“He does love you. Which is a whole hell of a lot more than my dad ever did.”
Ashton’s heart went out to his cousin. “I’m sure your dad cares about you, too. When’s the last time you saw him?”
“The day they sentenced him to life for killing my mother. I’ve never gone to visit the bastard and I never will. He can rot away for all I care.”
Okay, so much for Bryce not being unflappable because he was just throwing the emotions around. It made Ashton feel a bit guilty for whining over his own problems. If he and Bryce were the huggy types, Ashton would have pulled the car over to give his cousin a comforting embrace. But one trait they’d both picked up from their fathers had been an aversion to physical affection
“Have you ever written him?” Ashton asked.
Bryce stared straight ahead, his jaw set hard. “Nope. He’s sent me a few letters, but I never bothered to read them.”
They rode in silence for a moment before Bryce changed the subject. “Give me an hour, tops, and I’ll have Justice’s phone number for you. Just don’t go to Larry. You don’t need to be indebted to that piece of slime. Even if you are Carter’s son, he’ll make you pay some kind of disgusting price.”
Ashton glanced back over at his cousin, touched that Bryce still worried over him. Then again that’d been the way it’d always gone down. While the rest of the world looked down and sneered at them, the two of them stood together.
“Thanks, I owe you,” Ashton replied simply. Better than going all sappy and spewing what he was really thinking. That would only lead to an awkward, getting in touch with our feelings moment.
In their family that would just be tragic.
When Justice opened the door to his apartment, it didn’t come as a surprise to find his father waiting for him. That still didn’t stop him from freezing, hand on the handle, his mouth opened like some cartoon character expressing shock.
“Get in here and close the door,” Lloyd ordered in an overly cool tone.
The DA seemed so out of place in Justice’s run-down apartment. Dressed in an expensive charcoal suit to match his carefully clipped gray hair, he appeared almost uncomfortable to be surrounded by piles of books and papers. To add to the whole surreal feelings was that Lloyd sat in the battered, recliner that Justice had rescued from the curb two trash days ago.
When Justice still didn’t move, Craig gave him a not-so-gentle shove from behind. Once they were inside, Craig shut the door behind him and blocked it with his massive body. Okay, so it looked as if this wasn’t going to be a social visit. Justice swallowed hard against the ball of fear clogging his throat.
Lloyd stood, smoothing the wrinkles from his suit in short jerky movements. Justice waited in silence, knowing his father wouldn’t speak until he’d decided Justice had squirmed enough. True to form, three excruciating minutes slowly ticked by before Lloyd broke the silence.
“I just received a very disturbing phone call from Craig.”
Yeah, jackass, I was sitting right next to your head prick when he made it, Justice snarked inside his head. Outwardly he lowered his eyes in the show of perfect obedience. While he would have loved nothing more than to fire a few choice comments back, he knew that would only worsen his punishment.
“Yes, sir,” he mumbled, his heart pounding with fear.
“I had to leave a meeting and come all the way over here to deal with you. Do you think I have time for these kinds of games?”
Wow, and you still managed to beat us here? Damn, you must have been flying. I guess there’s nothing like having the threat of a gay son scandal to get you moving.
“Sorry, sir,” Justice replied, a cold sweat breaking out over his body.
“Now what is this I hear about you talking to Carter Garner’s brat?”
“I didn’t know that’s who he was, I swear. He seemed really nice,” the words burst from Justice’s trap before he could censor them.
He flinched, but it was already too late. Lloyd swung, the back of his hand connecting with Justice’s mouth with a loud smack. Justice staggered, but managed to stay on his feet as pain exploded over his face. He quickly straightened, knowing that if he didn’t Lloyd would see it as a sign of weakness and strike out again.
He could feel a warm trickle of blood going down his chin, the sensation sadly not unfamiliar. Lloyd always loved to go for the face first. Unless it was election time and then he kept his blows to areas that could be covered up during photo opportunities.
Justice longed to wipe it away, but he knew that also was a no go. Years of experience had told him how Lloyd expected this to play out and any veering from the plan would not be tolerated. So he kept his hands to his side as the blood ran unchecked. It would probably end up getting on his shirt, but he’d become a pro at getting bloodstains out of clothes.
His father moved closer, his minty breath fanning against Justice’s cheek. It became too much, with Craig behind. Justice began to feel boxed in. While he fought it, panic clawed at his chest. His breaths grew shallow and rapid, his pulse quickening so much that he could hear it thumping in ears.
“Please,” Justice whispered.
He tried to take that single word back, but once again he was too late. He earned two more slaps, each one harder than the last. He tried to back up, only to have Craig deliver a sharp punch to his kidney.
Justice let out a cry of pain, this time powerless to stop himself from falling to the ground. More agony shot through his legs when his knees slammed onto the cheap carpet. Despite the additional hurt, he still tried to stagger to his feet, but didn’t move fast enough to avoid Craig’s foot. Just his luck, Craig loved to wear steel-toed boots, a fact Justice’s gut didn’t appreciate.
The kick knocked the wind from Justice. He fell forward onto his elbows as he sucked in to no avail. Tears filled his eyes and he hated himself for showing that weakness on top of everything else.
Lloyd reached down and grabbed Justice by the hair, tugging hard so Justice had no choice but to go back up on his knees. Lloyd continued to pull, until Justice’s head was tilted back and they were locking gazes. A shiver went through Justice as he saw the angry glint in Lloyd’s normally cool, blue eyes.
They remained that way for a moment, the only sounds in the room Justice’s wheezing breaths and Craig’s snickers. Finally Lloyd grunted in disgust before he threw Justice away from him.
“If it weren’t for the fact that you help me get the liberal vote, I would have disowned you years ago,” Lloyd spat.
Justice sat up, his hand going to his stomach in a protective gesture. He tried to apologize but all that came out was another wheezing sound.
“If it weren’t so close to another election year, I’d toss you away now. Otherwise what use would I have for a faggot son?” Lloyd continued.
The slur hurt ten times worse than any of the blows. Justice closed his eyes and willed himself to let it not affect him so much. How could it not, though? Whatever happened to parents loving their kids no matter what?
A dash of bitterness went through Justice. Yeah, right. His dad had never cared for him. Not even when he’d been little. So when Justice came out of the closet, he’d all but nailed the coffin on that relationship shut.
Lloyd smoothed out his suit once more before threatening, “Don’t let me hear about you talking to that piece of trash again. If I do, you’re not going to like what happens.”
Lloyd nodded to Craig to open the door and they both left. Neither one of them bothering to toss out a goodbye. Justice listened tensely to the sounds of their departing footsteps. It wasn’t until he’d been certain they weren’t coming back that he allowed himself to sag in despair.
He brought his fingers to his lips, wincing as he came into contact with the tender flesh. Damn, looked as if he’d be sporting another split lip. Going by the way his jaw ached, he’d have at least one bruise to go along with it.
No sense sitting around and feeling sorry for himself. Justice pushed himself to
his feet and staggered to the bathroom. He started a hot bath, adding plenty of bubbles. Since he was feeling down, he even allowed himself to use his most expensive kind, so the room soon smelled like an orange field.
While he waited for the bath to fill, he stripped off his clothes, setting his cell phone on the sink top. Then, even though he knew he wouldn’t like what he found, he forced himself to look into the mirror.
Justice let out a soft groan as he tilted his face side to side. It wasn’t the worst his face had ever looked, but he wouldn’t be winning any modeling contracts any time soon, either. One side of his face was red, but he could still see a purple bruise blossoming on his right cheekbone. As expected, his bottom lip had grown nice and fat, too. The blood had mostly dried on his face making him look like an extra in a boxing movie.
God, how he wished he had the courage to stand up to Craig and their father. Here Justice was in college and living on his own, yet he remained under his dad’s rule more than ever. Justice would do anything just to be able to go somewhere where nobody knew him. Where he wasn’t Craig’s Queer Brother or Lloyd Knowl’s Gay Son. More than that, Justice just wanted to be free from the beatings and verbal slurs from his own damn family.
He let out a weary sigh. He may as well have been wishing for rainbow tooting unicorns, because he was never, ever going to be free of his father. Lloyd would see to that. Justice made a face of disgust at his own reflection before he turned away and shut off the water.
As he stepped into the bath he hissed, both from the pain from his injuries and because of the hot temperature. He gingerly eased himself in, knowing in the end the heat would soothe his back and stomach. Sure enough as soon as he eased in, some of the pain melted away.
A satisfied moan slipped past his battered lips as he sat back and closed his eyes. While he tried to keep his mind on other subjects, such as classes and midterms, his brain had other ideas. Despite the beating and his father’s warning, all Justice could think about was Ashton.
Justice couldn’t help but wonder how things would have gone differently if Craig hadn’t interrupted. If not for that, Justice felt quite certain they would have at least kissed or, better yet, gone home together. It’d been so long since Justice had been with anyone, let alone someone as hot as Ashton.
His cell phone chirped, alerting him that he had a text message. Justice was tempted to ignore it, but decided he better check to make sure it wasn’t from Craig. Picking it up, Justice cocked his head to the side in confusion when he didn’t recognize the number. Opening the message so he could read it all the way, Justice stomach flipped in shock.
I hope you didn’t get into too much trouble for talking to me tonight.
Justice frowned as he debated what to do. His father’s warning echoed in his ears, yet all Justice had at this point to identify the messenger was a number. There was no name attached to the text. So it wasn’t like he was totally disobeying, he reasoned. After all, he should make sure that the texter even had the right number.
With trembling fingers he replied, Who is this?
The answer came seconds later, Ashton.
Fear strummed through Justice as he stared at that name. At the same time a small dash of excitement filled him. Wow, who would have thought that an attractive guy like Ashton would ever take the time to track down little ol’ him?
Justice darted a look at the bathroom door, almost as if he expected to see his father or Craig standing there, ready to dish out some punishment. When all he saw was his darkened living room, Justice chided himself. He was being crazy. There was no way that even somebody as connected as his father could find out about a simple text exchange.
So, did you get in trouble? Ashton pressed. Justice smiled as much as his swollen lip would allow. It felt nice to have someone worry over him, even if it were only via cell phone.
Don’t worry, it wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle, Justice typed back.
Good, your brother seemed pretty angry.
He’s always angry. Justice should know, too, since his stomach probably had a permanent imprint of Craig’s boot.
LOL. It sounds like some of my family members.
Justice just bet it did. He knew from his father that most of Ashton’s family tree didn’t exactly live a tame life. He knew it would be rude to respond that way so instead he typed, How did you get my number?
I have my ways :-P
Laughter burst from Justice at the funny face at the end of Ashton sentence. So much for him being an evil, criminal mastermind. Somehow Justice didn’t think most mobsters would finish a message that way.
Oh, mysterious. I like that in a guy. Justice only hesitated a second before he shot back the flirtatious reply.
So does that mean I get to see you again?
Justice let out a gasp of surprise. He couldn’t believe that even after the show Craig put on that Ashton would ever want to speak to him, let alone ask him out. Justice hesitated, torn. Part of him wanted to see Ashton so bad that his body hummed in anticipation. Yet another part of him was terrified to go against his father’s wishes.
Are you worried about what our fathers will say? Ashton asked, almost as if he could read Justice’s mind.
Aren’t you? Justice challenged. Somehow he didn’t think Ashton’s father would be thrilled to find out his kid was dating the son of his biggest enemy.
Sure, but I still want to see you again. I think you’re worth the risk.
“Oh, my God,” Justice whispered. Could Ashton get any better?
At that moment he knew he had to see Ashton again.
I think you’re worth it, too, Justice confessed.
So when will I get to see you again?
Justice only hesitated a second. I’ll be at the library tomorrow around seven at night. Can you meet me there?
Yes, I can hardly wait.
He hesitated, his eyes darting to the doorway again. Even though his father didn’t stand there, his presence still loomed. If he were found out, the ramifications would be huge. Then the small flicker of defiance that’d always existed bloomed to life.
Fuck Lloyd. Fuck Craig. Most of all, fuck their demands. For the first time in his life, Justice was going to go after something, consequences be damned. He typed one final message into the phone.
I can’t wait, either.
Chapter 3
*
Ashton had to resist the urge to run as he entered the library the next evening. All day he’d been able to think of nothing else but being able to see Justice again. Ashton didn’t know how this guy managed to get under his skin so quickly, but for some reason, getting closer to Justice had become number one on his to-do list.
The library was frigging huge. Not only that, but there were three levels, so he had a lot of ground to cover. Ashton rushed through, his gaze scanning all the tables and down the rows of bookshelves. He’d just about given up on the first floor until he spotted Justice leaning over the second story railing.
“Justice,” Ashton called, his voice a little too loud for the surroundings.
Several people jerked their heads in his direction, but Ashton disregarded them. The only one who mattered was Justice. There were even a couple of shushes tossed Ashton’s way, but he still didn’t care. Not when he had Justice in his sights.
Ashton grinned in excitement. Yes! He hadn’t lost his chance after all. Thanks to Bryce’s connections and that text conversation last night, he had Justice within his grasp once again. This time nobody, not even a million Craigs, were going to get in his way.
Justice leaned over the railing and flashed a smile before putting his finger to his lips. The cutest blush spread out over his cheeks as he darted timid glances at the other occupants. As he had at the party, he wore casual clothes. A pair of worn jeans molded his legs perfectly and he had on a Columbus Blue Jackets sweatshirt.
“I was worried you wouldn’t come,” Ashton said still not moving.
Some small part of him didn’t want t
o let Justice out of his sight, even long enough to go to the stairs leading to the next level. It was irrational and a bit crazy, but Ashton couldn’t help it. It seemed that ever since he’d first seen Justice his mind remained locked on irrational, so why keep fighting it?
“Well, I’m here so you can stop yelling,” Justice replied in a loud stage whisper. He darted another couple of glances side to side before jerking his head to the stairs.
When Ashton still didn’t move, Justice gave another one of his heart-pounding grins. He then slowly walked to the side, leading Ashton into the right direction. The entire time he kept his gaze locked on Ashton. Now that Justice guided the way, Ashton couldn’t stop his yap, however.
“You don’t need to worry. Craig isn’t here this time.”
“Yes, but there are plenty of others who could tell,” Justice hissed, although the smile remained in place.
“They won’t tell on us,” Ashton replied. After all, who could think of breaking up such a perfect reunion?
They continued to move toward the stairs, Ashton doing a somewhat awkward sideways walk, while Justice ran a hand over the railing. Several more people stopped to watch them, but if Ashton wasn’t mistaken, a few of them appeared to be enjoying the show.
“How can you be so sure?” Justice cocked a brow.
“Because nobody else cares about who our families are. To them we’re just another pair of college kids who want to get to know each other better.”
“You mean a rose by any other name?” Justice quipped, his lips twitching with repressed laughter.
“Something like that, but this story is not going to end in tragedy like that one did.”
At least Ashton hoped it didn’t, be that physical or emotional. He already knew that Justice had the power to break his heart. That was a position Ashton had never allowed himself to be in before.
“How can you be so sure?” Justice challenged.
Yes, Ashton how could you be so certain? An inner voice chimed in.
Ashton and Justice Page 2
