Chapter Six #4
As he’d sat in that chair all night, watching over the sleeping man, he’d desperately wanted to climb into the bed and just weep.
He wanted to be near him so he could feel again. What he’d realized was that he’d not felt a single goddamn thing for the years that followed him leaving.
And that was his fault.
He could have come back, and he didn’t.
That hate and rage was gone, and so were the last seven and a half years. They all seemed to melt away, now that he knew the truth of why he’d let him leave.
He understood that he’d been afraid, and had Michael just come back, this would have all been different.
Had he shared the truth, instead of keeping his man, his mate and lover in the dark, they would have had a different life.
Maybe they wouldn’t have had money, or a big home, but they would have had each other.
And in the end, that was what mattered.
Wasn’t that what he’d always seen with the greatest love stories that unfolded around him?
Elizabeth and Ethan had very little when they met. They had their homes, but they weren’t flush in cash.
The same with Callen and Elizabeth.
Or Ethan and Gene.
Their riches began with love, and Michael would have taken that small shit-hole apartment with this man over all of the cash he had in the bank now.
In.
A.
Heartbeat.
“What’s in the lake?” he finally asked, afraid of what his heart wanted him to do. This man had no obligation to forgive him for what he’d done.
Michael had damned him to his own private hell for all of those years.
Out of stubbornness.
Graham could hear from the lack of chattering that he was going to be okay.
“We don’t know,” he admitted. “All we know is that it’s evil, and it’s angry. We think it’s leaked into the castle. When I woke up, I found your note, and both Duncan and Ciarán were standing in the doorway. That’s when I heard you scream.”
Michael listened.
Before last night, he never would have believed any of this. He would have called it woo-woo bullshit, and called it a day.
But he’d seen them.
He’d also followed them to Graham the night before and in time to save him.
If that wasn’t enough, he also saw the box move toward him on the counter.
And the mug he’d given Graham all of those years ago turn in the cabinet on command.
That wasn’t his imagination—not in the least. That told him all he needed to know.
Ghosts were real.
More importantly, he knew that to be true because the ghost of their relationship past was waiting in the wings. He could feel it there.
And he was so goddamn confused.
What he wanted was to run.
But what his heart told him…
Oh…
He.
Was.
Fucked.
There was no doubt about that there. Michael was about ready to take a leap of faith. If this man dropped him again, he’d never recover.
Ever.
Graham kept talking, since he didn’t want to focus on the fact that D’Artangnan Graves, the only love of his whole life, was calmly pressed to his body.
He was scared to freaking death that he’d destroy this again.
“We tried to research what was going on in this castle, but right before Gabby and Tony finished here, some bones floated to the surface of the lake. It’s been chaotic to say the least. Tony, and I’ll assume you know who he is, since this can’t be a coincidence that you’re here, believes they’re old.
We’re torn between Ciarán being dumped there by Duncan, or it’s a mystery fourth ghost.”
He was honest.
“I know who Tony is. I’m very familiar with Doctor Magnus and the Blackhawks.”
Oh, this was all insane, and Graham knew it. He’d been searching for this man for so long, and then he just walked into his world again, like the universe had planned it that way.
“I assumed this wasn’t a coincidence.”
Oh, it wasn’t.
The sound of Graham’s voice brought him back.
It was whiskey warm and tinged with that incredibly cathartic and sexy Scottish accent that he’d loved back then.
And apparently now.
Because his erection was a pretty good indicator that despite the time between them that had passed, all those feelings were still there.
“Well, that’s where the investigation let off. All I know is that Callen and Chris are in some trouble, Lad. This place is a mess. Today, a wall is coming down, and once that happens…”
Michael said nothing, wanting him to keep talking.
“It stirs shit up. Before taking this job, I didn’t think spirits could haunt like this. Apparently, I was very wrong. They can, and do.”
Oh, he knew what it was like to be haunted, but this was a whole other situation.
Michael was being haunted by his needs, desires, and memories.
Graham was rambling, and he knew it, but he was incredibly nervous. He knew that in a few minutes, D’Artangnan would be warmed up, and he’d never touch him again.
This was it.
This was his last moments with him before he found out about his past.
His loves.
His family.
And if he’d moved on.
Then, he’d let him go—for D’Artangnan’s sake.
Already, he was damned for eternity, so there was no point in praying for a second chance. There was no way this man would give him that.
Ever.
He held a wicked grudge.
Look at their past.
“We have been on the hunt for pages of the family journal. We find them in the oddest places,” he admitted, sharing everything he could about the last two sets of visitors who came here.
Gryphen and Ian.
Gabby and Tony.
Now, D’Artangnan.
For seven years, Graham prayed he’d find D’Artangnan, and here he was.
He’d still yet to tell him what to call him, and he wasn’t sure if he would either.
The man was silent.
Somehow, he didn’t think that was because his tongue was tied up in knots.
Not for him, anyway.
“What we found out was Ceit didn’t jump, she was hit in the face and fell. That Duncan was nearly killed after being betrayed, and that Ciarán paid the ultimate price for his lover when they were betrayed.”
Michael stayed silent.
“Gabby just recently found out after Tony returned as she researched that Catherine, Ceit’s baby sister, moved in here and raised her nephew as her own.
There is mystery at every turn at Ravensmire.
Lastly, the job you were clearly sent here to handle.
We have bones in the water, and no name to them.
Now, you’re caught up. Welcome to the chaos. ”
Honestly, he heard him, but he wasn’t focused on that. Instead, Michael was curious.
“How did you end up here?” he asked, finally breaking his silence.
Oh, he knew what he’d been told, but he wanted confirmation, and time to stay against the man. He could feel Graham’s warm breath on his neck, and it was sending little licks of electricity to his cock.
Some things never changed.
Graham was honest.
“I had just gotten out of military service, and I was jobless. A friend of a friend told me about a private security detail for Jackson James. I figured why not. It wasn’t exactly like I had anything left in life to do.
So, I was hired, and for some reason, the man liked me.
I don’t know why, but he gave me the cushiest job in the world.
I babysit this castle, and anyone they send here.
I’m the keeper of the chaos for the Blackhawks. ”
There was silence.
Then, Graham wanted to know.
“How did you end up here?” he asked, not sure if he should ask or not. He was scared stupid the man was going to start telling him about his amazing life back wherever he’d been, and then, Graham would vomit.
At his question, Michael touched his one shoulder, and it got Graham’s attention.
Gently, he moved the feather comforter, and he saw the pucker of a bullet wound, and ironically, it was damn close to where he’d been shot before.
That made Graham ill.
Had he put his body over another lover, saving him too? Because that was the one thing Graham had to remember about their love.
D’Artangnan had been willing to die for him.
As he lay over him, bleeding out, he’d told him he’d be his one and only forever. That he loved him, and that he’d wait for him on the other side.
It hurt to think someone else might have heard those words too.
Michael shared.
“I also work for the Blackhawks. I was shot protecting Christopher Leonard. I nearly died.”
Graham’s heart thumped in his chest as it raced in fear and horror that he nearly died then too.
As he was resting against him, Michael could feel the thumping against his back.
He continued.
“They sent me here to recoup, and to hide out. This was where I was supposed to lie low.”
Graham was curious.
Something was confusing him.
“From what, exactly? It couldn’t be good since they sent you here and we’re haunted by some angry ghost that’s trying to kill people. Callen and Chris both are well aware of that.”
Michael was honest.
What choice did he have?
While he knew that Graham had never loved anyone else, and kept his promise to be true to him, Michael hadn’t. He’d betrayed them both on that front.
Oh, they’d both fucked plenty of people to survive, from what he saw on that bathroom stall wall, but Michael had jumped the gun and proposed to Riley.
He’d moved on.
Like a coward.
“It was to protect me from someone who had really hurt me.”
Graham’s heart ached.
“The person who shot you?” he asked, resting his chin on the man’s shoulder.
Well, here it came.
He was going to have to say the words, and he knew that was going to be problematic.
“No, it was to protect me from my fiancé.”
It hit like a well-aimed bomb.
In seconds, hope and the memories were decimated, as Graham knew his worst fears had come true.
D’Artangnan Graves, the only love of his life, had moved on, and had a life back home.
The second the words were out of D’Artangnan’s mouth, Graham moved, pushing him away, and scurrying to the bathroom like he was being chased.
He needed to escape.
Here came the hangover, and the cold-hard slap of reality that what was, would never be again.
Their story had an end.
D’Artangnan had fallen in love with someone else, and truly had forgotten him.
As the bathroom door slammed, Michael heard him puking.
And he didn’t know if it was the booze from the previous night, or what he’d just told him.
Because apparently, when it came to fidelity and keeping a promise, Saint Michael of the little faith had dropped the ball.
Yeah, he was no saint.
It was ironic that he’d always believed he was.
Now, the truth was out.
He was the sinner.
Oh, and he’d been a big one.
* * * The Ravensmire Castle * * *
The Jet
Landing Soon
Above Scotland
Gryphen wasn’t the one that was jazzed about coming back to Scotland.
No.
While he’d loved it here, and they were getting married here, his joy was clouded with worry over Graham—his friend.
After speaking to Michael, all he could think about was how Graham was teetering on the edge. Oh, and all soldiers were there at some point.
When you went away to war, you came back a little fucked in the head. So, while Ian was chattering away on the jet beside him, he was worried.
Ian must have been talking to him because when he didn’t answer, the man put his hand on his arm.
And it pulled him from his thoughts.
“You’re worried.”
Gryphen nodded, and palmed Ian’s cheek with his much bigger hand.
“Yeah, I am. Graham is on the edge, my love. I don’t know if we can save him. I’m scared I’m going to another funeral for a friend who was a soldier. There have been far too many.”
Ian kissed him on the cheek. He’d been chattering away trying to distract his fiancé, and it was clear that wasn’t going to work.
“We’ll save him.”
God.
Gryphen hoped.
“Then, there’s Michael,” he admitted. “I’m worried about him too. He’s been kicked around by that piece of shit reporter.”
Oh, they all wanted to go to Riley Cunningham’s home, and beat the hell out of him—Ian included.
Michael was a sweet guy, and he was always helpful and kind. When Gryphen was in his coma, Michael had sat with Ian for hours, watching over him. For the three days, he offered to stand there and never leave his side.
Because Marines took care of their brothers, and their brother’s loved ones.
Ivan had to make sure all of the security guys DIDN’T kill Riley Cunningham.
Oh, he wanted to let them, but that was problematic in so many ways for the Blackhawks.
And Michael.
“They will both be okay. We’ll land, and Gabby is picking us up. We’ll get to the castle, and play divide and conquer. I’ll take Michael with Gabby, and you and Finn handle Graham. Maybe they’ll fall back in love.”
Gryphen laughed.
“You’re adorable when you’re hopeful. Elizabeth clued me into what went down between them. Michael is stubborn as hell. It will take one hell of a miracle for him to walk back through that door.”
Ian patted his leg, the prosthetic one.
“You never know, my love. You never know.”
Yeah, that was the truth.
“What I do know is you’re glad to be going back,” Gryphen said. “You’ve got that ‘I’m going to solve a mystery’ twinkle in your eye. We’re fucked.”
Ian laughed.
Oh, his man was funny.
And right.
“What if I just said I was glad to be back so I can work on the plans for the wedding?” he asked.
Gryphen was to the point.
“I’d say you’re full of shit.”
Okay, he had him there.
“Yeah, I’m glad to be back at the mystery’s helm, doing the Lord’s work to keep Callen and Chris alive.”
Wasn’t that the truth?
“Well, just don’t get yourself in trouble,” he said. “We’ll fix this, and we’ll try to figure out what’s going on with that lake as we find the bones that are MIA. Then, we go home until Christmas.”
He kissed Gryphen on the cheek.
“Have I ever told you how much I love you, Lord Carter?” he asked, grinning.
That made Gryphen smile like the Cheshire Cat. Oh, he might just have a highlight of going back to Scotland, and it wasn’t the bones in the lake.
That was for damn sure.
“I mean, you could have called me that five hours ago,” he offered. “When I had time to enjoy that title. We’re landing soon.”
Ian grinned.
“Tonight, we’ll have some fun.”
Gryphen lifted a brow.
“Promise, Mr. Patterson?” he asked.
The other man grinned.
“Oh, you’d better believe it.”
Only, Gryphen wasn’t thinking about sex. Honestly, he was shocked too.
He was worried about the two men.
All he could hope was they didn’t wound each other’s hearts even more.
Because anger tended to be a nightmare.
Especially in that particular haunted castle.