“It was…interesting. Hot, yeah, but I don’t think it’s really my thing.” He started to take a drink of his own beer and stopped. “But if it’s yours, that’s cool.”
Rolling his eyes, he faced the movie again. He’d been sending different links to the man in the hopes of finding out just what did do it for him.
Again, he worried he was losing his touch when it came to seduction because, damn. Not that he’d resorted to sending porn links in the past.
“Those two are way too new to have ‘the dad’ tagging along,” Abe continued, going back to the vacation topic. “Plus, it’s a small cabin.” He crossed one ankle over his knee, leaning back. “They could use the time away together. They both work long hours. There’s no Wi-Fi there, so Quinn will basically have one thing to keep him from climbing the walls.”
Dom winced at the thought of what his coworker and friend, Quinn, would be doing then with his boyfriend, Shane. Those two got pretty kinky, and he was only mostly guessing. Mostly. He’d caught Quinn being very toppy one night when they’d all gone out for drinks. Kid had surprised him. “Yeah, I can see why you wouldn’t want to go.” He took a swig of his beer. “Quinn said you desperately needed a vacation. Why’s that?”
A funny expression crossed Abe’s face, one Dom had trouble reading. Kind of like sheepish guilt and it had him intrigued instantly.
“What did you do?” he asked, his mind zinging in a dozen different directions. Abe was so straight-laced and pulled together that he was sure that man was hiding the wildest, dirtiest thoughts from the rest of the world. And he desperately wanted at that dirty side. He wanted it more than his next fucking orgasm.
Abe shrugged. “Nothing.”
“Come on. It’s gotta be something, or you wouldn’t look like you just got caught in public with your pants down.”
Abe glowered at him. “Have you ever noticed most of your conversations usually end up with some kind of nakedness?”
“I like naked.” He waggled his brows. “I wish you’d let me show you a few things about how fun naked with a man can be.”
As soon as the words left his lips, he knew he’d screwed up. Abe had never said being with a man would be a new thing for him, but Dom could tell. Well, he was guessing. But that very first night in his house, he’d caught the man surreptitiously eyeing him with actual blushes passing over his cheeks and neck, curiosity bright in his gaze. Outside of his killer body and that intriguing shy smile, those blushes made Dom a little crazy. He’d squirmed the whole night in Abe’s spare bedroom.
He watched him now. Watched him shift on the cushions and look everywhere but at Dom. He stared at the beer in his hand, stomach twisting.
Dom sighed. “Hey, Abe. I’m sorry. If I promise to stop pushing, can we still be friends?”
That made the brown eyes lock back on him. “That’s not in danger, Dominic. We’ll be friends a long time. I…like you.” He cleared his throat. “Quinn probably thinks I need a vacation because I’ve been talking about making some big changes in my life. I’m sure he thinks I’m in the midst of a midlife crisis.”
“Are you?”
“I’m starting to wonder,” Abe murmured as he looked away.
“What kinds of changes?”
“Not any I’m ready to talk about. I’m still mulling things over.” Abe shrugged and wiped the condensation off the side of his beer with a napkin before setting the bottle down on a coaster. Dom hadn’t even realized he had coasters until Abe had pulled them out.
His heart gave a pang when he realized Abe really wasn’t going to share his thoughts. He never did about anything important, and that more than anything let him know he had a long way to go—even when it came to their friendship.
But Abe was here and he was laughing and he’d put on actual cologne.
There was hope.
Chapter Three
Dom was practically whistling to himself as he walked through the front doors of Ward Security the next morning.
“You’re looking happier than usual,” Karen commented as he entered the reception area. Her wide grin turned a little wicked. “I’m sure it has nothing to do with that sexy Trent Elrige singing your praises on the news last night.”
Dom nearly stumbled a step at the mention of the movie star and asked who she was talking about. He recovered quickly, flashing the receptionist his patented easy grin. “Just another normal day for Ward Security.”
Karen sighed dreamily. “Maybe. But he is so sexy. I mean, that smile and his hair.” She sighed again. “You think he’s looking for an older wife? Or even an older lover? I’d be happy to teach him a few things.”
A choking noise jumped from his throat, and he was saved from having to say something by the ringing phone. He just waved as she answered and breathed a sigh of relief when he continued on to the main area. Trent might be a good-looking man, but he didn’t hold a candle to Abe. Not that he was going to tell Karen that. Or anyone, for that matter. Nope, this was his secret as he struggled to find a way to convince the older man that he was worth a chance.
As he walked past the reception area, he was hit with a wall of chaotic sound. And it was like coming home. Seth and Sven were sparring, sending up loud smacks of skin hitting the vinyl foam mats. Garrett was over in another corner, chatting with Gidget, his arms flailing as he told her a story. Noah was hitting the heavy bag. He must have caught everyone before they left for jobs because so many of the security agents weren’t usually here on weekdays.
“Hey!” Rowe’s voice cut above the din, and everyone stopped. Dom looked up to find his boss leaning over the railing on the second floor, where most of the offices were located. “Has anybody heard from Andrei? My calls are going straight to voice mail.”
“The ultrasound was today,” Noah shouted back. He pushed some sweaty brown curls from his face and smiled up at his lover.
Dom stood at the foot of the stairs. Andrei Vallois was their COO, but he’d started out as a security agent like the rest of them. Just six months ago, he’d married billionaire Lucas Vallois. After a bit of searching, they’d located a surrogate and started to build their own family.
“I know that! The appointment was an hour ago.”
Noah laughed. “Babe, it’s too early to know the sex of the baby.”
Rowe threw up his hands and stomped off, muttering something to himself before disappearing into his office.
Shaking his head, Dom climbed the stairs. As part of his usual routine, he paused in the second-floor kitchenette to make himself a cup of coffee with his favorite Mr. Rogers mug before wandering down to Rowe’s office. He peeked in and found the man pacing behind his desk with his cell phone to his ear. He raised his hand to knock when Rowe swore and tossed his phone down on his desk.
“Hey, Dom,” Rowe said, motioning for him to enter.
Rowan Ward was a strange man, but Dom respected the hell out of his boss. A former Army Ranger, Rowe had built the company up with a little help from his close friend Lucas, and it was now one of the premier security companies in the entire country. But it was more than Ward Security being on the cutting edge of surveillance and protection technology. Rowe had made the company into a close family. They were always there for each other, no matter what the cost or danger.
“You worried about the baby’s health, Boss?” Dom asked, leaning his shoulder against the doorframe.
“Nah. That baby has got Andrei’s genes. She’s gonna be a fighter. I just want to hear if Lucas lost his shit when he saw his baby for the first time.”
“She? You think it’s a girl?”
Rowe clapped his hands together and rubbed them like he was cooking up some wicked plot. “Oh, yeah. Lucas and Andrei would be clueless with a girl. Fate is gonna hand them a girl. I know it.”
Dom snorted. “You’re an evil man.”
“Lucas is the first of us to have a kid. It’s like we’re all pregnant with that poor woman.”
“Warn us when the cravings kick in. I
have a jar of pickled eels I’ve been saving for a special occasion.”
Rowe gave him the strangest look before he shook his head, swore, and flopped down in the chair behind his desk. “You need something?”
“Just making sure I wasn’t rotated off Elrige because I fucked up.” The first thing he did every morning when he woke was to check the online schedule for security agents. Last-minute changes were a common occurrence, and they’d all learned to quickly adapt to support each other.
Rowe leaned forward, folding his hands on his desk. “Only in the way that we’ve gotten a serious influx of new business calling since your little window stunt started airing on the news and across the internet. I can’t hire fast enough to handle all the new clients.”
“That’s not a horrible problem to have.”
Huffing a laugh, Rowe pushed back and lounged in his chair. “No, not horrible. But I had Andrei rotate you off Elrige for a few days until the media attention dies down. Right now, you’re as conspicuous as he is. That doesn’t exactly help you do your job. I’ve got you working some of the self-defense classes and equipment maintenance.”
Dom nodded. He wasn’t surprised, but he’d wanted to check that all was cool. Last year he’d been pulled off the active duty roster due to an injury while trying to recover a client. It had taken him months to get back into the field. Now any scheduled time in the office rather than with a client left him feeling twitchy and restless.
With a final wave to his boss, Dom continued to stroll down the hall to the IT room that housed Quinn Lake, Jennifer Eccleston—aka Gidget—and the recently added Cole McCord. Rowe had knocked down one of the walls in that office and extended the space so that all three specialists could work in there. They claimed that they worked best in the same area. Dom wasn’t sure he agreed. It seemed like they spent a lot of time arguing with each other in techno gibberish only they understood.
Poking his head in, he found Quinn behind his desk, glaring at his screen through black-rimmed glasses. His dark hair was sticking up slightly, as if he’d been running his fingers through it. Quinn muttered something to himself and then followed it up with a clatter of lightning keystrokes. It seemed too early for him to be tackling a major problem, but then the IT team kept some strange hours along with the security agents.
“Problem with a case?” Dom asked as he stepped into the room.
Quinn jumped in his chair and swore. “Geez, Dom! Make some noise next time.” He straightened his glasses and relaxed in his chair again. “No, I’m helping Gidget set up some more servers in Switzerland, and I’m having trouble getting responses from the techs over there because all of Europe takes five freaking weeks of summer vacation! How is anyone supposed to get anything done?”
Dropping onto the sofa across from Quinn’s desk, Dom sipped his coffee to hide his smile from the other man. Quinn was so easily flustered. He was also a workaholic, but that had been easing since he’d started dating Shane. Quinn was suddenly finding it easier to step away from work at the end of the day if it meant heading straight into the arms of his man.
“Royce already been through?” Dom asked. He hadn’t seen the security agent downstairs, and it had become part of their routine for them to sit in Quinn’s office and chat for a few minutes over coffee before heading to their respective tasks.
“Not that I’ve seen. He’s probably sleeping in. I heard that he’s got the overnight shift for the Elrige case tonight.” The mention of the movie star had Quinn spinning in his seat to face Dom. “So? What’s the deal? Is he cool or a total dick?”
“Really?” Dom dropped his head back and cackled. “You’re going to fanboy over Trent? We’ve guarded other celebrities before.”
“Yeah, but no one as big as Trent Elrige. I love his movies! The Second Stain. The Red-Headed League. Silver Blaze. He’s awesome. I’m just afraid that he’s a total asshole.”
“You can rest easy, Q-Man. Trent’s a pretty cool guy. Maybe a little lonely, when you consider all the people who just want to use him for his money or fame.”
A slow grin spread across Quinn’s lips. “Does this mean someone has finally tempted you away from that guy you’ve been chasing the past eight months? Ready to give up?”
“Not a chance,” Dom said firmly. “Trent’s a great guy, but he’s not my type.”
Quinn laughed. “I thought your type was sexy and willing.”
Dom just shrugged. Maybe he had slept around a lot over the past several years, but that changed the minute he met Abe. He couldn’t get the man out of his head. “People change. Maybe my type is now sexy and stubborn.” Really fucking stubborn.
“Good luck with stubborn,” a low voice drawled from the open doorway. They both looked up to see Hollis Banner standing there with his hands shoved in his pockets and his mouth twisted in a smirk. “But it makes for fun times when it comes to convincing a guy to see your way of things.”
Dom snickered, getting over his surprise at seeing the private investigator at Ward Security. He popped by on occasion to talk to Rowe, Noah, and Andrei. Or when he wanted to “borrow” Ward’s IT team to dig into something. Considering that he was standing in Quinn’s doorway, Dom was willing to guess it was the latter.
“I’m telling Ian you said that,” Dom teased, earning a growl from Hollis. Ian Pierce was close friends with Rowe and probably just as stubborn as his friends. But he was also one of the best chefs in the entire city, so everyone tried to stay on his good side. Of course, Hollis undoubtedly had his sneaky ways since he was engaged to Ian.
Quinn stretched in his seat, trying to see around Hollis’s large frame.
“Easy, Quinn. Shane didn’t come with me. He’s on another job.”
Quinn slumped in his chair, glancing back at the email he had open. The poor guy had it bad for his boyfriend, not that Dom could blame him. Shane was a nice guy, cared a great deal for Quinn, and wasn’t bad to look at. Of course, Dom had to wonder how nice he would stay if he found out that he was trying to get into his daddy’s pants.
“But I was hoping that you could take a look at something for a friend of mine. Maybe run it through one of your fancy databases,” Hollis continued.
“I figured you wanted something. Who’s the friend?” Quinn asked.
“Detective Martin for CPD,” Hollis said. “We worked together a little. She’s good. Smart. Fair. But she found something that’s got her stumped.”
“Sure. Whatcha got?”
Hollis pulled his phone out of his pocket and tapped on it for a couple of seconds before shoving it back into his pocket. “Just emailed the image over to you. It was taken on the side of Carrington Jewelers downtown. They have some kind of show or display coming in with jeweled crocodile handbags, so they’re understandably skittish already.”
An email popped up on Quinn’s screen and he quickly opened it. Clicking on the attachment, the large monitor was filled with the image of a red brick wall. Written in chalk about a foot tall were four distinct images.
Dom was relieved he’d put his mug of coffee down on the little table beside the sofa because he would have likely dropped the hot coffee into his lap. The chalk characters…he’d not seen them in more than a decade. Not since he’d run from his brother.
A cold sweat broke out across his body, and his heart slammed against his chest. Fuck. His brother was in town. His fucking psycho brother was in town. Or his father, but he doubted that the old man was still alive. His brother was enough. Every fiber of his being screamed for him to run. To run as fast as he could. Don’t look back. Don’t think. Just run.
By sheer willpower, Dom remained seated on the couch and slowed his heart. He needed to figure out a plan.
It wasn’t hard for him to decipher the message. The cipher might not have been a part of his life for several years, but he never forgot it. Judging by the message, his brother was claiming the jewelry store as his next target.
“Dude, that’s creepy as hell,” Quinn said on an exhale. He
leaned close to the screen as if that would make the four little men divulge their secrets.
“Have you seen anything like it?” Hollis asked, oblivious to Dom’s rising panic. “It’s nearly six feet off the ground, so it’s not likely a kid drew it.”
“It’s weird.” Quinn sat up straight, frowning at the image. “Maybe a new gang tag.”
“CPD has a comprehensive database of gang tags and this doesn’t match anything.”
“Well, if this is supposed to be art, the guy is no Banksy,” Quinn muttered.
“Who?”
Both Quinn and Dom looked up at Hollis. “Seriously? How does Ian stand to be engaged to you?” Quinn said.
“Banksy is a world-renowned graffiti artist,” Dom added.
“This isn’t art,” Hollis said, glaring at Dom and then Quinn. “I think it might be some kind of coded message.”
“That’s possible, but the message is too short. Does each image represent an entire word or just a letter?” Quinn shook his head.
Dom cleared his throat and forced his voice to stay even. “When was the picture taken?”
“About three days ago.” Hollis leaned over Quinn’s shoulder, squinting at the image. “The chalk is clear. Looks kind of fresh. Martin thinks the culprit put it there about four, maybe five days ago.”
“I can dig around a little, but tell your friend Martin that she needs to find more if we’re going to have a chance at figuring it out.”
Dom shoved to his feet, rubbing his hands on his jeans. “I’ll leave you guys to it. I’ve got to get to work,” he said, heading as quickly as possible for the door.
As he walked out, he could hear Hollis and Quinn going back and forth, trying to puzzle out the meaning of the message, but they were nowhere close. The cipher was generally a letter replacement code, but he and James had developed a few other images for specific one-word codes. Even though he’d not used the code in more than ten years, he’d been able to read the message in an instant. It simply said: MINE.
Sadistic Sherlock (Ward Security Book 4) Page 3
