|
Toeing the Line
Chapter 1
The street was quiet as I stepped to the door leading to my office. It was late enough, and no one was around this part of town; everything here was commercial. 9PM and it all shuts down. I should have been in bed hours ago, ideally with a guy joining me, but instead I’d had to work this job.
My phone rang as I pulled out the key card for the lock. A glance at it and I recognized the number.
“Hey, Martin,” I answered. “How is it going?” A swipe of the card and the door opened to a stairwell going down with the sound of soft chimes. I barely noticed the small sign on the door that read ‘Denton Brislow, Private Investigator’ anymore.
“I’m okay,” he said, but I heard the hesitation there. “Look, Dent, my dad didn’t put me up to this, so it’s all me. What’s going on between the two of you?”
The memory assaulted me, and I almost fell down the stairs. I slid down two and had to grab onto the wall to stay vertical. The bed, that woman on it, me fucking her like there was no tomorrow.
I wrenched my anger under a semblance of control with a growl. “How the fuck do you expect me to feel, considering what he did to me?” Two weeks. I’d been able to not think about that night for two whole weeks. I had been too exhausted to deck him by the time it was all over.
I made it down the last three steps without tripping.
“But you were okay with it? The two of you had talked about it.”
“Okay?” I almost laughed. “I was never okay with any of it. I said yes because I got fed up with you and your dad constantly being on my case about having a kid. How often, over the last six month, did I tell either of you that no, I didn’t want to have a kid? But that never shut either of you up. As for what your father did to me? I never agreed to it, that was—” I shut my mouth and forced myself to breathe.
I was on the bed again, her under me and me moving against my will. I came back to pain in my knee, and I cursed the desk that I’d walked into.
“Are you okay?” Martin asked, sounding concerned and wary at the same time.
“No, I’m not,” I snapped. I had a feeling he’d said more while I was…distracted, but I didn’t care.
“Dent, my dad doesn’t know why you’re angry. He’s worried.”
I snorted. “I’m fucking angry because he lied about what was going to happen. When I finally said yes, just to finally shut him up. He said there was a phrase that would let me get hard with a woman, and that something about the magic would make sure she got a kid. But your fucking father conveniently left a few things out, and that’s why I’m pissed.”
I sat on the edge of the desk, rubbing my knee and taking a moment to calm down. Martin stayed silent. “Look, I’m sorry for losing it on you. This isn’t your fault,” I said as I reached behind me and tapped the desk’s surface. It woke up enough to show me the time. Midnight already?
“Look, Martin, it’s late. I just wasted my evening having to follow some drunkard until he picked up a girl, so I could record the two of them fucking so his wife can get a better settlement during their divorce. I need to go to bed.”
“Alone?” he asked, not hiding the concern.
“Probably. None of the guys I know are awake at this hour. The lucky bastards have nine-to-five jobs.”
“Colby’s still up.”
I groaned. “How is it he’s still obsessed with my ass? Hasn’t he fucked it enough by now?”
Martin chuckled. “I doubt any of us has. And why are you complaining? You like having him fuck you.”
“Of course I do. He’s great in bed, and he’s hung. I just don't see the attraction, that’s all. My ass isn’t that impressive.”
“Clearly, you haven’t fucked yourself.”
“Very funny. Look, you don’t have to worry about my sex life. Tonight is an exception, and I fucked two guys earlier today, so it isn’t like I’m running dry.”
“Alright, sorry, I guess you’re no longer the novice I feel like you are. Before I let you go, are you going to be the party on Saturday?”
“There’s no way I’m missing that. Have you heard from Fred and Frank? Are they going to be there?”
“No, their father still has four women lined up for each of them.”
I shuddered at the idea of having to go through that three more times, let alone how many times those two had. How did any of them tolerate it? “Why? Haven't they already fucked like five women?”
“Six. I’d like to say it’s a lion thing, but I know plenty of lion families who only have one or two kids. So it’s got to be an Odinga thing.”
“We’re never going to see them again, are we?” I was getting a headache at the idea of all those kids taking over my friends’ lives.
“I’m sure they’ll manage to visit at some point.”
“I hope so; I miss those two lugs.”
“Me too.” Martin was silent for a moment. “I’m going to let you go. See you Saturday.”
“See you then.”
Martin ended the call.
I sighed and rubbed my temples. I hoped the party wouldn’t be uncomfortable. Max shouldn’t be there; he had his own group of friends, much closer to his age to party with, but Martin was his son, he might show up just to have some fun with him.
I turned and caught sight of the boxes stacked against the bookcase. They’d been there for the last few days, ever since they'd arrived, and I’d yet to unpack them. Frank wouldn’t mind if I didn’t start reading right away, would he? Not while being so busy anyway.
I looked at the back door, then the desk. I should really write that report so I could send it to my client. I got the sense she couldn’t wait to divorce her husband. I was already at the desk, all I’d have to do is enter my password and it would fully activate, but what kind of report would I write barely awake?
I stood and took a step toward the back, when the front door opened and the soft chimes floated through the large room.
Of course, tonight would have to be the night I forgot to lock the door. I really had to change that lock, I thought as the chimes rang again. It was old, probably as old as the building, and didn’t engage automatically.
The chimes rang again, sounding harsher. Okay, okay, I get the message. I turned to address whoever my new client was, and then tried not to laugh at the sight.
The tall deer in an expensive charcoal-gray suit was working one of his points out of the chime’s ornamental chain, taking care not to break the links. I sat myself back on the edge of the desk and watched. Maybe I wouldn’t be sleeping alone after all tonight.
Marcus finally pulled the last of the stuck points out of the chains with a satisfied grunt. He glared at the chimes and stepped down into my office. I looked behind him expectantly.
No one else entered, and my smile died. Maybe I was sleeping alone after all.
“Dent!” The red deer smiled, trotting through the room to hug me. “How are you doing?”
“I’m good.” I hugged him back, hard. It had been months since I’d last seen him, or his husband. “Zee isn’t with you?”
He released me. “No, he’s still angry with you.”
I sighed. “I told him what I could. I didn’t want to lie to him, which is what I would have had to do to tell him anything resembling a believable explanation.” It hadn’t been an easy decision; Zikabar was my best friend. I’d never lied to him before, but I’d also promised him an explanation as to why I had to let people think I’d died in my folk’s house fire.”
Marcus studied me, crossing his arms over his chest. “If I hadn’t been there, would you have lied to him?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know, probably not. I’d rather he be angry at me because I didn’t tell him everything, than because he found out I’d lied to him.”
“I’m glad to hear that.” Marcus smiled. “As to that, he was over it in a few weeks. What has him really angry is your refusal to join the Bureau.”
“You know I can’t do that, not with the stuff Internal Affairs found.” Not that they’d had to do any of the work. Those Church bastards had seen to it there was plenty of evidence of my ‘crime’. And all that just because they thought I’d broken some of their precious rules by becoming a police officer.
“Right, IA.” Marcus’s gaze pierced me. “I’m going to get back to them in a moment, but first, you know damn well that wouldn’t have stopped him. Zee wanted you to join, and what my husband wants—”
“Zikabar gets,” I finished, unable to stop the chuckle at Zee’s favorite saying. And it was true, Zee had a way of getting what he wanted.
But not this time. For his own protection, I couldn’t let him get his way. Not with the Church breathing down my neck. They knew about him, our friendship. They even knew he’d asked me to join the Bureau. They made it clear that if I accepted, it wasn't me they’d go after, but Zee.
“You know I appreciate his offer,” I said, walking to the boxes and running a claw through the tape of the top one. “But after the debacle with IA, I don't want to have anything to do with law-enforcement.” I took a book out and checked the spine: American History, 1900–1999. Okay, not what I’d expected. “I like being a PI.” I placed it on the shelf and reached for the next one when Marcus’s ‘huh’ stopped me.
I looked over my shoulder. “What?”
Marcus was looking at me a mix of amusement and annoyance on his face. “Dent, you know I’m a behavioral expert, and you still lied to me.”
I hung my head and sighed. “Just drop it, okay?”
“No.”
I turned and glared at him. “Damn it, Marcus, I don’t want to lie to you.”
He gave me his so innocent smile, like I’d walk right into what he’d wanted. “Then don’t. Just explain this one thing to me: How is it that your captain knows about all those crimes you supposedly committed? That your old partner knows is obvious, as she’s the one who uncovered them. That IA knows, but that the one person who somehow missed the memo about them is the DA. I’ve seen the file they built on you, it—”
“How did you manage that?”
“Dent, I work for the FBI. I know how to push my weight around when I want to. Your file would make her career, so why isn’t she all over you right now?”
“Drop it, please.” I didn’t have to ask if he believed any of the lies in that file. He’d known me for almost as long as Zee. He’d watched me join the force. He knew what that day had meant to me.
“No. I want answers.”
“Marcus—”
“Shut up, Dent. I love you, but right now you’re being an ass.”
I sighed and tried to come up with something that would placate him.
“Not only have you refused Zee's offer in favor of—” he waved a hand to encompass the office with a disgusted expression, “—this, but you haven’t visited in five months.”
“Zee’s pissed at me,” I said because it was true. “I didn’t want to upset him by showing up.” I hoped he was too worked up to pick up in this slight lie.
“That’s never stopped you before.” Nope, not too worked up. “Hell, you know fucking well that your cock up his ass is the best way to apologize to him.”
“Marcus, stop.”
“No. Damn it, Dent, I’ve been watching you. I’ve seen how you are with your clients.” He stepped closer. “You think it’s a coincidence I’m here now? I followed you all evening, I saw the disgust in your body language as you watch that man go from bar to bar. It wasn’t for him, but for what you were doing. You hate this.” Another gesture indicating the room as he stepped into my personal space. “This isn’t who you are. You are and have always been an agent of the law.”
“I can’t!” I shoved him away. “You think I don’t want to be a cop anymore? That I don’t want to go to IA and tell them what really happened? You think I like keeping all of this to myself? From you and Zee? You think that if it wasn’t for them, I’d be fighting this as hard as I—” What I’d said registered and I cursed.
“Them who?” Marcus asked, standing very still. Of course he’d caught the slip. This guy could notice an ear twitch a mile away.
“I can’t tell you.”
“Dent.” He tried to make his tone conciliatory, but he was still angry too.
“I can’t tell you,” I repeated.
“Zee can find out.”
“No, absolutely not. You are not telling him about this. You are not involving him. You have no idea what they can do to him if they think he's working with— Fuck!” I glared at the deer. He was working me up on purpose so I’d slip again, and I had.
“They threatened him?” Marcus’s voice became so brittle that I swore I felt the temperature drop.
“I’m trying to protect him.”
“Who are they?” His tone was measured, and terrifying as hell. The anger in his eyes the opposite of his tone. “No one threatens my husband and gets away with it.”
“Marcus, you have to calm down. You can’t go after them.”
“Denton, love, do shut up. You just told me Zee is in danger. Don’t expect me to just be on the sidelines while—”
“He isn’t in any danger so long as I stay away from him.”
He didn’t say anything for far too long, but eventually the anger in his eyes did cool down. “This is why you let him be angry at you?”
“I’d rather have him angry than hurt.”
“Too bad, because once I tell him about this, he’s going to find them and—”
“Are you fucking insane? I just told you they’re too powerful.”
“We don’t scare easily,” the buck replied.
I grabbed him by the collar and pulled him to me. “Get scared. If they even think you’re working with us, they are going to get Zee kicked out of the FBI.”
Marcus took my hands and forced me to let go of him. “They can’t do that.”
“They can,” I growled. “That’s what I’m trying to get you to understand. They’re that powerful.”
Marcus took a step back, finally looking shaken. I’d been worried I couldn’t get through to him. “You can’t tell Zee.”
“I have to. He’s going crazy trying to understand why you’re doing this.”
“He can’t know. It’s for his own safety.”
“Dent,” Marcus pleaded, “we don’t have any secrets from one another.”
I rolled my eyes. “Don’t give me that line. You’ve told me how compartmentalized the FBI can get. So I know there are times you’re working on different things and have to keep them to yourselves.” I stared at him. “I want your word that you won’t tell him anything. I’m serious, Marcus. You tell him and I am never fucking you again.”
He raised his hands in surrender. “Fine.”
I sighed in relief.
“Really?” the deer asked, sounding hurt. “You’d withhold sex?”
To most people, even other guys, my threat would have sounded like a joke, but Marcus loved having me fuck him. From what he said, which Zee had confirmed, I was the only guy he was willing to bottom for.”
“Yes. This is how serious I am about this.”
We were silent for a moment. “Which one of us do you think would break first?” he asked.
I glared at him, unable to believe he still wasn’t taking this seriously. Then I sighed, smiled, and threw up my hands in defeat. “How the fuck should I know? You’re addicted to my cock, I’m addicted to fucking, but I do have access to other guys beside you.”
Marcus grinned. “Yeah, but you’d still miss my ass.”
Yeah, I would. I did. I missed having sex with the two of them. Granted, this wasn’t the longest we’d gone without, but this was because of tension, not because we were busy. And being a private investigator gave me way too much time to reflect on us not having sex.
“But seriously, Dent, how are you doing? PI work isn’t going strong these days.”
I shrugged. “I get a case here and there, cheating wives or husbands, finding lost things. The usual. It doesn’t pay great, but it isn’t like I need the money.
Marcus raised an eyebrow.
I sighed. And yet another thing slipped out. At least this wasn’t a great secret, just something I didn’t care to advertise. “It turns out my family, the Rasias, are rich. As the only one on that family line still alive, it’s all mine.”
Maximilian had insisted I see the accounts. His firm handled the money for many of the Society families, including the Rasias.
“How much?”
“Close to five-hundred million.”
His jaw dropped. “And you’re doing this?”
“What else am I going to do? I can’t see myself lying on a beach all day long, bleaching my fur.”
“Me neither, but I can see you spending it fucking guys.”
I chuckled. “I’d still go nuts after a while. I need to help people. I can’t be a cop anymore, but at least there’s this.” I indicated the office.
“Do your folks know?”
“Of course they do. You’d think I’d hide what I did for a living from them?” For a moment I was offended he thought I’d treat them that way, and just as he rolled his eyes I realized that hadn’t been what he’d meant.
“Don’t be dense, Dent.”
“No, they don’t know about the money. As far as they are concerned, my parents were blue collar, just like them. I have made arrangements so they’ll never want for anything, but it’s only going to come into play if something bad happens or when Dad retires.”
I gave him time to ask another question, but the silence stretched, so I stretched. “Look, Zee’s not here, so we’re not going to fuck. I need to go to bed, you need to get back to him. Just forget anything I told you tonight, okay?”
I thought he was going to argue again, but finally he nodded.
We headed for the stairs and he eyed the chimes. “You know those things have to be a code violation, right?”
“You could always trim those antlers of yours. A few inches less and you’d have an easier time going through doors.” At seven-feet in height, the average door was enough for most people, but Marcus’s antlers stood a foot above that.
“Absolutely not.” His indignation was almost amusing. “They are an expression of my manliness.”
I rolled my eyes. “Right, because what’s in your pants is going to shrink to match your antlers.” I climbed up to open the door for him.
“Unlike someone I won’t mention.” He looked at me pointedly. “I don’t go dropping my pants in front of guys to show how manly I am.”
My ears burned. Just that one time, and it hadn’t even been my fault; that badger had been to blame. “You are such a poser,” I said as I prodded him out the door. “Go to bed. I’m sure Zee is wondering where you are.”
He kept me from closing the door. “You be safe, Dent. Me and Zee, we worry about you. And I’m going to worry a lot more now that I know what I know.”
“I’m as safe as I can be. Goodnight, Marcus. Give my love to Zee.”
He snorted. “I am not fucking my husband in your name. You’re going to have to come and do that yourself.”
I pushed him away and closed the door.
His talk of fucking Zee reminded me that I hadn’t experienced Marcus since I’d become sexually versatile. Marcus didn’t know since our usual circles of fuck-buddies didn’t intersect. Once I found a way of appeasing Zee, I’d have to give Marcus a try. According to Zee, his husband was quite the top.
My phone rang as I pulled out the key card for the lock. A glance at it and I recognized the number.
“Hey, Martin,” I answered. “How is it going?” A swipe of the card and the door opened to a stairwell going down with the sound of soft chimes. I barely noticed the small sign on the door that read ‘Denton Brislow, Private Investigator’ anymore.
“I’m okay,” he said, but I heard the hesitation there. “Look, Dent, my dad didn’t put me up to this, so it’s all me. What’s going on between the two of you?”
The memory assaulted me, and I almost fell down the stairs. I slid down two and had to grab onto the wall to stay vertical. The bed, that woman on it, me fucking her like there was no tomorrow.
I wrenched my anger under a semblance of control with a growl. “How the fuck do you expect me to feel, considering what he did to me?” Two weeks. I’d been able to not think about that night for two whole weeks. I had been too exhausted to deck him by the time it was all over.
I made it down the last three steps without tripping.
“But you were okay with it? The two of you had talked about it.”
“Okay?” I almost laughed. “I was never okay with any of it. I said yes because I got fed up with you and your dad constantly being on my case about having a kid. How often, over the last six month, did I tell either of you that no, I didn’t want to have a kid? But that never shut either of you up. As for what your father did to me? I never agreed to it, that was—” I shut my mouth and forced myself to breathe.
I was on the bed again, her under me and me moving against my will. I came back to pain in my knee, and I cursed the desk that I’d walked into.
“Are you okay?” Martin asked, sounding concerned and wary at the same time.
“No, I’m not,” I snapped. I had a feeling he’d said more while I was…distracted, but I didn’t care.
“Dent, my dad doesn’t know why you’re angry. He’s worried.”
I snorted. “I’m fucking angry because he lied about what was going to happen. When I finally said yes, just to finally shut him up. He said there was a phrase that would let me get hard with a woman, and that something about the magic would make sure she got a kid. But your fucking father conveniently left a few things out, and that’s why I’m pissed.”
I sat on the edge of the desk, rubbing my knee and taking a moment to calm down. Martin stayed silent. “Look, I’m sorry for losing it on you. This isn’t your fault,” I said as I reached behind me and tapped the desk’s surface. It woke up enough to show me the time. Midnight already?
“Look, Martin, it’s late. I just wasted my evening having to follow some drunkard until he picked up a girl, so I could record the two of them fucking so his wife can get a better settlement during their divorce. I need to go to bed.”
“Alone?” he asked, not hiding the concern.
“Probably. None of the guys I know are awake at this hour. The lucky bastards have nine-to-five jobs.”
“Colby’s still up.”
I groaned. “How is it he’s still obsessed with my ass? Hasn’t he fucked it enough by now?”
Martin chuckled. “I doubt any of us has. And why are you complaining? You like having him fuck you.”
“Of course I do. He’s great in bed, and he’s hung. I just don't see the attraction, that’s all. My ass isn’t that impressive.”
“Clearly, you haven’t fucked yourself.”
“Very funny. Look, you don’t have to worry about my sex life. Tonight is an exception, and I fucked two guys earlier today, so it isn’t like I’m running dry.”
“Alright, sorry, I guess you’re no longer the novice I feel like you are. Before I let you go, are you going to be the party on Saturday?”
“There’s no way I’m missing that. Have you heard from Fred and Frank? Are they going to be there?”
“No, their father still has four women lined up for each of them.”
I shuddered at the idea of having to go through that three more times, let alone how many times those two had. How did any of them tolerate it? “Why? Haven't they already fucked like five women?”
“Six. I’d like to say it’s a lion thing, but I know plenty of lion families who only have one or two kids. So it’s got to be an Odinga thing.”
“We’re never going to see them again, are we?” I was getting a headache at the idea of all those kids taking over my friends’ lives.
“I’m sure they’ll manage to visit at some point.”
“I hope so; I miss those two lugs.”
“Me too.” Martin was silent for a moment. “I’m going to let you go. See you Saturday.”
“See you then.”
Martin ended the call.
I sighed and rubbed my temples. I hoped the party wouldn’t be uncomfortable. Max shouldn’t be there; he had his own group of friends, much closer to his age to party with, but Martin was his son, he might show up just to have some fun with him.
I turned and caught sight of the boxes stacked against the bookcase. They’d been there for the last few days, ever since they'd arrived, and I’d yet to unpack them. Frank wouldn’t mind if I didn’t start reading right away, would he? Not while being so busy anyway.
I looked at the back door, then the desk. I should really write that report so I could send it to my client. I got the sense she couldn’t wait to divorce her husband. I was already at the desk, all I’d have to do is enter my password and it would fully activate, but what kind of report would I write barely awake?
I stood and took a step toward the back, when the front door opened and the soft chimes floated through the large room.
Of course, tonight would have to be the night I forgot to lock the door. I really had to change that lock, I thought as the chimes rang again. It was old, probably as old as the building, and didn’t engage automatically.
The chimes rang again, sounding harsher. Okay, okay, I get the message. I turned to address whoever my new client was, and then tried not to laugh at the sight.
The tall deer in an expensive charcoal-gray suit was working one of his points out of the chime’s ornamental chain, taking care not to break the links. I sat myself back on the edge of the desk and watched. Maybe I wouldn’t be sleeping alone after all tonight.
Marcus finally pulled the last of the stuck points out of the chains with a satisfied grunt. He glared at the chimes and stepped down into my office. I looked behind him expectantly.
No one else entered, and my smile died. Maybe I was sleeping alone after all.
“Dent!” The red deer smiled, trotting through the room to hug me. “How are you doing?”
“I’m good.” I hugged him back, hard. It had been months since I’d last seen him, or his husband. “Zee isn’t with you?”
He released me. “No, he’s still angry with you.”
I sighed. “I told him what I could. I didn’t want to lie to him, which is what I would have had to do to tell him anything resembling a believable explanation.” It hadn’t been an easy decision; Zikabar was my best friend. I’d never lied to him before, but I’d also promised him an explanation as to why I had to let people think I’d died in my folk’s house fire.”
Marcus studied me, crossing his arms over his chest. “If I hadn’t been there, would you have lied to him?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know, probably not. I’d rather he be angry at me because I didn’t tell him everything, than because he found out I’d lied to him.”
“I’m glad to hear that.” Marcus smiled. “As to that, he was over it in a few weeks. What has him really angry is your refusal to join the Bureau.”
“You know I can’t do that, not with the stuff Internal Affairs found.” Not that they’d had to do any of the work. Those Church bastards had seen to it there was plenty of evidence of my ‘crime’. And all that just because they thought I’d broken some of their precious rules by becoming a police officer.
“Right, IA.” Marcus’s gaze pierced me. “I’m going to get back to them in a moment, but first, you know damn well that wouldn’t have stopped him. Zee wanted you to join, and what my husband wants—”
“Zikabar gets,” I finished, unable to stop the chuckle at Zee’s favorite saying. And it was true, Zee had a way of getting what he wanted.
But not this time. For his own protection, I couldn’t let him get his way. Not with the Church breathing down my neck. They knew about him, our friendship. They even knew he’d asked me to join the Bureau. They made it clear that if I accepted, it wasn't me they’d go after, but Zee.
“You know I appreciate his offer,” I said, walking to the boxes and running a claw through the tape of the top one. “But after the debacle with IA, I don't want to have anything to do with law-enforcement.” I took a book out and checked the spine: American History, 1900–1999. Okay, not what I’d expected. “I like being a PI.” I placed it on the shelf and reached for the next one when Marcus’s ‘huh’ stopped me.
I looked over my shoulder. “What?”
Marcus was looking at me a mix of amusement and annoyance on his face. “Dent, you know I’m a behavioral expert, and you still lied to me.”
I hung my head and sighed. “Just drop it, okay?”
“No.”
I turned and glared at him. “Damn it, Marcus, I don’t want to lie to you.”
He gave me his so innocent smile, like I’d walk right into what he’d wanted. “Then don’t. Just explain this one thing to me: How is it that your captain knows about all those crimes you supposedly committed? That your old partner knows is obvious, as she’s the one who uncovered them. That IA knows, but that the one person who somehow missed the memo about them is the DA. I’ve seen the file they built on you, it—”
“How did you manage that?”
“Dent, I work for the FBI. I know how to push my weight around when I want to. Your file would make her career, so why isn’t she all over you right now?”
“Drop it, please.” I didn’t have to ask if he believed any of the lies in that file. He’d known me for almost as long as Zee. He’d watched me join the force. He knew what that day had meant to me.
“No. I want answers.”
“Marcus—”
“Shut up, Dent. I love you, but right now you’re being an ass.”
I sighed and tried to come up with something that would placate him.
“Not only have you refused Zee's offer in favor of—” he waved a hand to encompass the office with a disgusted expression, “—this, but you haven’t visited in five months.”
“Zee’s pissed at me,” I said because it was true. “I didn’t want to upset him by showing up.” I hoped he was too worked up to pick up in this slight lie.
“That’s never stopped you before.” Nope, not too worked up. “Hell, you know fucking well that your cock up his ass is the best way to apologize to him.”
“Marcus, stop.”
“No. Damn it, Dent, I’ve been watching you. I’ve seen how you are with your clients.” He stepped closer. “You think it’s a coincidence I’m here now? I followed you all evening, I saw the disgust in your body language as you watch that man go from bar to bar. It wasn’t for him, but for what you were doing. You hate this.” Another gesture indicating the room as he stepped into my personal space. “This isn’t who you are. You are and have always been an agent of the law.”
“I can’t!” I shoved him away. “You think I don’t want to be a cop anymore? That I don’t want to go to IA and tell them what really happened? You think I like keeping all of this to myself? From you and Zee? You think that if it wasn’t for them, I’d be fighting this as hard as I—” What I’d said registered and I cursed.
“Them who?” Marcus asked, standing very still. Of course he’d caught the slip. This guy could notice an ear twitch a mile away.
“I can’t tell you.”
“Dent.” He tried to make his tone conciliatory, but he was still angry too.
“I can’t tell you,” I repeated.
“Zee can find out.”
“No, absolutely not. You are not telling him about this. You are not involving him. You have no idea what they can do to him if they think he's working with— Fuck!” I glared at the deer. He was working me up on purpose so I’d slip again, and I had.
“They threatened him?” Marcus’s voice became so brittle that I swore I felt the temperature drop.
“I’m trying to protect him.”
“Who are they?” His tone was measured, and terrifying as hell. The anger in his eyes the opposite of his tone. “No one threatens my husband and gets away with it.”
“Marcus, you have to calm down. You can’t go after them.”
“Denton, love, do shut up. You just told me Zee is in danger. Don’t expect me to just be on the sidelines while—”
“He isn’t in any danger so long as I stay away from him.”
He didn’t say anything for far too long, but eventually the anger in his eyes did cool down. “This is why you let him be angry at you?”
“I’d rather have him angry than hurt.”
“Too bad, because once I tell him about this, he’s going to find them and—”
“Are you fucking insane? I just told you they’re too powerful.”
“We don’t scare easily,” the buck replied.
I grabbed him by the collar and pulled him to me. “Get scared. If they even think you’re working with us, they are going to get Zee kicked out of the FBI.”
Marcus took my hands and forced me to let go of him. “They can’t do that.”
“They can,” I growled. “That’s what I’m trying to get you to understand. They’re that powerful.”
Marcus took a step back, finally looking shaken. I’d been worried I couldn’t get through to him. “You can’t tell Zee.”
“I have to. He’s going crazy trying to understand why you’re doing this.”
“He can’t know. It’s for his own safety.”
“Dent,” Marcus pleaded, “we don’t have any secrets from one another.”
I rolled my eyes. “Don’t give me that line. You’ve told me how compartmentalized the FBI can get. So I know there are times you’re working on different things and have to keep them to yourselves.” I stared at him. “I want your word that you won’t tell him anything. I’m serious, Marcus. You tell him and I am never fucking you again.”
He raised his hands in surrender. “Fine.”
I sighed in relief.
“Really?” the deer asked, sounding hurt. “You’d withhold sex?”
To most people, even other guys, my threat would have sounded like a joke, but Marcus loved having me fuck him. From what he said, which Zee had confirmed, I was the only guy he was willing to bottom for.”
“Yes. This is how serious I am about this.”
We were silent for a moment. “Which one of us do you think would break first?” he asked.
I glared at him, unable to believe he still wasn’t taking this seriously. Then I sighed, smiled, and threw up my hands in defeat. “How the fuck should I know? You’re addicted to my cock, I’m addicted to fucking, but I do have access to other guys beside you.”
Marcus grinned. “Yeah, but you’d still miss my ass.”
Yeah, I would. I did. I missed having sex with the two of them. Granted, this wasn’t the longest we’d gone without, but this was because of tension, not because we were busy. And being a private investigator gave me way too much time to reflect on us not having sex.
“But seriously, Dent, how are you doing? PI work isn’t going strong these days.”
I shrugged. “I get a case here and there, cheating wives or husbands, finding lost things. The usual. It doesn’t pay great, but it isn’t like I need the money.
Marcus raised an eyebrow.
I sighed. And yet another thing slipped out. At least this wasn’t a great secret, just something I didn’t care to advertise. “It turns out my family, the Rasias, are rich. As the only one on that family line still alive, it’s all mine.”
Maximilian had insisted I see the accounts. His firm handled the money for many of the Society families, including the Rasias.
“How much?”
“Close to five-hundred million.”
His jaw dropped. “And you’re doing this?”
“What else am I going to do? I can’t see myself lying on a beach all day long, bleaching my fur.”
“Me neither, but I can see you spending it fucking guys.”
I chuckled. “I’d still go nuts after a while. I need to help people. I can’t be a cop anymore, but at least there’s this.” I indicated the office.
“Do your folks know?”
“Of course they do. You’d think I’d hide what I did for a living from them?” For a moment I was offended he thought I’d treat them that way, and just as he rolled his eyes I realized that hadn’t been what he’d meant.
“Don’t be dense, Dent.”
“No, they don’t know about the money. As far as they are concerned, my parents were blue collar, just like them. I have made arrangements so they’ll never want for anything, but it’s only going to come into play if something bad happens or when Dad retires.”
I gave him time to ask another question, but the silence stretched, so I stretched. “Look, Zee’s not here, so we’re not going to fuck. I need to go to bed, you need to get back to him. Just forget anything I told you tonight, okay?”
I thought he was going to argue again, but finally he nodded.
We headed for the stairs and he eyed the chimes. “You know those things have to be a code violation, right?”
“You could always trim those antlers of yours. A few inches less and you’d have an easier time going through doors.” At seven-feet in height, the average door was enough for most people, but Marcus’s antlers stood a foot above that.
“Absolutely not.” His indignation was almost amusing. “They are an expression of my manliness.”
I rolled my eyes. “Right, because what’s in your pants is going to shrink to match your antlers.” I climbed up to open the door for him.
“Unlike someone I won’t mention.” He looked at me pointedly. “I don’t go dropping my pants in front of guys to show how manly I am.”
My ears burned. Just that one time, and it hadn’t even been my fault; that badger had been to blame. “You are such a poser,” I said as I prodded him out the door. “Go to bed. I’m sure Zee is wondering where you are.”
He kept me from closing the door. “You be safe, Dent. Me and Zee, we worry about you. And I’m going to worry a lot more now that I know what I know.”
“I’m as safe as I can be. Goodnight, Marcus. Give my love to Zee.”
He snorted. “I am not fucking my husband in your name. You’re going to have to come and do that yourself.”
I pushed him away and closed the door.
His talk of fucking Zee reminded me that I hadn’t experienced Marcus since I’d become sexually versatile. Marcus didn’t know since our usual circles of fuck-buddies didn’t intersect. Once I found a way of appeasing Zee, I’d have to give Marcus a try. According to Zee, his husband was quite the top.
Toeing the Line: Chapter 1
The street was quiet as I stepped to the door leading to my office. It was late enough, and no one was around this part of town; everything here was commercial. 9PM and it all shuts down. I should have been in bed hours ago, ideally with a guy joining me, but instead I’d had to work this job.
My phone rang as I pulled out the key card for the lock. A glance at it and I recognized the number.
“Hey, Martin,” I answered. “How is it going?” A swipe of the card and the door opened to a stairwell going down with the sound of soft chimes. I barely noticed the small sign on the door that read ‘Denton Brislow, Private Investigator’ anymore.
“I’m okay,” he said, but I heard the hesitation there. “Look, Dent, my dad didn’t put me up to this, so it’s all me. What’s going on between the two of you?”
The memory assaulted me, and I almost fell down the stairs. I slid down two and had to grab onto the wall to stay vertical. The bed, that woman on it, me fucking her like there was no tomorrow.
I wrenched my anger under a semblance of control with a growl. “How the fuck do you expect me to feel, considering what he did to me?” Two weeks. I’d been able to not think about that night for two whole weeks. I had been too exhausted to deck him by the time it was all over.
I made it down the last three steps without tripping.
“But you were okay with it? The two of you had talked about it.”
“Okay?” I almost laughed. “I was never okay with any of it. I said yes because I got fed up with you and your dad constantly being on my case about having a kid. How often, over the last six month, did I tell either of you that no, I didn’t want to have a kid? But that never shut either of you up. As for what your father did to me? I never agreed to it, that was—” I shut my mouth and forced myself to breathe.
I was on the bed again, her under me and me moving against my will. I came back to pain in my knee, and I cursed the desk that I’d walked into.
“Are you okay?” Martin asked, sounding concerned and wary at the same time.
“No, I’m not,” I snapped. I had a feeling he’d said more while I was…distracted, but I didn’t care.
“Dent, my dad doesn’t know why you’re angry. He’s worried.”
I snorted. “I’m fucking angry because he lied about what was going to happen. When I finally said yes, just to finally shut him up. He said there was a phrase that would let me get hard with a woman, and that something about the magic would make sure she got a kid. But your fucking father conveniently left a few things out, and that’s why I’m pissed.”
I sat on the edge of the desk, rubbing my knee and taking a moment to calm down. Martin stayed silent. “Look, I’m sorry for losing it on you. This isn’t your fault,” I said as I reached behind me and tapped the desk’s surface. It woke up enough to show me the time. Midnight already?
“Look, Martin, it’s late. I just wasted my evening having to follow some drunkard until he picked up a girl, so I could record the two of them fucking so his wife can get a better settlement during their divorce. I need to go to bed.”
“Alone?” he asked, not hiding the concern.
“Probably. None of the guys I know are awake at this hour. The lucky bastards have nine-to-five jobs.”
“Colby’s still up.”
I groaned. “How is it he’s still obsessed with my ass? Hasn’t he fucked it enough by now?”
Martin chuckled. “I doubt any of us has. And why are you complaining? You like having him fuck you.”
“Of course I do. He’s great in bed, and he’s hung. I just don't see the attraction, that’s all. My ass isn’t that impressive.”
“Clearly, you haven’t fucked yourself.”
“Very funny. Look, you don’t have to worry about my sex life. Tonight is an exception, and I fucked two guys earlier today, so it isn’t like I’m running dry.”
“Alright, sorry, I guess you’re no longer the novice I feel like you are. Before I let you go, are you going to be the party on Saturday?”
“There’s no way I’m missing that. Have you heard from Fred and Frank? Are they going to be there?”
“No, their father still has four women lined up for each of them.”
I shuddered at the idea of having to go through that three more times, let alone how many times those two had. How did any of them tolerate it? “Why? Haven't they already fucked like five women?”
“Six. I’d like to say it’s a lion thing, but I know plenty of lion families who only have one or two kids. So it’s got to be an Odinga thing.”
“We’re never going to see them again, are we?” I was getting a headache at the idea of all those kids taking over my friends’ lives.
“I’m sure they’ll manage to visit at some point.”
“I hope so; I miss those two lugs.”
“Me too.” Martin was silent for a moment. “I’m going to let you go. See you Saturday.”
“See you then.”
Martin ended the call.
I sighed and rubbed my temples. I hoped the party wouldn’t be uncomfortable. Max shouldn’t be there; he had his own group of friends, much closer to his age to party with, but Martin was his son, he might show up just to have some fun with him.
I turned and caught sight of the boxes stacked against the bookcase. They’d been there for the last few days, ever since they'd arrived, and I’d yet to unpack them. Frank wouldn’t mind if I didn’t start reading right away, would he? Not while being so busy anyway.
I looked at the back door, then the desk. I should really write that report so I could send it to my client. I got the sense she couldn’t wait to divorce her husband. I was already at the desk, all I’d have to do is enter my password and it would fully activate, but what kind of report would I write barely awake?
I stood and took a step toward the back, when the front door opened and the soft chimes floated through the large room.
Of course, tonight would have to be the night I forgot to lock the door. I really had to change that lock, I thought as the chimes rang again. It was old, probably as old as the building, and didn’t engage automatically.
The chimes rang again, sounding harsher. Okay, okay, I get the message. I turned to address whoever my new client was, and then tried not to laugh at the sight.
The tall deer in an expensive charcoal-gray suit was working one of his points out of the chime’s ornamental chain, taking care not to break the links. I sat myself back on the edge of the desk and watched. Maybe I wouldn’t be sleeping alone after all tonight.
Marcus finally pulled the last of the stuck points out of the chains with a satisfied grunt. He glared at the chimes and stepped down into my office. I looked behind him expectantly.
No one else entered, and my smile died. Maybe I was sleeping alone after all.
“Dent!” The red deer smiled, trotting through the room to hug me. “How are you doing?”
“I’m good.” I hugged him back, hard. It had been months since I’d last seen him, or his husband. “Zee isn’t with you?”
He released me. “No, he’s still angry with you.”
I sighed. “I told him what I could. I didn’t want to lie to him, which is what I would have had to do to tell him anything resembling a believable explanation.” It hadn’t been an easy decision; Zikabar was my best friend. I’d never lied to him before, but I’d also promised him an explanation as to why I had to let people think I’d died in my folk’s house fire.”
Marcus studied me, crossing his arms over his chest. “If I hadn’t been there, would you have lied to him?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know, probably not. I’d rather he be angry at me because I didn’t tell him everything, than because he found out I’d lied to him.”
“I’m glad to hear that.” Marcus smiled. “As to that, he was over it in a few weeks. What has him really angry is your refusal to join the Bureau.”
“You know I can’t do that, not with the stuff Internal Affairs found.” Not that they’d had to do any of the work. Those Church bastards had seen to it there was plenty of evidence of my ‘crime’. And all that just because they thought I’d broken some of their precious rules by becoming a police officer.
“Right, IA.” Marcus’s gaze pierced me. “I’m going to get back to them in a moment, but first, you know damn well that wouldn’t have stopped him. Zee wanted you to join, and what my husband wants—”
“Zikabar gets,” I finished, unable to stop the chuckle at Zee’s favorite saying. And it was true, Zee had a way of getting what he wanted.
But not this time. For his own protection, I couldn’t let him get his way. Not with the Church breathing down my neck. They knew about him, our friendship. They even knew he’d asked me to join the Bureau. They made it clear that if I accepted, it wasn't me they’d go after, but Zee.
“You know I appreciate his offer,” I said, walking to the boxes and running a claw through the tape of the top one. “But after the debacle with IA, I don't want to have anything to do with law-enforcement.” I took a book out and checked the spine: American History, 1900–1999. Okay, not what I’d expected. “I like being a PI.” I placed it on the shelf and reached for the next one when Marcus’s ‘huh’ stopped me.
I looked over my shoulder. “What?”
Marcus was looking at me a mix of amusement and annoyance on his face. “Dent, you know I’m a behavioral expert, and you still lied to me.”
I hung my head and sighed. “Just drop it, okay?”
“No.”
I turned and glared at him. “Damn it, Marcus, I don’t want to lie to you.”
He gave me his so innocent smile, like I’d walk right into what he’d wanted. “Then don’t. Just explain this one thing to me: How is it that your captain knows about all those crimes you supposedly committed? That your old partner knows is obvious, as she’s the one who uncovered them. That IA knows, but that the one person who somehow missed the memo about them is the DA. I’ve seen the file they built on you, it—”
“How did you manage that?”
“Dent, I work for the FBI. I know how to push my weight around when I want to. Your file would make her career, so why isn’t she all over you right now?”
“Drop it, please.” I didn’t have to ask if he believed any of the lies in that file. He’d known me for almost as long as Zee. He’d watched me join the force. He knew what that day had meant to me.
“No. I want answers.”
“Marcus—”
“Shut up, Dent. I love you, but right now you’re being an ass.”
I sighed and tried to come up with something that would placate him.
“Not only have you refused Zee's offer in favor of—” he waved a hand to encompass the office with a disgusted expression, “—this, but you haven’t visited in five months.”
“Zee’s pissed at me,” I said because it was true. “I didn’t want to upset him by showing up.” I hoped he was too worked up to pick up in this slight lie.
“That’s never stopped you before.” Nope, not too worked up. “Hell, you know fucking well that your cock up his ass is the best way to apologize to him.”
“Marcus, stop.”
“No. Damn it, Dent, I’ve been watching you. I’ve seen how you are with your clients.” He stepped closer. “You think it’s a coincidence I’m here now? I followed you all evening, I saw the disgust in your body language as you watch that man go from bar to bar. It wasn’t for him, but for what you were doing. You hate this.” Another gesture indicating the room as he stepped into my personal space. “This isn’t who you are. You are and have always been an agent of the law.”
“I can’t!” I shoved him away. “You think I don’t want to be a cop anymore? That I don’t want to go to IA and tell them what really happened? You think I like keeping all of this to myself? From you and Zee? You think that if it wasn’t for them, I’d be fighting this as hard as I—” What I’d said registered and I cursed.
“Them who?” Marcus asked, standing very still. Of course he’d caught the slip. This guy could notice an ear twitch a mile away.
“I can’t tell you.”
“Dent.” He tried to make his tone conciliatory, but he was still angry too.
“I can’t tell you,” I repeated.
“Zee can find out.”
“No, absolutely not. You are not telling him about this. You are not involving him. You have no idea what they can do to him if they think he's working with— Fuck!” I glared at the deer. He was working me up on purpose so I’d slip again, and I had.
“They threatened him?” Marcus’s voice became so brittle that I swore I felt the temperature drop.
“I’m trying to protect him.”
“Who are they?” His tone was measured, and terrifying as hell. The anger in his eyes the opposite of his tone. “No one threatens my husband and gets away with it.”
“Marcus, you have to calm down. You can’t go after them.”
“Denton, love, do shut up. You just told me Zee is in danger. Don’t expect me to just be on the sidelines while—”
“He isn’t in any danger so long as I stay away from him.”
He didn’t say anything for far too long, but eventually the anger in his eyes did cool down. “This is why you let him be angry at you?”
“I’d rather have him angry than hurt.”
“Too bad, because once I tell him about this, he’s going to find them and—”
“Are you fucking insane? I just told you they’re too powerful.”
“We don’t scare easily,” the buck replied.
I grabbed him by the collar and pulled him to me. “Get scared. If they even think you’re working with us, they are going to get Zee kicked out of the FBI.”
Marcus took my hands and forced me to let go of him. “They can’t do that.”
“They can,” I growled. “That’s what I’m trying to get you to understand. They’re that powerful.”
Marcus took a step back, finally looking shaken. I’d been worried I couldn’t get through to him. “You can’t tell Zee.”
“I have to. He’s going crazy trying to understand why you’re doing this.”
“He can’t know. It’s for his own safety.”
“Dent,” Marcus pleaded, “we don’t have any secrets from one another.”
I rolled my eyes. “Don’t give me that line. You’ve told me how compartmentalized the FBI can get. So I know there are times you’re working on different things and have to keep them to yourselves.” I stared at him. “I want your word that you won’t tell him anything. I’m serious, Marcus. You tell him and I am never fucking you again.”
He raised his hands in surrender. “Fine.”
I sighed in relief.
“Really?” the deer asked, sounding hurt. “You’d withhold sex?”
To most people, even other guys, my threat would have sounded like a joke, but Marcus loved having me fuck him. From what he said, which Zee had confirmed, I was the only guy he was willing to bottom for.”
“Yes. This is how serious I am about this.”
We were silent for a moment. “Which one of us do you think would break first?” he asked.
I glared at him, unable to believe he still wasn’t taking this seriously. Then I sighed, smiled, and threw up my hands in defeat. “How the fuck should I know? You’re addicted to my cock, I’m addicted to fucking, but I do have access to other guys beside you.”
Marcus grinned. “Yeah, but you’d still miss my ass.”
Yeah, I would. I did. I missed having sex with the two of them. Granted, this wasn’t the longest we’d gone without, but this was because of tension, not because we were busy. And being a private investigator gave me way too much time to reflect on us not having sex.
“But seriously, Dent, how are you doing? PI work isn’t going strong these days.”
I shrugged. “I get a case here and there, cheating wives or husbands, finding lost things. The usual. It doesn’t pay great, but it isn’t like I need the money.
Marcus raised an eyebrow.
I sighed. And yet another thing slipped out. At least this wasn’t a great secret, just something I didn’t care to advertise. “It turns out my family, the Rasias, are rich. As the only one on that family line still alive, it’s all mine.”
Maximilian had insisted I see the accounts. His firm handled the money for many of the Society families, including the Rasias.
“How much?”
“Close to five-hundred million.”
His jaw dropped. “And you’re doing this?”
“What else am I going to do? I can’t see myself lying on a beach all day long, bleaching my fur.”
“Me neither, but I can see you spending it fucking guys.”
I chuckled. “I’d still go nuts after a while. I need to help people. I can’t be a cop anymore, but at least there’s this.” I indicated the office.
“Do your folks know?”
“Of course they do. You’d think I’d hide what I did for a living from them?” For a moment I was offended he thought I’d treat them that way, and just as he rolled his eyes I realized that hadn’t been what he’d meant.
“Don’t be dense, Dent.”
“No, they don’t know about the money. As far as they are concerned, my parents were blue collar, just like them. I have made arrangements so they’ll never want for anything, but it’s only going to come into play if something bad happens or when Dad retires.”
I gave him time to ask another question, but the silence stretched, so I stretched. “Look, Zee’s not here, so we’re not going to fuck. I need to go to bed, you need to get back to him. Just forget anything I told you tonight, okay?”
I thought he was going to argue again, but finally he nodded.
We headed for the stairs and he eyed the chimes. “You know those things have to be a code violation, right?”
“You could always trim those antlers of yours. A few inches less and you’d have an easier time going through doors.” At seven-feet in height, the average door was enough for most people, but Marcus’s antlers stood a foot above that.
“Absolutely not.” His indignation was almost amusing. “They are an expression of my manliness.”
I rolled my eyes. “Right, because what’s in your pants is going to shrink to match your antlers.” I climbed up to open the door for him.
“Unlike someone I won’t mention.” He looked at me pointedly. “I don’t go dropping my pants in front of guys to show how manly I am.”
My ears burned. Just that one time, and it hadn’t even been my fault; that badger had been to blame. “You are such a poser,” I said as I prodded him out the door. “Go to bed. I’m sure Zee is wondering where you are.”
He kept me from closing the door. “You be safe, Dent. Me and Zee, we worry about you. And I’m going to worry a lot more now that I know what I know.”
“I’m as safe as I can be. Goodnight, Marcus. Give my love to Zee.”
He snorted. “I am not fucking my husband in your name. You’re going to have to come and do that yourself.”
I pushed him away and closed the door.
His talk of fucking Zee reminded me that I hadn’t experienced Marcus since I’d become sexually versatile. Marcus didn’t know since our usual circles of fuck-buddies didn’t intersect. Once I found a way of appeasing Zee, I’d have to give Marcus a try. According to Zee, his husband was quite the top.
The street was quiet as I stepped to the door leading to my office. It was late enough, and no one was around this part of town; everything here was commercial. 9PM and it all shuts down. I should have been in bed hours ago, ideally with a guy joining me, but instead I’d had to work this job.
My phone rang as I pulled out the key card for the lock. A glance at it and I recognized the number.
“Hey, Martin,” I answered. “How is it going?” A swipe of the card and the door opened to a stairwell going down with the sound of soft chimes. I barely noticed the small sign on the door that read ‘Denton Brislow, Private Investigator’ anymore.
“I’m okay,” he said, but I heard the hesitation there. “Look, Dent, my dad didn’t put me up to this, so it’s all me. What’s going on between the two of you?”
The memory assaulted me, and I almost fell down the stairs. I slid down two and had to grab onto the wall to stay vertical. The bed, that woman on it, me fucking her like there was no tomorrow.
I wrenched my anger under a semblance of control with a growl. “How the fuck do you expect me to feel, considering what he did to me?” Two weeks. I’d been able to not think about that night for two whole weeks. I had been too exhausted to deck him by the time it was all over.
I made it down the last three steps without tripping.
“But you were okay with it? The two of you had talked about it.”
“Okay?” I almost laughed. “I was never okay with any of it. I said yes because I got fed up with you and your dad constantly being on my case about having a kid. How often, over the last six month, did I tell either of you that no, I didn’t want to have a kid? But that never shut either of you up. As for what your father did to me? I never agreed to it, that was—” I shut my mouth and forced myself to breathe.
I was on the bed again, her under me and me moving against my will. I came back to pain in my knee, and I cursed the desk that I’d walked into.
“Are you okay?” Martin asked, sounding concerned and wary at the same time.
“No, I’m not,” I snapped. I had a feeling he’d said more while I was…distracted, but I didn’t care.
“Dent, my dad doesn’t know why you’re angry. He’s worried.”
I snorted. “I’m fucking angry because he lied about what was going to happen. When I finally said yes, just to finally shut him up. He said there was a phrase that would let me get hard with a woman, and that something about the magic would make sure she got a kid. But your fucking father conveniently left a few things out, and that’s why I’m pissed.”
I sat on the edge of the desk, rubbing my knee and taking a moment to calm down. Martin stayed silent. “Look, I’m sorry for losing it on you. This isn’t your fault,” I said as I reached behind me and tapped the desk’s surface. It woke up enough to show me the time. Midnight already?
“Look, Martin, it’s late. I just wasted my evening having to follow some drunkard until he picked up a girl, so I could record the two of them fucking so his wife can get a better settlement during their divorce. I need to go to bed.”
“Alone?” he asked, not hiding the concern.
“Probably. None of the guys I know are awake at this hour. The lucky bastards have nine-to-five jobs.”
“Colby’s still up.”
I groaned. “How is it he’s still obsessed with my ass? Hasn’t he fucked it enough by now?”
Martin chuckled. “I doubt any of us has. And why are you complaining? You like having him fuck you.”
“Of course I do. He’s great in bed, and he’s hung. I just don't see the attraction, that’s all. My ass isn’t that impressive.”
“Clearly, you haven’t fucked yourself.”
“Very funny. Look, you don’t have to worry about my sex life. Tonight is an exception, and I fucked two guys earlier today, so it isn’t like I’m running dry.”
“Alright, sorry, I guess you’re no longer the novice I feel like you are. Before I let you go, are you going to be the party on Saturday?”
“There’s no way I’m missing that. Have you heard from Fred and Frank? Are they going to be there?”
“No, their father still has four women lined up for each of them.”
I shuddered at the idea of having to go through that three more times, let alone how many times those two had. How did any of them tolerate it? “Why? Haven't they already fucked like five women?”
“Six. I’d like to say it’s a lion thing, but I know plenty of lion families who only have one or two kids. So it’s got to be an Odinga thing.”
“We’re never going to see them again, are we?” I was getting a headache at the idea of all those kids taking over my friends’ lives.
“I’m sure they’ll manage to visit at some point.”
“I hope so; I miss those two lugs.”
“Me too.” Martin was silent for a moment. “I’m going to let you go. See you Saturday.”
“See you then.”
Martin ended the call.
I sighed and rubbed my temples. I hoped the party wouldn’t be uncomfortable. Max shouldn’t be there; he had his own group of friends, much closer to his age to party with, but Martin was his son, he might show up just to have some fun with him.
I turned and caught sight of the boxes stacked against the bookcase. They’d been there for the last few days, ever since they'd arrived, and I’d yet to unpack them. Frank wouldn’t mind if I didn’t start reading right away, would he? Not while being so busy anyway.
I looked at the back door, then the desk. I should really write that report so I could send it to my client. I got the sense she couldn’t wait to divorce her husband. I was already at the desk, all I’d have to do is enter my password and it would fully activate, but what kind of report would I write barely awake?
I stood and took a step toward the back, when the front door opened and the soft chimes floated through the large room.
Of course, tonight would have to be the night I forgot to lock the door. I really had to change that lock, I thought as the chimes rang again. It was old, probably as old as the building, and didn’t engage automatically.
The chimes rang again, sounding harsher. Okay, okay, I get the message. I turned to address whoever my new client was, and then tried not to laugh at the sight.
The tall deer in an expensive charcoal-gray suit was working one of his points out of the chime’s ornamental chain, taking care not to break the links. I sat myself back on the edge of the desk and watched. Maybe I wouldn’t be sleeping alone after all tonight.
Marcus finally pulled the last of the stuck points out of the chains with a satisfied grunt. He glared at the chimes and stepped down into my office. I looked behind him expectantly.
No one else entered, and my smile died. Maybe I was sleeping alone after all.
“Dent!” The red deer smiled, trotting through the room to hug me. “How are you doing?”
“I’m good.” I hugged him back, hard. It had been months since I’d last seen him, or his husband. “Zee isn’t with you?”
He released me. “No, he’s still angry with you.”
I sighed. “I told him what I could. I didn’t want to lie to him, which is what I would have had to do to tell him anything resembling a believable explanation.” It hadn’t been an easy decision; Zikabar was my best friend. I’d never lied to him before, but I’d also promised him an explanation as to why I had to let people think I’d died in my folk’s house fire.”
Marcus studied me, crossing his arms over his chest. “If I hadn’t been there, would you have lied to him?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know, probably not. I’d rather he be angry at me because I didn’t tell him everything, than because he found out I’d lied to him.”
“I’m glad to hear that.” Marcus smiled. “As to that, he was over it in a few weeks. What has him really angry is your refusal to join the Bureau.”
“You know I can’t do that, not with the stuff Internal Affairs found.” Not that they’d had to do any of the work. Those Church bastards had seen to it there was plenty of evidence of my ‘crime’. And all that just because they thought I’d broken some of their precious rules by becoming a police officer.
“Right, IA.” Marcus’s gaze pierced me. “I’m going to get back to them in a moment, but first, you know damn well that wouldn’t have stopped him. Zee wanted you to join, and what my husband wants—”
“Zikabar gets,” I finished, unable to stop the chuckle at Zee’s favorite saying. And it was true, Zee had a way of getting what he wanted.
But not this time. For his own protection, I couldn’t let him get his way. Not with the Church breathing down my neck. They knew about him, our friendship. They even knew he’d asked me to join the Bureau. They made it clear that if I accepted, it wasn't me they’d go after, but Zee.
“You know I appreciate his offer,” I said, walking to the boxes and running a claw through the tape of the top one. “But after the debacle with IA, I don't want to have anything to do with law-enforcement.” I took a book out and checked the spine: American History, 1900–1999. Okay, not what I’d expected. “I like being a PI.” I placed it on the shelf and reached for the next one when Marcus’s ‘huh’ stopped me.
I looked over my shoulder. “What?”
Marcus was looking at me a mix of amusement and annoyance on his face. “Dent, you know I’m a behavioral expert, and you still lied to me.”
I hung my head and sighed. “Just drop it, okay?”
“No.”
I turned and glared at him. “Damn it, Marcus, I don’t want to lie to you.”
He gave me his so innocent smile, like I’d walk right into what he’d wanted. “Then don’t. Just explain this one thing to me: How is it that your captain knows about all those crimes you supposedly committed? That your old partner knows is obvious, as she’s the one who uncovered them. That IA knows, but that the one person who somehow missed the memo about them is the DA. I’ve seen the file they built on you, it—”
“How did you manage that?”
“Dent, I work for the FBI. I know how to push my weight around when I want to. Your file would make her career, so why isn’t she all over you right now?”
“Drop it, please.” I didn’t have to ask if he believed any of the lies in that file. He’d known me for almost as long as Zee. He’d watched me join the force. He knew what that day had meant to me.
“No. I want answers.”
“Marcus—”
“Shut up, Dent. I love you, but right now you’re being an ass.”
I sighed and tried to come up with something that would placate him.
“Not only have you refused Zee's offer in favor of—” he waved a hand to encompass the office with a disgusted expression, “—this, but you haven’t visited in five months.”
“Zee’s pissed at me,” I said because it was true. “I didn’t want to upset him by showing up.” I hoped he was too worked up to pick up in this slight lie.
“That’s never stopped you before.” Nope, not too worked up. “Hell, you know fucking well that your cock up his ass is the best way to apologize to him.”
“Marcus, stop.”
“No. Damn it, Dent, I’ve been watching you. I’ve seen how you are with your clients.” He stepped closer. “You think it’s a coincidence I’m here now? I followed you all evening, I saw the disgust in your body language as you watch that man go from bar to bar. It wasn’t for him, but for what you were doing. You hate this.” Another gesture indicating the room as he stepped into my personal space. “This isn’t who you are. You are and have always been an agent of the law.”
“I can’t!” I shoved him away. “You think I don’t want to be a cop anymore? That I don’t want to go to IA and tell them what really happened? You think I like keeping all of this to myself? From you and Zee? You think that if it wasn’t for them, I’d be fighting this as hard as I—” What I’d said registered and I cursed.
“Them who?” Marcus asked, standing very still. Of course he’d caught the slip. This guy could notice an ear twitch a mile away.
“I can’t tell you.”
“Dent.” He tried to make his tone conciliatory, but he was still angry too.
“I can’t tell you,” I repeated.
“Zee can find out.”
“No, absolutely not. You are not telling him about this. You are not involving him. You have no idea what they can do to him if they think he's working with— Fuck!” I glared at the deer. He was working me up on purpose so I’d slip again, and I had.
“They threatened him?” Marcus’s voice became so brittle that I swore I felt the temperature drop.
“I’m trying to protect him.”
“Who are they?” His tone was measured, and terrifying as hell. The anger in his eyes the opposite of his tone. “No one threatens my husband and gets away with it.”
“Marcus, you have to calm down. You can’t go after them.”
“Denton, love, do shut up. You just told me Zee is in danger. Don’t expect me to just be on the sidelines while—”
“He isn’t in any danger so long as I stay away from him.”
He didn’t say anything for far too long, but eventually the anger in his eyes did cool down. “This is why you let him be angry at you?”
“I’d rather have him angry than hurt.”
“Too bad, because once I tell him about this, he’s going to find them and—”
“Are you fucking insane? I just told you they’re too powerful.”
“We don’t scare easily,” the buck replied.
I grabbed him by the collar and pulled him to me. “Get scared. If they even think you’re working with us, they are going to get Zee kicked out of the FBI.”
Marcus took my hands and forced me to let go of him. “They can’t do that.”
“They can,” I growled. “That’s what I’m trying to get you to understand. They’re that powerful.”
Marcus took a step back, finally looking shaken. I’d been worried I couldn’t get through to him. “You can’t tell Zee.”
“I have to. He’s going crazy trying to understand why you’re doing this.”
“He can’t know. It’s for his own safety.”
“Dent,” Marcus pleaded, “we don’t have any secrets from one another.”
I rolled my eyes. “Don’t give me that line. You’ve told me how compartmentalized the FBI can get. So I know there are times you’re working on different things and have to keep them to yourselves.” I stared at him. “I want your word that you won’t tell him anything. I’m serious, Marcus. You tell him and I am never fucking you again.”
He raised his hands in surrender. “Fine.”
I sighed in relief.
“Really?” the deer asked, sounding hurt. “You’d withhold sex?”
To most people, even other guys, my threat would have sounded like a joke, but Marcus loved having me fuck him. From what he said, which Zee had confirmed, I was the only guy he was willing to bottom for.”
“Yes. This is how serious I am about this.”
We were silent for a moment. “Which one of us do you think would break first?” he asked.
I glared at him, unable to believe he still wasn’t taking this seriously. Then I sighed, smiled, and threw up my hands in defeat. “How the fuck should I know? You’re addicted to my cock, I’m addicted to fucking, but I do have access to other guys beside you.”
Marcus grinned. “Yeah, but you’d still miss my ass.”
Yeah, I would. I did. I missed having sex with the two of them. Granted, this wasn’t the longest we’d gone without, but this was because of tension, not because we were busy. And being a private investigator gave me way too much time to reflect on us not having sex.
“But seriously, Dent, how are you doing? PI work isn’t going strong these days.”
I shrugged. “I get a case here and there, cheating wives or husbands, finding lost things. The usual. It doesn’t pay great, but it isn’t like I need the money.
Marcus raised an eyebrow.
I sighed. And yet another thing slipped out. At least this wasn’t a great secret, just something I didn’t care to advertise. “It turns out my family, the Rasias, are rich. As the only one on that family line still alive, it’s all mine.”
Maximilian had insisted I see the accounts. His firm handled the money for many of the Society families, including the Rasias.
“How much?”
“Close to five-hundred million.”
His jaw dropped. “And you’re doing this?”
“What else am I going to do? I can’t see myself lying on a beach all day long, bleaching my fur.”
“Me neither, but I can see you spending it fucking guys.”
I chuckled. “I’d still go nuts after a while. I need to help people. I can’t be a cop anymore, but at least there’s this.” I indicated the office.
“Do your folks know?”
“Of course they do. You’d think I’d hide what I did for a living from them?” For a moment I was offended he thought I’d treat them that way, and just as he rolled his eyes I realized that hadn’t been what he’d meant.
“Don’t be dense, Dent.”
“No, they don’t know about the money. As far as they are concerned, my parents were blue collar, just like them. I have made arrangements so they’ll never want for anything, but it’s only going to come into play if something bad happens or when Dad retires.”
I gave him time to ask another question, but the silence stretched, so I stretched. “Look, Zee’s not here, so we’re not going to fuck. I need to go to bed, you need to get back to him. Just forget anything I told you tonight, okay?”
I thought he was going to argue again, but finally he nodded.
We headed for the stairs and he eyed the chimes. “You know those things have to be a code violation, right?”
“You could always trim those antlers of yours. A few inches less and you’d have an easier time going through doors.” At seven-feet in height, the average door was enough for most people, but Marcus’s antlers stood a foot above that.
“Absolutely not.” His indignation was almost amusing. “They are an expression of my manliness.”
I rolled my eyes. “Right, because what’s in your pants is going to shrink to match your antlers.” I climbed up to open the door for him.
“Unlike someone I won’t mention.” He looked at me pointedly. “I don’t go dropping my pants in front of guys to show how manly I am.”
My ears burned. Just that one time, and it hadn’t even been my fault; that badger had been to blame. “You are such a poser,” I said as I prodded him out the door. “Go to bed. I’m sure Zee is wondering where you are.”
He kept me from closing the door. “You be safe, Dent. Me and Zee, we worry about you. And I’m going to worry a lot more now that I know what I know.”
“I’m as safe as I can be. Goodnight, Marcus. Give my love to Zee.”
He snorted. “I am not fucking my husband in your name. You’re going to have to come and do that yourself.”
I pushed him away and closed the door.
His talk of fucking Zee reminded me that I hadn’t experienced Marcus since I’d become sexually versatile. Marcus didn’t know since our usual circles of fuck-buddies didn’t intersect. Once I found a way of appeasing Zee, I’d have to give Marcus a try. According to Zee, his husband was quite the top.
