Chapter 5
Diesel
“W hat are you doing here?” I scowled at Oro, who was standing in the middle of my studio apartment wearing nothing but a pair of leopard-print briefs that left little to the imagination.
“We said we’d talk later.” He placed his hands on his waist, his white skin shining with the moonlight entering from the industrial window that spread along the entire west wall of my apartment. “Now is later. Much, much later.”
Ignoring Oro’s pout, I bent down to pick up Toro, who just came to greet me with his cute face. My cat was the tiny bit of light on this horrible day, and I immediately brought him to my face. He snuggled against me, a warm purr coming from his fuzzy chest.
“Why does the cat get a hug while I don’t?” Oro complained.
“’Cause unlike you, he’s adorable,” I said while walking toward my kitchen. Exhausted from this never-ending day, I left my helmet on the wooden island and walked straight to my fridge. I was starving, but I’d have to settle for beer as I was too damn tired to cook.
“I’m plenty adorable.” He tsked. “Just ask Dion.”
“So why are you here and not at his place? ”
“Because I’d rather spend time with you.”
I rolled my eyes before I opened the bottle using the counter and my fist, then walked to my couch. Slumping my ass down, I kicked off my shoes, then tossed my legs over the coffee table. Now, with a beer in my hand and Toro resting on my lap, I finally allowed myself to relax.
“So, where were you?”
Oh, for fuck’s sake . Closing my eyes, I hoped he’d get the message, only he didn’t.
“And why did you come back so late?”
Forcing my eyes open, I glared at him. “Would you please shut up?”
“Nope.”
Tired, I rubbed my jaw. “Why the fuck are you naked?”
“I’m not naked,” he announced, then moved closer to the couch.
I rolled my eyes. “ Fine . Why are you in your underwear?”
“I spilled water over my clothes.”
“Sure.” I huffed the word, then brought the bottle to my lips and took a sip. The bitter liquor almost matched the shitty flavor I was left with after meeting Shay-Lee.
Despite not being invited, Oro moved to sit beside me, his body pressing against my side. “Would you lend me something to wear?” he asked while caressing his fingers along my biceps.
“No.” I sipped from my beer.
“Why not?”
“’Cause I don’t want you to wear my fucking clothes.”
“You’re an asshole.” He slapped my arm, then got up and strolled into the kitchen.
I heard the fridge open and close before he returned to sit beside me with his own drink. Bringing the cap to his mouth, he opened the beer with his teeth and then spat it aside.
“You better clean that up when you leave. ”
“Sure,” he answered like a brat before taking a long gulp, nearly emptying half the bottle.
And while I hoped drinking would keep him quiet, sadly, it didn’t.
“Why are you sulking like a bitch?”
My jaw tensed at his comment, but instead of answering him, I finished my drink in one go. Toro got off my lap just before I stood and walked to the kitchen, where I threw the empty bottle in the trash can.
“I’m going to take a shower. You can sleep on the couch if you want.”
Not waiting for his response, I walked straight to the bathroom and closed the door behind me. Surprise, surprise, I found Oro’s clothes tossed on the floor. With a sigh, I picked them up and placed them on the counter before stripping naked. The last thing I wanted tonight was to put up with Oro’s bullshit, but I didn’t have it in me to kick him out. Despite everything, he was just a kid who was selling his body for a living. I was the same not too long ago, and I knew what he was feeling probably better than anyone. So, if staying here gave him a bit of an escape from the filthy world he was living in, I could handle it.
Getting under the strong stream, I closed my eyes and tried to focus on the hot water rather than the images of Shay-Lee wrapped around Jordan. I felt like such a fool for how confident I’d been. For how stupid I was to think he’d actually wait for me after I’d left him at his worst. But back then, I had to leave. I was so angry and wrathful that I had to do something with my rage. I couldn’t just pretend the monster within me hadn’t awoken from its sleep and was in search of blood. So, I left, and it cost me everything.
“And here I hoped I’d catch you jerking off.” Oro’s voice snapped me back to the present, and I looked over my shoulder to see him looking at me, his eyes focusing on my ass. My jaw tightened, and I turned off the water before stepping out of the shower .
Shamelessly checking out my dick, Oro licked his lips. “Your cock is a work of art, Camilo. You know that, right?”
Something inside me snapped, and I clenched my hands into tight fists. “Don’t say my name.”
Oro’s brows rose up, and he looked at me in shock before a deviant smile crept on his face. “Why? Is it only saved for him ?”
“You’re out of line.” My voice carried a clear warning, and yet he chose to ignore it by smirking at me.
“Is that so?” he hummed as I reached for the towel, but the brat snapped it away before I could.
“Give it back.”
“Nope.”
My temper sparked, and I glared at him. “Stop messing around.”
“Not before you tell me where you’ve been this afternoon.” He hooked the towel on two of his fingers. “It was to see him, wasn’t it?” he said gleefully. “Your sweet Shay-L—”
My hand was around his neck before he could spit Shay-Lee’s name out of his mouth, and I tightened my hold until he gagged.
“C-Camilo,” he gasped, desperately scratching my arm, which only tensed by the second.
“You need to learn how to shut your mouth,” I hissed, watching his eyes bulge and his lips part. Soon, his face reddened, and spit flew out of his desperate mouth. What a pathetic little creature , the monster in me thought right before I came back to my senses and realized what the fuck I was doing. I let go of him at once, and he slumped to the floor, gasping and choking for air.
I closed my eyes and took a long breath, already regretting what I’d just done.
“I-I’m sorry,” Oro cried from the floor. “I’m sorry I upset you.” He sniffed his nose, and I dared to look at him.
I felt ashamed of my outburst and quickly covered him with a towel, not minding the fact I was still naked.
“I’m sorry for doing this,” I whispered while rubbing his shoulder with one hand. “I didn’t mean to snap. ”
Oro didn’t miss the opportunity to be cared for and immediately lunged forward, forcing me to hug him. Pressing his head in my chest, he sniffed. “I don’t want you to hate me, too.”
I don’t want you to hate me. Those were the words Llorón had told me as I hugged his broken body on the Notte Oscura’s floor all those years ago. We were in the same position as Oro and I were right now; only my heart ached for Llorón’s pain at the same time it throbbed with my love for him. My lips trembled with how much it hurt, and I bit them just to make it stop. Without realizing it, I wrapped my arms tighter around Oro until I practically covered him. With my eyes closed, I could almost imagine it was Shay-Lee.
But then he spoke, and the spell broke.
“Can I sleep with you in your bed tonight?” he asked, then slid his hands down my back and mistakenly touched my scar.
My muscles immediately tensed, and unsettledness raged through me as my skin ran cold. Body and mind, I rejected the idea of being so close to Oro, and almost disgusted, I pulled back from him. Before he could complain, I tightened the towel around his naked shoulders, then stood up and grabbed a different towel for myself.
No one could be his replacement , I thought to myself while knotting the towel around my waist.
“I’ll take you to your home.”
“What?” He gasped and stood up. “Why?”
Because my heart beats for one man and one man only.
“Because it’s for the best.”
And because I just decided that Jordan wouldn’t get in my way.
“But I want to stay with you,” Oro demanded.
I snorted. Oro was still too young and naive to understand we weren’t the type of people to get what we wanted just because we wanted it. Oh, no, baby, we were not. Since I could remember, I was the kind of man the world just threw shit on. Growing up with a monster of a father. Losing my sister, mother, and then my brother. Falling in love with the greatest man I’d ever met, only to lose him shortly after—I never got what I wanted. I took it. And I was about to do it again. Jordan could fuck off ’cause I was ready to take back what was mine, and what better way to do it than the explosive tango Shay-Lee and I were already acquainted with?
“What’s funny?” Oro asked, his forehead creased.
“Nothing you’d understand,” I answered him as I gave him back his clothes. “Get dressed, and I’ll give you a ride.”
Despite Oro’s constant complaining, I drove him to his home in the Jeep I landed from Dion’s company, not my bike. What could I say? The back seat of my bike belonged to someone else. Once parked in front of his apartment building, which Dion paid for, Oro stayed put.
“Aren’t you gonna get out?” I asked after checking the time. It was past midnight, and I was dying for some rest.
Oro nibbled on his bottom lip before he turned to look at me, his teal eyes glinting with the light coming from the street. “I want to help you.”
I blinked at him, my eyelids heavy. “Help me? Help me with what?”
Oro moved his hand and placed it on my forearm. “With finding the mole.”
Taken aback, I frowned. “How do you know about that?”
He chuckled. “Dion loves running his mouth after he gets off.”
The mere idea of Dion laying his hands on Oro’s young body drove me nuts. Oro was basically a kid when they met, yet it didn’t seem to stop Dion, who was in his mid-thirties, from fucking him.
It didn’t stop him from doing the same with Shay-Lee, too.
“Anyway, let me help you. I can snoop around the club, you know?”
I considered his offer and wanted to agree, but at the same time, I didn’t want to risk him.
“It can be dangerous,” I said, and Oro faked a laugh.
“I laugh at danger.” He gave me a naughty little smile, then unbuckled his seat belt .
He was ready to get out of my car when I reached forward and grabbed his arm. “You don’t have to do this, Oro.”
He turned his head so we were face-to-face. “Dion told me that this is your last job and that once you capture the traitor, you’ll be finally free.” The corners of his mouth turned up. “I want that for you. I want you to be happy, Diesel. You deserve it more than anyone else I’ve ever known.”
His sincerity made me feel guilty because just an hour ago, I’d snapped at him and nearly crushed his throat. I wasn’t sure what to say and stayed quiet as he went on.
“I know you think I’m just this stupid kid, and maybe I am, but I do care for you. A lot. And I know how much you miss him.” He was talking about Shay-Lee. “So if I can do something to help you get back to him sooner, I will.”
“Thank you. I appreciate it,” I said.
His smile slowly faded, and he nodded before he got out of my car.
“I’ll keep you updated about what I find out.”
Oro then closed the door behind him, and I watched him until he got inside his building before driving away. Surprisingly, that kid managed to make me feel a little bit better.