Bad Guys #2
Josh said that with a certain edge, not toward Liam but toward this nameless, faceless man.
Unlike Felix and Danny, who had gone into their situation with eyes wide open and full agency, Liam had—Josh had no doubt about it—been seduced and deceived.
It was an old story, but for somebody as self-sufficient as Liam had been, it had probably hurt.
Grace grunted. “Hunter still does wet work sometimes,” he offered. “Remember that crew that helped us out in the desert in May?”
Josh nodded. They’d been busy, but Kadjic hadn’t taken all their time.
“Anyway,” Grace continued, “apparently he and Chuck went back and took care of some of those Gestapo assholes with some help from, you know, that other crew.”
Josh cocked his head and thought of how to explain that was probably information Grace shouldn’t just spill to anybody.
“I’m not telling anybody,” Grace said patiently, as though he’d read Josh’s mind. “I’m telling you, in case, you know, you wanted Hunter to do you a favor.”
Josh chuckled, taking Grace’s love for all that it was. “Kind,” he said, “but not necessary. The reason I told you was that”—Josh’s smile turned embarrassed—“I wanted you to like him,” he admitted. “Because, you know, he’s great, but he’s human.”
Grace’s smile was luminous. “Like us,” he said, then scowled. “Except you, Perfect Boy.”
Josh groaned. “So Cancer Boy, Recovery Boy, now I’m Perfect Boy?”
Grace sniffed, pretending he wasn’t jealous. “It was a really good op,” he said.
Grace had this way of preening where he turned his face up to the gods and smiled, rocking his shoulders to music unheard.
Josh had this way of parroting that action when Grace let loose with one of his rare compliments, and he did that now.
Grace snickered. “We’re so stupid,” he said happily.
“Unbelievably,” Josh agreed.
“But are we stupid enough to have two doughnuts?” Grace asked.
“No,” Josh said. “But you are stupid enough to have the maple bacon bar and give me a bite.”
Grace nodded sagely. “We are,” he said. “We are that stupid.”
And they were.
Josh sent Grace off around 6:00 a.m., after promising that he and Liam would be at the Glencoe mansion at five—no, four. No, wait, three, because he, Grace, Stirling, and Molly hadn’t played videogames in forever.
“Fine,” Josh sighed at the end of negotiations. “I’ll be there at two, but you have to leave through the door this time. Because it’s late and I worry and I didn’t see any climbing gear.”
“I’ve got secret pitons secreted all over this side of the building,” Grace said with a sniff. “The sides look like slick marble, but it’s a facade—so easy to make sure I’ve got footholds.”
“I don’t care,” Josh said implacably. “And I’m going to text Hunter and tell him you left here so he’s not worried.”
Grace muttered, “Everybody’s worried—so much easier when nobody cared,” as he slid out the door like smoke.
“We always cared!” Josh hissed, sticking his head out the door to make sure Grace heard, and then he closed it tightly and locked it before going back into the bedroom and struggling with the tilt-and-turn window.
“Skinny fucker,” he muttered, taking in the very narrow margin for Grace to wiggle through. “I swear if his head gets any bigger, he’s going to get stuck.”
A warmth at his back warned him, and Liam was draped over his shoulder, doing the catch on the window himself.
That done, he hugged Josh gently from behind and nuzzled his ear.
“Nice of him to visit,” he said dryly, “but did you have to tell him my most embarrassing secret?”
Josh winced and turned in his arms, capturing his mouth for a taste of sweetness—sleep breath and all—before he answered.
“It was important,” he said soberly. “Grace respects you, but you’re, you know, law enforcement. He wouldn’t really trust you—not with me—unless he knew you were one of us.”
“Sleeping my way to the top doesn’t make me a criminal,” Liam said, sounding baffled.
“No, but it does make you… you know.” Josh kissed him again, briefly. “Bent.” Liam tugged at the hem of the awkward sweatshirt, and Josh ducked his head so it would clear. “And it means you understand what it’s like to be human.”
Liam’s hands, broad and work roughened, felt so good smoothing along Josh’s tender skin.
Josh sighed and leaned into his chest, kissing the defined ridges of his pectorals reverently, wishing there was a light on somewhere so he could see if there were freckles here too.
As he’d mentioned to Grace, he hadn’t even seen Liam completely naked yet, and he felt cheated.
He felt cheated now as Liam framed his hips with those hands and rested his chin on the crown of Josh’s head.
“Honest with me, Josh,” he said. “Scale of one to ten, how tired are we?”
It was on the tip of his tongue to say “Four! Let’s go!” but honesty… to someone who’d been raised as a thief and a grifter, it was the gold standard of currency right there.
“Seven,” he sighed. He let out a breath. “And I’m going to have to be up in a couple hours to have some protein to counter those doughnuts.”
Liam shifted and rubbed Josh’s biceps under his T-shirt. “That’s a… lad.”
Josh snorted.
“I’m just saying, we can’t do this unless you’re honest. I won’t coddle you if I know I can trust you. You do understand that?”
“I do,” he promised. “Back in bed?”
“Sure, but will Grace be back? Does he have a key so we don’t have to let him in?”
Josh snorted. “He never has a key. He set pitons in the side of the building so he could scale it for fun, and the doorman knows him by now. You couldn’t keep him out of this place with a flamethrower.”
Liam chuckled, and Josh added, “But my phone’s on the charger—let me text Hunter.”
“I’ll get it,” Liam promised, kissing his shoulder. “Just, you know, settle in so I can settle in next to you.”
Josh did so, getting himself and his wretched shoulder comfortable while Liam texted Hunter. He grunted at the reply and continued to text and grunt as he climbed in after Josh.
“What?” Josh asked as Liam sat, bare-chested and dear, squinting at his phone in the ambient light from the windows.
“Hunter wants to know if you ate all the doughnuts,” he said.
“No! There were, like, a dozen,” Josh mumbled.
“He’s asking if Grace can come back and get the box. Apparently he was supposed to be getting doughnuts for them.”
“The place is still open,” Josh said crossly. “Tell Grace to—”
At that moment they barely heard the door open, and then Grace’s stage whisper, all the way from the front of the apartment.
“I’ll leave some for you, Mr. Interpol Man. You can have sex now!” And then he was gone.
The gentle click of the door was barely detectable, and Liam set his phone in the charger with a huff. He turned toward Josh in the moonlight and said, “You’re a matched set, right?”
Josh nodded soberly. “Salt and pepper shakers.”
“Okay, then. Next time tell Mr. Pepper he gets one chance to break into a place I’m sleeping before I turn the alarms on.”
“That won’t deter him—”
“Okay, then tell him the truth,” Liam said gruffly. “Tell him, unless he really wants to catch us having sex, he needs to respect some boundaries.”
Josh sucked wind through his teeth. “He’d wait until we were done,” he said.
Liam shook his head and then lay down, rolled to his side, and wrapped his arm around Josh’s stomach. “Good to know,” he said grimly. Then he chuckled. “Also good to know is that he won’t be here tomorrow morning, after we eat and brush our teeth.”
“Why?” Josh asked in all innocence, thinking about doing some research for the meeting being planned at his parents’ house.
“Butt stuff,” Liam said harshly, proving he really had been awake for most of Josh and Grace’s conversation.
Josh choked on a laugh and then… oh… thought about what that meant. He must have made a sound because Liam cuddled closer and breathed in his ear. “You’re thinking about it, aren’t you?” he asked.
And Josh was—about the newness and the sensations and about the trust and about….
“Yeah,” he whispered.
“Good,” Liam said, nuzzling his ear. “I will protect Grace with my life, Josh Salinger, but remember that there’s some stuff that’s only meant for you and me.”
“Understood,” Josh said, pleased with the boundary. His eyes were closing while his body tingled, and he knew he’d have good, rousing dreams. “Love you, Liam,” he murmured, not aware he’d jumped months of romantic interaction with one phrase.
“Love you too, Perfect Boy,” Liam said, laughter evident in his tone.
He wanted to say, “I’m not perfect,” but he was so much more than asleep before he could even get the words out.