“What the hell is going on, Boss?”
He couldn’t see what was happening behind him, but the man who was directing him through the house took a step forward as if he had been pushed, and the one behind him growled an interesting combination of swear words in multiple languages. At least Rio assumed they were different languages. He recognized Italian, German, and Arabic.
“Stop here,” Cade’s boss ordered. Without taking his hand off Rio’s shoulder, he opened a door.
Cade kissed you against that door last night.Rio swallowed down the snort that wanted to escape. Kissed him… or fucked him last night if you wanted to be technical and now was what? Arresting him? Kidnapping him? His father was going to be pissed as fuck.
“I was on down time, Boss.” Cade muttered, as the man holding Rio directed him across the garage to another door.
“Shut it.”
Once through the door, Rio was pushed into what reminded him of one of those indoor runs you found in boarding kennels for dogs. Multiple other cages ran down the length of the room; from what he could see, some of them held lockers and had some shelves with various weapons and other military-like gear.
“Three,” Cade’s boss cuffed Rio to the metal bar farthest from the door and patted him down, no doubt checking for weapons. “You take first watch with Six. He’s waiting for you outside. No one comes in here unless I say so.”
Rio tugged at the cuff, the sound of metal on metal echoing in the room.Shit. Now what do I do. Who the fuck are these people?His eyes met Cade’s, and Rio hoped his ‘eat shit and die, because you are a dick,’ death stare was working today. Asshole should have let him leave last night.You have no one to blame but yourself, you could have left then too. But no, he had wanted to fucking pretend to be a normal gay man, with a regular everyday life, and for once he had given into the urge to snuggle. Bah, idiot.
“But—”
“Now!”
The man’s voice lowered to almost a whisper, at Cade’s questioning of his order. Rio knew he was going to be pissed if Cade didn’t go.
“No.” Cade widened his feet. Squaring up to his boss, “This is not how we do things. I was on vacation, and now we are caging him like a dog.”
“Wh—” The bossman moved until he was blocking Cade’s view of Rio.
“Go.” Rio leaned slightly to see around him, making eye contact with Cade. “I have done nothing wrong, they can question me all they want.”
“You might be sorry you said that.”
The second man spoke. He leaned with one shoulder against the side of the cage as if he didn’t give one fuck, never mind two, about what was going on. But Rio knew a predator when he saw one. Rio just shrugged in response. He had learned from the best of them. Never let a predator smell your fear.
“No.” Cade stubbornly refused.
Seriously, what the hell did he have to gain by staying here. It was obvious from what Rio had overheard that these guys knew who the men in the picture were. That meant that they would want to know everything. He could tell them nothing. His father didn’t trust him much. He tugged his hand, rattling the cage. “Bring me some pants, please.” he asked Cade. “Then do as he asks.”
“It’s not right.”
“Doesn’t matter if it is or not,” Rio blew out a breath, “Fact is, it’s happening, so we deal.”
Cade slammed his eyes shut and echoed Rio’s exhale, “I fucking hate this.”
“I know.” Rio spotted the bossman opening his mouth as if to say something, but the other man shook his head, and he shut it again. Hmm… interesting dynamic there. Was the other one the boss and not the big one who looked like a mountain? Because the one who looked like he came off the set of Sons of Anarchy sure hadn’t appeared like he was in charge a few minutes before, but now the first one deferred to him. He asked Cade again, “Please, get me some pants?”
“Okay.” Cade finally agreed. He pointed a finger at each of them, “Do not fucking damage him.” Then he turned and left the room.
“What the fuck just happened?”
“I think Three just fell.” Biker dude snorted.
“Fell?” the boss asked. “Fell off what?”
Rio watched the back and forth between them. He didn’t make a sound. The last thing he wanted was for them to get started on whatever it was they were going to do until he was dressed in more than Cade’s T-shirt and boxershorts.
“Idiot,” Biker dude led the way across the room and opened a locker. There, he pulled out a hardback laptop and some other equipment. “Fell for him. Fell off the market.”
“You’re fucking kidding me?” Bossman turned to pinned Rio with a stare, “With him?”
