Chapter 17 - Marcus
MARCUS
He had his dick sucked by a dude.
Staring up at the spinning fan above his bed, Marcus wondered how this had happened.
He had gone into the brush to take a leak, then the next thing he knew, he was shooting his load down Gavin’s throat.
Marcus ran his hand through his hair as he continued to stare up at the spinning blades.
Did this make him gay? Bi?
Or was he just another horny straight dude looking to get his balls drained?
College dudes exchanged “brojobs” all the time, didn’t they?
College dudes.
What a bunch of fuckin’ wimps.
Every time he saw them working out at his gym, he just wanted to go over and punch them in their perfect, straight teeth.
They were either drooling over themselves as they flexed their muscles in the mirrors around them. Or they were filming themselves, then checking their post every fifteen seconds to see if they got any likes.
Marcus wanted to show them his likes—right between their fucking teeth.
The gym was a place to work out, not admire yourself in the mirror like some small-dicked college jock, trying to validate his existence through the power of social media.
On second thought, just because college jocks exchanged “brojobs” wasn’t a reason to confirm he wasn’t gay. He was pretty sure all those “college jocks” were secretly gay for gay men’s dick.
Getting back to the face-dicking he had given Gavin earlier this evening. Yup, he was pretty sure that his dick was trying to tell him something.
First, he had never been so fuckin’ hard in his entire life.
Second, he had never enjoyed a blow job the way he had when Gavin was going down on him.
Was it the boy’s skills? Was it the public setting? Or was it something deeper?
Whatever it was, he kind of wanted to experience it once again.
But should he?
He wasn’t gay. Was he maybe bi?
Nikolai and Caden had both thought they were straight as well, but look at them now.
Dick swallowers all the way.
Was he just like them? Discovering late in life that gay sex was the way to go?
Or had he always been into dudes but just hadn’t really thought about it?
Letting out a breath, he turned to glance at the clock on his nightstand.
Two a.m.
Fuck this. He threw the sheet off his body and got out of bed.
The moment he opened his bedroom door, he froze.
Sitting against the wall, just outside the door, was Gavin, puppy in lap, stroking his head.
“Oh, hey,” Gavin said, suddenly startled.
Anger and guilt flashed through Marcus, pulling him in different directions. Anger at the piece of shit who had caused this. And guilt because he had closed his bedroom door, essentially telling the boy he wasn’t welcome.
“Still can’t sleep?” Marcus asked, standing in the doorway in nothing but his underwear. This was quickly becoming his dress of choice.
Gavin shook his head, staring down at the puppy nestled in his lap.
Marcus hated seeing him like this. He stuck out his hand and offered it to the boy.
Reluctantly, Gavin took it and let Marcus help him to his feet.
“Hop into bed. I’ll get us some bottles of water,” Marcus instructed.
He nodded, then headed into Marcus’s bedroom.
“And the dog sleeps on the outside of us. I don’t want no nasty doggy ass pressed up against me while I sleep,” Marcus barked from the kitchen. He grabbed two bottles, then made his way back to his bedroom.
When he got back, Gavin was already in bed, lying on the left side with the puppy cuddled up in his arms. Marcus placed one bottle on Gavin’s nightstand, then walked around the bed and placed the other bottle on his.
He wasn’t thirsty anymore.
Lifting the sheet, Marcus slid in next to Gavin. He lay there for a minute, wondering whether he should say something.
“I really hate that I’ve become like this,” Gavin whispered, his back still to Marcus.
“Like what?” Marcus asked, propping himself up on one elbow.
“Like this. A chicken shit. Every time I close my eyes, I see his smiling face glaring down at me in the dark. I was never like this. So weak and pathetic.”
Marcus slid in closer and wrapped his arm around Gavin and the puppy.
“Hey, it’s not your fault. You survived something traumatic, so it’s only natural that you’ll feel scared and vulnerable. I hoped that buying you that puppy might help to comfort you. I’m starting to realize that you won’t feel completely safe until Sheriff Burke captures that monster.”
Gavin nodded.
“I just keep thinking how close I came to being killed. The man had me alone… in his house. He drugged me and was basically steps away from slitting my throat.”
Marcus tightened his grip on Gavin. He understood what the boy was saying. He wasn’t sure what else he could do, other than letting him sleep in his bed at night.
Nuzzling his chin into Gavin’s neck, Marcus leaned in close and whispered into his ear, “You’re safe now.
I won’t let anything bad happen to you, ever.
” He wasn’t sure if he could promise ever, but he was damn sure going to try.
“Tomorrow, I’ll call Sheriff Burke to see how the investigation’s going. ”
“Thank you,” Gavin whispered as he relaxed his back into Marcus’s chest.
This was only temporary, Marcus told himself. Once Sheriff Burke and his team caught the Valentine Killer, Gavin would feel safe once again.
And if Burke couldn’t find the bastard?
Well, that’s when Marcus and the boys went hunting.
“So, you got nothing?” Marcus growled into the phone, trying his best to keep his voice down while he bit Sheriff Burke’s head off through the phone at the same time.
Gavin was still sleeping, and Marcus didn’t want to wake him. Lord knows the kid needed some sleep.
“We’re getting there. We swept through his house and now know the killer’s real name is Clive Trent, and he used to work as a drilling engineer before he got let go six months ago. I wouldn’t say that was nothing,” Burke argued through the phone.
The killer had given Gavin a false name when he met him—typical for someone who planned on murdering you a few hours later. Why share your real name?
The more he talked to Burke, the more he wanted to shove this Clive’s face through a wall.
Until this asshole was caught, Gavin would never feel safe again.
“What about other potential victims? Don’t you want to capture this guy before he snatches up another victim?”
“Of course we do!” Sheriff Burke barked back. “I’m sorry this is taking so long, but we have steps that we need to follow. Otherwise, even if we do arrest him, the courts won’t find him guilty. We need this man locked up.”
That was the same thing Nikolai’s better half, Reid, told Marcus when they were trying to take down a human trafficking ring not too long ago. The criminal justice system sucked and seemed to work only for criminals, not victims. That wasn’t right at all.
“Trust me, Burke, you want to find this guy before I do,” Marcus snarled. The thought of that monster almost extinguishing the lights of such a sweet, funny, and annoying twink filled Marcus’s veins with rage.
There was a long pause on the other end of the phone.
Was Burke actually considering his offer?
“I’ll keep you posted on any progress we make on our end. Let me know if the boy becomes too much for you to handle.”
“No, that’s not it. The boy is fine, and he’s safe. I just want to catch this scumbag before he hurts anyone else. Monsters like this guy don’t deserve to be breathing fresh air.” They don’t deserve to be breathing at all.
Marcus let out a sigh.
“Just let me know what I can do on my end to help you out with your case. Gavin is doing well here, so don’t worry about him.”
Burke let out a chuckle.
“He’s annoying the shit out of you, isn’t he?”
Marcus looked over his shoulder toward his bedroom, half expecting Gavin to be standing there, watching him.
“More than you know,” Marcus noted with no heat in his voice.
The truth was, he kind of liked having Gavin around. The spitfire, little bundle of energy, always found a way to keep him on his toes. There were many similarities between Gavin and his brother, Ace, and having Gavin in his home just felt… natural. Warm and inviting.
Marcus couldn’t put his finger on it, but being around the guy somehow made him feel whole again, like he wasn’t missing something from his life.
He felt needed and wanted, and the way that those blue eyes looked up at him while they were swallowing his dick… was pure want and desire.
Desire.
Marcus always thought of himself as rough and tough, a true alpha male when it came to getting naked in the bedroom.
But seeing the way Gavin looked at him… made him feel so…
“Who are you talking to?” a groggy voice asked from behind him.
Marcus couldn’t help the tiny grin that pulled at his face. His boy was awake.
Ending the call, Marcus placed his cell phone down on the kitchen counter.
“Sheriff Burke. Just getting an update from the guy.”
Gavin rounded the counter, with the puppy following at his heels. The little guy was stumbling over himself, trying to nip at his master’s feet.
“And?” Gavin asked, pressing his arms against the counter as he waited for an update.
“And… they’re making good headway. It shouldn’t be too much longer.”
He didn’t have the heart to tell Gavin that Burke and team were fucking useless, and that the monster of his dreams was still out lurking in the shadows.
No, for now, it was best to keep things positive.
The Shadow Vipers would continue to protect the boy, while Marcus secretly worked out a plan to hunt down and take that motherfucker out.
It seemed that lately, the Shadow Vipers were in the business of unaliving people.
Well, at least they were all bad guys who deserved every last stab, bite, explosion, or poison that they received.
Staring into those gentle, vulnerable eyes, Marcus knew he was treading in dangerous territory. He needed to protect the boy, but he also couldn’t help that awkward feeling that was beginning to grow just beneath his rib cage.
“So, what do you want for breakfast? I can make eggs and sausage?”
Gavin gave a tired groan.
“Just kidding. I’ll make you a kale smoothie and lawn clipping salad.”
The sweet sound of Gavin chuckling filled the room.
“Sounds delicious.”
Yes, it sounded delicious… didn’t it? He should probably buy a vegetarian cookbook to finally figure out what those weirdoes ate. If he was going to keep this one fed and entertained, he should probably know what they regularly consumed.
He turned to his cupboard, opened it, and started rummaging inside.