Shadows and Ash: Pulp Friction 2014 Finale Page 13

  Scott thought briefly about what he’d heard from Danny when he’d visited the disabled and disfigured firefighter in Phoenix a couple of months earlier. Danny had revealed he’d intended to die—he hadn’t planned to take anyone else with him—just remain behind the retreating Hot Shots in order to commit suicide by fire. And ironically, his effort to hang back was the reason he and Scott had been the only survivors. Telling these two idiots that Danny had been suicidal wouldn’t bring back Clay or any of the others. Danny had suffered enough, and it wasn’t relative to discovering who was behind the fires at Mountain Shadows this past year. His anger boiled up and spilled over.

  “You might not believe this, Driscoll—but I’ve spent a good part of this past year in total agreement with you. I tried fucking hard to join my brothers in May when that cabin caught fire—I somehow thought I didn’t deserve to live. I fight a bit of that battle every day. Travis. Trent. Clayton. Eric. There are nineteen names on that memorial wall in Prescott—not just your brother’s. Not one of them deserved to die. Not one. They all had families, loved ones, friends, partners. Not one of them went into that fire believing it was his day to die.”

  Scott swallowed the bile that threatened to choke him, and Rob’s hand tightened, offering comfort. “I fucking hate that. Hate it. But there isn’t anything I could have done differently that would have changed the outcome for them.

  “You want to know about fate and why Danny and I lived? Well, fuck you! I want to know too. But no one is going to tell me…no one on this earth has the answer. All I can do is go on…live life knowing my brothers would want me to. I’m the last man standing. The only firefighter from that crew who still has a chance at a normal life—and you’ve done your damnedest to take that away from me. From the crew.” His voice dropped to a harsh whisper. “From Clay.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  For a moment that seemed to stretch into a lifetime, Rob stood at the foot of the bed, wearing nothing but a thick white towel wrapped around his waist, and watched his lover sleep. The last three nights had been an unhappy reminder of just how empty his life was without Scott. Remembering Scott’s words never failed to send tendrils of warmth pulsing through him.

  “There isn’t anything I don’t want to do with you, Robby. Not one damn thing. There’s time enough, though. All the time in the world.” A year ago, with those words like a promise between them, Scott had rolled over, accepted the draped arm around his waist, and fallen asleep. Rob had wanted to run from the room. There had only been one certainty in his life: he couldn’t be with Scott McGregor.

  Nearly a year later, they no longer were reduced to guilt-ridden stolen moments on the couch in the main lodge—now they slept tucked tight together in their own bed—in their own home.

  Hair spiked in all directions and still damp from his shower, Scott lay on his side, his right arm curled under his pillow, his left hand tucked between his knees. The three-day beard from his hospitalization stayed, giving him a rough, slightly unkempt look that was sexy as hell. Reminding his dick to settle down and let Scott get his rest, Rob dropped his towel to the floor and climbed onto the bed to spoon against his lover’s back. He buried his face in the crook of Scott’s neck and breathed deeply.

  This is what home smells like.

  Moaning deep in his throat, Scott rocked his hips back and forth.

  “Thought you were asleep.” He wrapped an arm over Scott’s chest and pulled him closer.

  “Mmm…was. Now, I’m not. Don’t want to sleep through my own homecoming. Did you miss me?”

  “Were you gone? I didn’t notice.” Rob couldn’t hide the laughter in his voice.

  “Oh, good, then you won’t mind if I go back to sleep.” Then he ground his ass against Rob’s cock once before starting to snore.

  Scott’s act was foiled and his breath hitched in his throat when Rob stroked his cock. “You were saying…errr…snoring?”

  Scott laughed. “Are you playing all week? Because I could use a few more jokes.”

  “I bet.” He shifted his hand to stroke along Scott’s arm. “I’m sorry about springing Driscoll and Drummond’s relationship on you earlier.”

  Scott snorted. “No, you’re not. But I suppose I’ll have to forgive you. No doubt you had your reasons.”

  “Well, no, I suppose I’m not sorry. I am sorry I couldn’t warn you though. Honey, there wasn’t any doubt you were surprised by the news—both their plan to steamroll you and about Carl’s murder. Anyone could have seen it was news to you. And even though the murder and the fires may not end up being related, they needed to step back to get some perspective.”

  “Did you know Dennis would go straight over to the detectives after you read him and Driscoll the riot act? What exactly do you think he told them?

  “Cops, firefighter, military—men or women—they’re still fraternal organizations. I wanted to push Dennis as hard as I could with a visual reminder of what he was doing to a fellow firefighter. I believe once Dennis reevaluated his family situation, he was able to look at the evidence more objectively. My guess is he told the detectives that the fire investigation would now take a broader approach and they should consider connections between the fires, the vandalism, and Carl.”

  “Do you think Jilly’s holding up okay? Did we do enough?”

  Rob blew out a breath. “I think we’ve done all we could for today. Her father might have been killed, but she’s not going to be mourning his loss. The investigators accepted her story that they’d been estranged and she had no idea what he was doing here at Mountain Shadows. He was in and out of jail during her childhood, her story makes sense. Given his history and with me as her alibi last night, they probably won’t spend a lot of time looking at her. The most likely scenario is someone from his criminal past followed him here.”

  “Speaking of that…it’s kind of funny how everyone here had an alibi…” Scott tried to roll over, but Robby tightened his embrace.

  “Just worked out that way. Stranger things have happened. Thank god everyone was inside and you were at the hospital, otherwise they’d probably have tried to pin that on you too. Now enough small talk for tonight…”

  Rob cupped Scott’s jaw and lifted his face so they were facing each other despite still being spooned, front to back. Their mouths met, a gentle reminder of the comfort of home they found within each other. Sliding their tongues together, Rob took every breath from Scotty, every sigh and moan, just as lost in their kisses as he had been all those months ago when they’d first rediscovered each other.

  Rob pressed even closer, licking Scott’s neck behind his ear, moving forward to stop just below the rasp of beard. “Mmm…scruffy…” he murmured. “Love that. Love you.” He captured Scott’s mouth again, claiming, owning, then surrendering as Scott’s tongue pushed inside. While the kiss spun out slow and easy, Scott shifted his hips, creating a rhythm.

  Finally tearing his mouth away from the intoxicating kisses, Rob turned enough to grab the lube on the nightstand. Keeping Scott on his side, he traced a finger down his lover’s spine, until he reached the crease. He pressed a lubed finger to Scott’s tight ring and was gratified when his lover relaxed to let him in. Wasting no time, Rob slicked his cock and entered Scott in one long stroke. When he was nearly balls deep, he wrapped his arms around Scott’s waist and pulled him back another inch, completing their union.

  “Unnnh,” Scott half moaned, his words lost as his ass fluttered around Rob’s cock. “So full.”

  “So tight,” Rob agreed. He rocked his hips, a slow push in, a slower drag out. Small movements that increased the friction incrementally, not enough to bring either of them over the edge. “Could do this forever.”

  “Not without more lube,” Scott whispered. “Besides, eventually I’d want to drive.”

  “Anytime,” Rob agreed, his heart light to hear Scott making jokes. Everything about the past three days had started for the wrong reason…but maybe—just maybe Scott was going to get the help
he needed to put his nightmares to rest forever. Even after the shock of discovering what Driscoll tried to do to him, Scott seemed at peace. He wasn’t quite free of the investigation yet, but he was damned close.

  Crossing his arms over Scotty’s chest in a full embrace, Rob savored the feel of his lover in his arms. The brush of chest hair, the broad shoulders, strong back, legs tangled. There wasn’t a part of them that wasn’t touching.

  “How did I ever think I could live without you?” Rob whispered against Scott’s ear. His breath puffed with each stroke, and Scott moaned softly for him. “Going to do whatever I need to do to take care of my family. Not going to let you down again.”

  “Never…let…me…down,” Scott managed between gasps.

  For a long moment the only sounds in the room were gentle huffs of breath, soft moans, the slide of skin against skin. “Always need you with me, Scott.”

  Seeming to catch on to Robby’s mood, Scott wrapped his arms over Rob’s, adding an extra layer of hug to their embrace. He’d wanted long and slow, sweet and timeless, yet as if of their own accord, his hips moved faster, snapping against Scott’s ass. Scott clenched around him, meeting Rob thrust for thrust. Quiet grunts punctuated their movements, side-by-side, fitted to each other, moving as one. Stars started to form and flare behind his lids, his heart rate climbed, balls drew up tight.

  Forever turned into right-the-fuck-now. Rob disentangled his arms and reached for Scott’s cock, pumping him in time with their thrusts, until Scott shuddered, his ass gripping Rob and carrying them right over the edge together.

  When his breath returned to normal, he tangled Scott’s hair around his fingers and tugged back just enough to allow him a look at the deep blue eyes. “Love you, Scotty. I’m going to spend my life showing you.”

  The wrinkles fanned from Scott’s eyes as he gave Rob a smile. “I can be very demanding, you know. It might take a while for you to convince me…”

  “There’s time enough, Scotty. All the time in the world.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Christmas Eve day broke cold and clear, but Scott was having difficulty believing he was actually here in the large dining room at Mountain Shadows and not back at the hospital or worse—in some jail cell. Yesterday’s hearing could have gone so wrong. Three days in a comfortable—if sterile—room, undergoing interviews and participating in a couple of group therapy sessions hadn’t been nearly as awful as it sounded. Considering the alternative had been jail for assaulting an officer…it hadn’t been bad at all.

  Scott didn’t really remember much of the incident—certainly there had been no intent to hurt a cop, just to reach an injured Mick. He’d wanted to find the officer and apologize for pushing him out of the way, but his attorney had nixed the idea a fraction of an instant after Scott made the suggestion. Maybe later. Once all possibility of charges were officially dropped.

  With the immediate threat of jail behind him, he could focus on keeping his mind relaxed and firmly in the present—not reliving a past he couldn’t change. Not that he’d ever admit his anxiety to Rob. His lover was already wound up tight, his nearly black gaze in constant motion searching for any sign of trouble. From the moment he met Scott outside the hearing room, he’d been by his side, ready to insert himself between Scott and any perceived threat.

  Scott pushed aside Rob’s coffee cup, drawing a look and a smile from his lover. He gripped Rob’s hand. “I’m home and okay. Mom will be here with the kids and dogs in a few minutes and we have our first family Christmas to celebrate. You can relax.”

  “Relax? Do I look tense?” Rob asked, appearing genuinely surprised.

  “You look like a cop. What can go wrong now? We’re in the dining room of the lodge, Jilly made fresh cinnamon rolls, we’re going to be surrounded by friends and family tonight for the party.” Scott rubbed his thumb over the back of Rob’s hand. “Is it your mom? Do you wish she was here too? Because I really did try, you know…”

  Robby blinked. “My mom? Oh Jesus. To be honest, I’d completely forgotten that’s where you’d gone. Was she as horrid as we expected?”

  “I suppose horrid is one description. Her prediction of the coming apocalypse was as shrill as usual. I’m sorry, honey. For all of it…for outing you years ago, for trying to apologize to her…hell. I’m sorry for her. The funny thing though—despite your parents’ beliefs—you still turned out pretty damn fine. In my opinion.”

  Rob laughed softly. “You’re right. It wasn’t all bad. My dad was an outstanding soldier, and I learned a lot from him. Leadership, honor, loyalty…he taught me a lot of good skills. My mom was always there when I came home from school. We had the home-cooked meals, family time, even when my dad was deployed. On bases there were always friends…it wasn’t all bad,” Rob repeated.

  “No, not until I fucked it up by telling them about us…”

  Rob threaded their fingers together before he turned and faced him directly. “It’s important for me—and for the kids—to remember they weren’t all bad. But, honey, they were wrong. We can’t change how they found out about me—about us—it could have happened a hundred different ways. It wouldn’t have mattered. My dad was married to his career and my mom was in love with being an Army officer’s wife. I was a prop, something to complete the stage set. They were going through the motions of raising a child—but when I didn’t fit the script, they moved on as if I’d never been there. So no apologies—no looking back.”

  The sound of a car door outside was followed by shouts of laughter and barking dogs. Scott smiled into Rob’s intense gaze, and warmth spread all the way to his toes. “They’re home,” he smiled.

  “They are,” Rob agreed. “And you should know, my trip to your mom’s went much better. She’s agreed I can have your hand in marriage.” His broad white smile lit up his face. “She’s no doubt going to ask to see your ring. Should I get you a solitaire?”

  Scott laughed. “Let’s skip to the honeymoon…”

  “No way. The kids have it all planned. I’m sure you’ll hear all about it tonight.”

  As they stood, a truck horn gave three sharp toots. “Oh! They’re all here, Siggy and Maddie, too,” Jilly said as she raced past them, running from the kitchen to the front door.

  This should have been a moment of joy, but instead Scott felt a flash of panic. What did he know about giving kids a great Christmas? What if he hadn’t bought enough presents? Hell, in all the commotion of the last few days— “Shit, Robby! We were supposed to get a tree last weekend. And I still need some stocking stuffers…”

  “Dad! Dad! Scott! Come here!” Sam’s voice carried on the early morning air.

  “Daaaadeeeeee!” called Kat.

  “Mommeeee!” shouted Maddie.

  Deep booming barks and a high-pitched yapping joined the excited barking of Teddie and Bear, nearly drowning out the kids.

  “Holy shit—what’s going on out there? Come on, let’s go see…”

  As they neared the door, Rob stopped short and pointed upward. “Mistletoe.” He grabbed Scott’s shoulders, then pulled him into a kiss that curled his toes. When he finally released him, Rob’s eyes were dancing and a smile played about his beautiful lips. “Let’s get the kids and go see if we can find a Christmas tree lot still open in Flag,” Rob said.

  They stepped outside and Scott had to blink a dozen times before he could take it all in. Apparently overjoyed to see each other again, Maddie and Kat were dancing in a circle with the two Newfoundland not-so-small pups and a Great Dane. Damon was tossing Sam in the air, threatening to dump him head first in a small snowbank. Siggy had scooped Jillian into a bear hug that left her squealing. Most surprising was the horse-drawn sleigh, looking right out of a Currier & Ives painting.

  “Hey there, Scott. Rob.” Tanner sat in the top seat, reins held loosely between his fingers. Next to him sat a familiar-looking man in a red suit, white beard…and pink crocs.

  “Ho ho ho…all good kids climb into my sleigh. Come on, you to
o, Damon!” Santa said.

  Tanner shook his head and smiled at Jillian. “If you don’t mind, we’re taking the kids for a ride. We have blankets and cocoa. And Scott? Is it okay if we cut a tree for the party tonight?”

  Scott nodded, but before he could speak, his mother stepped forward. “Only if you have room for a grandma,” said Molly McGregor. She clambered into the back of the sleigh and Maddie and Kat piled on top of her. With a serious case of hero worship, Sam sat next to Damon, who was unsuccessfully trying to hide his grin.

  “Hi, Mom. Bye, Mom. Have fun everyone!” Scott called.

  With a shake of the reins and a merry jingle of bells, Tanner signaled they were ready to leave. “Hey, Rob, guess what,” Tanner yelled as the sleigh turned. “It looks like I’m gonna get to keep the Trip-T!”

  “We’re going to start a rescue ranch. So ho ho ho and Merry Christmas,” Santa added, the pint-sized Chihuahua on his lap barking in agreement.

  ***

  Everyone sat around the lodge, looking at the huge tree they’d just decorated. Charlie glanced over at Amos, who was chatting with Damon and Jilly, and wondered for a moment… No. Amos was too gentle a soul to do something like that. Isn’t he?

  Deciding not to worry about it, he sat back—when there was a knock on the door. Being closest, Charlie rose and answered.

  “Good afternoon. Is Scott McGregor here, please?” Charlie recognized the detective who addressed him—Andy Graves, a guy he’d gone to school with and dated for like a minute and a half—but not the other officer. He thought the third man—a pissed-off-looking man with a pinched face—looked like one of the insurance guys that had been nosing around the property for the past few days. Driscoll? Something like that.

  “Sure. Come on in, Andy. I hope this is a social call, not more harassment of my friends.” Charlie turned and called for Scott.