“I’d rather lay here and bleed to death than accept help from that asshole.” Paul’s eyes narrowed in a way that told Danny he was serious. “He can suck my left one.”
“Listen, frat boy—”
“I want both of you to shut the fuck up,” Danny growled, cutting off Jason’s retort. “Paul’s getting up and you’re helping me patch him up. When you’re done, he’s going to apologize for being an asshole and then say thank you for keeping him out of a straitjacket.”
Paul snorted. “I’d suck his dick first.”
“Okay.” Danny lifted his eyebrows pointedly at Paul. “Save me the trouble and pay your own debts. Sounds like a plan.”
“You didn’t really promise to suck his dick,” Paul choked, his face noticeably paling as he looked at Danny in horror.
“Something like that, yeah,” Danny said, not bothering to point out it was actually the reverse because he was feeling a bit vindictive. “Now get up and be fucking appreciative about it.”
Paul got up easier than he should have, considering his injuries. He wavered when he stood and Danny wrapped an arm around his waist, being careful not to touch his damaged back.
“Danny Boy, we gotta work something else out,” Paul whispered under his breath as he leaned heavily into him, sounding completely horrified. “If you suck that guy’s dick I will be damaged for life.”
“News flash, his won’t be the first I’ve sucked,” Danny said, wondering why this was a shock to Paul. “I do it on a regular basis.”
“That’s so wrong.” Paul shuddered as he shook off Danny’s help and walked into the bathroom on his own accord.
Danny closed his eyes, trying to keep a level head like Jason asked because knowing it bothered Paul that he sucked dick was really getting his guard up. “Just shut up,” he growled, the fear and rejection making his voice icy and furious. “Really, don’t say a fucking word unless I tell you to.”
Paul turned around, looking at Danny over one damaged shoulder, the question written all over his face. “But—”
“You’re speaking,” Danny countered, not wanting to get into anything past that. “You suck at this.”
Paul frowned, looking confused, giving Danny an abrupt reminder that he was still very sick. ”But you—”
“There’s no way you can be a better submissive than Jason,” Danny said, finally figuring out why Paul was so pissy with the doctor. He was competitive with him. They were both submissives and Paul was used to being the best at everything he did. It made Danny wonder about Jason. The doctor had to have some pretty extreme tastes for Paul to be threatened by him. “He’s been very cooperative and obedient. The same can’t be said for you, can it?”
“I’m sorry,” Paul whispered, as if torn between a fear of speaking and wanting to apologize. “I’m not feeling good. Sorta dizzy and hazy.”
“No shit?” Danny gave a sarcastic gasp of civility before he snapped, “I wonder why. This really fucked up my Friday, Paul Guy.”
“I’m sorry,” Paul repeated, his eyes becoming wide in panic. “Are you mad at me?”
“Sorta.” Danny pulled open the shower door and helped Paul in. He stared down at Paul’s leather pants once the two of them were in the shower, knowing they weren’t conducive to what they were doing. “You gotta get naked.”
“Okay,” Paul said without blinking an eye, tugging at the snaps. His fingers were fumbling as he wavered dangerously forward. “Wow, I think I’m gonna pass out.”
“Shit,” Jason groaned. “We’ve got to put him back in bed. He’s too pale. There’s no way he can stand for this.”
“No, he’s okay.” Danny took over the task of ridding Paul of his leather pants. “Pussy’s pass out. That’d be really embarrassing for him.”
Paul huffed. “That’s not cool.”
“Ask me if I give a shit.” Danny dropped to his knees, trying to get the pants off, but leather was hard to work with. “Help me out, Paul Guy.”
Paul’s help was minimal and Danny was breathless with frustration by the time he got him naked. He was bearing most of Paul’s weight, which was no mild feat. He put Paul’s arms around his neck, hoping for a little leverage. Danny fell back against the shower wall, using it as support as he brushed his hair out of his eyes in annoyance and looked toward the ceiling. Paul was like a furnace, he was so hot with fever. His skin was sweaty and sticky against Danny’s in a way that was anything but sexy, but the way Paul buried his face into the curve of his neck with a contented sigh made Danny’s heart hurt anyway.
“I missed you, Danny Boy,” Paul breathed in a soft, intimate voice.
Danny stroked Paul’s sweaty hair, feeling tears sting his eyes. He leaned down and pressed a kiss to Paul’s forehead. “Missed you too, Paul Guy.”
“This is going to be exceedingly painful,” Jason said, dragging Danny abruptly back to reality by reminding him he was still there. “We’re about to test how tough your friend really is.”
“Really?” Danny and Paul asked in unison, though Danny’s question was based in fear whereas Paul’s sounded pleasantly surprised.
“Oh yes, really,” Jason said, his eyes wide as he stared at Paul’s back. “Ordinarily a patient would need huge amounts of pain management before we attempted this and he certainly wouldn’t be standing.”
Danny looked down at Paul’s back over his shoulder and winced, knowing it had to be done. “Go for it. He got himself into this. I suppose he can deal with the repercussions.”
“Okay.” Jason nodded, not looking nearly as hesitant as Danny thought he should. “I’m depending on you to keep him on his feet.”
Danny spread his feet and tightened his hold on Paul’s waist. Two-hundred-plus pounds was a lot to keep a hold of when he couldn’t touch his back. He was glad he’d widened his stance because the second Jason started disinfecting Paul’s back, he nearly slipped out of Danny’s arms.
“Fuck,” Paul rasped, his voice choked with shock.
“I concur,” Danny wheezed, still trying to keep Paul on his feet. “Stand on your feet. You’re too big to hold up.”
“Wha—”
“Damn it, Paul Guy, find your footing.”
“Don’t drop him,” Jason said, doing methodical work of cleaning and disinfecting Paul’s back. “This is going to take a while.”
“I gotta start working out,” Danny panted, feeling Paul start to slip out of his grasp. He dug his fingers into Paul’s hips, now slippery with whatever antiseptic Jason was using, hoping to make a point. “Man up, find your fucking footing before Jason sees you fall flat on your face!”
“I’m sorry.” Paul relieved some of the burn in Danny’s arms as he leaned more heavily into him, tightening his hold around Danny’s neck. He arched his hips forward, his hard cock sliding against Danny’s thigh in a way that made his opinion on the situation very clear. “I love you for this, Danny Boy,” he said, sounding genuine as he placed a soft kiss against Danny’s collarbone. “Thank you.”
Danny squeezed his eyes shut because he was catching glimpses of Jason’s work on Paul’s back and it was making his stomach lurch. More than what Jason was doing, the reality of Paul’s words hit home. Paul loved him because he was participating in this torture session. With the exception of Eve, the only way Paul knew how to give and receive love was if someone was hurting him. If Danny had eaten recently, he might have thrown up.
“I love you too,” Paul said to Jason, confirming Danny’s worst fears. “Really, this is awesome. Thank you.”
“Anytime,” Jason said with a grunt of amusement. “I can’t believe you’re on your feet. I’m genuinely impressed.”
“I wouldn’t give him that much credit.” Danny’s arms still burned as he battled with the heartache and the horror of the situation. “God, please just make this night over.”
* * * * *
God hadn’t heard his pleas. The night did end, but it was only when the first streaks of pink started stretching over the autumn sky. There was nothing quick or painless about any of it. Time stretched out like an eternity, burning the whole night into a place in Danny’s brain that wouldn’t be easy to forget or recover from.
For hours, Jason worked at meticulously stitching Paul’s back, slowly sewing the damaged flesh back together. Danny’s concern over scars had Jason taking extra care, making small stitches and using layers of sutures on many of the larger wounds. With nothing else to do, Danny sat and stroked Paul’s hair until Paul passed out from exhaustion and fever, sleeping peacefully despite Jason’s continued work on his back.
When Jason was done, he looked as exhausted as Danny felt and the two of them escaped the house, knowing Paul would likely sleep for several hours. Leaning against the porch railing, watching the sunrise, Danny and Jason smoked and tried to recover from the traumatic events of the previous evening. It was hard to fathom that twelve hours earlier they had been strangers and this morning Danny was standing next to a man he’d entrusted with Paul’s life.
Jason was full of surprises—a silent rebel with secrets Danny would have usually enjoyed uncovering if it weren’t for the horrific circumstances. Even still, Danny found himself studying Jason, who smoked his cigarette with an old-world charm that was endearing.
“He can’t stress the sutures. No sleeping on his back, and keep him from moving his arms too much. As for the fever, you still have to make sure he takes the antibiotics four times a day.” Jason turned to meet his eyes, giving him a stern look. “One shot’s not going to cover it. He has to take the pills.”
“Right, no moving and pills four times a day.” Danny leaned more heavily against the railing and stared out at the lake, forgetting how endearing the doctor was as reality came crashing back. He took a long drag off his own cigarette as he tried to concentrate past the anguish and exhaustion. “I don’t think you gave me enough for that.”
“I’ll bring you some more.” Jason rubbed a hand over tired eyes as he flicked ashes into the lake. “You can alternate Tylenol and Motrin every three or four hours to keep his fever down. I’m going to give you my cell number. Don’t make any stupid decisions. Call me instead.”
Danny glared at him, the night making him more irritable than usual. “I can handle antibiotics and alternating Tylenol and Motrin.”
“If he gets worse, if his fever won’t stay down, if his back starts to look infected, call me,” Jason went on as, if he hadn’t heard Danny. “I’m coming back tomorrow to check on him. You’ve just got to keep him alive until then. Can you manage that?”
“Why are you so convinced I’m an incompetent idiot?”
Jason gave him a look then glanced back toward the house. “Do you really want the answer to that?”
“I didn’t do that to Paul,” Danny reminded him. “I haven’t talked to him in weeks.”
“But you knew what he likes,” Jason countered, looking profoundly disappointed in Danny. “You knew he was vulnerable.”
Danny closed his eyes and looked away.
“Fine,” he admitted in defeat, not able to come up with an argument for that. “I was overwhelmed. A few weeks ago he was golden to me, totally perfect,
too perfect
. I didn’t know he liked this stuff and I freaked when I found out. I was in shock, but that’s not an excuse. I’m an asshole, okay? Worst friend in the world.”
“Wait,” Jason said, turning to him in surprise. “You’re not his Master?”
Danny winced again as he remembered pushing Paul away. “No, he’s just my friend. We’ve been best friends since grade school.”
“You don’t play in the scene?”
Danny frowned at Jason. “Why does everyone just naturally assume I’m a freak?”
“Hey,” Jason said, narrowing his eyes. “I play in the scene, remember? I don’t appreciate that comment. I’ll admit my tastes are unique, but that doesn’t make me a freak. It’s not okay to insult someone just because they’re different from you.”
“Okay,” Danny said, looking away and choking back a retort. “Tonight wasn’t freaky at all. Lots of guys get a hard-on having their backs ripped to shreds.”
“You need to find someone who will keep him in line once he heals,” Jason said seriously. “I’ve only seen him play with women. I assume that makes him straight.”
Danny pulled a face, not really sure how to place Paul’s sexual orientation. “I guess.”
“Have you been with him?” Jason asked, raising dark eyebrows curiously. “I noticed he was pretty touchy feely with you in the shower.”
“What do you care?” Danny growled, not knowing why his heart chose right then to clench from the agony of the past two weeks.
“I’m not judging you. I’ve been with a few men. Maybe Paul’s more like me than I realized. He’s submissive, that’s it. It probably doesn’t make a difference if he’s with a man or woman as long as the person is dominant enough,” Jason said, studying Danny as if he also enjoyed unraveling secrets. “Your friend and I have similar tastes in a lot of things. I was just curious if this was one of them.”
“Yeah, I was with him. Took about two days for it to go to hell,” Danny admitted, wondering why he was telling his problems to this doctor he barely knew. “He was into the humiliation of being with a guy, and I was into telling him to fuck off for being a freak.”
“I already told you I don’t appreciate that,” Jason said softly, his good humor disappearing. “Did he put his trust in you?”
Danny nodded. “Yeah, he said he trusted me completely. Wanted me to hurt him, dominate him, be his version of a sexy asshole. He was painfully honest about it from the beginning.”
“And you pushed him away?”
“I wasn’t into it.”
“Then why’d you fuck him, knowing he was?”
“Can you cut me a break? I’ve had a really long night. I get it, okay? I know it’s my fault he spiraled downhill. I should have protected him and I didn’t. Are you happy? Are you fucking pleased to know the guilt is eating me alive?”
“Not particularly.” Jason flipped his cigarette out into the lake. “Do you want the name of a responsible Domme to refer him to?”
“Fuck that!” Danny barked, thinking Jason was clinically insane. “None of those cunts are touching him.”
“They’re not all like that. He was looking for irresponsible ones to play with on purpose because they break the rules. Most are trustworthy women who care for their subs,” Jason went on. “He needs someone trained, perhaps an older, more experienced Domme. I can point you in the right direction. I know he’s in college and probably broke, but he’s gorgeous and extremely charming. I doubt they’d charge him.”