitors are still out front, probably still scratching their asses… wait, they seem to realize the sensor is on the move and are pulling around the side of the building. Now they’re turning around and heading out the alley toward the road… perfect. They’ve stopped.”
Gage emerged from the trees as a truck approached. He made a beautiful throw, and Forge wished he were close enough to have seen the actual arc, but Margie directed his attention to another monitor as the car drew to the end of the drive and made the turn to follow the old red pickup truck.
It was a thing of beauty.
“Yes, I agree. They’ll probably be back when they catch up to the truck and realize they’ve been had,” Margie said as Gage jogged to the back door and disappeared from the monitor. Forge turned as Gage joined them once again. Margie took off the headphones and set them on the desk. “What do you want me to do?”
“We’re going to go to a hotel,” he told her. “Go on home and work remotely. It isn’t safe to be here right now. If anything happens, call the police, and they’ll take off fast. The police are the last people they want to speak with.” Gage turned to him, the heat in his eyes intensifying, tempered with worry. “Bring the box. We’ll leave the papers here as insurance.”
“I’ll arrange to get your car repaired,” Margie said as Forge hurried off to retrieve the box and pack it into the bag once more.
When he returned, Gage was waiting for him. Margie had already left, and Gage was watching the monitors. “All right. Let’s go.” He guided Forge toward the back of the building, where another car waited. This one, a Mustang, fast and powerful, sat in a gleaming garage. “Before I was trying to be inconspicuous, but now we need raw power.” Gage opened the door, and Forge hurried to the passenger side. He buckled in and held the box in his arms. Gage raised the door and took off, closing it behind and using a back drive to exit the property.
“Where do you think we should go?”
“I was thinking Chicago. It’s a bigger city and a lot easier to hide out. Also, since my family is somehow involved in this mess, I might need to get a message to them to back off.” He turned onto Brown Deer, traveling toward the freeway. They didn’t talk much, and Forge sank into his thoughts. It wasn’t until they crossed the state line that Forge felt like speaking.
“Your mom and dad….”
“Yeah. They’ve caused a great deal of trouble.” Gage’s tone suggested that was something they did quite often.
“What happened between you? I remember their letters. Your mom always wrote so caringly, wishing she could have been there with you. And the letters you sent in return were so loving as well. It was part of what I fell in love with. You were such a big guy, and even still in a bed, you exuded strength. So to be so loving to her….”
Gage sighed. “What came between us was you. I told my parents all about the hospital and how you helped me and looked after me. Maybe I talked to them too much at first, I don’t know. Of course, when I didn’t hear from you, I talked about you less and less.”
“Way to pile on the guilt.” Forge meant the comment sarcastically, but it probably didn’t come out as clearly as he wanted.
Gage grimaced. “Except now we both know that you did write and my mom probably intercepted your letters. One was open, so I bet she read it, realized what was going on, and took matters into her own hands to try to put an end to it because it didn’t meet her idea of how her son should behave.”
“Things went bad because they found out you were gay?” Forge asked. That was so typical of people sometimes.
“Maybe that’s how it started. But after I got out of the hospital, was medically discharged, and came home, Mom and Dad wanted me to go into the family trucking business. I had no interest. Can you imagine working for them all the damn time? I needed to be on my own and have my own life, and they couldn’t understand that at all.” Gage gripped the steering wheel hard as he continued driving. “I started my protection services company in Chicago originally, but quickly relocated it to Milwaukee because I needed to be independent.”
Forge turned so he could see Gage better. “None of that sounds bad. Your parents should have been proud of you for wanting to be your own person.”
“You’d think so. My parents hated that I enlisted in the Army. They thought I should have driven a truck for a while and learned the family business. Dad started it when he was in his twenties, borrowing money to buy his first truck. After that, he bought another and hired his best friend as a driver. In five years he had twelve drivers, and after another five years, he was well on his way. Now the company is national and you see his trucks everywhere. I know he wanted me to be part of that, but I wasn’t interested. He pushed, but I pushed back. Then he gave me an ultimatum that I either joined him in working for the company or he’d cut me off. And I went out on my own. That was what my dad couldn’t forgive.”
Forge blinked and tried to get his head around what Gage was telling him. “I don’t understand why that’s a bad thing.”
“Because I’d rather do without anything from my parents than work for my dad. I was willing to be broke and alone rather than work for him. My dad can forgive many things, but being disrespected like that, at least in his mind, was too much. After a while, when I started to make a success of the business, things thawed between us, but when I told my mother I was dating… a guy… the walls went right back up. Now we rarely talk, and when we do, it’s like she and my dad are talking to one of the members of their country club that they tolerate but don’t really like.”
“That’s so stupid. What kind of parents are they? Families are supposed to help their kids be independent, not make them stay under their thumb for the rest of their lives.” Forge turned, watching out the window. There had to be more to it than that.
“My dad told me that he’d built the company so we could have a better life. He’d hoped that I’d take over and run it after he retired. I think when I turned down the job, he equated it to turning my back on him. That wasn’t what I meant at all, but I think it’s how he took it.” Gage slowed down as they encountered a pocket of heavier traffic. “It took me a long time to figure things out, but I think it comes down to this. My dad built his business and is very successful. He made his dream come true. But the problem is that his dream also included the fact that I would take over for him. And—” Gage screwed his face up slightly as if he were trying to choose the right words. “—while it’s okay to dream for yourself, it isn’t okay to foist your dream off on someone else. My dad can dream all he wants for himself, but he doesn’t get to decide what my dreams are. He doesn’t get that, and I don’t think he ever will. He’s used to getting what he wants.” Gage seemed relieved to get the words out. He sat straighter in the seat, and his lips and the wrinkles around his eyes smoothed away.
“Do you regret your decision?” Forge asked.
“I think sometimes I do, but most of the time, no. I think I realized a long time ago that if they weren’t going to accept something as basic as me wanting to be myself and make my own way, life with them was never going to make me happy.” Gage reached over, took Forge’s hand, and squeezed it gently. “Things were messed up for a while, but I have good people in my life now, like Harv and Margie, as well as the rest of the men and women who work for me. Most of them I was in the service with. They acted like my family… until you came barreling back into my life.”
Forge wondered how he should take that. He hoped that was a good thing. When Gage turned and smiled, outshining the sun that poured in through the windows, Forge’s doubt evaporated in an instant. It wasn’t just a good thing. Maybe it was the best thing.
“So where are we going now?”
“We’ll find a hotel downtown and hole up there for a few days.”
Forge groaned. “I can’t keep my life on hold like this. I have a job. Up till now I’ve….” What the hell was he going to do? “I suppose I can say I need a few days’ vacation time.”
“Call them and arrange it. We’re going to have to figure all this out pretty quickly.” Gage patted the bag that contained the box. “I think the only way you can possibly be safe is to put an end to whatever is going on. If Granger was involved in something criminal, then bringing the whole thing down is what we need to do.”
“Gage, we don’t know shit about what’s going on. Not really. We have a few papers that lead us to some criminal elements, a few pieces of what might be one of Granger’s puzzles, and little else. I know we need to open this box and see what’s inside, but I keep wondering, what if there’s nothing? What if he put the box there for safekeeping because of how valuable it is and nothing more?”
“Granger was killed for a reason, and you aren’t going to be safe until we find out what that reason is and then find a way to keep you safe. I know this isn’t something you signed up for, but it’s what has to be done.” Gage took the 94 split toward Chicago. Traffic was heavy but moved steadily, and once they reached the downtown area, Gage exited the freeway and pulled into one of the hotels that lined the northern section of Grant Park.
Forge looked down at what he was wearing. “You do realize we don’t have any luggage or clothes.”
But that didn’t seem to bother Gage. They went inside, and he checked them into an art nouveau masterpiece of a hotel. Once they were in their room, which was small but elegant and extremely comfortable, Gage ordered room service. When the food arrived, he charged it to the room.
Forge and Gage dug in, not speaking as they ate. Forge hadn’t thought about eating with all the running and evading they’d been doing, but now that he was settled, at least for a while, his appetite caught up with him, and he ate the entire steak Gage had ordered for him.
“What do we do now?”
“Get some rest while we can. If you aren’t sleepy, take another look at that box. We need to get some answers, and the ones we’re looking for have to be with Granger.” Gage sat on the edge of the bed and lay back, staring at the ceiling, his shirt riding up just enough to display a line of tanned skin above his jeans. When Gage raised his hands, putting them behind his head, his shirt rode up farther, and Forge’s throat went dry. He reached for his water and downed what was left in the glass before setting it on the tray.
Gage lifted his head, watching him, and Forge knew he was being taunted. “You know I should try to make progress on this box.” He took it out of the bag and set it gently on the table. Then he turned back to Gage, seconds from saying to hell with it. His heart already raced a little faster because of the taste of the buffet that was Gage on display. Regardless, he turned his attention back to the box, looking over the carving very carefully. There had to be a piece that either pushed inward or slid out in order to allow the first piece to move. That was how these objects worked.
Of course, his attention was most definitely elsewhere, especially as Gage sighed and his belly contracted and then relaxed.
“You’re doing that on purpose.” Forge turned away and went back to the jade box, his attention drawn to the heads of the dragons that wrapped around it. They fascinated him. If he were to craft a box like this, the heads of the dragons would figure into his opening mechanism somehow, but he wasn’t seeing anything, which drove him crazy. He set the box aside and sat on the bed next to Gage.
“Doing what?” Gage asked innocently, and Forge lightly smacked his arm.
“Being distracting and beautiful.” He ran his finger lightly over Gage’s exposed belly. “You know, if you want something, all you need to do is ask.” He continued stroking, sliding his finger upward and around Gage’s belly button. Gage groaned and Forge stopped. “Is something bothering you?” He waggled his eyebrows. “Are you growing uncomfortable?” He eyed the bulge in Gage’s pants.
“Now who’s doing things on purpose?” Gage pulled his hands from under his head, and Forge leaned away. “Tease.”
“I am not. You’re the one who was teasing when I was trying to concentrate on the box so we could find out what was inside. But was someone else helpful?” Forge shook his head. “No. He lay here all sexy, and I couldn’t figure anything out. So I gave up to get closer to his sexiness, and he just lies there.”
“Oh, he does?” Gage growled and pounced. Forge laughed as Gage tumbled him back onto the bed, hovering over him. “What else does this living embodiment of sexy do?”
“Now you’re just being silly,” Forge teased, and Gage growled once again, then kissed him. Forge didn’t have the brain action to stop him. Not that he’d ever have wanted to.
Gage’s phone rang, and he pulled away.
“I swear, one of these days I’m going to toss your pants alarm right out that damn window.”
“It’s Harv,” Gage told him, and instantly the tension that had been with Forge since Granger’s death, but had been forgotten about for a little while with Gage, came roaring right back. “What’s happening? … No, we aren’t coming back. … Not unless you really need to know.” Gage began pacing slightly. “Just protect the house and scare the crap out of anyone who approaches. We’re still trying to figure this whole thing out, but it’s clear Granger was mixed up with some pretty bad people and they have enough money to throw a lot of people at the problem.”
Forge went to the bathroom and shut the door. He sat on the closed lid of the toilet, his elbows on his knees, resting his head on his hands. This was getting to be too damned much. None of this was his fault. He hadn’t gotten involved with folks who killed people. Forge sat up straight, clenching his fists. He wanted to punch the shit out of Granger. “Dang it, I wish I could bring you back just so I could smack the living hell out of you. What the fuck were you thinking?”
A soft knock sounded, and Forge told Gage to come in. “Harv says a few people have come by the house, but other than that, it’s been quiet.”
“Is he going to stay?”
“If you want him to,” Gage answered.
“I don’t want anything to happen to the house, though once this is over, I’m going to put it on the market. I need to move away from that life and build one of my own. I don’t want to go back to the way I was with Granger.” It was so clear now. He’d become stuck in the life he and Granger had built, and for months he’d been trying to hold on to it rather than letting go and starting over.
“That’s a good sign.”
“I know. Change is scary, and I’ve been too afraid of it to get off my ass and just start over. I think we both might have been, and maybe that was why we were fighting over every little thing.” Forge stood and walked back over to the box to pick it up once again. He actually thought of smashing it just so he could get at whatever was inside. Hell, he’d break half of what he owned just to be able to have this over with, know who killed Granger, and have the chips fall where they may, just so he could have the chance to rebuild his life once more. Forge paused with his hands on the cool stone, turning to Gage and hoping like hell that the chances he was being given would include the biggest second chance of all.
Gage looked back at him, but his eyes were clouded and elsewhere. “I think I need to talk to my dad.” He shivered. “Into the lion’s den, so to speak. He was mentioned in those papers and has to have some answers. Then we need to contact Coleridge.”
“Jesus.” The thought of going near Gage’s family nearly terrified him. He imagined it as some sort of gathering out of The Godfather or Goodfellas. “If you think that’s what you need to do.” He stepped away from the table, his heart beating faster even as he lay down on the bed and tried not to think about what Gage was planning.
“Us,” Gage corrected. “I’m not leaving you.”
“You want me to go with you to see your parents? It isn’t like they’re going to be welcoming to you or me. Do you really think they’re going to tell you what we need to know if I’m there?”
Gage’s devious smile should have been a clue. “I’m hoping it will throw them off enough that they’ll give me whatever I want just to make themselves more comfortable.” He grabbed the phone, and after a few seconds, it became apparent that Gage was calling his mother. Gage put a finger to his lips, then indicated that the speaker option was on. “Mom, I’m in Chicago and was wondering if I could see you.”
“That would be lovely. Come by in the morning, and we can have breakfast. The sunroom is perfect this time of year.” Dishes clinked softly in the background, telling Forge that she was most likely having tea or whatever people did in the late afternoon.
“That would be nice. But I have to return home first thing in the morning. I was hoping I could see you this evening.” A more pronounced clink rang through the phone’s speaker.
“Your father and I are having a party this evening, and…. Well, I suppose you could come. The people aren’t your crowd, but it would be nice to see you for a few minutes.” Nervousness and longing mixed in her voice. She wanted to see Gage—that was apparent. “It’s a casual evening.”
Gage rolled his eyes. “We’ll see you about eight.”
“We?” She sounded half-frightened.
“Yes, Mom. I have someone I’d like you to meet.” Gage kept a smile on his lips that translated to his voice.
“I’m looking forward to it.” From her tone it sounded like she half expected a herd of elephants to arrive at her door.
Gage ended the call and shoved his phone in his pocket. Forge hoped he’d join him on the bed, but Gage began pulling on the shoes he’d taken off earlier.
“We need to go shopping.”
“She said it was casual.”
“Which is my mother’s code for dressed to the nines, but not wearing tuxedos. We’ll go shopping, get what we need, and then we can come back here and clean up.” Gage stepped closer. “I thought we might conserve water and shower together.”
Now that was something Forge could agree to.
TWO HOURS of shopping and a quick dinner later, they arrived back at the hotel. Gage made double sure they weren’t followed. “We have an hour before we need to leave.” Gage dropped the bags on the bed and pulled Forge into his arms. “Come on. Let’s get cleaned up, and I’ll do my best to wipe the nervous curve off your lips.”
“You know your mom and dad aren’t going to go out of their way to make me feel comfortable.” Forge shifted from foot to foot.
“This isn’t about them making you welcome. I don’t really care what they think about you.” Gage held him tighter. “Their opinion about most things in my life ceased to matter some time ago. Remember, we’re there to find out some of my father’s business contacts and to ultimately get him to spill the beans on who he’s been dealing with and what he was being paid off to do. The reason you’re there is to keep both of them off-balance.”
Forge wrinkled his brow. “I don’t understand.”
“You will. Trust me. My mother is going to hover near us most of the night because she’s going to be worried I’ll say something to someone that will embarrass her. The only time she won’t do that is when I’m talking to my father, and he’ll want to do that alone if he can manage it. See, my dad will make another pitch to get me to work for him—he always does. When that happens, I should be able to steer things the way I want them.”
“How?” Forge still didn’t get how this was going to work.
“I’m going to use my dad’s hopes against him. I told you his dream. Well, he never gives up, and I’ll have to dangle some bait in front of him if I’m ever going to get him to open up.” Gage turned away and toed off his shoes, then pulled off his shirt. Usually the sight of Gage’s back, and then his chest as he turned around, was enough to make Forge forget just about anything, but in those few moments, he recognized a piece of Granger in Gage, and he shivered as a chill ran over his skin. Gage’s eyes were hard and cold, but within a few seconds, they’d warmed and heated as he slowly stepped closer to where Forge stood.
“Is this really necessary?” Forge asked. He hated the thought of what he’d seen for those few seconds. “You’re relishing this, and while I agree that your dad doesn’t have the right to foist his dreams on you, is this the man you really are?”
Gage shook his head slowly. “This isn’t about revenge. I don’t have any reason to be angry with them. They are who they are, and I can’t change them. I have my own life. But we need answers from them, and I know one way to get it. Dad isn’t going to easily admit that he’s taking bribes, who from, or why.” Gage stroked his cheek. “Think of it this way. If my father is taking bribes, as the document Granger had shows, then he’s part of the problem. We can either do nothing and keep running and hiding, or go after the beast itself.”
Forge took a deep breath and nodded. It was time to do something. “I’m tired of running. I’ve had enough of feeling like a scared rabbit.”
Gage didn’t say anything more. He simply reached for the hem of Forge’s shirt and tugged it up over his head. Forge raised his arms, and when the fabric fell to the floor, Gage pulled them together. Chest to chest, he stroked Forge’s cheek, caressing him with such sweet caring. Forge closed his eyes and drank in the gentleness. He hated to admit it, but he needed to be needed and wanted, and it was even better to be cared for.
Gage cupped his jaw and slowly slid his hand around to the back of Forge’s head, cradling it, then brought their lips together in a kiss that left Forge weak in the knees. Instantly the coldness he’d seen was forgotten as a bubble of heat surrounded him. His heart pulsing, blood singing in his ears, Forge gave himself to Gage, needing what he had to offer as desperately as a man lost in the desert craved water. Forge parted his lips, and Gage deepened the kiss, holding him still, dominating his mouth, pouring as much energy and passion into it as Forge had ever known in his life. Gage tugged open Forge’s pants, and they fell to the floor, pooling around his legs. He stepped out of them, and Gage pressed him back. “Should we take this to the bathroom?”
“God, yes,” Forge answered with a quiver of excitement as Gage ran a finger over his right nipple, sending a spark of desire shooting through him.
Gage released him, took his hand to lead him to the bathroom, and closed the door behind them. Forge stripped off the last of his clothes, watching as Gage did the same, the remainder of his amazing body coming into full view.
For an instant an image of Gage in the hospital flashed in his mind. He’d been strong then, but his legs were nothing like the wide, powerful appendages they were now. Gage had changed a lot. Even in his hospital bed, he’d had an air of strength, but now, in his prime, no one would ever guess that at one time Gage had been largely helpless and that he’d allowed Forge to see him like that and even help care for him.
“Where are you?” Gage asked softly.
There was no use lying. “Back in the hospital, years ago.”
“For God’s sake, why?” Gage kicked off the last of his clothes, standing with his legs spread slightly apart, cock jutting out strong and thick. “I’m nothing like that now.”
“Physically, you aren’t, but you’re still that person.” Forge closed the gap between them. “I know you don’t want to remember how things were back then, but I do. You were special.”
“No. You were the one who was special. Not me. You sat with me and spent all your time there when you could have been doing something much more interesting than sitting beside my bed, reading to me and writing my letters.” Gage rested his head on Forge’s shoulder. “I’ve never told a single living soul this, but you’re the reason I am who I am.”
Forge blinked. “Why?”
“After I was shipped home and you were relocated, I decided I needed to get better, get strong again, for you.”
Forge clutched Gage tighter. He knew what was coming next; he could feel it deep in his bones. “You got strong for me and then you never got my letters.”
“Yeah. I nearly gave up, but I couldn’t by then. I was walking and I had a goal. If you didn’t want me, then I’d learn to walk and be strong so someone else would.” Gage scoffed. “Little did I know that there was no one else who could take your place. God knows I tried.”
“Tell me you didn’t spend seventeen years as a monk.” Forge reached between them to curl his fingers around Gage’s cock. “Wait, you told me you had boyfriends and things.”
“Yeah, I did, and I compared them all to you. None of them was good enough.” Gage groaned softly when Forge gripped him tighter, stroking slowly. “See, you already had my heart, and no one else was strong enough to manage to sway it.”
Forge reached into the shower and turned on the water. He didn’t want to move away, and somehow, with some laughter and even a near miss where they both almost tumbled to the floor in a fit of giggles and grabby hands, they made it into the shower. It was delightful, and once the hot water hit his skin, it seemed to ramp up the electricity between them. Forge pressed Gage against the back tile of the shower, angling the water so it ran down his chest, then slid to his knees. Gage quivered in front of him, cock bobbing up and down in anticipatory excitement. Forge leaned forward and let the head slip between his lips, then sank them slowly down the shaft.
“Forge,” Gage croaked, pressed back against the tile. “Don’t stop. Please, for the love of God, don’t stop.”
Forge had no intention of doing so, and bobbed his head hard, sucking deeply, pulling at Gage’s cock with each upward movement. Gage’s leg shook, and Forge pushed him back against the tile, holding Gage still as he did his level best to send Gage flying.
“Forge…,” he groaned. “Not….”
Forge knew Gage meant it as a warning, but he doubled his efforts, sucking even harder until bitter saltiness flooded his mouth and Gage stilled. Forge closed his eyes, savoring Gage’s flavor on his tongue before sliding back and letting the water rush over him.
Gage didn’t move. He remained plastered to the tile and held still.
“Are you okay?”
Gage nodded slowly. “Oh God. Am I still alive? My head didn’t explode, did it?”
Forge stood and pressed against him, his cock sliding along Gage’s hip. “No. I think you’re just a little overstimulated.” Damn, to think he’d reduced Gage to silence. That was amazingly sexy.
“Give me a minute and I’ll…,” Gage murmured as Forge reached for the soap. He lathered his hands and began stroking them over Gage’s chest, cleaning his skin and giving him a chance to recover.
“Shhh…,” Forge said. “Sex is one thing, but being together, like this, naked and exposed, holding each other, just being together, is in some ways more intimate. Sex covers up the fact that when we’re together, unclothed, we’re showing ourselves to each other.” Forge stepped back, letting go of Gage, and slowly turned in a circle. “This is me.” He held his hands still. “After I married Granger, I didn’t expect to ever show myself to anyone else.” The water coursed down his back, and Forge stood still. “But then again, maybe he never really saw me.”
“I see you,” Gage told him. “I see the handsome man in front of me, the one who has the courage of a pack of lions. Not everyone will strip themselves bare in front of another person, and I don’t mean just taking off their clothes.” He moved forward, lightly touching Forge’s chest above his heart. “I know what’s here because you showed it to me years ago, and it’s always inside you. The biggest heart I’ve ever met. I think that’s why it hurt so much when I didn’t hear from you. I thought that I’d lost the one thing I’d never find again—you.”
Gage pressed to him, holding Forge tightly, their bodies entwining as the water washed over the two of them. “Just so you know, I will not lose you again. I will do whatever it takes to make sure you stay in my life. It nearly ripped me apart when I didn’t get the letters you sent.”
“And I thought you didn’t love me.” Forge could admit now that he’d rebounded, and after thinking Gage didn’t want him, he’d gone out looking and found Granger. They’d been good together for a number of years, but now Forge saw that the two of them had never been great together. They hadn’t been intuitive or known what the other needed. They’d worked at their relationship and talked about things. That was how they’d made things work. But when that communication had broken down, there wasn’t anything deeper to fall back on. So they’d both retreated into their work, and eventually Granger had found what he thought he needed from someone else.
“I never stopped. Not even after all these years.” Gage ran his hands down Forge’s back to cup his butt. “You’ve been back in my life for just a few days, and already I’m more alive than I have been in years. Like I said, no matter what happens, I have no intention of giving you up. I’ll fight for you just like I should have done seventeen years ago. I should have looked you up. I should have found you and talked to you.”
“That’s what we both should have done. We accepted what we thought happened and moved on. There were telephones and things. We could have found each other if either of us had looked beyond what we thought. It wasn’t your fault, any more than it was mine.” He rested his head on Gage’s shoulders, kissing and licking the base of his neck. “You taste really good.”
Gage lifted him off his feet, and Forge wound his legs around Gage’s waist as Gage turned around to press him to the tile. His strong hands cradled Forge’s ass, fingers teasing their way closer to his opening. He groaned and nearly bit Gage when he stroked over his sensitive skin. Gage’s hand left him, followed by a soft click. “What are…?” Forge gasped when Gage’s finger breached him. Forge tightened his grip on Gage with his legs, desperate for more.
“I want you. Now.” Gage pressed him harder against the tile and lowered him. Gage’s cock slid to his opening, and Forge rested his head back on the tile, gritting his teeth as he sank lower and Gage pressed into him.
“Oh God. I want.” Forge held on to Gage with everything he had, sinking deeper, and Gage filled him more and more with every press. “So full.” It was all he could gasp as Gage pressed upward and Forge sank the rest of the way, taking all of Gage inside.
“Is this okay?” Gage asked.
“If you stop, I’m going to bite the hell out of you,” he growled. “Does it sound like this isn’t okay?” He held Gage tighter. “Now fuck me like you mean it. Like you’ve wanted to for all those years.” Forge groaned, and Gage bounced him up and down, grinding into him with the energy and fury of seventeen years of pent-up longing that Forge had waited just as long as Gage to release.
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
“The only way you’ll hurt me is if you stop.” Forge leaned in to kiss Gage hard and moaned as Gage drove him to the moon, which didn’t take long. Forge was already so keyed up that it wasn’t long before he teetered on the edge.
“That’s it,” Gage breathed. “Let me see you and feel you go to pieces.” Gage held him tighter and thrust deep. Forge’s entire body felt like it was going to burst into flame, and then he stilled and came with a shout that echoed off the bathroom walls. He breathed deeply, and Gage eased him down onto his feet, slipping from inside his body. He positioned Forge under the water, and Forge clung to Gage, steading himself as the water washed away the remnants of his excitement.
Gage held him up, and once Forge got his feet under him, Gage washed him gently, caressing his body as though it were precious. Then he turned off the water and helped him out of the shower, wrapped Forge in a huge towel, and guided him to the other room.
Forge made it to the bed and flopped down, completely wrung out. “What did you do to me?”
Gage leaned over him, gently caressing his cheek. “I wanted you to know that you are loved.”
“Holy shit.” Forge pulled Gage closer, holding him as he closed his eyes and dozed off. He knew they didn’t have forever and had to get ready, but he needed a few minutes to get himself together or else he’d show up at Gage’s parents’ looking completely debauched. Hell, that was still a possibility with the way he felt at the moment. Maybe if he lay here with Gage next to him for the next few hours, which they didn’t have, he’d be ready to go. “Is it stupid of me to be afraid to go to your parents’?”
“What are you scared of?” Gage asked.
“I don’t know. We’re going to the home of people who might be mixed up with the ones who killed Granger. I know they’re your mom and dad, but what if they’re behind all this and they take me into some dark room and have some huge guy soften me up before they really torture me and want information I don’t have, then… then they take me out back, fit me for concrete boots, and I disappear in the bottom of the Chicago River?”
Gage pulled him closer. “Don’t you think you’re overreacting just a little?”
“I don’t know.” The truth was, he knew he was being silly, but Forge also had the feeling that something was going to happen tonight. This didn’t seem right to him. Maybe he was being stupid and letting his imagination run away with him, but maybe there was something to it. “Just don’t leave me.”
“I won’t. I promised I’d not let you go, and that certainly means not leaving you alone with my mother and father if I can help it. Hell, if you spend enough time with them, I’m afraid you’ll end up running away screaming and never look back.”
Forge was sure that wasn’t going to happen. He slowly got up off the bed and opened the bags of clothes they’d purchased. He began taking off the tags and laying them out so he could get dressed, trying like hell to shake the sense of impending doom.