Inside and outside his head.
He was bleeding. This was it. The moment he’d stuck around on this Earth for was over. But so much had happened betweenhis decision to join his son and now, he’d changed his mind. He wanted to stay alive. No. He wanted tolive.
This is how Max died. Cold and alone.
Except I’m not alone.
“Finley!” Kage’s voice was next to him, his touch on his back, under his elbow, helping him stand up. “He’s been shot! Call an ambulance.”
A wave of unexpected calmness washed over Finley and the woozy feeling in his head made him stumble. Kage was whispering something in that low, soothing voice of his, words like “you’ll be fine, my love” and “I love you so much, you can’t leave me” that Finley wasn’t sure if he was imagining it.
“Wait.” Another familiar voice.
Finley refocused his gaze to see Mat, in a suit as black as night, his hands folded over his chest, looking suave despite being soaked as he stood propped against a fancy BMW parked on the side. He pushed off it and tapped his phone.
“Of course Mat couldn’t make it to my show, but he wouldn’t miss a party like this.” Latif’s annoyance made Finley snort a laugh, despite the pain pulsing through him.
“Mat?” Finley groaned. “Wait for what?”
Mat strode towards them, splashing mud over his designer suit. “Let’s take my car. I know a doc who won’t ask questions. He’s expecting us.”
“He owes you a favour?” Kage asked as they scrambled to the back seat of Mat’s car, soiling the black leather with blood and mud.
“Nah. Even better. He works for my uncle. He’ll patch you up in no time”
Finley nodded, grinding his teeth in pain.You’ll have to wait for me longer, Max.
Chapter Twenty-One
Kage
Finley will be okay.
Kage repeated the words like a mantra. The previous evening had shown why Kage had been shielding himself from relationships. His heart had been shattered beyond repair and his head fucked up in the span of a moment.
Seeing Finley shot, blood oozing from his arm, then passing out on their way to the hospital had felt like a bucket of ice water over Kage’s head. He’d mumbledI love youa hundred times into Finley’s hair wishing he’d said it before and been able to see his lover’s face at the confession. He’d been trembling, holding Finley’s unconscious body as tight as he could, as if simply being there could keep him alive. Something he hadn’t done for Rohan. No, he’d passed out and had been not only unable to helphimself but couldn’t hold his boyfriend’s hand, cradle his head, and tell him he’d loved him one last time.
The fear of losing Finley had unearthed the true feelings he’d been trying to bury for months since he’d first started to fall for the man. Kage was broken, and maybe staying with Finley would be selfish, but their lives were intertwined now. Kage would do anything to get over his past so he could become someone Finley deserved.
Shuffling through the hospital corridor that smelled like bleach and misery, Kage balanced two cardboard cups of coffee in one hand and two with tea in the other. His hip was killing him, the pain shooting through his entire leg, but going for a walk to get his head screwed back on had been more important. He didn’t have his cane with him, but his pills were lining the pockets of his trousers. He’d take a few soon with the tea.
The doctor had sedated Finley to extract the bullet from his arm, but Kage wanted him to have fresh tea when he woke up. The coffees were for Mat and his husband, Peyton, who had arrived when he’d heard the news.
The voices coming from Finley’s room suggested he was awake again, this time sounding more lucid than before. Kage paused by the open door, not wanting to interrupt.
“I’ll make sure they get what they deserve in the can and more,” Mat said, his tone like cut glass. “Nothing can bring your son back, but I hope this will give you peace. You were a friend when I needed one the most.” He reached for Peyton’s hand and his husband leaned into him, causing his purple crop top to ride up even higher, exposing his lean waist. “I’m a call away if you ever need help.”
“I wish you two got to know Max.” Finley said, his voice still groggy. “He would have adored you and treated you like brothers.”
“Me too,” Peyton said. “From what you’ve told us, he was a hoot. We’d get into trouble and you’d be so mad.” He smiled and patted Finley’s shin through the sheet.
“We’re going home to Barbados tomorrow, but I’ll be back in a couple of weeks. We should catch up then.” Mat wrapped his hand around Peyton’s waist, splaying his fingers over the tanned skin.
“Definitely.” Finley perked up as his eyes landed on Kage at the door. “Is that tea?”
Kage chuckled, relief filling him at Finley’s smile. “Yeah. And coffee for these two.” He handed the cups out to Mat and Peyton, set the teas on the table, and took a seat on a chair next to Finley’s bed.
With his good hand, Finley patted Kage’s cheek, scraping his nails over the stubble there. Finley had never seen him in such a mess, unshaven and with hair sticking out in all directions. Latif had dropped off a change of clothes for Kage, but he hadn’t wanted to leave Finley’s side to go home.
