Dreamspinner Press Year Eight Greatest Hits

by Brandon Witt

  “He went right out into the line of fire,” Ridley muttered incredulously. Right out the goddamn door. Into the path of bullets! Alex could have been killed. Jesus! Ridley was going to be sick.

  Gut roiling and bile burning his throat, he plopped his ass down on the commode and put his head between his legs. Oh how familiar this position felt. Obviously one of the side effects of hanging with Alex Firestone—if that was even his damn name.

  Sad thing was, he didn’t know which bothered him more: the fact that Alex wasn’t some cute, mild-mannered librarian but instead a crazy fucker who could beat five men down and wasn’t a stranger to a gun, or his own reaction to the threats. Both times he’d been completely useless. The first time he’d gotten himself bonked on the head and knocked out, and this time he’d cowered like a scared little girl watching a horror film—minus the screaming. He’d been too damn scared to scream.

  Ridley shook his head and then hung it in his hands. What a loser.

  Not as big of a loser as someone hiding in a bathroom about ready to puke. True. He had to get his shit together. A few deep breaths to steady himself and he pushed up to his feet. He turned on the faucet, splashed some cold water on his face, and then rinsed out his mouth. Neither made him feel any better, but it was time to pull up his big-boy pants and get the answers he so desperately needed. There was the very real possibility that he was falling in love with a criminal and he wasn’t sure how he felt about that.

  Love.

  Ridley stumbled back in horror. He wasn’t in love with a criminal. No way could he be in love. Lust maybe, but…. Ridley blew out a long, relieved breath. Yeah, that had to be it. He enjoyed the fucking with Alex. The man intrigued him like no one ever, and yeah, he liked spending time with him. Liked hearing him laugh and seeing him smile and the way his body fit against his own. He got off on the little hint of danger he’d catch sight of in Alex, really liked the fucking, and the man was superhot. Ridley nodded to his reflection. “Did I mention I really like the fucking?” he mouthed silently and then winked.

  Yeah, he was in lust and being in lust with a criminal was nowhere near as bad as being in love with a criminal. Or being in love period. The thought made him shudder.

  “THERE’S COFFEE in the pot.” Alex nodded toward the counter from where he sat with his own mug.

  “How’s he doing?” Mick asked.

  “I don’t know. He doctored my feet up—”

  “Your feet,” Mick interrupted, one brow raised.

  Alex lifted his bandaged foot. “I got a sliver.”

  “Pussy,” Mick chuckled and took a seat across from him.

  “Shut up,” Alex grumbled over the rim of his cup.

  “So….”

  “He’s been in the bathroom since,” Alex responded, knowing what Mick was asking. “I was about to go beat on the door when I heard the shower come on. I think he’s a bit freaked out.”

  “Ya think?” Mick asked smartly. “I’m sure it’s not every day he’s banging some dude and it ends in a gun fight.”

  “We weren’t banging,” Alex shot back and shifted in his seat uncomfortably. “That was earlier,” he muttered.

  “You’re such a slut,” Mick chuckled.

  Mick was the FBI agent that had given a lecture on criminal profiling when Alex was at the academy. He was eight years older than Alex, but from that moment on he and Mick had become fast friends. Alex didn’t go around advertising the fact that he was gay, but he’d never denied it either. Mick, claiming he had a high-tech gaydar system, had tried to set Alex up with his brother not long after they met. Alex was far from a slut, but if Mick knew some of the wild times Alex and Mick’s little brother had, he’d think Alex was one instead of only teasing him about it. The thought made him grin, but then he glared at his partner.

  “Hey, kiss my ass,” Alex grumbled. “I’ve been stuck in this hick town for a year. A man has needs.”

  “Aww, poor baby,” Mick muttered sarcastically.

  “Besides, my sex life, just like your ass, is totally off limits. That is, unless you’ve changed your mind?” Alex asked, intentionally dropping his voice to a low and seductive tone.

  “If I did, I certainly wouldn’t be giving it up to you.”

  “Ooh, so you have been thinking about it.”

  “Don’t make me beat you,” Mick huffed at him.

  Alex laughed at the way Mick’s nose wrinkled. Mick may have been totally cool with Alex’s sexuality, but the idea of sucking dick or taking it up the ass always made him a bit squeamish. Alex totally understood his aversion since the thought of sticking his face in a va-jay-jay always made him a little grossed out too.

  “So what have you found out?” Alex asked, turning the conversation to a more serious matter.

  “Not a whole lot,” Mick admitted and pulled out a small notebook from his pocket and flipped it open. “We’ve checked all the local hospitals and after-hours emergency care facilities and no gunshots. The hit our guy took either wasn’t serious or he’s lying dead somewhere.”

  “Any thoughts on how they found me?” Alex asked as he shifted in his chair to prop his bum foot up.

  “No. But don’t you find it highly suspect that right after you have to identify yourself after your little brawl, you end up with a visitor?”

  “You think it’s an inside job?”

  “That would be my guess,” Mick responded with a shrug.

  “That just doesn’t make sense. I know Gutierrez has a hell of a reach, but seriously, in podunk Slater?”

  “If you have a better explanation, I’m all ears,” Mick responded with a hint of challenge in his dark eyes.

  Alex scrubbed a hand over his face and pinched the bridge of his nose. Mick, of course, was right; it was the only explanation. “So what now?” he asked tiredly.

  “We have a team setting up a perimeter around your place and as soon as the details are worked out, we move you.”

  “I’m getting so fucking tired of this. I have half a damn mind to say screw it and go home. Take my chances.”

  “You’ll get yourself killed. Just be patient a little longer.”

  “First it was six months, then a year. It’s been one delay after another. How much longer am I expected to wait? I’m going fucking stir-crazy!”

  “You’ve always been stir-crazy.” Mick grinned crookedly.

  “Yeah well, now I’m stir-crazy and have no one to take my frustrations out on or shoot.”

  “I bet the guy who left blood all over your bushes would beg to differ.”

  That pulled a small smile from Alex. It shouldn’t feel good to know he’d put a bullet in another man, but it did. Besides, the son of a bitch was shooting at him first; bastard deserved it.

  “All right, I’ll wait a bit longer,” Alex finally agreed with a long-suffering sigh. “But I want somewhere warm. And a beach.”

  “I’ll see what I can do. What about Ridley?”

  Alex froze, his mug halfway to his mouth. “What about him?”

  “How much does he know?” Mick inquired.

  “Not a thing.” Alex set his coffee aside. “I wasn’t that lonely that I started crying on his shoulders about the injustice of it all. Sheesh, give me a little credit.”

  “That’s not what I meant.” The patient irritation was clear in his voice. “Ridley was with you during your alley brawl and again tonight at the OK Corral. They may have already IDed him.”

  “Ah, shit.” Alex drummed his fingers on the countertop. The idea that he may have put Ridley in danger, that these assholes would hurt him to get to Alex made him want to commit murder. He’d just have to make damn sure no one got the chance. “Okay, how about this? I’ll keep him with me until we know if he’s been IDed.”

  “And if he has been?” Mick asked cautiously, as if he was worried how Alex would respond.

  “Then I take him with me,” Alex said without hesitation.

  “You know that’s not how it works. We don’t have the auth
orization to make that call. But I can assure you—”

  “I don’t care how this works,” Alex interrupted. “I got him into this mess. I give no fucks about policy or authorization or whatever. I’m telling you right now, if it comes down to it, Ridley’s going with me.”

  “Where am I going?”

  Alex spun around to find Ridley coming out of the bathroom, running a towel over his damp hair. “Well… um… you see,” Alex sputtered and then huffed out a frustrated breath. He waved toward the coffee maker. “You might want to grab a cup of coffee and take a seat for this.”

  “That bad, huh?” Ridley commented.

  “Maybe. Depends on how you look at it,” Alex said without elaborating.

  “Well, the way I look at it is when people go around shooting at me, I’d say that’s pretty bad,” Ridley pointed out as he grabbed a cup from the hook and poured himself a cup of coffee.

  Alex shot a look at Mick, who was looking back and forth between him and Ridley with a hint of amusement. Mick downed the rest of his coffee and then stood. “I’ve got a few more calls I need to make,” he announced. “I’ll leave you two to talk.”

  “Traitor,” Alex mouthed as Mick walked by. His partner’s only response was to blow Alex a kiss. He really needed to pick better friends.

  RIDLEY ADDED a little cream and sugar to his coffee. The shower had done a world of good to calm him and gave him time to get his shit together. He’d given himself a little pep talk while standing under the hot spray, convincing himself it was quite normal to be a little nuts when one has bullets whizzing by their head for the first time.

  He took the seat across from Alex, rolled his shoulders, and then jumped right in to the conversation. “Okay, let’s hear it.”

  “I’m not sure how much I can tell you.”

  “How about we start with, oh I don’t know… everything.”

  “Everything?” Alex asked with a tilt of his head.

  “Yeah, and don’t try pumping sunshine up my ass or sugarcoating it,” Ridley warned. “I’m really not in the mood for any more surprises or bullshit tonight—” He cut his gaze toward the window, the sun just beginning to rise. “—this morning, whatever, man.”

  Alex stared at Ridley for a long moment. He cleared his throat and licked his lips nervously. “I can’t tell you everything. It’s classified.”

  Ridley gave Alex a once-over. Alex still hadn’t put on a shirt. Although he’d seen Alex’s body before—hell, he’d licked, kissed, and groped nearly every inch of it—given the turn of events he was seeing it in a new light. The puzzle pieces started to shift into place. Alex was fit, really fit. Click. Good with a gun. Click. Had a partner. Click, click. Said shit like classified, authority, and policy.

  Click. Click. Click. A nearly complete puzzle with only a couple pieces missing.

  “I’ve already figured you’re either an undercover cop or a Fed, and whoever was shooting up the place damn sure wasn’t here for some poor ass mechanical engineering student. Furthermore, whoever sent said shooter/shooters probably knew I was here or if they didn’t they do now and probably think I’m part of… whatever it is you’re involved in, and now I’m in danger.” He picked up his mug and took a sip and looked at Alex over the rim. “How am I doing?”

  Alex leaned back in his chair, his arms crossed over his chest, and grinned. “Impressive,” he said wryly.

  “So I ask again, what mess and where are we going?”

  Alex continued to stare at Ridley with a shit-eating grin, but after a few seconds, he sighed heavily and sat forward, leaning his forearms on the counter and wrapping his hands around his mug. Alex didn’t look at him while he spoke but rather kept his head down. “I’m not a Fed, nor am I undercover, but I am a cop.”

  “Well that’s better than fucking a criminal, I suppose,” Ridley responded in amusement. “I guess it could be useful if I ever get a ticket.”

  Alex snorted in response. “Sorry, bud, you’re on your own with the locals. I got no pull. Actually, I officially don’t exist, and Alex the library assistant can’t do shit to get you out of your traffic woes.”

  “Is Alex even your real name?”

  “Yeah,” he answered with a curt nod and then looked up at Ridley from beneath his long lashes, his lip curling into a sly grin. “But I stole the name Firestone from a porn star I had the hots for when I was younger.”

  Ridley snickered. “Nice,” he said approvingly.

  “Thanks.”

  “So you’re a cop pretending to be a library assistant and you like to borrow names from porn stars. Neither of which, I might point out, explains why there was someone shooting at us tonight. So if you’re not undercover, what are you and why does someone want you dead?”

  “I’m going to need more caffeine for this,” Alex mused and started to rise.

  “I got it,” Ridley offered as he pushed out of his chair. “You talk.” He headed to retrieve the coffee pot.

  “I was serious when I said it was classified,” Alex said sincerely. “And trust me when I tell you, some things you’re better off not knowing, but I’ll tell you as much as I can.”

  “Fair enough,” Ridley conceded as he refilled Alex’s mug and then topped off his own.

  “I was a couple years out of the academy. Had this crazy notion that I was going to change the world one bad guy at a time. I was ambitious, cocky, and confident.”

  “Was?” Ridley asked with a little snicker as he brought the sugar and cream back to the counter and took a seat.

  “Yeah.” Alex looked up at Ridley, his coffee cup stopping midway to his mouth as he smiled slowly. “Okay, I may still be a bit of all three,” he agreed and then blew into his mug past a sly grin.

  Satisfied, Ridley leaned back in his chair. “Please continue.”

  Alex shrugged, took a gulp of the caffeine he claimed he so desperately needed, and then nodded, picking up where he’d left off. “I was on the graveyard shift and one night my partner and I stopped at a gas station just out of town—”

  “What town?” Ridley interrupted.

  “That’s one of those need-to-knows,” Alex said, shaking his head. “My partner went in to grab us some coffees and I went to take a piss. The bathroom was locked so I stepped behind the building.” Alex took another healthy gulp and then leaned back with an audible sigh. “Long story short, I stumbled upon something the players never intended the law to see, and I found myself the star witness for the prosecuting attorney.”

  “What did you see?” Ridley asked curiously. Alex held Ridley’s gaze, an almost apologetic glint in his blue eyes. “Another one of those classified things, huh?” Ridley answered for him.

  “Yes,” Alex answered curtly.

  “Okay. So you saw something you’re not supposed to see. Got it, but cops testify all the time in criminal cases. It doesn’t explain why you’re dressing like a geek and working in a library for the last—” Ridley ticked off the months on his fingers. “—at least eight months.”

  “A year and a half,” Alex corrected. “And it makes perfect sense when the information you have can help bring down one of the most wanted and most dangerous drug cartels.”

  Click. The last piece of the puzzle slid smoothly into place.

  “Witness protection,” Ridley muttered and then whistled low. “Now it makes perfect sense.”

  “Yeah, well, knowing doesn’t make it any safer for you. If you weren’t such a persistent little shit, you wouldn’t be in this fucking mess,” Alex grumbled.

  “I didn’t hear you complaining last night. At least not until you woke up.” Ridley lifted his shirt and looked down at the numerous marks on his torso, then back up at Alex with a seductive curl of his lip. “I obviously like living on the edge of danger.”

  Alex ran his gaze leisurely down Ridley’s body, a satisfied grin on his face. “Danger looks good on you,” he remarked and licked his lips. Alex then jerked his gaze up to meet Ridley’s and waved a hand at him. “Cover that
up, this is serious.”

  Ridley chuckled and did as Alex asked, but Alex wasn’t the only one feeling a bit of pride. The look of lust in the man’s eyes before Alex visibly had to push it away was all Ridley needed to know. “Sorry,” he responded, not feeling the least bit apologetic. “I’m not making light of the situation, honest I’m not. Waking up and finding out how badly you handle being shot at is a sobering event, and in all honesty, I hope to God I never have to discover if I would handle it any better a second time.”

  “I’m hoping like hell you don’t have to find out either and that they haven’t figured out who you are. Better yet, hopefully they weren’t even aware of you being here. I’ve got Mick looking into it. But until we know, you’re staying here, which means unfortunately you may just have to find out how you’ll do. These people have no issue taking out cops, Feds, or goddamn politicians,” Alex spat angrily and clenched his fists. “To them you’re nothing more than an irritation. Something to be disposed of.”

  “And if they don’t know about me?”

  “Then you can go back to your quiet life as a college student at Slater University and no one in this sleepy little town ever need know.”

  “And you?” Ridley asked cautiously.

  “I slip away under the cover of darkness and Alex Firestone ceases to exist,” Alex said matter-of-factly.

  Ridley’s gut flip-flopped sickeningly in reaction to the thought of Alex leaving and Ridley not knowing where he’d gone, if he was okay, or if he’d ever see him again. Since he didn’t know where Alex was from or even what his last name was, the chances he’d be able to find him again were slim to none. Ridley found himself actually hoping whoever was after Alex knew about him. Yeah, it meant he’d be in danger and yet it didn’t seem as awful a possibility as losing Alex.

  “What’s that look for?” Alex asked, pulling Ridley out of his musings.

  “Huh?” He blinked a few times, trying to push down the uneasiness and get back into the conversation.