by Stormy Glenn
"Our investments have paid out well enough that we can afford to buy up all the houses on this block if they go up for sale."
"You should start a fund just for that, something we can all pay into."
Ian nodded. "I'll have Andrew get on that first thing."
Andrew Moore, a wet dream gorgeous former model and smart as a whip. He seemed to have the Midas touch when it came to investments. He'd tripled my income since he had taken over investing my money. I had quite the nice nest egg just waiting to be used. Buying a house wouldn't even put a dent into it.
"Okay, so, tell me what you've found so far."
"Carl Atkins flew into the country on a private jet supplied by an oil company out of—"
"Let me guess, Dubai?"
Robert Atkins had escaped to Dubai when he'd been stopped from taking Danny as a pet. There was no extradition treaty there, so I'm sure he felt safe.
Ian tapped his nose. "After some investigation, I discovered that Carl Atkins inherited his shares in the oil company along with all of his wealth and possessions from his late Uncle Robert, who sadly passed away recently."
Wait.
"Then how do we know it's the same man?"
Ian turned his laptop around and pointed to the screen.
"Fuck." I groaned as I rubbed my hands over my face then dropped them in my lap. "It is him." In vivid living color. That ass was even smiling at the camera.
"I haven't figured out yet how he's getting away with calling himself Carl when he's most obviously Robert, but I will."
"Anyone who looks at his picture can tell that it's the same man." People were idiots if they couldn't see that.
"I think it goes back to the money," Ian replied. "Carl Atkins has all the correct paperwork making him Carl instead of Robert. He's also richer than shit. No one wants to insult him or piss him off, so even if they suspect something, they aren't going to say anything."
See? Idiots.
"Besides, it's not like he surrounds himself with people who will say something. He likes yes people. He likes people who cater to his every need. He does not like people who won't play his game."
Well, that explained a lot.
None of us would play his game.
"I'm currently tracking his money to see where he's spending it," Ian continued. "I'm hoping it will give us an idea of what he's up to. Hank has Judge tracking his movements. He's in New York at the moment, but we know he won't stay there. He wants Danny, and Danny is here."
"Do you think he's learned about the rest of us yet?" We had tried not to shift in front of the man, but I had no idea if he'd gotten it on video when we rescued Danny.
"No, but it's only a matter of time before he does."
I was afraid of that.
"So, what's the plan then?" I asked. "We just sit around and wait for Atkins to make his next move?"
"Unfortunately, yes."
Damn. I wished I hadn't asked.
"So." I stood. "Show me this house."
Ian smiled as he stood as well. He reached into the drawer of his desk and pulled out a key. "You're in luck. It's right next door, so we don't have far to walk."
"Convenient." I chuckled as I started for the door. "Maybe we can build a tunnel between all our houses so we can come and go without anyone seeing us."
I paused at the door and glanced back at Ian when he didn't follow me. "Oh man, you didn't?"
Ian tucked his lips in.
My eyes widened. "You did!"
"Maybe."
I rolled my eyes. Sometimes my friends could be too much. "How'd you do that without anyone knowing about it?"
"Hank had some of his buddies come in from out of town to do the actual construction work. Getting the permits was a little harder. We could only get them to retrofit the basements so no one actually knows about the tunnels, and we had to put them far enough underground that if there were any problems with the water mains or anything, they wouldn't be discovered."
"Just how far underground are they?"
"Not that far. Just one level below the basements. And they're really not that big. Just enough room to move through them really. It's not like we can hold a party down there or anything. We just wanted to make sure we all had escape routes in case we needed them."
"So, how does it work? Is there one tunnel, or do you have tunnels going to each of the houses? What?"
"There's a tunnel that goes in front of Danny and Andrew's houses, and it hooks up with the tunnel that goes across the street to my house. If you take the house next door, we'll extend the tunnel on this side so it will lead there, too." Ian frowned for a moment, and then a wide smile crossed his lips. "Think of it as a large sideways H that connects each house."
That actually made sense.
"You're still weird."
"Hey, can you think of a better way for paranoid geeks to connect?"
Not really, but I wasn't sure I was ready to admit that.
"So, let's go see this house."
Chapter Four
I liked the house. It was kind of a modern Tudor style on the outside and very retro-ish on the inside. There were two bedrooms downstairs in addition to the living room, dining room, kitchen, and bathroom. Upstairs had two more bedrooms and a bathroom.
It was the backyard and the room over the garage that truly sold me on the place. The backyard was accessible through a sliding glass door off the dining room. It had a large stone patio in a half-moon shape before moving into a large expanse of green grass and surrounding fence. There were just enough trees in the yard to give the patio some shade without overwhelming it and blocking out the sun.
The room over the garage was reached through a doorway and a set of stairs in the hallway leading to the garage. It was a large space with a great need for some skylights and drywall. But I could imagine the possibilities. It would make a great workspace.
I could see myself in this place.
"So, let's talk specifics," I told Ian as we walked back to his place. "How much do you want for the place?"
Ian grinned. "I have the paperwork back in my office. We'll charge you what we paid for it plus closing costs."
"Sounds reasonable." Depending on how much Ian and Hank paid for the place. "You know, if the whole guardians of the galaxy thing doesn't work out for you, you could always get into real estate."
Ian snorted rudely. "Not on a bet."
I started to laugh until I spotted a dark-colored sedan parked at the end of the street. I had no idea why it stood out to me, but it did. "How long has that car been there?"
"What car?" Ian asked as he glanced around.
"The dark four-door sedan at the end of the block."
Ian turned then sucked in a slow breath. "I'll need to check the surveillance video to be sure, but yeah, I think it's been there a while."
"I count two heads."
"I agree."
"Okay, so do we sit and watch or apprehend and claw?"
"We tell Hank."
I rolled my eyes.
"Hank and the others are better trained at apprehension and interrogation, and you know that."
Yeah, maybe I did.
I still didn't like it.
I started walking with Ian again, heading to his house. I know we were going for the casual thing so whoever was in the car wouldn't know we were on to them. It just wasn't easy when I felt as if I had bugs crawling all over my skin.
"You know this whole thing would work a lot better if we could talk to Hank and the others the way we do with each other."
"Oh, don't I know it. I love being able to talk to you guys when I'm furry, but it would be so much easier if we could talk to the others, too."
I snickered. "I know, right?"
It sucked.
"Maybe Santos knows of how we can fix that."
I groaned.
Granted, I did learn a lot when I listened to the jungle shaman, but I hated the whole "you were created to save the world" speech the guy gave every
time he started talking. I know we had a responsibility to protect the world. I just wasn't quite sure what we were protecting it from.
There would always be people in the world like Robert Atkins, Max Crammer, and Leonard Lake. That was a given. And even if we put one of them behind bars, another one would pop up. That was the nature of the beast.
I wasn't a pessimist or anything. I'd just seen the worst of mankind more times than I cared to admit. I tended to be distrustful of just about everyone, barring my parents and fellow members of the geek squad…and their significant others, of course.
Jack was still iffy. Not because I didn't trust him to watch my back, but because I didn't trust him not to mess with my life. I thought about the man way too much. He was very easy on the eyes in a "I want to be thrown up against the wall and be fucked and you look like you just might be able to do it" sort of way.
His take-no-prisoners attitude made me grit my teeth. I'm sure it worked well out in the world in places too violent to think about, but in my world, no one told me what to do, but me.
Maybe my mother.
When we reached the house, I shot one more quick look at the sedan down the street then hurried inside after Ian. I tried really hard not to roll my eyes when I saw Jack standing just inside the door, his arms crossed.
It didn't work.
I rolled my eyes.
Jack growled.
I liked this game.
I glanced down when I noticed Jack had changed his clothes. "Balls get too heavy?"
"What?"
"Well, you changed your clothes." I shrugged. "I figured your balls got too heavy and maybe ripped your pants or something, and that's why you had to change your clothes."
When Jack started to reach for me, I stuck out my chin and gave him a glare that basically dared him to follow through with whatever he was thinking of doing.
Jack growled again, spun, and stalked out of the room.
"He is going to kill you one of these days," Ian said. "You know that, right?"
"Yeah." I grinned as I winked at Ian. "But I'll go out in a blaze of glory."
Ian chuckled as he shook his head. "You do like to live dangerously, my friend."
I wiggled my eyebrows.
It wasn't so much that I liked to live dangerously, but more that I derived great satisfaction from yanking Jack's chain. I had no idea why. Every time I knew I was going to see Jack, I promised myself I'd behave, and the moment he came into view, my promise went straight to hell. It was petty, but I just couldn't seem to help myself.
"Jack's not a bad guy, you know."
"I know." Hank wouldn't allow him anywhere around Ian if he was. "He's just so fun to mess with."
Ian snickered. "Your funeral, man."
I'd heard that before.
"I'm going to go up and get some sleep. Wake me if anything happens."
"Can do," Ian replied.
I'd been driving all day long after running through the woods. I needed to close my eyes, even if it was just for a few hours. I trudged up the stairs and headed for the room I usually used when I was here.
I'd have to ask Ian if he had something I could borrow to wear in the morning. My clothes were a little rank, and I didn't relish putting them back on, especially since I planned to take a shower before going to bed. There was no way I was climbing into those nice clean sheets smelling the way I did.
I was starting to offend myself.
I was really glad Ian and Hank had a house with guest rooms. I liked having my own space when I came to visit and it was better than sleeping on the couch.
I went straight for the connected bathroom when I got upstairs. I stripped my clothes off, dropping them on the floor, then climbed into the shower. I didn't realize how sore I actually was until I turned the shower on and stood under the hot water.
I have no idea how long I stood there. I didn't really care. I knew Ian had installed an extra large water heater so he and Hank could take showers together. There was plenty of hot water.
Still, I eventually had to stop just standing there and wash up. I wasn't positive just how much longer I could stay on my feet. I grabbed the shampoo and washed my hair then scrubbed down my body. I couldn't believe how good it felt to get all that road grime off my body, not to mention whatever I'd picked up during my run through the forest.
I turned off the shower then reached for a towel. I dried off as best as I could then reached for another towel. I wrapped it around my hips, tucking the end of the towel in so it wouldn't fall off. I was in my own room, so I wasn't too worried about it, but still, things happened.
I groaned when I looked in the mirror. I had a delightful set of dark bags forming under my eyes. I knew it came from exhaustion, but yuck. I did not look good.
I brushed my teeth. Ian kept a box of spare ones under the sink just for guests. He also kept spray-on deodorant, toothpaste, and cologne in the same small mesh box. He was a very good host.
Knowing the best thing to get the bags forming under my eyes to go away was to get some sleep, I headed for the bedroom and the dreamy bed just waiting for me to sink into.
I grunted as I was grabbed just as I stepped into the bedroom and slammed into the wall next to the bathroom door. For a moment, a brief breath, fear strangled my ability to do anything except panic. But that same breath was enough to tell me who had me pinned to the wall.
I relaxed, knowing I wasn't in danger.
"Something you wanted to say, Jack? You could have just told me over breakfast."
Jack's upper lip curled back as he leaned in close enough for me to feel his hot breath blowing out across my skin. "You need to stop disrespecting me." His voice was cold and exact.
I narrowed my eyes as I looked at him. "You want my respect? You earn it."
"Do you know who I am?"
"Um…Jack?"
Just guessing here.
"Why are you doing this?" Jack asked as if he really didn't know. "I could snap you in half without breaking a sweat, and yet you keep doing your damnedest to piss me off."
My lips curled up in a smirk. "Kinky."
Jack's jaw dropped. "I don't know what to do with you."
I dropped my gaze down to where his hard cock pressed against my abdomen. "Oh, I could give you a few ideas."
Jack's thin brows drew together as he frowned. I watched his confusion, my smile growing as he tried to figure out if I was telling the truth or not.
I was.
I planted a hand on each side of Jack's face and drew him in, pressing our lips together. When he did nothing, I licked a line across the seam of his lips, pushing my tongue against them until they parted and allowed me in.
Jack's breath caught and a small shudder wracked his body before he grabbed me. Jack's fingers were hard as they dug into my skin. His lips were rough, uncompromising. His hard, muscled body pressed me into the wall as if he was afraid I might try to escape.
I wouldn't.
I was right where I wanted to be, where I'd dreamed of being for months. Jack had no idea what kind of monster he'd released when he kissed me back. I would have left him alone if he pushed me away, but he hadn't.
Poor Jack.
I pulled at his shirt until I could push it up out of the way. Jack stopped kissing me long enough to whip it over his head, and then his lips were back, pressing against mine as he tried to devour me.
I wanted to be devoured.
I dropped my hands down between us and went to work on the buttons and zipper of his pants. Once they were open, I pushed them out of the way until I could fish his cock out of his underwear. Long and thick, hot and silky, it felt perfect in my hands.
I couldn't wait to find out if it felt just as perfect pounding into my ass.
I broke away from Jack's lips and reached for the small wooden box Ian kept on the dresser. I knew from experience that he kept individual packets of lube and condoms in there. I hadn't ever had a guy in here, but I'd jerked off a few times.
L
ike I said, Ian was a very good host. He supplied his guests with just about everything they could need. I was pretty sure Jack was going to supply me with the rest.
When Jack searched out my lips again, I eagerly gave in to the kiss. I thrust my tongue into his mouth, tangling with his. My cock throbbed and leaked when Jack responded, devouring my mouth. I gloried under the hard ravishment of his lips.
When he pulled back to stare into my eyes, we were both panting hard, drawing in great gulps of air. I held up the lube and condoms without saying a word. Jack stared at them. I wasn't sure if he thought they were the best thing he'd seen since sliced bread or if he was afraid they'd jump out and bite him.
Could go either way.
"I'm not gay," Jack whispered.
Well, damn.
"I don't care." I replied.
Well, I did, but I wanted to feel Jack fuck me even more.
Jack's eyebrows lifted for a moment before he grabbed both items. He ripped the condom package open and then rolled it down his hard shaft. A moment later, he was lathering himself with the lube.
When he lifted me up, I wrapped my legs around his waist. I knew there wasn't going to be a lot of foreplay, but I was surprised when he just started pushing into me. My breath caught as a searing pain ripped through my ass. I quickly pushed out to make the going just a little easier even though I knew only time would make me feel like I wasn't being split in two.
It was very clear from the way he thrust inside of me that Jack wasn't gay. Luckily, I enjoyed a little pain with my pleasure. Not quite this amount of pain, but I could handle it without breaking.
It took a few thrusts before my ass started to feel as if it was no longer on fire. Jack was definitely no slouch in the cock department. The man filled every inch of my ass every time he thrust into me.
He drove into me as if he was desperate to have my ass wrapped around his cock. His movements were uncoordinated. He teeth were gritted. His fingers dug into my skin, no doubt leaving bruises behind.
It was glorious.
"Harder, Jack," I begged. "Fuck me harder."
Jack growled as he swung me around and dropped me down onto the bed. His arms curled under my legs, pulling my ass up until I was almost bent in half.
