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somewhere to spend the night. He wouldn t sleep a wink without knowing Tanner was safe,
regardless of where he ultimately chose to stay.
Pyromancer 95
Since the police had kept him and Tanner separate while they gave their statements,
Christian wasn t sure where to find him. He figured the easiest way to find out was just to
ask. As he was being led through a labyrinth of cubicles and dim hallways by one of the two
uppity cops who d interviewed him, Christian turned to the man and asked,  So, where is
Tanner? He s going to need a ride home& or well, somewhere.
The cop -- whose name Christian couldn t pronounce -- turned his nose up higher, if it
was even possible, and said,  He s already left.
 What? Christian sputtered, coming to a standstill in the middle of the hallway.  How
did he leave? He didn t have a car. Where did he go? His damn house burnt to the ground.
 I m not his keeper, Mr. Ryder. You ll have to find your little boyfriend on your own.
He sneered and pointed to a red exit sign above the door at the end of the hall.  There s the
exit. I d advise you stay in town, Mr. Ryder. We ll be in touch. With that, he pivoted on his
shiny shoes and stalked back toward the direction from which they d come.
Christian wasn t sure what to think as he walked into the boisterous lobby -- filled
from wall to wall with people from all social classes as they waited for only God knew
what -- and used one of the two pay phones to call for a cab. He waited outside, a headache
brewing behind his eyes, and tapped his foot impatiently on the cracked edge of the
sidewalk.
Standing in the midst of a halo of light from the lamppost above, Christian sulked and
wondered what he should do. He could try to find Tanner, but barring the kid s house, he
didn t know the first place to look.
The mind-boggling drama of the day coalesced and weighed heavily upon on his
shoulders, bogging down his body and mind until all he could think of was finding his bed
and falling into a comatose heap for the next twelve hours. He couldn t control Tanner s
actions; he couldn t even manage to hold his own eyes open. All he could hope was that
Tanner would come to him if he needed something. There was nothing else he could do.
He d almost convinced himself he was okay with letting Tanner go -- if that was what
it took to make the kid happy -- by the time the taxi pulled up outside of his driveway. He
asked the cabbie to stop at the gate and paid, keying in the code after the car pulled away.
The short walk up the driveway depleted what miserly amount of energy he had left, leaving
him weak-kneed as he climbed the stairs of the porch.
As he slipped the key into the lock, Christian was startled by movement to his right.
He looked up and saw Tanner slumped over, his head resting against one of the porch rails,
fast asleep. He felt the tension flow out of his body, the muscles in his back and neck relaxed,
making him realize just how worried he d been about him.
He crossed the porch and knelt down at Tanner s side. His lover looked so serene, thick
lashes fanning out in a smooth arc over fine porcelain skin. Christian brushed his fingers
over Tanner s jaw, taking pleasure in baby-soft texture of his skin.  Tanner, pretty, wake up.
96 Amanda Young
 Mmm. Christian? Tanner groaned and his eyelids slowly lifted.  God, how long have
I been asleep? My neck is stiff as hell.
 I don t know. I just got here. Christian moved around behind him and sat with his
back against the rails.  C mere. I ll see if I can work it out for you.
Tanner scooted over between Christian s thighs and leaned back against him.  They
must have kept you longer than me. I thought -- well, when I came out and you weren t
there, I just thought you d finished early and left without me. When I got here, I just figured
I would wait you out, you know. Must have fallen asleep.
Christian worked at the tense muscles in Tanner s shoulders and upper back, squeezing
down in rhythmic waves, trying to work out the stress of the day.  Guess so. You should
have known I wouldn t just leave you stranded there, pretty. That s not my style.
Tanner moaned and shifted, pushing his ass back against Christian s groin.  I know. I
wasn t thinking. There are just so many other things taking up space in my head tonight.
 Want to share some of those thoughts with me?
Tanner shrugged and just like that, all the tension Christian had worked out of his
muscles returned.  Not really. I feel like I ve already gone over everything a zillion times.
Christian moved his thumbs in tight circles over the back of Tanner s neck.  I d really
like to know what s going on. You could at least tell me how you ended up tied to a chair in
the middle of a damn bonfire. I want to know who hurt you. Please.
Tanner sighed, snuggled back against him, and began to talk. Christian wrapped his
arms around the kid and listened, his teeth biting into his tongue hard enough to draw blood.
His anger built with each whispered word, every shudder that passed through Tanner s slight
frame as he recounted the horrific details.
If he could just get his hands on the bastard who d dared to threaten Tanner& which
brought up another point.  What did the cops say?
 They said they d look into it. Nigel wasn t in the system, but from the description I
gave them, they felt certain it was an alias of another con. I had to look at some photos and
ID him. His real name is -- get a load of this -- Harry Trickles. It s no wonder he uses an
alias. Tanner paused.  He has a rap sheet as thick as a phone book, everything from petty
theft to aggravated assault and pandering. The police said they would put out an APB on him
and shouldn t have any trouble charging him with the fire and assault on me. The attack,
however, is a lost cause. They said that as long as I can t remember, there isn t enough to
proof for the district attorney to charge him with anything. Not without a full confession,
and I don t have to tell you how slim the chances of that are.
 That s fucking bullshit, Christian shouted, hugging Tanner tighter. He was just so
fucking thankful the kid was all right, there in his arms, where he could keep him safe.  That
bastard better hope the police find him before I do, or& 
Pyromancer 97
Tanner craned his neck around and met Christian s eyes.  Or what, Christian? You
gonna kill him? Spend the rest of your life in jail over some fuck who doesn t deserve the
price of a bullet? Don t be stupid. Let the police can take care of it.
Christian huffed, but he knew the kid was right. He was being stupid. However, that
didn t calm the irrational urge he had to hit something, to track the guy down and tear him
to itty-bitty fucking pieces with his bare hands.
Tanner twisted at the waist and angled his chin up.  Kiss me.
Christian was happy to oblige, grateful for the distraction from the impotent rage he
felt over not being able to protect his lover. He brushed their lips together, in more of a tease
than anything else, and flicked his tongue over Tanner s mouth, wanting a taste of the kid.
Even as tired as he felt, it wouldn t take much stimulation before he d be begging Tanner to
lie down on the cool, wooden porch and let him have his way with him. There was just
something about the kid that brought out the perpetually horny teenager side of Christian s
personality.
His dick rapidly rising to the occasion, Christian pulled away. Tanner swiveled around
in his lap and straddled him, pushing their groins together and running a trail of hot kisses
down the side of Christian s neck. Christian groaned and tightened his grip on Tanner s hips,
trying to still the downward grind before he lost his mind to the sweet sensation of Tanner
in his arms, moving against him.
They needed to talk, not fuck. No matter how much his dick disagreed.  Stop, pretty.
We really need to talk.
 No. Tanner panted, running his tongue around the shell of Christian s ear.  No more [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]