Absolution (The Protectors, Book 1) (22 page)

Mace

I actually stumbled when I walked into the private room that the police officer had pointed me towards. The cops had told me what had happened when I arrived at the hospital, but they hadn’t fully prepared me for the damage that Eduardo had inflicted upon Jonas. A large gash that had already been stitched was just above his left eye and his left cheek was bruised and swollen. Bruises also covered almost his entire neck. When he saw me, he stood on shaky legs and it took every effort not to embrace him too hard because I didn’t know if there were other injuries I couldn’t see.

“Cole?” Jonas asked.

“Still out,” I said quickly. “My parents are with him. His father too.”

“Just a couple more questions, Mr. Davenport, and we’ll be done,” the police officer who’d been questioning Jonas said.

Jonas sat and I wrapped my hand around his as I pulled up a chair next to him. The cop had only agreed to let me in the room with Jonas if I didn’t interfere with the interview.

“When you say Mr. Santero threatened you, did he have the knife out?”

I felt Jonas squeeze my hand hard before he said, “I…I don’t remember. It all happened so fast. I couldn’t breathe. I saw it when he went after Ronan.”

“And Mr. Grisham shot Mr. Santero in the knee first?”

Jonas nodded. “Ronan came up to me to make sure I was okay and that’s when I saw that Eduardo had the knife.”

The police officer nodded. “Thank you,” he said as he stood.

“Officer, Ronan saved my life.”

“The arrest was standard procedure. This was a clear cut case of justification. I’ll talk to the D.A. as soon as I get back to the precinct and I’m sure we’ll have Mr. Grisham out of there in a few hours.”

As soon as the police officer left, I stood and drew Jonas into my arms. “Are you hurt anywhere else?” I asked.

Jonas shook his head. “He saved my life, Mace.”

I forced some air into my lungs. Knowing I’d come so close to losing both of my men today was threatening my ability to stay upright. I’d been going on adrenaline from the time I’d heard Jonas call my name and seen Cole covered in blood and I knew when I did crash, it was going to be mind-numbing.

“Did Eduardo cut you anywhere else?” I asked as I examined the wound over Jonas’s eye.

Jonas stilled. “There was no knife,” he whispered. “Ronan planted one on him afterwards.”

“You told the cops-”

“I get it now,” Jonas interrupted. “Men like Eduardo…they don’t stop. They never stop. He would have kept coming after me. Ronan knew that.”

I leaned down to press my lips against Jonas’s head. “Are you okay with covering for him?”

I felt Jonas nod against my chest. “I need to see Cole,” he said.

I nodded and took his hand and led him out of the room.

“How’s Cole’s dad?”

“Struggling,” I admitted. “I was lucky enough to find him relatively lucid when I got to their house.”

The encounter with Cole’s father had been an ugly one. Mostly because I hadn’t been content for Cole’s father to just agree to come to Chicago with me to see his son. I’d shown the man no mercy when I ripped into him for putting his grief and his need to drink above his own son. If he’d been drunk, I knew I never would have gotten through to him, but he’d been aware enough to hear my words and when I warned him that he stood a good chance of losing his son today, I’d gotten a glimpse of the man I knew Cole had idolized.

“I need to talk to the staff here and see if they can help him detox so he can be near Cole as much as possible while he recovers.”

Jonas tugged me to a stop. “He agreed to get sober?”

“He agreed to try,” I clarified. “I think it’s the most we can hope for.”

I got us moving again and when we got to Cole’s room, I was disappointed to see there’d been no change. My parents both stood as soon as we entered. Calling them had been one of the hardest things I’d ever had to do, but I’d known that if I expected Jonas to find a way to get past the punishment he was inflicting upon himself for what had happened to Cole, I needed to do the same. And truthfully, I’d needed them. As much as I needed to be strong for Jonas if the worst happened, I needed them to be strong for me.

As soon as my dad had answered the phone and I told him who it was, he began crying and I heard him call my mother’s name. There’d been lots of shuffling of the phone as my dad put me on speaker, and then my mom had said my name and the familiar sound had washed over me, and I’d had to sit down in one of the waiting room chairs because my knees had gone weak. To my parents’ credit, they hadn’t asked a lot of questions when I said I needed them. They had just asked where and then they’d told me to hold on, that they were on their way. I hadn’t told them I was involved with two men but I’d figured they had probably come to that conclusion themselves by now considering I told them the man I loved had been shot and then a minute later they’d seen me kiss Jonas.

“There’s been no change,” my father said as he embraced me and gave me his seat. My mother enfolded Jonas in her arms and asked him if he was all right. Jonas hugged her back and I couldn’t help but think how right he looked there…he’d needed a mother for so long and he finally had one. My parents left us with the promise that they would be in the waiting room since there was a limit to how many people could be in Cole’s room at once.

Cole’s father had pulled his chair up as close to Cole’s head as he could get and was stroking his son’s hair. He kept repeating, “I’m here now,” every once in a while. I could see his hands shaking and I knew I would need to talk to the staff sooner rather than later, but I needed a moment to drink my fill of Cole. While he hadn’t necessarily improved since I’d left, he hadn’t gotten worse and the doctors had assured us that that was a good sign. I knew Cole was a fighter and I knew he had a lot to fight for. I just hoped it was enough.

I had my answer an hour later when Jonas shook me awake and I saw Cole’s eyes were open and looking straight at us.

* * *

“Are you sure you’re up for this?” I said to Cole as I helped him out of the car.

“How many more times are you going to ask me that?” Cole groused even as he leaned heavily against me until he got his balance. I helped him up onto the curb and Jonas immediately took his hand. I managed to close the car door without releasing my hold on Cole and I didn’t remove my arm as we began the short walk up the path.

“You can let go now, I’m good,” Cole said.

“I know you are,” I responded but I didn’t remove my arm. Cole shook his head and smiled.

In the four weeks since Cole had been released from the hospital, he’d gotten used to Jonas and me hovering over him. He’d complained about it at first but when he’d realized it was mine and Jonas’s way of making sure he was still really with us, he’d relented and let us mother him.

We’d ended up moving into Cole’s parents’ house after leaving Chicago because it didn’t have a lot of stairs and because we knew Cole’s father could use the support. The man’s discipline and drive had been exactly like his son’s, and while he’d struggled terribly during his withdrawal period, he’d never wavered and he’d managed to visit Cole on multiple occasions while he remained in the ICU. We’d stayed in Chicago for the two weeks that Cole remained admitted and I’d taken Cole’s father to daily AA meetings. Once we’d gotten back to Connecticut, we’d found Cole’s father an outpatient rehab program that would help him deal not only with his alcoholism, but with his grief over the loss of his wife and daughter as well.

Cole’s father had admittedly struggled to understand that his son was involved with two men, but he’d come around quickly as he realized what Jonas and I meant to Cole and he to us. But living under the same roof with Cole’s father had put a moratorium on sex even after the doctor had given Cole the all clear. Whenever we started sniping at each other for even the most trivial of infractions, Cole and I would head down to Jonas’s studio where he’d go during the day to paint and insist he take a break. His bed was a tight fit for the three of us but that only forced us to try a bunch of new positions.

Jonas’s safety had continued to be a concern in the days that followed Eduardo’s attack, especially after Mateo was released from jail since the D.A. had had to postpone the Grand Jury hearing until Jonas was in a position to testify. I’d called Ronan the day we’d learned that Mateo had gotten out and asked him if he could spare some men to help me watch Jonas, but he hadn’t answered. After several hours with no word from Ronan, I’d been in the process of calling Mav and some of the other men I was on a first name basis with to see if they would help me off the books when I got a text from Ronan that simply said,
It’s done
. I had an idea of what he’d meant but it wasn’t confirmed until I watched the news that night and saw the story about the pimp who’d been released from prison only to be shot and killed a day later in a drug deal gone bad.

I hadn’t known that Ronan had stayed in Chicago after he’d been cleared of any charges relating to Eduardo’s death, so I hadn’t had a chance to thank him. I’d finally managed to reach him a few days after Mateo’s death, but he’d brushed off my efforts to thank him for everything he’d done. I’d ended the call by telling him I was out and he’d simply said, “I know,” and hung up on me.

“Down here,” I said as we reached the third row of grave markers. Jonas turned into the row and led us down it until I told him where to stop.

I drew in a deep breath at the sight of my son’s headstone. It was the first time I’d seen it since the funeral and while the pain of his loss radiated through me, it no longer felt as insurmountable as it once had. Jonas released Cole’s hand and stepped forward to place a bouquet of flowers in front of the headstone and then he came around to my other side and wrapped his arm around me. It was my favorite position – me between the two of them.

Jonas had only ever wanted me to be whole but I knew now that whole for me meant being a part of them.

“Happy birthday, Evan,” I said quietly as I reached into my pocket and pulled out the Matchbox car and stepped forward to place it on the top of the smooth marble headstone. I let my fingers linger there for a moment before stepping back. Jonas leaned his head against my shoulder and Cole wrapped his arm around me as they gave me the moment of silence I needed to remember my little boy. I didn’t bother to imagine what Evan would have been like at fifteen, just like I no longer dwelled on how or why he’d been taken from me because the what ifs of life served no purpose. I focused on the time I’d had with him and as I began accepting my loss, I started sharing those memories with Cole and Jonas.

“Mace?”

I turned at the sound of my name and felt a wave of heat pass through me at the sight of Shelby standing at the end of the row, a baby in her arms.

“Shel,” I breathed.

Although I’d started rebuilding the relationship with my parents, I hadn’t yet had the courage to reach out to Shelby. While the things I’d done to my parents were horrendous, my treatment of Shelby had been so much worse because I hadn’t been there to grieve with her when she needed me. I’d also thrown all her words of forgiveness for my part in our son’s death back in her face.

Shelby smiled widely and began walking towards us. She was more beautiful than ever with her long blonde hair tied up in a sleek ponytail. Her yellow sundress flowed around her legs as she picked her way down the walkway towards us.

I stepped past Jonas once she reached us and wasn’t surprised when she pulled me against her for a hug. “I’ve been so worried about you,” she whispered.

“I know, I’m sorr-”

Shelby put her fingers over my mouth to stop my words and then she leaned in to hug me again. “Welcome home, Mace.”

I sighed and wrapped my arms around her, mindful of the baby between us. “Shel, I have some people I want you to meet,” I said and then I pulled back enough so I could introduce her to my men.

Cole

“I think it’s perfect,” I said as I sat down in the bay window and looked around at the clean walls and polished hardwood floors. “When can we move in?” I asked Mace as he closed the closet he’d been checking.

“As soon as we stop at the furniture store and order a bed,” Mace said as he came up to me and leaned down and covered my mouth with his.

I shuddered at the feel of his tongue sweeping over mine and when he finally let me come up for air, I said, “I’ll pay for the same day delivery charge.”

Mace chuckled. “I think we need to break it to your father first,” he said.

It was my turn to laugh because somehow the tables had turned in the three months we’d been living with my father. “After last night, I don’t think he’ll have a problem with it.”

Mace looked at me as he settled down on the bench next to me. “Mrs. Pellano, again?”

I nodded. “Caught them making out on the living room couch like a couple of teenagers. I think I permanently damaged my eyes.”

As Mace laughed, I marveled over the change my life had taken since the day I’d walked into Jonas’s studio to find out why my sister had been stolen from me.

My father’s journey to sobriety hadn’t been an easy one but he’d been diligent in working his program and on the occasions where he’d been close to breaking, Mace had recognized the signs and went with him to AA or got him in touch with his sponsor. He’d also started seeing a therapist to deal with the brutal way Carrie had been taken from us, and I’d accompanied him on more than one occasion.

After waking up in the hospital, I’d been confused by what was happening and how I’d gotten there. I remembered nothing of the shooting and I’d struggled to understand not only my injuries but the ones I’d seen on Jonas’s face. But the hardest part was the guilt I’d seen in Jonas’s eyes as he told me how sorry he was for what had happened. I’d been prepared to lay into him for blaming himself but then Mace had leaned over and kissed me and then whispered, “He’s working on it,” in my ear. That was enough to silence me.

Having my father at my bedside had torn me up because I could see how he was suffering as he struggled through his withdrawal symptoms. But he only left when he physically couldn’t bear it anymore and had to be sedated to get through the worst of it.

In recent weeks, he’d started doing some consulting work for the Navy and when Mrs. Pellano had asked him over to her house for dinner, he’d gone. I hadn’t initially liked the idea of him with my mother’s best friend but when he came back home looking more at ease than he had in a long time, I’d realized that it would take time for me to get used to seeing him with any woman who wasn’t my mother. I knew it would be hard to leave my father but his therapist and sponsor had assured me that he was ready and that he had the tools and resources he needed to deal with his addiction.

The townhouse Mace had found was only a few miles from Jonas’s studio and I knew that would thrill Jonas since he’d been making the daily commute back and forth from New Haven after Mace had finished the repairs to his studio. He taught daily art classes and spent the rest of his day painting, but no matter how long he worked, he always made the long drive home to be with us.

Mace had started working for a local security firm that specialized in protection training. His relationship with his parents had blossomed and we spent at least one weekend a month with them in Philadelphia. Shelby, her husband and their daughter were constant fixtures at the elaborate family dinners Mace’s mother would put together during our visits. My father had come on a few visits as well.

My own job hunt had been trickier since I’d decided against returning to the Navy. As much as I knew Mace and Jonas would have supported my choice to reenlist, I knew that being away from them for extended periods of time wouldn’t work for me. And in truth, I’d had enough war to last a lifetime. I was still mulling my options for pursuing a career in law enforcement since I doubted I’d ever be suited for a nine to five office job. Jonas had mentioned how hot I’d look in a uniform, so there was that too.

“We should get going,” Mace said as he glanced at his phone. “He should be wrapping up his last class soon.”

After a quick stop at the furniture store to pick out our new mattress, we headed to Jonas’s studio which was in complete chaos when we arrived. Jonas’s students were in the process of being picked up, and most of the eight and nine year olds were showing off their artwork to whatever parent or loved one was picking them up. Most of the action was in the actual studio but a few of the kids and parents were exploring the gallery where a good number of canvases hung. Jonas swapped out the artwork every week and threw elaborate “openings” so the kids could show off their creations to the community. Mace and I had attended most of them and we were never prouder of Jonas than when he was in his element making each and every kid feel special.

As we made our way into the studio, we saw Jonas saying his goodbyes to several kids who were giving him hugs and speaking in rapid fire about what they would be working on the following week when they returned. Jonas gave each child his undivided attention as they spoke, but he did send me and Mace a wink when he spotted us. It took a good twenty minutes for the studio to be completely cleared and locked up for the night.

“I thought your dad was cooking tonight,” Jonas said to me as he began cleaning up.

“Change of plans,” Mace said.

Jonas paused and then smiled. “Mrs. Pellano again?” he said with a laugh and I groaned. He kissed me and said, “I think they’re cute together.”

Before he could get away, Mace snagged him by the waist and drew him in for a bone-melting kiss that had me growing hard with need almost instantly.

“We have a surprise for you,” Mace murmured against Jonas’s lips. “Two, actually,” he said. “Can you leave this for tomorrow?” he asked as he nodded towards the canvases that needed to be moved to a back room to dry.

Jonas was breathless from his kiss so he just nodded and grabbed Mace’s and my hands and led us towards the stairs. As soon as we were inside his apartment, Jonas and Mace were all over each other and I began stripping off my jacket in anticipation. Then Jonas was in my arms, his tongue greeting mine. “Hi,” he finally murmured against my lips.

“Hi,” I returned with a smile.

“You mentioned a surprise,” Jonas said even as his hand began stroking over my erection.

“Two,” Mace corrected. He pulled a piece of paper from his jacket pocket and handed it to Jonas. “Happy birthday,” baby,” he said before he brushed a sweet kiss over Jonas’s mouth.

Jonas’s real birthday had been the day after I’d gotten shot but predictably, no one had cared or noticed, least of all Jonas. But it had taken weeks to realize we’d never made up for it so Mace and I had spent the last several months plying Jonas with little gifts here and there and wishing him a happy birthday to make up for it. He’d told us after the first few that it wasn’t necessary but he always lit up whenever we did it, so we’d already decided it would be an ongoing thing until his next birthday.

Jonas released me long enough to take the lease and look over it. “It’s ours?” he whispered.

Mace nodded. “Cole loved it too, so we signed the lease.”

Jonas threw his arms around Mace and then me. “When are we moving in?”

“Our bed will be there tonight,” Mace said. “So we have about three hours to kill. Any ideas on how we should do that?”

“I can think of a few,” Jonas said as he dropped the lease on the kitchen counter and reached for the hem of his shirt. “Wait, you said I had two surprises,” he said.

I smiled and said, “The second one needs to be unwrapped.”

Jonas watched in confusion as I moved in front of Mace and turned him so Jonas could watch. I began unbuttoning his shirt after he stripped his jacket off, but I couldn’t keep my mouth off him and we spent more time kissing than anything else. One glance at Jonas showed that he’d lost all interest in his surprise too because he was stripping off his own shirt. Jonas’s sexual confidence had grown over the weeks and while he still hadn’t been ready to give himself to us completely, he’d become a master at working both me and Mace over until we were boneless with need.

I finally managed to get the rest of Mace’s shirt unbuttoned and then turned him so he was facing Jonas. I pulled Mace’s shirt away as he shrugged it off and then we both waited as Jonas eyed Mace’s impressive chest.

“No,” Jonas said a second later. His eyes lifted to Mace’s and he smiled wide. “You didn’t!”

I laughed and watched as Jonas closed the distance between them to get a better look at Mace’s newly pierced nipple. Jonas trailed his fingers over it but when he gave it a tug, Mace winced and said, “Go easy, it’s still a bit sore.” Jonas’s response was to bend his head and drag the flat of his tongue over Mace’s nipple before circling it with his entire mouth.

“Fuck,” Mace muttered.

“Better?” Jonas asked coyly.

Instead of answering him, Mace kissed him and then they came after me.

Which I was perfectly fine with.