Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 103637 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 518(@200wpm)___ 415(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103637 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 518(@200wpm)___ 415(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
Mike let go of him and slouched against the counter, squeezing his hands into fists as a whole array of emotion passed through his face. “Arden…”
“I know. It’s stupid.”
Mike pulled Arden against him and pressed a kiss to the top of his head. “He’s not gonna hurt me. And once I’m done with it, you won’t have to be afraid of him either.”
“It’s not that… I know you can handle it, but a part of me doesn’t want him gone.” Hugging Mike was his second nature. He’d fallen asleep next to this man so many times, and if he only could, he would sleep in his bed every night.
Mike went stiff and pulled away as if Arden’s skin was on fire. “You can’t still have feelings for that bastard,” he said, struggling to hold back his anger, going red.
Arden groaned. “Hate is a feeling. What I mean is that… if he’s gone, there’s nothing stopping me from going back to Reno. No excuse to be around you.” His voice dropped when he said those last few words. It was out in the open now. He’d laid himself bare and had nothing left to protect him from the consequences of such sincerity.
Mike stared at him, gasping for air. They both flinched when someone turned on loud music next door, and Mike dragged his hands down his face, as if the noise snapped him out of a trance. “You can stay here as long as you want, baby. Nobody is chasing you away on my watch.”
Arden stroked Mike’s sturdy, tattooed arm, even though he shouldn’t have. This was the problem, wasn’t it? His heart beat fast to celebrate every moment of Mike’s closeness, sang at the notion of Mike’s protection. Mike would be his anchor here, which seemed romantic in concept, but meant Arden could never move on.
It dawned on him how insane his behavior was. Had he really tried to burn himself to have an excuse to stay around a man who didn’t want to be with him? What had he been thinking?
He was out of his mind in love, and if he stayed, he’d only fall deeper, until all walls around him became impossible to climb.
“I want to go with you,” Arden whispered, tracing the fair hairs on Mike’s forearm.
Mike chewed on that for a second, then asked, “Are you sure it’s such a good idea? A lot of things might happen, and it won’t be pretty.”
“I’ve seen ugly, and he deserves it. He might have given up on me like the fucking coward he is, but he’ll just hurt some other boy. You’ll be doing a public service.” Arden scowled at the harshness of his own words, but he meant them anyway.
Mike’s nostrils flared as he frowned, staring at Arden for so long the thudding of the music became background noise. “You want him dead?”
Arden understood the weight of his words, so he took his time before answering. “Yes. But only if you’re sure you’re beyond suspicion.”
Mike shrugged and met Arden’s gaze with unnerving calm. “I know what I’m doing.”
And yet despite being such a dangerous man, Arden had no doubt Mike would never hurt him.
Maybe he was naive.
Maybe he was in love.
Chapter 21 – Mike
Mike wasn’t a born killer. He’d never enjoyed watching life leave someone’s twitching body. Even seeing light die in the eyes of Leah’s killer hadn’t given him the satisfaction he’d hoped for. Closure? Perhaps. But that man’s death couldn’t have brought her back anyway.
No. Death was utilitarian. It was the means to an end. Ensured the safety of Mike’s friends and family. And while the stink of urine made him gag as Luke writhed, fighting for breath while Mike blocked him from getting air, he didn’t have any negative feelings about this act.
Luke could have made any promises he wanted, but he wouldn’t have been the first man who ignored reason and broke restraining orders, whether those were of legal nature or not. Arden would not be safe as long as Luke lived, and even if the bastard had enough brains to give up on any retaliation against him, Arden was right—he would still target other boys.
He was a weed and needed to be removed.
Arden had refused to wait in the car, so he sat in the opposite corner of the dusky room, watching Luke die despite being pale as a sheet. Mike hadn’t thought it was a good idea at first, since Arden wasn’t accustomed to violence, but Mike had eventually agreed. As the victim, Arden had the right to see the execution if he so wished.
The house was on the outskirts of Reno, private, with the nearest neighbors far away. It had shielded Luke’s dealings from prying eyes, but it would now make his disappearance harder to notice. It would be days, maybe weeks before someone questioned Luke’s whereabouts, since he had no family, and given the nature of his assumed business, any associates would be unlikely to contact the police. He’d be gone for good.