The DJ announced that Ben and Xavier were the winners after all the votes had been tallied, which surprised no one. What happened next took everyone by surprise. Xavier dropped to one knee and asked Ben to marry him. The entire pub held their breath waiting for an answer, which first came in the form Ben’s deliriously happy smile that was followed by a jerky head nod.
“What’s your answer?” Someone from the crowd asked.
Ben grabbed the microphone from the DJ. “Yes.”
The crowd cheered for the newly engaged couple. All their close friends, myself included, gave them hugs and slaps on the backs. Well, all except Miller who mentioned something about another couple biting the dust. There was no malevolence in his words, so I had to wonder if he was really against monogamous relationships or if he just said them out of habit. I guessed time would tell.
Liam changed clothes and removed his makeup before helping out behind the bar. We were slammed for hours, but things finally slowed down around midnight. I went to my office since they had things under control. I kept finding myself glaring at the customers when they looked a little too long at Liam. I didn’t want him to think that I didn’t trust him, because I did, I just didn’t like guys flirting with him.
Probably thirty – or so - minutes later, Liam came through my office door and locked it behind himself. “I can’t wait any longer. I need a fix.” I had thought he just meant a kiss since we were still at work with customers and employees here, but I was wrong.
Liam ravaged my mouth before he dropped down to his knees in front of my chair. I knew what we were doing wasn’t right, but then I felt his hot breath through my jeans as he pressed his mouth against my straining erection. Instead of pushing him away, I helped him release my cock from its prison. I gripped the arms of my chair as his talented mouth worked up and down my dick. I wasn’t sure if it was the fear of being overheard or what, but I found myself really revved up and wanting to fuck.
I finally pulled Liam’s mouth off my cock so that I could unbutton his jeans and get to his sexy ass. “I don’t have any lube,” I told him, as I rose and positioned him to bend over my desk, looking around for anything that I might be able to use as a substitute.
“Second drawer on the right,” he instructed me. “I hid some there earlier today.” My little minx had been planning his attack and I was too turned on to wonder what else he had in store for me. “Hard and fast,” he instructed. I started to fear that my sassy Liam Connelly might be the death of me.
I slicked up my cock and stretched his opening longer than he wanted. Liam got tired of waiting and impaled himself on my cock all the way to the root. He cried out loudly and pleaded for more. I grabbed his slim hips with my hands and pulled back until only the tip of my cock remained inside him. I slammed my hips forward, driving so deep it pushed him up on his toes.
“Jack!”
“Like this, Ace?” Liam turned his head and bit his arm to keep from yelling out his pleasure, but the keening moans told me I was hitting his spot just right. I fucked him furiously just like he asked until we were both shaking with the need to come. “Come, Liam. I need you to come for me.”
That was all he needed to hear in order to let go and jet his spunk all over my desk while I released mine inside him. I laid my forehead in the slope between his shoulder blades and wrapped my arms around him, holding him tight. I should’ve been eager to get cleaned up and get dressed. I should’ve been worried about us being overheard. I couldn’t give two fucks about either thing. I wanted to hold onto him a little longer and breathe in the combined scent we made. I didn’t care if people knew what we just did, because Liam needed me and I wanted to give him what he needed.
It was a huge shift from someone who had a hard time holding hands on a public street a little over a month ago. Love changed me and made me a better man – one who knew what was important. I chuckled when Liam instructed me to retrieve the wipes he had also stored in my desk drawer to aid in cleanup. Once we were dressed, I cupped his face and kissed him.
“You go on ahead and go home. I’m going to help close down the bar and I’ll be up.”
“Are you sure?” His face was still rosy from his orgasm and his eyes looked sleepy and well fucked. Call me an overbearing, jealous bastard, but I didn’t want anyone seeing Liam’s afterglow but me.
“Absolutely.” I kissed his swollen lips one more time before I stepped back. “Be careful in the alley with all of the extra people on the streets tonight.”
“I will.”
Liam headed up to the loft and I returned to the bar. It didn’t take us long to clean and lock up. I thanked everyone for a great night and their hard work. I had a great team and I appreciated them very much. I was so busy thinking about Liam, and the way he made me feel, that I didn’t heed the warning I had given him about paying attention in the alley. I heard the crunch of gravel behind me just a second before a blunt object hit me in the back of the shoulder and head.
Fortunately for me, but unfortunately for my attacker, he didn’t hit me hard enough to knock me out because the brunt of the force landed on my shoulder and not my head. I spun around and grabbed the metal object just as he was bringing it down again. I used my momentum to shove him backwards. I head-butted his sorry ass and sent him sprawling and unconscious to the pavement below. I bent over his prone body, and used the flashlight feature on my phone to see who my attacker was, but didn’t recognize him. A driver from an expensive set of golf clubs lay beside him. The idiot chose the club with the biggest head and still couldn’t take me out, not that I was unhappy about his ineptness.
I dialed 911 to get an officer to respond and then dialed Liam so he would know why I was late. He freaked when I told him what had happened and rushed down to the alley even though I asked him to stay inside where it was warm.
“I know who that is,” Liam said, peering down at the man who was still out cold. “That’s Kenner’s best friend, Justin.”
“Your ex-boyfriend sent this poser to take me out, Ace?”
“I don’t know,” Liam said, shrugging. “It doesn’t seem like something Kenner would do.”
“Looks like we’re about to find out.” The douchebag came around and panicked when he saw us standing over him. He tried to rise, but thought better of it when he heard a deep, throaty growl. Liam hadn’t come downstairs alone and Charlie didn’t appreciate this guy attacking his human, even if the blow wasn’t enough to give me a headache. I could have been seriously injured or killed and my dog wasn’t taking it lightly. “You’d best lie still until the cops get here, dumbass.” Charlie snarled and bared his teeth just in case I hadn’t gotten my point across.
I WALKED AROUNDthe day after Jack’s attack in a fog. We were so damn lucky that Justin had sucky aim and that Jack’s shoulder took the brunt of the blow. The paramedics that arrived on the scene checked Jack for signs of a concussion and luckily he didn’t have any. It could have been so much worse; I could have lost Jack. I was so angry over the attack while we waited for the cops to arrive, but that anger turned to fear as the early morning hours ticked by and we waited for word from the detectives about the reason for the attack. Was Justin acting alone? Was it a hate crime?
Detective Sharon Regan called Jack’s cell phone at 5:30 a.m. to let us know that Justin said he acted alone and that he would not be charged with a hate crime. According to his statement, Justin had been in love with Kenner for a long time. He had thought that Kenner felt the same way until Kenner became obsessed with getting me back. Justin said that Kenner was enraged after he was kicked out of the bar and getting even with Jack and winning me back was all he could talk about.
Justin was cast aside and became resentful of my intrusion in Kenner’s life again. Apparently, Justin and Kenner were an item before I came along and they had rekindled their relationship sometime after Kenner and I went our separate ways, if they ever stopped in the first place. I had to wonder if Kenner was fucking both of us during that same time period – not that it mattered to me anymore.
Justin decided to punish me by taking away the man I loved. It hit me so hard hearing those words come through the speaker on Jack’s phone. It felt like someone had stabbed me in the heart with a hot poker. Jack took one look at my face and thanked Detective Regan for the update as he reached for me. I went into his arms while he ended the call as quickly and politely as possible.
Jack was ready to move on from the incident, but I couldn’t let it go. Not just yet. Jack could have lost his life! To him the attack was nothing, I mean, look at all of the battles he had fought in and survived. He’d seen his good friends lose their lives so the attack was merely an annoyance to him. I had never had violence hit so close to home and I was truly shaken. I tried to put up a brave front, but I lost it the minute Jack disconnected the call and wrapped both of his arms around me. Sobs wracked my body as I flooded his shirt with my tears.
