The bastard had slipped away right under their noses.
Epilogue
The search for Martin Carlow in and around the ruins of Barcelona had turned up nothing just as they’d all feared. The only body found—or pieces of it—had been that of Slade Ruiz, the infamous pimp who’d once danced with Luca in the same bar, probably seeking to draw him into his web the way he’d done with many others. Slade had left the world in much the same way as he’d been brought into it, the victim of a man who was more evil than he was. No one could excuse the kind of man he’d become, but in the end, no one could really fault him either. He was a product of what the world made him—a vicious killer with no soul. Had someone loved him, raised him right, perhaps he’d still be alive.
Luca and Corey wouldn’t have escaped the bomber if Kane hadn’t gone in to save them. Their proximity to the bar where Luca had fallen on the floor would have surely resulted in their death had Kane gotten there even a minute later. Luca had escaped the bar with a broken nose, many deep bruises where people had stumbled over him and kicked his prone form on the floor, but most of all a bruised ego from the way Kane had gone all caveman on him, carrying him out of the bar over his shoulder. He’d made Kane promise never to do something that made him feel like a girl again, even if it meant sacrificing his life. Kane had only agreed after laughing for ten minutes.
When Stephen Auerbach heard about what had happened at Barcelona, he’d told Luca in no uncertain terms that he was not allowed to go back to work until he’d rested or until the bruises on his face healed. He figured it would be a couple of weeks and even though Luca protested that he was needed, Stephen shut him down by arranging for a manager from another store to go in and help out until he was back. Kane was relieved to have Luca take some time off until he and the team investigating Carlow tried to figure out what his next move would be so they could get ahead of him.
Stephen also helped to set up a charity foundation for the owners of Barcelona who were a young gay couple he knew very well. All proceeds were to go to rebuild whatever insurance wouldn’t cover, with the excess to go to his newly-formed “Auerbach AIDS Foundation and Centers for LGBT Youth”. The owners were excited to be the benefactors of Stephen Auerbach’s expertise and friendship and the great publicity his name brought with it.
As Kane sat on his couch playing with Dorothy and Toto who ran all over him and the furniture, he waited for Luca to get out of his shower. It had been over a week since the bombing and they were expecting company. Luca came walking down the hall wearing only low-slung jeans, drying his hair with a towel, when the doorbell rang. Kane looked up and began to get off the couch when Luca waved him back down.
“You’ve got the ferrets. Sit down. I’ll get it,” he said, tossing a sideways grin at Kane.
Kane nodded and watched Luca as he disappeared down the stairs to the ground level. He heard the slide of the deadbolt and then the front door opened. There was a muffled greeting and then the front door closed, the lock reengaged. He listened as feet tromped up the stairs. Luca appeared first, followed by Corey. The blond cast a sly glance in his direction as he followed Luca into Kane’s living room. Kane smiled and then stood up, setting Dorothy down on the couch beside Toto who stood up on his hind legs and waved two tiny paws at Corey. Corey grinned at the small animal and then turned to Kane’s towering form, swallowing hard and losing his grin as easily as it had come.
“I’ll be right back,” Luca said, breaking the silence as he hooked a thumb toward the bedroom. “I gotta get a shirt.” He slipped out of the room and down the hall before either Corey or Kane could say a thing. They stood there staring at each other awkwardly.
“Why don’t you have a seat?” Kane said, sweeping a hand at the couch and moving away to sit in a club chair so that Corey could sit. “Just push them aside. They won’t bite or anything.”
Corey dragged his gaze away from Kane and glanced down at Dorothy who lounged on the couch where Kane’s butt had warmed the seat and then at Toto who scampered along the back of the sofa to stand close to Corey. As soon as Corey looked at him, Toto launched off the couch back with both hind legs and hurled himself into the young man’s arms. Corey instantly burst into laughter as he caught the little ferret and nuzzled his face into its fur. When he looked up at Kane again, he was laughing.
“He’s so cute. Oh my God! What’s his name?”
“That’s Toto and his mate is Dorothy,” Kane replied, smiling.
Toto reached two tiny paws up and held both of Corey’s cheeks before chirping at him and then jumping onto his shoulder and then his head where he began kneading his hair. Corey giggled and Kane looked away drawn by the low chuckle coming from Luca as he walked into the room wearing a soft gray Aerosmith T-shirt that Kane loved. He put his arm around Luca, looking down into his eyes, still healing from the black they’d been from hitting concrete. The swelling in his face had gone down and he only wore one white strip of tape over the bridge of his nose. Luca stood on his tiptoes and Kane bent to peck him on the lips before sitting down on the chair. Instead of walking over to where Corey was now sitting on the couch with Toto grooming the top of his head, Luca sat on the floor at Kane’s feet, fitting himself back against the chair between Kane’s knees.
“I’m glad you invited me over,” Corey said. “You have a nice house, Kane.”
“Thanks, Corey. You’re welcome any time. Luca is your best friend and I hope that we can be friends too.”
“I was wrong about you. I know how bad Luca was hurt before and I just wanted to protect him, you know?” Corey stopped talking and suddenly laughed as Toto leaned down over his forehead and looked at him upside down before chirping in his face. When Corey finally looked back at Kane, Kane nodded as he stroked long fingers through the damp strands of Luca’s hair.
“I know and I appreciate that. Luca told me. I hope you’ll believe me when I tell you that I love him and I will never ever do anything to intentionally hurt him again,” Kane said, a little surprised how easily the words slipped off his tongue. He’d never admitted to anyone but Luca that he was in love with him.
Luca turned his head and looked up at Kane, offering him the widest smile he possibly could before brushing his cheek against the back of Kane’s hand. When Kane glanced back up at Corey, he was smiling at him. Several moments of silence stretched between them until Corey finally spoke up again.
“Is Luca still in danger?” he asked.
“Cor…,” Luca began when Kane squeezed his shoulder.
“It’s okay, Luca. He should know so that if anyone suspicious comes around, he knows what to look out for. The reason we all arrived at Barcelona before the bomb went off is because we’ve been working on figuring out who this guy is for weeks, even months now,” Kane said.
“The LAPD?” Corey asked.
Kane nodded. “The LAPD, the FBI, the ATF, and several other agencies are working together on this one. We believe there is a very bad man killing gay men. We think he is responsible for Freddy Lombardi’s death and many others. You and Luca both met him at Barcelona.”
Corey’s eyes widened. “We did?”
“Yeah, he was the guy with Slade,” Luca said. “The guy called Martin.”
“That huge Hulk look-alike?”
“Yes. His name is Martin Carlow and he’s a very bad guy, Corey,” Kane said. “If you ever see him—I don’t care where you are or what time of night it is—you need to call 911 and then me. You need to get the hell away from him and anyone who’s with you needs to run away too. I mean it. You have to get away from him as fast as possible. He finds his victims in bars like Marty’s and Barcelona. Please understand how dangerous this guy is, okay?”
Corey looked between Luca and Kane as he nodded. “I will. I promise. Thanks for telling me.”
Kane patted Luca on the shoulder and then stood up, walking over to the kitchen table where he picked up some fliers with Carlow’s picture and vital statistics before walking back to Corey.
“Here. Take some of these and hand them out to everyone you know. Tell all your friends who go to bars that he’s looking for vulnerable gay guys to victimize. Until now he’s been using pimps like Slade Ruiz to provide rent boys for him to victimize but his tactics might change since we nearly caught him. You have to be careful.” He handed the fliers to Corey and gently laid his hand on his shoulder. “Thank you for being there for Luca when I was acting like such a complete dick.”
When Corey smiled, Kane saw the appeal of the sweet young man. Corey stepped back and held out a hand. Kane shook it and smiled back at the man.
“Just don’t let it happen again or I will kick your ass, Delancey,” Corey said as Luca walked over and stood between the two. He leaned in and kissed Corey’s cheek.
“Come on, I’ll walk you to the door, idiot,” Luca said.
Kane grinned and waved as Corey turned and walked away from them. As they clomped down the stairs he heard giggles and then loud whispers.
“Jesus, could he be any hotter, Luca? No wonder you want to be under the man day and night.”
“Shh…” Luca hushed him.
A low whistle followed and Kane couldn’t help but chuckle. He went over to the couch and held out a hand for Toto who jumped up onto it. He scrambled up his arm and climbed on top of his head and when he heard the door close, he watched the top of the stairs until Luca appeared. He was smiling and relaxed and when Kane held out both arms, Luca walked right into them.
Right where he belonged.
If you enjoyed Play with Me and would like to continue the series with book 3, Gay with Me will be available for presale on Amazon soon! Click here to reserve your copy!
Blurb:
ATF special agent Kane Delancey has a new boyfriend. After nearly losing Luca to a monster, he knows how precious life can be. He was repentant when he returned to fall on his sword with Luca but as things have turned out, it was probably the most intelligent thing he’s ever done. If he thought life was full before meeting the handsome young jeweler, he’d been fooling himself. Luca is sweet, kind, and the funniest person Kane has ever met.
Luca never expected to see Kane again but after a season of losses, the two men reconnect to find that they need each other now, more than ever. It seems that Kane no longer has reservations about the two of them and Luca can’t be happier about it. How the straight-acting Fed and the young club kid are going to blend their very different lives is a question they’ll be grappling with in the coming months. Seeing the hopeful look on Luca’s face when they discuss the problem, only helps Kane realized that there is no real choice at all.
With a serial killer targeting young men on a WITSEC hitlist with bombs, Kane and the rest of his team at the LAPD, ATF, and FBI scramble to find the man and arrest him before one more person dies. The fact that Luca was nearly a victim the last time, scares Kane to death. Join Kane, Luca, and a cast of characters as they track down a murderer in the newest installment of the WITSEC series before it’s too late.
https://www.amazon.com/Gay-Me-WITSEC-Book-3-ebook/dp/B0813YSW87/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=Gay+with+me+logan&qid=1573148330&sr=8-2
Other Books by Patricia Logan:
If you liked meeting Jarrett and Thayne in The WITSEC series, you might also like the Death and Destruction series. Start with Death and Destruction (book 1) by clicking here:
You might also like the Thin Blue Line series, a spin-off of the Death and Destruction series. Start with Thin Blue (book 1) by clicking here.
If you liked meeting Cassidy Ryan and Mike Williams, you might like to read Cassidy Ryan and Zack Teak’s books. Start with Silver Ties (Silvers series) by clicking here.
And the Master’s Boys series. Start with Trick (book 1) by clicking here.
The Armadillo Series:
Leather Nights
Undercover Nights
Warrior Nights (MMM Menage)
The Westburg Series:
Captive Lover
A Very Good Year
The Cowboy Queen
The Silvers Series:
Silver Bullets
Silver Secrets (MMF Ménage)
Silver Ties (BDSM) (Should be read before the Master’s Boys series)
Silver Linings (BDSM) (Should be read after the Master’s Boys and Invitation Only series)
The Master’s Boys (Serial) (BDSM):
Trick
Jett
Kaden
Grit
Stix
Con
Secrets
The Invitation Only (Serial) (BDSM):
Red
Trask
Heath
Wyatt
Dallas
Worth
The Assassins Series:
Verified Kill
Confirmed Kill
Demonstrated Kill
The Bound by Love Series (Black Point Books-Publisher) (BDSM):
Say my Name
The Bears’ Surrender
I Dare You
Civil War Romance (BDSM):
The Slave’s Mask
Unmasked
The Marine Bodyguard Series:
The Superstar
The Thief
The Brat (Should be read before the Death and Destruction series)
The Death and Destruction Series:
Death and Destruction
Flash and Bang
Slip and Slide
Locked and Loaded
Point and Shoot
Thunder and Lightning
Body and Soul
Endings and Beginnings
Spies and Allies
The Hard Riders Series:
Buttermilk Ranch
The Paladin Shifters Series:
The Tiger King
Thin Blue Line Series:
Thin Blue
Order and Anarchy
Crime and Chaos
THE WITSEC SERIES:
Stay with Me
Play with Me
Gay with Me (coming soon)
STAND ALONE SHORT:
Unforeseen Danger (MM Young Adult 18- Romance)
Stand Alone Novel:
Gypsy Knight (Medieval MMF Ménage)
Stand Alone Shorts:
Hot Summer Hogs (BDSM) Featuring characters from Leather Nights and a special appearance from Zack Teak
Over the Road (MMM Menage) Featuring characters from Warrior Nights
Love Letters Featuring characters from Captive Lover and Leather Nights
Wounded Warriors
Chasing Deuce (MMM Menage)
Falling for Rafe (With the amazing Rain Carrington) (BDSM) Featuring characters from my Master’s Boys series and Rain’s Honky Tonk series
Free on my blog:
http://authorpatricialogan.blogspot.com/
Dinner with Frankie (Vesper’s First Date) Part 1
In French:
L’Amant Captif (Captive Lover)
Une Tres Bonne Annee (A Very Good Year)
La Reine du Cowboy (The Cowboy Queen)
Liens d’argent (Silver Ties)
In Spanish:
Lazos de plata (Silver Ties)
In Italian:
Catene d’argento (Silver Ties)
Trick
Jett
Kaden
Grit
Stix
Con
Segreti
Red
Trask
Heath
Wyatt
Dallas
Worth
Trame d’argento (Silver Linings)
Inseguendo Deuce (Chasing Deuce)
Prigioniero d’amore (Captive Lover)
Un’ottima annata (A Very Good Year)
The Cowboy Queen
Professione Killer (Verified Kill)
Sentenza di morte (Confirmed Kill)
La Congiura (Demonstrated Kill)
The Superstar
Il Ladro
Il Moccioso
Buttermilk Ranch
La
Maschera dello Schiavo (The Slave’s Mask)
Morte e’distruzione (Death and Destruction)
Fuochi d’Artificio (Flash and Bang)
Dissesto e Frana (Slip and Slide)
Carichi e Pronti (Locked and Loaded)
Tuoni e Fulmini (Thunder and Lightning)
Proiettili d’Argento (Silver Bullets)
About the Author
International bestselling author Patricia Logan, resides in Los Angeles, California. The author of several #1 bestselling erotic romances in English, Italian, French, and Spanish lives in a small house with a large family. When she’s not writing her next thriller romance, she’s watching her grandchildren grow up way too soon and raising kids who make her proud every day. One of her favorite tasks is coaxing nose kisses from cats who insist on flopping on her keyboard while she types. Married to a wonderful man for over 30 years, she counts herself lucky to be surrounded by people who love her and give her stories to tell every day.
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