Chapter 10
TEN
CASEY
Reaching across the passenger seat, Casey snagged the paper sack with the two pints of ice cream inside of it. It would be a real shame if the Jewel Creamery deliciousness melted while Gabe filled him in on whatever his day had served up.
“Go on,” he said to Bowie, who politely waited for him at the bottom of Elton’s steps. Released from an invisible hold, Bowie bounded up the stairs, excited to see what treats Elton had for him that day.
The drive from Norskland General Store to Elton’s place took hardly any time at all, but Casey had used every one of those minutes and seconds to dream up doomsday scenarios.
Gabriel had managed to get into some kind of trouble in the ten or so hours since he’d last seen him.
And he’d gone to Elton’s to hash things out.
Gabriel spent a lot of time with Elton, so it wasn’t unusual for him to be at his place, but in Casey’s opinion, they too often enabled each other’s less-than-solid life choices. Before Gabe’s arrival, Casey hadn’t known Elton had a reckless side to him.
Over the past several months, Casey’s heart had been in his throat more often than he felt comfortable with, and he still wasn’t sure if it had been over Elton’s safety or Gabe’s.
But he’d also never seen the old man more alive than he had been since Gabriel Karne entered their lives, and Casey tried to be supportive because of that.
Even if his intake of antacids had also increased.
He shook his head slightly. Whatever had happened today, Casey reminded himself, he loved Gabe, and he too was happier with Gabriel in his life than he had ever been without. And he hated it when Greta gleefully pointed that fact out.
Inhaling a deep breath, Casey twisted Elton’s door handle and pushed. Whatever had happened, he was probably blowing it out of proportion.
But he somehow knew he was not.
“What?” Casey shot an astonished glance toward Gabe and then at Elton for good measure.
Thankfully, he’d taken the time to stash the ice cream in Elton’s freezer before returning to the living room. A body? Had he misheard? From the expression on their faces, he hadn’t.
“Murdered,” Gabe added.
“Murdered,” Casey repeated. “What the hell, Gabriel.”
“It’s not as if I committed the murder!” Gabe leaned forward, shaking his hands in the air in exasperation.
“How was I to know he’d be dead when I arrived?
Although it’s possible that I should have, seeing as it’s Monday today,” he added.
“I was thinking, why not see what the guy wanted? Could be something interesting. It’s not every day a pastor calls someone like me out of the blue. ”
“Gabriel.” Casey crossed his arms over his chest, a default response to this what-the-fuck situation.
Gabe did not appear to be affected by Casey’s reaction. He’d mentioned many times that he thought it was hot when Casey folded his arms and flexed his biceps. Maybe Casey should try more looming. Maybe then he’d get a response that wasn’t a slightly guilty-looking cheesy grin and eyebrow waggle.
“Casey.”
With a grunt, Gabe plopped back on Elton’s saggy couch and linked his fingers across the back of his head, still gauging Casey’s reaction.
Casey stayed where he was. Elton was snacking on a strand of red licorice like he was at the movies.
Bowie trotted over to lay his head on Gabe’s thigh in a traitorous show of support.
“Come sit down and let me tell you what happened.” Gabe patted the spot next to him. “Then you can tell us about your day.”
Resisting Gabriel Karne was futile. Casey scooted in next to his partner, and Bowie nosed his hand, requesting scritches. “Start from the beginning and don’t leave anything out.”
Casey grabbed the ice cream while Gabe was making Elton promise to call him immediately when he heard back from his friend Knute.
“And by anything, I mean the slightest hint. The whisper of a hint,” Gabe told Elton before they climbed into their vehicles and headed home.
Home. Casey was still amazed they’d bought a house together; he had the irrational urge to pinch himself. On the drive there, he worked very hard to hold on to that sentiment and not think about Gabe finding dead bodies with caved-in skulls.
Once home and inside, Casey stashed the ice cream while Gabe took care of feeding Bowie and Keith-the-cat. Now, Casey was eyeing Gabriel’s butt while he stuck his head in the fridge to figure out what the human contingent was having for dinner. It was a nice butt and his to appreciate.
Gabe looked over his shoulder at Casey. “One of us should probably call Mickie. Like it or not, the sheriff will find out about his connection to Wilson. I don’t think he’d want to be surprised.”
Casey appreciated that Gabriel did not use the word relationship. As far as he knew, Mickie had never met Roy Wilson. DJ Lundin had given Mickie his last name the minute he legally could, and they’d been a family until it had all fallen apart.
“I’ll call him now.” He grabbed his phone off the counter and scrolled to Mickie’s contact info. Mickie answered on the first ring.
“Yo, Case, what’s up? Pedro and I are hanging out with some of the new rescue dogs at the center. You sure Bowie doesn’t need a pal? There’s a real cutie. Her name’s Jessica, Jessie for short.”
Literally one letter shorter.
“Bowie has plenty of pals, they just don’t live in the same house.” Casey cleared his throat. Beginning was the trickiest part. “Something happened today, and Gabe and I think you should be aware of it if you aren’t already.”
“What?” Mickie’s tone immediately turned serious.
Casey heard Pedro say, “What is it?” over the barking of excited dogs.
Casey hesitated.
“Spit it out, little brother.”
He went over to the patio door and looked into their backyard. What lawn they had needed mowing and there was plenty of space for another dog. Would Bowie and Keith be okay with another dog? Did Gabe want a canine friend while he and Bowie were at work?
“Case?”
“Roy Wilson was found dead, murdered. It happened this morning.”
“Roy Wilson. Huh. Wasn’t me.”
The words were beyond chilly.
“No, we know that. Of course you had nothing to do with it. But the police might want to question you because of your relationship.” Casey winced at his own use of the word. “They have to.”
“Relationship? I don’t think a sperm-and-egg meetup counts. Wilson never once acknowledged me or gave Mom a helping hand. The man is—was—literally nothing to me.”
“Yeah,” Casey said with a different kind of sigh than when he spoke Gabe’s name. “Gabriel found his body.”
Mickie barked out a laugh. “That’s hilarious. Of course he did.”
Casey scowled. “Truly, Mickie, it’s not hilarious that Gabe was first on the scene.”
Gabe laughed and so did Casey’s brother.
“I don’t know why you two find this funny.”
“Oh, it’s not funny. Not at all. But we all know this means that your man is on the case, and that means I’ll be fine.
” Mickie sobered up and added quietly, “Rest assured, Casey, I have an alibi, and it’s not just Pedro.
I’ve been at the rescue center all day. Robbie Weiss and Lance Russell were with me.
But thanks for the heads-up, brother. I love you. ”
“Love you too.”
They always ended any conversation with those words, just like they had for almost twenty years. Their anchor phrase for the hardest years of their lives.
“How about bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwiches for dinner? We can have some of that ice cream you brought home for dessert.”
Casey set his phone down and returned his attention to Gabriel. “I’m not sure you deserve dessert.”
“Hey, I’m not the one who called me,” Gabe huffed. “But I’d like to find out who did. Was it Wilson or someone else?”
He set the head of lettuce on the cutting board, then reached up to get a pan for the bacon from the pot rack. “It’s our turn to have Mickie and Pedro over for dinner, isn’t it?”
The change of topic made Casey’s head spin. “Sure. When?”
They settled on Friday, which, according to Gabe, would give him time to plan the meal. “Since Pedro and Mickie are vegetarian these days, maybe I’ll make my signature paella and try and hunt down some zucchini to throw on the grill.”
“It’s a bit early for zucchini,” Casey warned.
His partner was doing his best to distract him with dinner plans, but Casey wasn’t falling for it, even as he continued with the conversation. Gabe had something up his sleeve—then again, when did he not?
Fingers crossed that Gabe’s meddling didn’t blow up in all their faces.
“You should know by now that you don’t have to worry about me,” Gabe said once Casey had turned out all the house lights, made it to the bedroom, and started to undress.
“I do though. Because honestly, Gabe, I’m not convinced that I don’t have to. I don’t know how you manage to get embroiled in shit like this. It’s unnerving.”
“Come here.” Gabe shot him a wicked grin and crooked his index finger. “And skip the sleep pants for now.”
Wearing only a reluctant smile, Casey tossed his flannel pj pants onto the chair and slipped under the covers.
“You’re already naked.”
“Of course I’m naked. I wouldn’t lure you into bed sans pj’s without also being in my birthday suit. Come closer.”
In the dark, with only the light of the spring moon sneaking past the curtains and into their bedroom, Casey set aside his day and his worries and rolled onto his side. A warm hand landed on his hip and Gabe tugged him closer until their cocks brushed against each other. Gabe was already half hard.
Casey inhaled sharply when the hand on his hip moved to his groin and wrapped gently around him. Every time, it amazed him how quickly he responded to Gabe’s touch, to his caresses. To Gabriel.
“Hmm, you like that.”
“I do.”