“I thought you’d already decided that you were going to move to Alberta to be with Brad?”
“I have. I still need to talk to Brad about it, but that’s not what I need the time off for.”
“Then why are you taking time off?”
“Because I’m trying to figure out what I’m going to do with my life.”
“I’m not sure I’m following you.” Justine gave him a small, slightly confused smile.
“I don’t know if I want to be a cop anymore,” Patrick admitted. He sighed, leaned back in his chair, and ran a hand over his face. When he looked back up, Justine was staring at him in concern.
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah.”
“Wow.” Justine gave him a contemplative look. “It’s weird to think of you as something other than a cop.”
“I know.” Patrick groaned and dropped his head onto his desk. “I don’t know if I can be anything else.” Fingers in his hair caused Patrick to look up. There was a fond look tinged with a hint of exasperation on Justine’s face.
“You can do anything that you put your mind to.”
“That was a very mom thing to say.”
Justine smacked his shoulder. “I am a mom, and sometimes you make me think that you’re one of my children.”
“I’m not as bad as Daniel.”
“You whine more than he does,” Justine said with a laugh. She gave Patrick another soft smile. “Seriously, Patrick, you’re a smart guy. You can do whatever you put your mind to.”
“You really think so?”
“I know so.” Justine used her fingers to lift Patrick’s head up and pressed a kiss to his forehead.
“Thanks, Sparky.”
“Anything for you, partner.”
“I should go and give this paperwork to the captain.”
“When are you leaving?”
“Friday.”
“That’s in two days. Were you planning on telling me or just dropping Bingo off on my doorstep?”
“I was going to tell you at dinner tonight,” Patrick replied. He had family dinner night with Justine, Keegan, and Daniel every other Wednesday. “And I’m taking Bingo with me this time.”
“You’re taking Bingo? How long are you going to be gone for?”
“At least until after the holidays. That’s why I’m taking Bingo. I don’t want her to think that I don’t want her. Jeremy even gave her a checkup and made sure that all of her paperwork was in order.”
“Does Brad know that you’re coming?”
“Of course he does. He even knows that I’m bringing Bingo with me.” Patrick grinned at her. “He was all excited about buying dog stuff.”
“Sounds like you found yourself a keeper.”
“I have and there is no way in hell that I’m going to let him get away.” Patrick stood, kissed Justine on the cheek, and grabbed the papers off of his desk. “I’ve got to go and hand these in. I’ll see you at dinner?”
“Don’t be late. Oh, and bring Bingo with you. Daniel likes to play with her.”
“You know that you’re probably going to have to get Daniel a dog when I move, right?”
“I could just start taking him to Cam’s. Cam has a dog,” Justine replied with a grin. Patrick shook his head with a laugh and continued on his way to the captain’s office. He knocked on the door before opening it and stepping inside. Captain Hanson was just hanging up the phone as Patrick closed the door.
“I’ve got the paperwork for the leave of absence.”
“Patrick, could you sit down for a minute?” Captain Hanson requested. He motioned toward one of the chairs in front of his desk. Patrick was starting to get concerned. The captain never called him by his first name.
“What’s going on?”
“I just got off the phone with my son.”
“How is Nathan?”
A faint smile crossed his face. “He’s fine.” The smile disappeared as he took a deep breath. “He called to tell me about your boyfriend.”
Nathan called about Brad? Patrick felt the bottom drop out of his stomach. “What did Nathan have to say about Brad?”
“He was attacked.”
The room went fuzzy. Brad had been attacked? Dark spots began to dance around the edge of his field of vision.
“Patrick? Patrick! You need to breathe!”
Staring at his captain’s blurry but suddenly close face, Patrick forced himself to take a breath. He hadn’t realized that he had stopped breathing. Patrick took a few more deep breaths before his captain’s face lost its concerned look. “Is Brad all right?”
“He’s fine. Maybe I should have led with that?”
A somewhat hysterical laugh left Patrick’s lips. “That might have been a good idea. What happened?”
“Some guy named Dwight Richards tried to grab him in front of his house. From what Nathan told me, the guy got in a lucky punch before your boy laid him flat.”
Patrick felt his jaw drop open in shock. “Are you fucking kidding me? That little shit jumped Brad?”
“I take it you’ve met him?”
“Yeah. Actually, I punched him in the face the last time I saw him.”
“Well, apparently he’s been stalking your boyfriend.”
“Shit. They caught him, right?” Patrick had succeeded in getting his breathing under control, but he couldn’t get his hands to stop shaking. The thought of Brad being attacked made him nauseous. All he wanted to do was call Brad. Everything would be better if he could just hear his lover’s voice.
A slightly embarrassed expression crossed Hanson’s face. “Well, they had him.”
“They had him? What do you mean had?”
Captain Hanson sighed and ran a hand over his face. “He somehow managed to get himself released and then they lost him.”
“Lost him? How could they lose him?” Patrick demanded. “It’s a small town in Alberta! There’s not really anywhere to hide.”
“Son, I don’t know. It’s not like I was there.”
Hearing the slightly annoyed tone in his boss’s voice, Patrick slumped in his chair. He gave Captain Hanson a weak smile. “Sorry, Cap.”
“It’s fine, Patrick. I understand your feelings on this one.” Captain Hanson picked up the folder full of forms that Patrick had placed on his desk. “Is this the paperwork for your leave of absence?”
“Yes.” Patrick watched as the other man flipped through the papers.
“Do you know when you’re coming back?”
“I’m not sure if I am. I’m seriously considering moving to Alberta permanently.”
“Are you going to transfer?”
“That’s what I’m trying to decide.”
“Good luck with your decision,” Hanson offered. “It’s a hard one to make, so make sure that you give it a lot of thought.”
“Thanks.”
“I can see you twitching, Patrick. Go and call your boyfriend. I’ll see you when you get back.”
“Thanks, Cap.” Patrick got to his feet and reached across the desk to shake Hanson’s hand. “I’ve really enjoyed working with you.”
“You’re a good cop, Patrick.”
“Thanks,” Patrick replied. He nodded at his boss then left the office. He gave Justine a small wave as he hurried out of the building. Once he was outside, Patrick pulled his cell phone out and hit speed dial for Brad.
“Hello?”
“God, Angel, are you okay?”
“Patrick?”
“Not funny, Angel. I just heard that you were attacked by your stalker. Why didn’t you tell me that Dwight was stalking you?”
“Shit. Who tattled?”
“Nathan. My captain just told me that my boyfriend was attacked. Now, tell me if you’re okay.”
“I’m fine, sugar. It’s just a black eye.”
Patrick breathed out a sigh of relief. “Thank God.” Patrick slumped back against the wall of the building. “Don’t do shit like this to me, Angel.”
“I�
��m sorry.”
“Were you planning on telling me about it?”
“I was going to tell you about it when you got here on Friday.”
“You’re sure that you’re fine?”
“Patrick, I’ve been hurt worse playing hockey. Speaking of which, I need to go and get ready for hockey.”
“I should go home and finish packing. I’ve got to make sure that all of Bingo’s stuff is ready to go.”
“I can’t wait for you to get here.”
“Neither can I. And make sure that you lock your doors. I don’t want Dwight sneaking into the house.”
“I will. And Nathan said that he would drive by the house every now and then while he’s on shift.”
“Good. That makes me feel better.” Patrick smiled at the phone. “I love you, Angel.”
“I love you too. See you on Friday.”
“Friday,” Patrick repeated. He flipped his phone closed with a small smile. Now that he had talked to Brad, he felt calmer. He leaned against the wall and took a moment to think about going to Alberta. He knew that there were going to be some problems—the only person he had ever lived with was Cam—but he was looking forward to trying.
He wanted Brad in his life.
And he would do whatever it took to make that happen.
BRAD let his head rest against the passenger window of Julian’s car. The cold glass felt wonderful on his bruised skin. A rather vigorous night of hockey had transformed his black eye into a bruised face. In retrospect, playing hockey had been a really stupid idea. Of course, he also should have taken the day off after the pummeling he had taken.
Shifting, Brad winced. Everything hurt. Replacing bulbs in the Christmas lights at Brenda’s had been a really dumb idea. He really should have known better than to get up on a ladder in the snow.
“You okay?” Julian asked.
“I hurt.”
“Falling will do that.”
“Thanks for giving me a ride back from the hospital, Julian.”
“Not a problem.” One of Julian’s hands left the wheel and fiddled with one of the dials on the console. Brad sighed happily as the heat increased and closed his eyes. He let the soft sounds of the radio wash over him. The pain meds they had given him at the hospital were starting to wear off. All of his hurts were coming up and he couldn’t figure out what hurt the most. So far the broken wrist was winning.
The rest of the trip was a blur. He could hear Julian singing along with the radio. A slight smile crossed his face when the tapping started. It seemed as though Julian didn’t like driving in a silent car. Brad was so much in his own world that he was actually surprised when the car stopped moving.
“Um, Brad?”
“We here?” Brad fumbled for his sunglasses when a brief lift of his eyelids caused pain. Too bright.
“Yeah, but there seems to be a dog on your porch.”
“What’s it doing?”
“Looking at me.”
“Are you doing something interesting?”
“I’m just sitting in the car, Brad.”
Making sure that his sunglasses were firmly over his eyes, Brad slowly raised his lids. His open eyes landed on the German Shepherd sitting on his porch staring at the car. “Bingo.”
“What?” Julian asked. Brad barely heard him. When he saw his front door open, Brad opened the car door and lurched into his lover’s arms. Brad sighed in relief as Patrick’s arms closed around him. He always felt better in Patrick’s arms.
“Angel? Are you okay?”
Brad didn’t answer. He just burrowed closer to Patrick’s warmth. He felt Bingo rub against his legs, so he freed one hand to give her a scratch. Brad pressed his nose against Patrick’s neck. “God, you smell so good.”
“Thanks, Angel. Ace, what’s wrong with him? I heard that there was one lucky punch.” Patrick’s arms tightened around him. Brad sighed in pleasure as one of Patrick’s hands started to run through his hair. “This looks like more than one lucky punch.”
“It was just a lucky punch. Then he had a rough night at hockey.”
“And this?”
Brad felt Patrick tap the cast on his left wrist.
“He fell off the roof at Brenda’s last night.”
“What was he doing on the roof?”
“Being an idiot,” Julian replied. “Do you want a hand getting him in the house?”
“He on the good drugs?”
“You smell really good,” Brad repeated. The pain was starting to be replaced by a swimming feeling. He was suddenly glad that Patrick was holding him. He wasn’t sure if he could stand on his own.
“He’s coming off the good drugs. He’s probably starting to get a little woozy.”
“I think Julian has a good idea,” Brad stated. “I’m not sure I can stand if you let me go.”
“Okay, then. Ace, you wanna grab his bad side?”
“Sure thing,” Julian replied. Brad pulled away from Patrick and let Julian pull his injured arm over his shoulders. Supported between the two men, Brad made it into his house. The two men deposited him on the couch.
“Let’s get your shoes off, baby,” Patrick murmured. Brad watched as his lover pulled off his shoes. Bingo settled herself on the couch next to Brad and put her head in his lap. Brad lifted his hand and stroked her head. “Looks like someone missed you.”
“I missed her too.”
“Did you miss anyone other than the dog?”
Brad grinned at his lover. “Did someone else miss me?”
“Maybe.” There was a smile on Patrick’s face.
“The two of you are kind of sickening,” Julian said. He stopped in front of Brad, holding a glass of water in one hand and some pills in the other. “Take these.”
“What are they?”
“Just some Advil. They should take the edge off of the pain.”
“Thanks,” Brad replied. He took the offered items and downed the pills. When he finished, he handed the glass back to Julian. “I feel like crap.”
“Falling off a roof will do that to you. Why don’t you just sit here while I tell Patrick what he needs to know to take care of you?”
“He already takes care of me.”
“I’m sure he does,” Julian replied. He gave Brad’s knee a tap before leaving the room. Brad watched as he dragged Patrick with him. He could hear their voices coming from the kitchen, but he couldn’t bring himself to care about what they were discussing—even though he was pretty sure that they were talking about him. With Bingo curled up at his side, Brad let his mind drift.
He could feel the dull ache of his bruised ribs. His left wrist was like a ball of pain attached to his arm. His face hurt and all of the aches from hockey were making themselves known. It was not how he had been planning on spending his first night with Patrick in town. Brad’s original plan had involved a lot of physical activity. Naked physical activity. Now all he wanted was to go to bed. Maybe after a bath. Those weren’t exactly sexy ways to spend the evening.
The sound of his front door closing jerked Brad out of his stupor. He smiled when he felt fingers in his hair and tilted his head back to see his lover standing over him. “Did Julian leave?”
“Yes. He told me that you made a mess of yourself, Angel.”
“It wasn’t all my fault.”
“Really?”
“Gravity had some involvement,” Brad replied. He grinned when he felt lips on his forehead.
“How about I run you a bath?”
“That would make you the most amazing boyfriend ever.”
“Good to know.” Patrick pressed another kiss to his head. “Stay here with Bingo while I go get the bath ready.”
“Thanks, sugar.” Brad smiled at Patrick as the attractive man walked out of the room. My boyfriend is amazing.
Brad sighed and closed his eyes. He let his hand run absently over Bingo as he waited for Patrick to come back. He hated being alone when he was hurt. Just knowing that someone else was in the house was h
elping him to relax. Brad had actually been debating calling Graham to come and stay with him until Patrick arrived. Thankfully, he hadn’t needed to do that. Graham tended to mock him when he was injured.
“Your bath’s ready, Angel. You need a hand getting up?”
“I think that might be a good idea.” Brad opened his eyes, sat up, and held out a hand to his lover. Strong fingers gripped his hand and slowly pulled him to his feet. Once he was standing, Patrick wrapped an arm around his waist. Brad leaned against his lover’s strength as they made their way to the stairs. By the time they reached the bathroom, Brad was panting with pain and exertion. “I hurt everywhere.”
“Falling off a roof will do that to you. Come on, let’s get your shirt off.”
“You know, I usually feel sexier when you undress me.”
“That’s good to know. Lift your arms,” Patrick instructed. Brad looked into Patrick’s green eyes and raised his arms until the pain stopped him. He stood completely still as his lover gently removed his shirt. Once the shirt was out of the way, Patrick pushed his pants and boxers down his legs. Brad stepped out of his pants, surprised to find that he wasn’t wearing any socks. He didn’t remember taking them off. Brad looked from his bare feet to his smirking lover. He gave Patrick a faint smile as he stepped closer to his fully clothed lover.
“You going to join me in the tub?”
“No.”
“No? Why not?”
“Your tub isn’t big enough for both of us. Get in the tub, Angel.”
Brad slowly stepped into the tub. He moaned in pleasure as he settled in the steaming water. The temperature that Patrick had the water at would have normally been too hot for Brad, but it felt wonderful on his battered body. As the water soothed him, Brad closed his eyes and let his mind go blank. He could feel Patrick’s hands on him and he simply let his lover move him in whatever way he wanted. When Patrick started to wash his hair, Brad moaned in pleasure and nearly melted into the tub.
“Like that?”
“You’re really good at that.”
“One of my best friends is a hairdresser. She tends to give tips.”
“Feels amazing,” Brad murmured. By the time that Patrick had finished washing him, Brad was almost asleep in the tub. Patrick had even wrapped a plastic bag around his cast and had been careful to keep it out of the water. Brad had felt him press a kiss to the skin above the bag after he had tied it in place. The sound of the water draining from the tub jolted Brad from the light doze he was in.
Broken Wings Page 21
