Cover Up (21 page)

He backed away as silently as he could and bounded into the house. He pushed past several men accompanied by scantily clad women with full makeup and four-inch heels. None of these people bore any resemblance to what he imagined Parker’s friends to look like, but what did he know? Maybe they were clients.

That thought sobered him up a little, and he pushed into the living room, searching. He finally found Parker, pressed up against the wall by a dark-haired man about the same height as Parker, but more muscular. They were kissing, and Parker was writhing. Anger flooded his mind, and he wrenched the guy away from Parker.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Ivan wasn’t sure which of them he was talking to, but the big guy answered.

“I saw him first.”

“So what?”

“So you can just move along before I bust your face open.”

Whatever. Just because this guy had won a couple of bar brawls, he fancied himself a fighter. But his stance, intimidating to a novice, was all wrong.

“Just because you saw him first doesn’t mean jack shit, asshole.”

A vein ticked in the guy’s forehead, and he cracked his knuckles. Which wrestling show had he picked that up from?

“What did you call me?”

“Like I’m the first person to call you that. Drama queen.”

He took his eyes off the guy for a second to stare at Parker, which is when the guy chose to make his move. Ivan took advantage of his momentum, blocking his punch and slamming him into the wall. The guy dropped to the floor, moaning and clutching his head.

Ivan ignored him. The loser wasn’t going to be any more trouble, and he didn’t give a shit that the whole party had paused to stare at their altercation. None of them mattered. Only Parker mattered, who’d been kissing this asshole while his
boyfriend
had been blowing some other dude outside. “Who the hell is that, and what the hell is going on here?”

Parker stared down at the big guy for a moment before he stepped over him, approaching Ivan. “I think he said his name was Bran? Brad? Not sure.”

Not sure. He’d been kissing some guy, and he didn’t even know his name. The anger bloomed brighter, and he curled his hands into fists. With the alcohol numbing him, he barely felt the knuckles he’d cracked earlier. Punching anyone, even Brad, wasn’t going to make anything better. Parker reached out to touch his arm, and Ivan stepped back. He couldn’t let Parker touch him. He couldn’t.

“Neil invited some people over for a party.”

“Oh, really? And does he know what you were getting up to with Brad?” Ivan shook his head. He couldn’t get into this at the moment, not while staring at Parker’s kiss-swollen lips. “Never mind. But next time, I expect to be informed about any prospective party. I live here too.”

Neil sidled up beside Parker and wrapped an arm around Parker’s waist. How had Ivan missed him entering the room? “It’s Parker’s house, he can do whatever he wants. He sure as fuck doesn’t need your permission, Ivan.”

They stood beside each other, both of their lips swollen, Parker’s from kissing and Neil’s from his recent sojourn with another guy’s dick. Ivan shook from the effort of not letting his fists fly. When Neil smirked at him and kissed Parker’s cheek with those lips that had minutes ago been wrapped around a stranger’s dick, Ivan’s hand flew to his side.

Clarity wiped away his anger in seconds as he realized how close he’d been to throttling Neil. Parker had his emotions all twisted around, and he was out of fucking control. If he’d had his service weapon on him, Neil would have a bullet hole in him, and that scared the mad right out of him.

He stared at the two young men. As much as he wanted to leave the house, he couldn’t be seen to retreat that far. He nodded sharply at them and went upstairs.

Behind him, Neil spoke. “Brad, you okay? That’s just Parker’s weird roommate. Old guys can be such a fucking drag.”

The weird roommate. Also unstable, he’d proven that without a doubt. This investigation was full of win.

P
ARKER
scrubbed at his lips with the sleeve of his shirt and tried not to grimace while Neil helped Brad off the floor. Brad was like every other guy Neil had introduced him to. Grabby, arrogant, and assuming he’d bend over for anyone who claimed they had a big dick. Unlike most of the others, Brad was into kissing, but unlike his recent experience with Ivan, kissing Brad was… not good. Besides the slobbery kissing, the guy stank. What was it about guys with a bit of cash to flash? Never thought they had to be considerate or even fucking clean.

Staring at the stairs where Ivan had escaped, it took Neil elbowing him in the ribs to get his attention.

“What?”

Neil glared at him. “Really? You like the closeted old fart, don’t you?”

Parker shrugged. He and Neil had never had the same taste in guys, for which Parker had taken a lot of shit. Even with the way they’d left things last, and after Ivan’s strangely violent outburst, he liked Ivan a hell of a lot more than Brad. He couldn’t forget those nights eating dinner together, watching movies. Hanging out together or with friends. Smoking-hot sex. That was the kind of relationship Parker wanted. The relationship he’d envisioned having with Ivan.

“Try not to let anything get broken, okay? I’m going to bed.”

“To bed? Not alone, I’m guessing.”

The scathing, contemptuous look Ivan had directed Parker’s way didn’t bode well, but he wanted to clear the air between them, if he could.

Without a backward glance, Parker ascended the stairs. Aside from Neil, he hadn’t known a single person at the party, and he didn’t give a rat’s ass if any of them thought he was rude.

On the second floor, Parker stood between the two closed doors. The house was well built—the music, loud downstairs, was sufficiently muted upstairs that neither he nor Ivan should have trouble sleeping. He should just go to bed, but he wasn’t tired, and the tension between him and Ivan was so shitty, especially compared to the way they’d meshed so well together. Story of his life, but he didn’t want Ivan to disappear like other prospective boyfriends had. Music or not, if he didn’t clear the air with Ivan, he wouldn’t be able to sleep for worrying about it. And if he was awake and worrying, he’d have to add the alarming stack of cash that had materialized amongst his papers. Which was incentive enough to take a few more steps toward Ivan’s closed door.

Parker licked suddenly dry lips, sucked in a deep breath, and knocked. And waited. He let his breath out. Waited some more. Had he knocked hard enough? Had Ivan heard him? Surely he hadn’t managed to fall asleep in the ten minutes it took him to come up.

He glanced around, as though someone might see him being a complete dork, then pressed his ear against the door. Silence, not even the undertone of voices on television, reached his ears.

He raised his hand to knock again, but jumped back when Ivan yelled “What?”

“Can I come in?”

The muted grumble might not have been an affirmative answer, but Parker chose to take it as such and turned the knob.

Ivan sat on the bed, a towel wrapped around his hand, first aid tape on the nightstand.

“I didn’t realize you’d hurt yourself.” Although now that he was paying proper attention, he remembered a flash of white on Ivan’s hand during his scrap with Brad.

“I, uh, did it earlier, but I made it worse.” Ivan’s gaze skittered over the room, landing everywhere but on Parker.

Parker sat down beside him and lifted Ivan’s hand into his lap. He peeled away the cool, damp towel, revealing the curling tape of a previous wrap job. With care, he pulled away the tape. The bruising was bad, but there were only a few scabs.

“How’d you manage this?” Punching people wasn’t something insurance agents did in the course of the day. Not for the first time, he wondered just how well Ivan’s job was going. Maybe they could work something out with the rent to ease the financial burden.

“I, uh, owe you a repair for the wall in the kitchen.”

Parker squeezed Ivan’s hand in surprise and he gasped in pain. “Oh, sorry.”

Ivan had punched the wall? When? Why?

“Don’t you have a party to attend?” Surly Ivan had suddenly turned into petulant Ivan.

Parker quickly finished the wrap job. “It was Neil’s party. I didn’t know anyone. I’d rather stay up here with you.” There. He’d put himself out there for a change, his heart fluttering.

“You knew Brad. Sort of.”

Parker frowned and tried to catch Ivan’s eye, but failed. Clearly, Ivan didn’t care about what he’d said. “Neil’s forever trying to set me up with his friends. Brad was just a bit pushier than most.”

Ivan sat up straight, then bounded off the bed and towered over Parker. “Neil tries to set you up? For God’s sake, Parker. Why do you put up with that? And he’s cheating on you too. You deserve so much better than that.”

He didn’t even know what to say. Ivan was angry at him and on his behalf, all at the same time? For a full minute, Parker stared at Ivan, trying to make those words make sense.

“Neil’s not cheating on me. We’re just friends.”

Ivan froze. “He’s not your boyfriend?”

A few tendrils of anger wove through his brain. Clearly Ivan thought he was a cheater too. “I know not everyone believes the same, but I wouldn’t cheat.” And he was a little hurt Ivan would think that of him.

Ivan reached a hand out to touch his cheek. “I’m sorry.”

“For?” He’d had enough confusion and he didn’t want any more crossed wires.

“I…. My….” Ivan’s face blanched, and he shook his head as though trying to clear his thoughts. “Sorry. I’ve been burned before by someone cheating on me.”

Couldn’t have been his wife, or she wouldn’t have been able to take him for everything. “Have you… did you cheat on someone when we….” It wasn’t entirely impossible that Ivan was already seeing someone else. Or what if he’d been cheating on his wife with a man he cared about?

“No. I would never. I mean….” Ivan sighed and sat down next to him. “I wanted you ever since I met you. I started liking you. I hated myself for giving in the other night, because I thought you were taken.”

The brittle edge of tension Parker had carried smashed to pieces and disappeared. “Which is why you said it was a mistake and would never happen again.”

Which meant, just maybe, he could have Ivan. For his own. Roommate turned boyfriend—a bit cliché, and perhaps a little too soon, but he wouldn’t object. Not with Ivan. Parker already cared, so much.

“Yeah. I didn’t want that, for either of us, but I couldn’t resist.”

This time when Ivan cupped his cheek, Parker turned into the caress. Ivan trailed fingers along his jaw, the faint scrape a little embarrassing as he’d been in such a hurry to leave that morning he’d forgotten to shave.

“Couldn’t resist?” Other guys had said that before, but he’d never believed them. Always sounded like a cheesy line, but Ivan was so damned sincere. Ivan’s lips curled up in a tiny, knowing smile, and he trailed his fingers down Parker’s neck to dip under the edge of his shirt. The first stroke over his collarbone had Parker gasping, quickly followed by an enthusiastic response in his groin.

Within seconds, they were naked, Ivan’s comfortingly warm weight pressing him into the mattress. Ivan smiled down at him before he swooped down, lips moving over Parker’s.

Ivan’s arousal rubbed against his, and Parker’s mouth opened on a groan. Ivan’s tongue delved deep, and Parker sucked on it.

They writhed together, Parker’s passion feeding off Ivan’s, growing and filling the room. The last time hadn’t been a fluke. This was what sex was supposed to be like; this was what he’d been missing with his past boyfriends and one-night stands. Ivan was so fucking hot, but that wasn’t it. Ivan was a good guy, and he treated Parker so well. Made him sexier than anyone he’d ever met.

Ivan slid his lips down, his tongue darting out, tasting Parker’s neck. He shifted, trapping Parker’s erection against those firm abs. Ivan lifted his head, a wicked, devilish smile curving those skillful lips. Before he could ask what Ivan was up to, Ivan dropped his head and licked Parker’s collarbone.

“Ivan, fuck.” Parker ground his hips up, his cock sliding against Ivan’s belly, the fuzz creating a delicate scrape along the sensitive flesh.

Those lips moved down, and without hesitation, Ivan sucked down Parker’s dick. Twisting the sheets in his fists, Parker moaned and spread his legs. It had been so long since he’d been fucked by anything other than toys, but if Ivan kept up this delicious torture, he’d be done. And he wanted—needed—to prove himself worthy of Ivan’s attention.

“Stop, please.”

Golden brows creased as Ivan lifted his head. The air chilled Parker’s wet, overheated skin.

“What’s wrong?”

Parker squirmed. “Nothing. But I’m close, and….” Could he say it? Could he come out and say it? But he didn’t have to. Ivan’s eyes darkened, and his hips bucked against the bed. They were definitely on the same wavelength.

Light strokes along Parker’s length kept his desire high while Ivan stretched for the nightstand. He dropped lube and condoms beside Parker, the plastic bottle cold against his skin.

Ivan’s tongue swiped away the clear precum welling in Parker’s slit while he opened the foil packet and slid the condom on himself. He grabbed the bottle of lube and flicked the top open.

“How often do you use that dildo in your drawer?”

Lust had heated Parker’s skin, but he still managed an additional embarrassed flush. The toy was surprisingly close to Ivan’s proportions. “Often enough.”

Ivan’s eyes crossed briefly, and he bucked his hips again, clearly as eager to fuck him as Parker was to get fucked.

“Hurry, please.” He wanted Ivan so badly he was about ready to crawl out of his skin.

With a throaty growl, Ivan slithered up to align their bodies. One hand slicked Parker, then slathered more lube over the condom. Settling between Parker’s legs, Ivan guided his cock to Parker’s hole, the tip exerting only the slightest pressure against his body. This time, Ivan’s smile was lustful, yes, but also so sweet, so full of tenderness.

“Just relax,” Ivan whispered before he leaned down and captured Parker’s lips. His cock slid inside while Ivan’s tongue fucked into his mouth.