Breathe (12 page)

“I can"t let anyone else get hurt over this.”

“Over me?”

Jay folded the note and tucked it into the envelope. His hands moved slowly,

the paper treated as if it contained secrets to winning the Mega Millions lottery.

Like the kid needed more money.

“When did you start getting them?” Jay asked.

“The week after the accident. Who do you think is sending them?”

“I don"t know. Obviously someone who knew my wife. Someone who loved her.

Maybe from her family.” He drew in a deep breath. “Or maybe mine.” Odd how

easily Jay said it. Maybe he was telling the truth.

“Will they do anything to hurt my family?”

“No!” Quieter, Jay added, “I"m certain this is just to scare you, make you feel

bad.”

Was it? Or was Jay Miller trying to protect his own?

No way was Lincoln sticking around to find out. He left the bathroom and

walked out of the bar without a glance back at the one man he"d hurt most in the

world.

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Sloan Parker

Chapter Ten

“Thanks for the ride,” Lincoln said through the car"s open window.

“Not a problem. See you tomorrow.” Mitch put the car in reverse and backed

out of the driveway.

Lincoln waved good-bye and trudged up the steps. The new job sucked. Not the

job itself. Hard work never bothered Lincoln. It was the stares, the whispers, the

lack of eye contact.

Mitch had gone out on a limb to get him the job. Lincoln had to give the man

credit. People were going to talk, and it would"ve been easier to avoid the entire

situation than back Lincoln with a job offer. The least he could do was not complain

about some assholes.

The house was quiet as he stepped inside. Unease settled in his gut. The house

was never this calm. Not with three kids. The words from the note Jay Miller had

shown him in the bar"s bathroom replayed in his head. He strode down the hall and

stopped just short of slamming Jessica"s door in when he heard her giggle.

He breathed deep and stepped back. He didn"t need to scare the shit out of the

kids. All for what? Typed lines of text meant to torment more than anything else?

Was that all it was? Should he call the police?

No. The look on Jay"s face in the bar the other night said all he needed to

know. The man didn"t deserve the hassle of questions from the cops. And what if

someone in Jay"s family or his in-laws had sent the notes? They were people Lincoln

had hurt. People who had been through enough pain.

He went to the kitchen and pulled out the fixings for a sandwich. He was

slathering on the mayonnaise when he caught sight of the piece of paper taped to

the front of the fridge. In the middle of coloring book pages, school spelling lists, and

pizza joint magnets was another note, the front typed with one name:
McCaw.

His hand shook as he reached for it. Nancy wouldn"t just leave it hanging there

for him. No envelope, no address. This one hadn"t come in the mail.

Someone had been in the house.

He yanked the note off, the piece of tape giving way and ripping the corner of

the pristine paper. He flipped it open.

You should keep a better eye on your family…and their medical necessities. She

can’t breathe all that well without her inhalers, huh? Such a shame. I hope more

don’t end up missing.

Breathe

59

Lincoln crushed the note in his fist and stormed toward the bedrooms. This

time he didn"t hesitate. He shoved in Jessica"s door. She sat in a small plastic chair

at a table no taller than his kneecaps, Davy opposite her. The boy"s surprised,

mortified expression could"ve been from the way Lincoln had busted into the room

or because Davy wore a pink feathered scarf around his neck and an equally pink

cowgirl hat. Mr. Wuzzie, dressed the same in purple, sat in a chair between the two

kids. All had miniature yellow teacups and plates of chocolate brownies on the table

in front of them—even the plush toy.

What mattered to Lincoln was the inhaler sitting on Jessica"s bedside table.

Right where it was supposed to be.

Davy"s lips were smothered with chocolate. “I just wanted the brownies.” He

pointed at his sister. “She wouldn"t let me have any unless I played her stupid

games.”

“I didn"t use the kitchen oven,” Jessica said. “Honest, Uncle Lincoln. We used

my little oven this time.”

Lincoln found his voice. “You been in here since school ended?”

“Mostly,” Davy said. He unwrapped the scarf from around his neck.

“Anyone come by the house?”

Davy snatched Mr. Wuzzie"s brownie and said, “Nope.”

Lincoln wanted to rip the chocolate snack from the kid"s hand and throw it

across the room. He held back the instinct. This wasn"t their fault. It was his. “You

didn"t answer the door or anything?”

Jessica shook her head.

Lincoln backed out the doorway. “Where"s Adam?”

“In his room,” she said. “Davy! You can"t have no more unless you play right.”

Davy wound the scarf around his neck again and took a bite of the brownie

he"d confiscated.

Lincoln left them to their party and headed to the living room. He did a once-

over on all the windows and doors, checking for signs someone had broken in,

locking each one he found unlatched. Any number of them offered a way into the

house.

He"d have to replace a couple of the windows or they"d never lock securely.

He"d also install dead bolts on the front and back doors. First chance he got. He"d

need to give Nancy a reason for messing with the locks. The truth would work best.

He didn"t want any uninvited guests. She"d assume he"d mean her asshole husband,

Mel. He would. But he"d also mean whoever had taken the inhalers and left the

damn note.

Once he had the place locked as tight as it was going to get for now, he went to

Adam"s room. He knocked and pushed in the door as soon as Adam hollered, “Yeah!”

The kid sat at a desk with open books before him, texting on his cell,

earphones in his ears, bobbing his head to the
thump-thump
of whatever his

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Sloan Parker

generation called music. Explained the kid"s scream for a hello. Didn"t he

understand how headphones worked? Lincoln could hear fine. It was he who needed

to scream at the kid.

Adam made no move to remove the music from his ears. Lincoln pulled the

earphones out with one tug on the cord that hung at Adam"s chest.

“Hey, I was listening to that.”

“You can listen later. I need to talk to you.”

“Okay.” Adam kept hitting buttons on his phone.

Lincoln gave his limited store of patience a reminder the kid was a teenager.

Finally Adam hit the Send button and gave Lincoln his attention.

“I need you to do as I say and not ask questions about it.”

The phone beeped an alert for a new message. Adam read the text. If he

pressed so much as one button, Lincoln was going to lose it. A total stranger had

pissed him off. He didn"t need the kid pushing his luck.

Maybe Adam got the message. He dropped the phone to the desk. “Okay.”

“Stay inside the house with your brother and sister until I get back. Don"t open

the door for anyone. And don"t let them out of your sight.”

“Something wrong?”

Lincoln took a step closer and lowered his voice. “I"m taking care of it, but I

don"t want them scared. I need your help.”

“All right.” Adam stood. “I"m coming.”

As he walked by, Lincoln bent his head until Adam met his gaze. “I"m counting

on you.”

Adam"s wide eyes scanned Lincoln"s for a minute. Then he said, “I"m on it.”

Lincoln gave Adam"s shoulder a pat. “I knew you would be. But first I need you

get online and look up an address for me.”

* * *

himself into. He rolled off the couch and onto his hands and knees on the living

room floor. The pounding caused a reciprocal throb in his head.

Todd could be such an ass sometimes. He had called the morning before and

left a message. He always worried whenever Jay didn"t call him back right away.

“Hang on! I"m coming.”

That didn"t stop the banging.

Jay unlocked the door and turned the knob. The door busted in on him,

shoving him backward. He stumbled, but caught himself before he ended up on the

floor.

Lincoln McCaw barreled in, kicked the door shut with the heel of his boot, and

hauled Jay up against the wall. The man growled, and the sound muted into words.

Breathe

61

On every other one, he thrust Jay"s shoulders against the wall. The house wasn"t

built for such abuse. “I know what I"ve done to her. To you. To your family. But I

swear to fuck if anyone hurts my sister and her kids—”

Jay shoved at Lincoln"s chest. “What are you talking about?”

Lincoln gripped his biceps tighter and slammed him against the wall.

“Someone left another note. Inside the house. They stole her inhalers. She couldn"t

fucking breathe. This has nothing to do with her.”

“Who?”

“My niece. She"s five years old.”

“Oh God.” Who would take things that far? It couldn"t be someone Jay loved.

“Is she okay?”

“For now. I don"t care what I"ve done or how much you all hate me. No one is

hurting them.
No one
. Not your family. Not her family.” He released one of Jay"s

arms and jabbed a finger at his face. “Not you.”

Jay searched Lincoln"s eyes. The anger leaped out like a flame and burned

him. “You think I"m the one doing this?”

“The thought had crossed my mind.”

He swatted the finger away and shoved Lincoln again. “Fuck you. And to think

I felt sorry for what you"re going through.”

Lincoln staggered back a couple of steps, his eyes wide and focused on Jay"s.

“I wouldn"t hurt a little kid,” Jay said, then quietly added, “I wouldn"t hurt

anyone.”

Lincoln charged forward and crowded Jay against the wall. Before Jay could

stop him, Lincoln crushed their lips together.

It was the harshest kiss Jay had ever had. Lips, teeth, tongue, the scrape of

male facial stubble against his chin. Damn, he wanted more. He clasped Lincoln"s

neck and tugged the man closer. He opened his mouth wider, taking in more of

Lincoln"s tongue.

It seemed Lincoln liked that. He pressed his groin against Jay"s hip. The man

was hardening right there, touching him. Jay slunk a hand between them and

squeezed Lincoln"s dick. That brought out a moan, and Jay"s own cock firmed inside

his jeans. God, he wanted to know. Needed to know. He slid down the wall to his

knees.

Lincoln dropped a hand to his head. “You shouldn"t… We shouldn"t…”

Jay ignored him, got the man"s jeans open, and lowered his underwear.

Lincoln"s cock looked larger than it had felt in his hands at Sonny"s. He wrapped a

hand around it and stroked as he pushed the briefs farther down. He leaned in and

ran his tongue over Lincoln"s balls. The heated flesh, the salty taste. So damn good.

He opened wider and sucked a ball into his mouth, letting it fill him.

Lincoln worked the fingers of one hand through Jay"s hair and stroked the

back of his head. Not rough. A caress. A promise.

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Sloan Parker

With that soft touch, all denials, all arguments, all hope of fending off what

might be, were gone. Jay would not deny himself this. This—he had waited too long

for. He grazed his fingers over the length of Lincoln"s cock and palmed the base.

What did other guys like? What did other people do? He"d only known the touch of

one person"s mouth on his dick.

No—that was no longer true, was it?

Lincoln had tasted him. The man had been damn talented at it too.

Could he translate the sensations to actions?

“You don"t have to.” Lincoln"s voice was husky, deeper than a moment before.

Jay almost laughed at the words, but he had other priorities. He parted his

lips and gave an openmouthed kiss to the tip of Lincoln"s cock, tonguing his way to

the bottom ridge of the crown. He couldn"t stop himself. He opened wider and

sucked in more, moistening the head, taking a deeper taste with his tongue,

savoring the feel of another man inside him.

“Don"t tease.”

He pulled off. “Not teasing. Feels good.” He knew he"d like it—like having a

man"s dick in his mouth.

“I knew that mouth would be great at this.”

The words spurred him on. He took in more of Lincoln"s cock. He wanted to go

all the way down but his natural instincts kept it a remote wish. Another time.

With more practice.

But there couldn"t be more. Just this. Just now. Nothing more. He"d take as

much as he could. He"d enjoy each moment, each sensation until it was over.