Indebted (35 page)

The thought of another one of those nights not happening again makes Liam Junior want to crawl up inside me. Leaving Aaron be, I comfort myself with thoughts of last night. As I close my eyes, the images flow through my mind like a movie. Aaron’s soft skin and loud moans. His tongue running over my body, causing every nerve to fire off with pleasure. I’m hard as a rock as the thought of him riding me and him bent over the mattress plays out in my mind. His fingers digging into the bedding and head thrown back against my shoulder in ecstasy. The flashes are so real, I can almost feel his hot, tight hole gripping me as he spasms through yet another orgasm. A groan escapes me as my cock aches and jumps at these thoughts.

Aaron, clearing his throat loudly, snaps me back from my fantasy. He’s staring intently at me as he struggles not to laugh. I follow his gaze and feel myself blush for probably the first time in several years. Lost in my vivid daydream, I didn’t notice my hand has moved down to rub my cock through my pants. I snatch it back as if it’s on fire.

Aaron loses his resolve then and starts chuckling. “Aren’t you raw from last night? Maybe they call you ‘The Machine’ for another reason.”

“I didn’t hear you complaining last night, but you sure are whining today.” I wink at him and then stick out my tongue.

“Keep it up, Liam, and I’ll figure out a way for that tongue to be of better use than for being a smartass.” Although my dick has softened a little, it goes right back to hard with his words. I’m all for Aaron and his creative side. My thoughts must show on my face because he looks dumbfounded. “You can’t be serious. No…. No way, bub! You’re not getting anywhere near this ass for at least a night.”

My eyes widen, and I have to bite back the whine that wants to come out.
Damn! You had some plans for this evening too.

Sighing, I start to question if maybe I was a bit too rough with him. “Are you okay, really? You know you can always say if you’re not up to anything.”

He smirks at me. “Oh, don’t you worry, big boy. I may be on the bench for tonight, but I’m definitely still counting on playing as much as possible.”

I’m relieved to hear this, and am about to reply when the overhead announcement tells us we are about to land. Having planned ahead for this trip back, I have a ride is already waiting for us. The plan is to go straight to the hospital. Neither of us can take not seeing with our own eyes that Tristan is getting better.

Aaron and I settle into the soft leather seats, and the fatigue sinks in now that he’s able to stretch out. It only takes a few minutes for him to be out like a light. With him relaxed, the quiet of the car seems deafening, and I can no longer keep my worries from flooding me.

I wonder what Tristan will think about what I’ve done. A large part of me is afraid to see the disapproval on his face—maybe even betrayal. I’ve always told Tristan everything concerning the business. This has been the biggest and hardest secret to keep from him. I wanted nothing more than to hear his thoughts on my idea, but if it didn’t work, I didn’t want him to have to share in the blame.

It wouldn’t be the first time Tristan has been disappointed in me. Our very first fight came from that.

I was still a young kid at the time, slowly healing from the beating Thomas had handed down to me, forever changing how I looked at power tools. I had, in a way, crawled deep inside myself—wanting to disappear.

Tristan would have none of it. As soon as I was cleared to start moving about, he was determined. I watched as he came in with a bag on his shoulder and a swagger to his hips. Sighing, he dropped the tote on my hospital table, making a loud clank. I stayed completely still, in the hopes he wouldn’t see any reaction from me, and I stared. With a dark expression on his face, he leaned over me, a hand on each side of my broken body.

“I’ve had enough, Liam. Baby time is over. You will get out of this bed and you will start living again. I don’t give a fuck whether you’re upset about Daddy Dearest or not. I’m not going to let him win, and neither are you.” He grabbed my chin with his hand, forcing me to face him. I tried to keep the blank look, but it was a struggle. “Fucking look at me, damn it! Enough! Are you giving up on me?” I refused to say anything. “So, that’s it, then?”

He bit his full lip and I saw different emotions play out in his eyes. The strongest one was disappointment and I never wanted that. He mattered a hundred times more than my father ever would. I swallowed, blinking as tears filled my eyes and spilled over.

Tristan pulled back, gripping his duffel as he glanced sadly at me. My mind went crazy as I mentally begged him not to leave and give up on me. To not be like my mom. To see me as worth something for once in my life.

Before I realized it, the first words I’d said since my beating came out. “Tris… don’t, don’t go. Please.”

At hearing those words, his stance changed. Even in my state, my breath was taken away when he gave me a sexy smirk. “Now, Liam, why in the world would you ever think I was going anywhere? I’m not your dumbass father or mother, so get that shit out of your head. I can see it written all over your face. I don’t give a fuck what they think. I’m not giving up on you. I told you, you’re getting your ass out of that bed. I was grabbing the tools—” Seeing me cringe, he paused at that word. “—the equipment to start with.”

His words seemed to heal some of the ache in my chest, making me even more bent on never disappointing him.

“Now, are you ready for me to make sure this shit never happens to you again? It’s going to take dedication from you and a hell of a lot of trust in me.”

He waited for me to answer and it came quickly. “Yeah, Tristan, please teach me everything you know. This can’t happen again.”

“Well, alright, then. Let’s get your scrawny ass into this chair.”

The car stopping pulls me from my memory, a small smile on my lips. He really is the best thing to happen to me until Aaron came into my life.

Heading up to the hospital room, my nerves are getting to me. I’ve not been comfortable in these places since I recovered. Aaron seems to sense my unease, and grips my hand tighter while wrapping his body around the rest of my arm as we walk.

Tristan looks much better than the last time I saw him. He’s still pale, and each movement causes his face to draw up in pain. I can tell he’s feeling more like himself, though.

His cocky smile is full on as he calls out to me. “Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged in. You finally decided to cut your vacation short to come see little old me?”

Snorting, I say, “Oh my, Tris, the hospital stay isn’t doin’ you any good. You’ve gotten dramatic. I’ve only been gone one day. I know I’m awesome, but I think you can deal without me for that long.”

“Not with all this shit goin’ down. I’m expecting some answers, man, and soon. First, though…. Hi, Aaron. It’s nice to see you safe and sound.”

Aaron gives him a grin and rushes over to his bedside. “It’s so good to see you’re okay. When I left you at my apartment, I thought for sure you were dead. I’m so sorry I didn’t stay to get you help. I didn’t know what to do. Those guys were on me and all I could see was your blood everywhere. I seriously want to hug you right now….”

“Whoa, Aaron, slow down, tough guy. You have nothing to be sorry for and you had no choice. You did the right thing by getting out of there. It was a crazy situation and you aren’t used to violence. Hell, I was even taken by surprise. Oh, and I’d take you up on the hug, but I’m a little sore at the moment. I can’t even hug Addison.”

Aaron’s eyes get huge then, and he glances Addison’s way. “I’m so sorry for spilling about the baby. Tristan told me in confidence and I slipped when talking to Liam.”

She looks to him with a soft smile—one she’s never given me, for sure. “Aww, sweetie, it’s okay. You had a lot on your mind, no worries.”

Tristan huffs, “Hey, how come he gets a get-out-of-jail-free card and I don’t?”

“Because, my handsome man, you know better and deal with pressure more often than a newbie.”

“Yeah, well, it still sucks.” Then Tristan gazes at me with a meaningful stare. I’m getting the message loud and clear—time for answers.

Clearing my throat, I say, “Addison, would you mind taking Aaron down to the cafeteria? I don’t think he’s eaten anything since we left Pennsylvania.”

She snorts. “Smooth, Liam. Come on, Aaron, let’s see about some food.”

“Well, thank goodness he’s smoother in other parts of our relationship.” He winks at me and then leaves with a tired-looking Addison.

As the door closes behind them, Tristan pats the side of his bed, signaling me to sit. For some reason, I feel like I’m headed to a firing squad. He has a very intense expression on his face. I settle next to him and he shoots off his first question.

“So, exactly how deep in this shit are you, Lee?” He sounds wary but still calm.

“Not as much as I was before. Tris, I had to do something. I couldn’t take it anymore.”

“Well, you’ve done something, alright. I’ve been getting steady reports from Luke. A heads up would have been nice, you know?”

“I know I should have told you, but I wanted you to have plausible deniability if things didn’t go as planned.”

Tristan looks shocked at my words. “‘As planned’? It doesn’t sound like you did much planning to me. This was spur of the moment, or you would have come to me with it. What exactly did you do?”

I shrug and bite my lip. Thinking back on it, when I agreed to filter info, it didn’t seem like much. The cloak and dagger of it all had me stressed to the max.

“You remember that talk we had a while ago at the restaurant? Well….”

I fill him in from there: the phone calls, the agreement, and all the steps in between. It feels great to finally spill it all. I can’t believe I lasted this long. Tristan is always the first person I go to with a problem—especially of this magnitude.

Tristan sits there for a few minutes when my rambling stops, as if he’s trying to absorb everything. “So, you’re telling me with Thomas gone and Angelo now in place, we are free to go? No more jobs or worrying every time you leave the house?” he asks in disbelief.

I simply nod.

A smile, probably one of the brightest I’ve seen, breaks out on his face. “No fucking way! There has to be some sort of strings attached. I can’t imagine a person like Angelo letting us go.”

“I swear it’s true. He has more than enough of his own people and we aren’t really needed. The intelligence was more important than a couple of extra men on the payroll.”

He laughs, his eyes shining with happiness. “You slick son of a bitch! You actually did the fucking impossible. I’ve always been content with my lot in life. I never thought I’d have the chance to raise my child away from this. Fuck, man! I’m not sure what the hell to do with myself. The possibilities are endless. Addison is going to shit a brick.”

His joy is infectious, and I’m grinning like a crazy man. “So, you’re not pissed at me?”

“I’m pissed you didn’t share this with me. I could’ve helped you, moron. You could have been hurt, or worse. You know I always have your back.”

Regret fills me, but I’ve done the right thing, especially now that I know about the baby.

“I know, man. It was time for me to grow up and make a play for what I wanted out of this life, and that’s Aaron. I won’t have him looking over his shoulder forever. I’d sooner call it quits than have that.” Tristan nods his understanding and I feel the need to ask some questions of my own. “So, tell me…. What have you been hearing from Luke? Is he alright?”

“He’s fine, actually, thanks to that new girl Christina, Addison has been training as a receptionist. He wasn’t involved in the main struggle from Angelo. The dumbass forgot his phone at her place, so he had no idea anything was going on until he reported to work like normal.”

I’m comforted to know he wasn’t in any huge danger. That was one of the major drawbacks to not telling anyone—no warnings.

“For once, we can be thankful for his never-ending line of women. I don’t remember this Christina chick. Is there anything serious between them?”

“I’m not sure. There might be, since she actually caused him to forget about work for once. Anyway, that’s how I knew you had something to do with all this. He went into the office and one of Angelo’s lackeys was there. After he was searched, they realized his name was on Angelo’s ‘do not touch’ list. Your name was mumbled a couple of times, so he put two and two together.” Tristan shrugs as he trails off.

I don’t like the fact my name is being thrown around. I’m about to say as much when Addison enters the room.

Glancing around, I don’t see Aaron with her, and she’s looking confused too. “Liam, where’s Aaron? He said he would meet me back here after he got something out of the car. I thought he’d be back by now.”

I remember the small souvenir we bought Tristan while in Punxsutawney, and I know what he is after. I’d stuffed the Punxsutawney Phil keychain in my pocket while Aaron slept. He doesn’t realize it isn’t there and is probably having a hell of a time finding the small thing. They both look concerned, and I chuckle as I explain why he’s taking so long. With their minds eased, I head out to tell him I have Tristan’s present already.

Walking down the hall, I think about how foolish Aaron is going to feel, probably ripping the rental to pieces, determined to find Tristan’s gift. Turning it in my hand, flinging it into the air and catching it, I can’t wait to give this to Tristan and then head home for some couch time with my man.

As I get close in the underground parking garage, the scene before me takes my breath away. I struggle not to fall to my knees.

There’s Aaron, scared out of his mind while John, my asshole father, holds a gun directly at his head. I can barely tear my eyes away from the terrified expression on Aaron’s face. When I finally do, I’m met with the crazed look of a desperate man. Grasping Aaron around the neck with his forearm, John keeps his captive’s back flush against him, and Aaron is panting and grunting as he squirms to get away.

Aaron’s eyes lock onto me and he screams my name, then hisses as John pistol-whips him. With my heart pounding, I react on autopilot and draw my own gun.