Love and Human Remains

Title: Kiss Me, Kane

Author/Pseudonym: Tinnean

Fandom: Love and Human Remains

Pairing: David/Kane

Rating: NC-17 

Disclaimer: David & Kane, Candy, Benita and Bernie belong to Brad Fraser,
but Guy and Mike are mine.

Status: New/Complete

Date: 8/00

Series/sequel: Part three in the Poor Little Rich Boy series, this follows Sweet Dreams  

Summary: Love is grand, but life goes on. David wonders if he can overcome
his fear of auditioning and Kane still has some issues with the green-eyed
monster.

Warning: m/m graphic sex, language, AU 

Notes: I liked this movie so much I couldn't bear to say good-bye. However, all things come to an end. Thanks to Silk who encouraged me to write in this fandom, and to Gail for all her help.

Kiss Me, Kane

Part 1

A muscular arm was clasped around Kane's waist, keeping his back tightly pressed to a lightly haired chest. Long legs tangled with his own, and a hard, hot, persistent erection nudged against the shadowy cleft of his buttocks. 

David's fingers wound in the long strands of Kane's hair and gently tilted his head back, exposing the line of his throat. Drowsily the older man licked his way up to his young lover's ear, carefully taking the gold hoop between his teeth. His warm breath washed over Kane's skin, and waves of pleasure began to radiate down to his  lower body. 

Kane hummed with excitement and reached behind him to take David's engorged cock in his hand, alternately squeezing and stroking. David growled and left off teasing Kane's ear, letting the younger man feel the controlled bite of his teeth against the spot where his neck and shoulder joined. 

This was one action guaranteed to result in spontaneous combustion. Kane moaned breathily and thrust his hips back, trying to lure his lover into ravishing his needy body. 

"David!" he whispered, his movements restless, "take me now!" 

A lubricated finger pressed for entrance, easing past the tight ring of muscle, sliding in deep, then withdrawing. David established a seductive rhythm that had Kane writhing in mindless desire, pleading for a more intense joining. 

"Tell me what you want, baby. Tell me how you want me!" 

“Please, David! Fuck me! Push your hot cock into my ass and fuck me hard! Hurry David, hurry! I want you to come inside me the same time I come all over your hands!" 

And Kane sighed in relief as he felt his lover's condom-covered shaft finally entering him. 

"Yes, yes!" he chanted. "Fuck me! Fuck me!" 

David's hips moved faster and faster as he felt his climax approaching. One hand stroked the younger man's quivering cock, while the other fondled the twin jewels that hung below. Their breathing grew ragged as they both trembled on the brink. 

His grip almost painful, his fucking deep and powerful, David drove Kane closer and closer to the edge. And then suddenly they were both in freefall, hoarse cries signaling their descent from the heavens. 

Kane's essence coated David's hands, and he lazily massaged the creamy liquid into his lover's chest and abdomen. 

Turning onto his side carefully so as not to dislodge his lover  from deep within him, Kane twined his arm around the older man's neck and drew his head down to his own. 

"I love you, honey man!" he murmured as he rubbed his lips against David's mouth. He could feel David smiling. 

David's fingers stroked the soft hair of Kane's underarm and he shuddered in response. 

"What are you doing to me?" Kane sighed. 

"If you can’t tell, then I must not be doing it right! You’re mine!” David said fiercely. 

"And you're mine!” Lazily the younger man turned in his lover’s embrace. “What are we going to do today?” 

"I thought we'd spend the morning in bed!" 

"Oh, I like the sound of that!" 

"Then we'll look at what they’ve done to the house." 

"That sounds good too, David. But then we'll have to get ready for work,” he mourned. “I wish we could take some time to be alone, away from everybody.” 

"I know what you mean, baby. There's just too much going on right now." David had some surprises up his sleeve for his young lover, but they would have to wait until a later date. Right now he had other things on his mind. "We'll talk about it tomorrow." He rolled his hips and Kane gasped at the hot feel of David, once again hard within him. 

“Yes!” the younger man gasped, excitement rising in him. “After all, tomorrow is another day!” 

David dissolved into laughter. “Have you been watching Gone With The Wind again, baby?”           

Kane’s grin was hidden by the long brown hair that covered his face. And then he was distracted by the twitching of the shaft buried deep in his narrow channel. He curled his legs up to his chest, accidentally discovering a way for David to achieve a deeper, fuller penetration. He pulled his lover’s arms about him and held on tightly. 

David kept him secure in his embrace. 

And began the pleasurable task of  making love to him once again. 

Part 2           

Benita had no dining room in her apartment, never having felt the need for one. She was used to having all her meals alone in the little nook off her kitchen. 

Now, with two men in semi-permanent residence, and another there so often he might as well be, her apartment was becoming a little crowded. 

Wrapped in the black kimono with the red and white Japanese dragons, she peered over the island of her kitchen counter into the living room. Because there was no table, the large set of blueprints was spread out over the carpet. Kane was on his knees pointing out some of the features he could not possibly live without, while David leaned forward, watching his lover. 

"We could put the walk-in closet along this wall, and the bed over here." He pointed to a spot toward the back of the house. The whole second floor was to be opened into one enormous room. 

"Yes, let's talk about the bed." A lazy smile curled David's lips, and Kane felt warm color mount his cheeks. Dragging his eyes back to the blueprints, Kane tried to focus on what he had been saying, but all he could picture was a big, rumpled bed with the two of them tangled in the sheets. 

He looked back at the older man, dismay written on his face. 

"The bed, baby. You were talking about the bed." 

Kane swallowed in relief. "Yes. The bed. I thought a platform, if that's okay with you?" 

"Whatever you want, but nothing larger than a queen-size." 

"Well, sure, but why?" 

"Platforms don’t come smaller than that. Did you think I'd want something lavish, like a king?" 

Kane nodded mutely and David hooked an arm around the younger man's neck, pulling his face close. He nudged his lover's lips apart and fastened their mouths together. A soft sound passed from one to the other, but neither could tell who voiced the erotic moan. 

"I can afford to buy you a king, if that's what's worrying you," Kane murmured, nuzzling his cheek against David's beard-roughened jaw. "I've got the trustfund my grandmother left me; I can buy you whatever you want!" 

"Baby, all I want is you. And I don't want a bed that's so large  I could lose you in it! I want you snug against me all night, every night! And fuck your grandmother's money; I've got enough to keep us comfortable without ever having to touch a penny of yours!" 

"Huh?" Kane looked confused. David had been working as a waiter for over ten years, barring that six month period when he had tried to overcome his fear of auditioning. How could he have much money? 

David took one more taste of his lover's lush mouth, then began rolling up the blueprints. "My manager might have been clueless as to what was happening to me on that show, but he was a wizard when it came to financial matters. He saw to it that three-quarters of my salary went into a mutual fund that invested in moderate to risky ventures, and by the time The Beavertons went off the air, there was enough in that fund to last me the rest of my life. Even if I never work again!" 

"You're wealthy?" Kane sounded disgruntled. 

"Comfortable,” David corrected. “This is a problem? I thought you'd be happy to know I'm not marrying you for your money!" 

The younger man's mouth dropped open. "Marry? You want to marry me?" 

"Yes." 

The simple, one word answer left Kane breathless. His lips parted and he began to hyperventilate; his eyes grew panicky as he felt himself on the verge of passing out. 

David was amazed at the effect his words had on his young lover. Then he saw Kane turn pale and realized he was in physical distress. 

Having been in the pilot for a medical show that had failed to make the network's line-up a couple of seasons after The Beavertons was canceled, he recognized the symptoms: too much oxygen and not enough carbon dioxide. 

David didn't waste time looking for a paper bag in Benita's kitchen. Instead, he sealed the younger man's mouth with his own and let their breaths mingle. 

For long minutes Kane's audible panting was the only sound that could be heard. And then suddenly the atmosphere became charged: he groaned and his mouth began to feed off his lover's. Lips and teeth and tongue. They devoured and suckled, bit and nibbled, mated and dueled. 

The plans lay forgotten on the floor. 

**** 

Benita slipped quietly past them and into her bedroom, softly closing the door behind her. She felt hot, her skin tight, an ache between her legs. The sight of her two friends so lost in their physical delight made her burn with desire. 

She stood in front of the floor-length mirror that hung from her closet door and let the kimono slide off her shoulders to puddle at her feet. Her breasts were firm and high, the nipples hard points that begged for a man's touch. Her waist was narrow, her hips slim. Her body was well-suited for the form-fitting black leather she wore when she worked. 

Her fingers skimmed her curves and she tipped her head back. The psychic’s eyes drifted closed, dreaming of a warm, masculine hand that stroked her nipples, causing an arrow of sensation to spear down to the heart of her femininity, concealed by the black curls at the juncture of her slender thighs. 

She had early on learned the manner of pleasuring herself. No man had ever brought her to that pinnacle. When she had been forced to turn tricks she had never wanted a man to get that close. And then when David had given her back control of her life, she had never felt the need for one. 

This time things were different. This time she had the nagging impression that there might be more; that out there, somewhere, was someone who wanted her for herself alone. 

No, not just some someone. 

Guy!

Part 3           

Kane was so bemused by David's proposal that he couldn't keep a thought in his head other than the simple one: "My lover wants  to marry me!" 

David smiled ruefully and folded up the blueprints just as the phone rang. The answering machine picked it up on the third ring. 

Benita’s voice could be heard on the machine. "This is your friendly, neighborhood psychic, and of course I know why you've called! But let's be conventional: leave a message at the beep and I'll get back to you!" 

"Umm, I hope this is the right number," a female voice said hesitantly. "I'm calling from Dr. Fortesceau's office. If a Mr. David McMillan lives there, would you please have him call us at..." 

Before she could rattle off the doctor's phone number, David scooped up the receiver and spoke quickly into it. "This is David McMillan. How may I help you?" 

"Please hold for the doctor." 

David hated being put on hold. He hated it even more when it was his doctor's office calling and the health of his lover was on the line. Fortunately, the doctor didn't keep him waiting long. 

"David, good news! The results of the blood tests are negative. Of course, you and your friend will need to come in again in six months time to be retested, but if the results come back negative again, you should be in good shape. Just remember to continue practicing safe sex, and try to keep to a monogamous relationship, all  right?" 

"Monogamy is not a problem! This is such great news!" 

"Yes it is. Now don't forget to give us a call in six months. By the way,  when are we going to see you on TV again?" 

David's smile froze, but the question appeared to be purely rhetorical, as the doctor was bidding him a cheery goodbye and hanging up. 

David stood looking at the phone as if it had suddenly sprouted fangs and might bite him at any second. 

Kane, not having heard the whole conversation, became increasingly nervous. "David, what's wrong? David!" He  grabbed his arm and shook it frantically as the older man continued to ignore him. 

The jostling broke David out of his reverie and he ran a distracted hand through his hair. "Nothing's wrong, baby. We both test negative. He wants us back in six months for a follow up, and we'll need to keep using condoms until then. Which is like taking a shower in a raincoat!" 

"I wouldn't mind if you don't want to use them, David," Kane said shyly. "I want to feel you come inside me!" 

David swept him into a fierce embrace. "I'd like nothing better than to come inside you instead of a rubber, but you're too precious for me to gamble with your life like that! It’s bad enough I let you suck me off without a condom!"  

Kane grimaced. He had tried that once, at his lover’s insistence, and the bitter taste of latex had made him gag. After that, no matter how the older man promised or threatened or cajoled, Kane steadfastly refused to blow him through rubber. Despite his youth, he could be as obstinate as David. 

David sighed as he angled his head to mesh their lips together, the warmth of his breath washing over Kane’s lips. 

What started out as a simple, chaste kiss quickly escalated into something hot and hungry. Kane's fingers splayed against David's cheek, holding him while his mouth grazed on the older man's, nudging his lips apart, feeling the sharp edges of David's teeth on his own lips. 

For long moments David let Kane have his way with his mouth, but then the excitement grew too dizzying and he seized the initiative, thrusting his tongue past his lover's lips, dueling, licking, mating, luring it into his own mouth to suckle. 

Kane was trembling and shaking, his lower body rocking against David's, seeking relief for his engorged erection. David reached down and stroked him through his jeans, his grasp alternately gentle and rough. The combination proved too intense for the younger man, and he moaned into David's mouth as he began to come, his essence dampening his pants. 

David felt his young lover's fingers through his trousers curling into the crevasse of his buttocks, parting his cheeks, rubbing the small ring of muscle that he had claimed for his own. Kane pressed his finger against that spot and David's control started to unravel. He spread his legs wider, allowing Kane greater access, but also enabling him to cradle the younger man's now flaccid shaft against his own rampant erection. 

"Harder, baby!" he ordered. "Harder!" And then he too began to spill himself into the loving hand that held him. 

For long, delicious minutes they stood pressed tightly to each other, gently rocking in a slow dance of passion's aftermath. David was reluctant to separate their bodies, but a glance at the clock mounted on Benita's wall revealed the shortness of the time they would have before their evening shift at Salante's started. 

"C'mon, baby, we need to shower."           

Kane peered at his lover through the fringe of hair that feathered over his eyes. "And you'll take advantage of me in the shower, David? I love being taken advantage of!" 

"Naughty monkey! We're definitely going to get some good toys for our new bedroom!" 

Kane quivered in rising excitement. "What kind?" 

"You'll just have to wait and see. But there's one thing we have to have: a fireplace!" 

The younger man looked confused. "But David, there already is a fireplace in that house!" 

David grinned and turned his lover in the direction of their temporary bedroom. "In the living room," he agreed. "I want one in our room. I plan to keep you naked all the time when we're there. And when your nipples are tight and hard, I want it to be because of me, not because you're cold!" 

He ran a hand over Kane's chest, feeling his nipples through the material of his shirt, and groaned with pleasure. "Just like now!" 

And he hustled his young lover into the shower, where despite his best intentions, he once again surrendered to the allure of Kane's sweet body.    

 Part 4                                                                                                                                                   

Salante's, on a Friday night, was crowded from the moment the doors opened until the last patrons trickled out. 

Young marrieds, business couples, dating couples, those who were out cruising and those who stopped by for a late snack, suffering from the munchies all descended on Salante's this night to satisfy their hungers. 

As the night progressed the crowd became more demanding, drunker and higher. And David became more irritable. For some reason he found himself on edge. His vaunted patience had vanished. 

Kane watched as time and time again his lover prevented himself from snapping at a hapless customer only by exercising sheer willpower. Something was disturbing the man he loved. 

It was up to him to find a way to lighten his mood. 

Kane was in the pantry, busy folding napkins into decorative shapes when David approached, glowering. He had a fresh bottle of very expensive wine which his customers had insisted upon despite his warning that it would not complement their meal. They discovered he was correct, blamed him for their poor choice and were sending it back now. 

His mouth a tight, white line; he could barely contain his anger. 

"Fucking idiots!" he muttered. 

Kane caught his eye. "I know who you are!" he whispered, leaning toward him,  repeating the line he had used to initiate their first serious conversation. 

David returned his look warily, his temper still simmering. "No you don't!" 

"You used to have a TV show!" Kane pressed cheekily. 

"You've confused yourself!" And now David smiled, recalling Kane’s tentative approach, aware of  his ploy to relieve his tension. 

"You played a kid named Toby!" he persisted. 

"Nope!" 

"You are David McMillan, right?" 

"Discovered again!" And David waited to see if Kane would continue the conversation to its conclusion, forcing him to reveal his growing dissatisfaction with his job waiting tables. He had once told him snidely that he found the job more stimulating than acting. 

"And you're the man I love!" Kane said in a quiet voice. He touched  David's hand lightly and spun away to answer a call to refill the water glasses. 

Feeling more relaxed, David watched him, a tender smile in his eyes. The red busboy's jacket Kane wore lovingly hugged his torso, the black slacks emphasized the length of his legs. His long brown hair, the chestnut highlights brought out by the lighting of the restaurant, was tied neatly back. 

David suddenly itched to loosen that tie and run his fingers through the soft mass. A quick glance at the clock revealed there was still a couple of  hours before their shift ended, when everything closed down. 

But The Palladium would still be open. He could take Kane there, maybe show him one of the private rooms upstairs, maybe play with him. 

Or maybe dance with him instead. They had never danced together. 

David smiled and went back to his tables, feeling considerably lighter. 

**** 

After their shift they decided to go to The Palladium where they stayed until closing time. David bought a pitcher of beer and they shared it in a secluded corner, their fingers stroking and entwining. 

It was very late, or very early, depending on how you looked at that sort of thing, when David excused himself and disappeared for a few minutes. Kane stretched his feet out and slid down in his seat to rest comfortably on his lower spine. He glanced idly around the dance floor and the bar area and then abruptly bolted upright. 

Bernie stood there, a slightly mad look in his eyes. 

David approached him and punched him lightly on the arm. Kane could not hear their conversation. They stood chatting for a few minutes before David tugged gently on the lapels of Bernie's topcoat and Bernie turned to leave. David stood smiling after him, then went to join his lover. 

Kane couldn't subdue a flash of jealousy. "Are you sure he's not gay?" he demanded. 

David turned his attention back to his young lover. "Yes, baby, I’m sure. He's not gay. He's a friend. He's never been more than a friend." 

Kane nodded shortly and David could see him relax. 

And then the band played the last song, a slow, dreamy ballad. David pulled Kane to his feet. "Come on, baby. Come dance with me!" 

"What?" 

"That's where I was before I ran into Bernie; I went to ask them to play a song for us. Our song!" 

David led Kane onto the dance floor. He took the younger man's arms and looped them around his neck, then slid his own low around Kane’s hips and pulled him snugly against his body. 

And they swayed to the sweet melody, lost in their own sensual haze. 

Wise men say only fools rush in... 

But I can’t help falling in love with you!

Part 5

The three glasses of beer, after putting in a full night's work, had gone to Kane's head. David smiled at him indulgently and took the car keys. Tucking his young lover into the passenger seat of the black Porsche, David got in and turned on the ignition. Then he had to pause and fasten Kane's seat belt, for he had fallen asleep, his lips slightly parted, his breath sighing softly in and out. 

Unable to resist, David pressed a brief kiss on the mouth that was a constant temptation to him. He stroked the brown hair back off Kane’s forehead and cupped his chin. "I wonder if you'll ever realize how very much I love you, baby," he whispered. 

Shaking his head in bemusement, David smiled and put the car in gear and headed back to Benita's apartment.  As had become a habit, he drove past the house they had put a down payment on and were having remodeled. Doing it first because it pleased Kane, now David stopped for himself, because he was starting to get excited over the prospect of owning a home with his young lover. 

It made him feel...connected, settled. Almost as if they were actually married. Instead of merely engaged. David fingered the ring he carried constantly. As soon as they were able to move in, he had every intention of placing that ring on Kane’s finger. And after a suitable amount of time, however long that might be, he was going to marry him! 

Humming happily under his breath, he admired the clean lines of the old Victorian, the way the porte cochere on one end balanced the wrap around porch on the other. Then he put the car into drive and continued on to their temporary home. 

Parking the Porsche in the underground garage available to the tenants of the building, David turned to gently shake Kane's shoulder. Kane burrowed  into the seat, mumbling, "Five more minutes, I promise! I don’t want to go to school!" 

Dismayed by this reminder of just how young his lover actually was, David walked around to the other side of the car, and reached in and slid an arm under Kane's knees. "C'mon, baby. It's time for bed!" 

Still submerged in sleep, Kane's arms wrapped loosely around David. "Love you, honey man," he murmured as he nuzzled his nose against David's neck and settled deeper into his lover's embrace. 

And an enormous grin split David's face. Kane might be dreaming of school, but he knew who was holding him, even in his unconscious state. 

David shouldered his way into the building and waited patiently for the elevator. It was taking an inordinate amount of time, and his arms were starting to feel Kane's weight when it finally arrived. He was fumbling to press the button for Benita's floor when a middle-aged man dressed in robe and slippers barreled in with a Yorkshire Terrier on a thin leather lead. The little dog had a tiny pink ribbon in his topknot. He backed away, sat his rump down and began a high-pitched barking. 

His owner punched the button for his floor and glared at the couple sharing the elevator with him, his lip curled in a supercilious sneer. He saw before him a well-built, good-looking young man dressed in a black leather jacket and jeans that were sinfully snug. In his arms was a...a boy! Long brown hair flowed over an arm that held him so securely, but he was quite definitely male! 

And the boy was kissing the young man's throat! The middle-aged man harrumphed in disgust. "Well, I never!” 

The discordant voice roused Kane from his drowsy state. He turned his head  to look at the other occupant of the elevator and gave him a sleepy, satisfied smile. "Maybe if you had you'd be a much nicer person!" he said sweetly. 

"You can be sure I will report this behavior to the board of tenants!" the other man huffed. 

The elevator jerked to a halt and he stalked out, dragging the tiny dog after him. As the doors slid shut, David and Kane could here the barks fading in the distance. "I hate yappy little dogs!" Kane grumbled. 

David bit back his laughter and gave him a shake. "You're going to get us into so much trouble! And Benita too, for letting us stay with her!" 

"I'm sorry, David," Kane said, contrite. "I didn't think. Do you want me to find him and apologize?" 

"No, then you'll get us thrown out for sure!" 

"Oh. Well, I'm awake now. More or less. You can put me down." 

David tightened his hold on his lover. "I don't think so. Can't you find anything more constructive to do with your mouth than to utter foolishness?" 

"I love when you get forceful with me!" Kane said huskily and he leaned his head closer to get better access to David. He busied himself with licking a path from his lover's throat to the corner of his mouth. 

The doors opened onto Benita's floor and the older man spared a glance to where he was placing his feet. Once he was sure he was headed in the right direction, his eyes closed and he blissfully let Kane feast on his lips and tongue. 

Only when he walked into the door, hard, and was rudely brought back to the present, did David release Kane from his embrace. The younger man slid down his lover's body and leaned heavily against him while David fumbled through his pockets for the key. 

The sun was just beginning to chase back the shadows and the living room seemed to be awash in a monochromatic color scheme. The two tried to be silent as they crossed the carpeted expanse, arms wrapped tightly around each other. 

And then Benita's bedroom door was quietly opened. A figure paused and turned back to the darkness beyond. "A bien tot, cherie," he called softly and pulled the door closed behind him. Gentle fingers touched the door briefly, and then he drew his shoulders back and prepared to leave the psychic's home. 

He came to a dead halt when he saw the two lovers watching with interest as he tiptoed toward the door. Uncomfortable at being caught trying to slip out of Benita’s apartment, he cleared his throat and gathered his composure. “McMillan. Kane,” he greeted them shortly.  

"De Villiere," David responded for the two of them. The two men were bristling like a pair of unfriendly dogs. Kane buried his face against David's jacket, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter. It appeared there would be a standoff, and then Benita opened her door, having sensed there was something going on in her living room.       

"What's this all about?" she asked grumpily, not having gotten much sleep that night. David and Guy continued to glare at each other. "Fine, don’t bother telling me, stare each other to death! Macho schmucks! I’m going to bed!" 

The door slammed shut behind her, emphasizing her displeasure with everything that had happened that evening: her weakness in calling Guy to her, David almost catching him in her bedroom, and Kane finding the whole scenario amusing. She humphed and buried her head under a pillow. 

Guy and David regarded each other sheepishly. David broke the silence first. "Sorry. If Benita invited you up, then I have nothing to say about it." 

"No, you don't. It was her choice; it will always be her choice!" 

They were back to glaring.

"Are you going to whip them out to see who can piss the farthest?" Kane asked with interest. 

Two sets of eyes turned to scowl at him and he struggled to control his smirk. "I'm going to bed!" he laughed and disappeared into the room he shared with David. 

"Benita's a big girl, and she can take care of herself. But remember this, de Villiere: she's my friend. Hurt her and you'll rue the day! I’ll make you sorry your mother ever gave birth to you!" 

The rich man relaxed. "Bravo, McMillan! Very theatrical! Have you ever thought of going back on the stage?" 

Guy let himself out before David could think of a scathing enough retort. 

David considered the closed door thoughtfully. 

Why, all of a sudden, did everyone want him to go back to acting? 

Why, all of a sudden, did he want that too?   

Part 6

Twilight was fast descending on the city. Guy sat in his plush office, facing the glass wall that gave him an unobstructed view of the skyline. His feet propped up on a corner of the desk, he contemplated the stars that were just becoming visible. They looked like jewels carelessly spilled on a swath of dark blue velvet. 

He would not be seeing Benita tonight. Other things needed to be done. 

But perhaps this would provide the jolt she needed to accept him in her life. 

Guy wanted her more than any other woman he had ever romanced. She was a quirky bundle of contradictions; a psychic, a dominatrix, a teller of urban legends. Her dark curls drove him wild with the desire to tangle his fingers in them, urging her mouth close to his. 

The other night she had called him. “Guy, please, I need to see you!” And he had thought the battle won. She surrendered to him, but somehow, he was the one who was defeated. 

She had gone down on him, giving him a blow job the likes of which he had never enjoyed before, and he had come harder than he ever came. 

But then he realized that was what she considered it: a job. She had taken no pleasure from it, using it as a means to push him away emotionally. And he had been furious. 

“You think this will get me out of your life?” he had snarled at her, unable to control his anger that she would hold their relationship so cheaply. He wanted more than sex from her. “Well, guess again, angel eyes! Treating me like a john isn’t going to do it!” And his lips had made love to her mouth, leaving her dazzled and breathless with unfulfilled passion. 

Guy never went into a relationship without thoroughly researching the person he selected to be his lover, in spite of what he had told David. David believed him when he denied investigating Benita’s background; Kane had not, and hadn’t been afraid tell him so, belligerently facing off against him. 

Guy was fully aware of Benita’s past; he knew that before David had set her up in the apartment where she now lived, Benita had been a street hooker. He also knew that in spite of how she currently supported herself, she no longer turned tricks. In fact, she rarely touched any of her clients, only a select few who, for reasons of her own, she considered needy enough to warrant physical contact. 

A knock that managed to convey a world of anger beat on his office door and drew Guy out of his reverie. “It’s not locked,” he called. 

An older man stormed into the room. “Was it necessary to see me after business hours?” he demanded. 

Guy swung his feet off the desk and rose gracefully to his full height. “You refused to meet with me at any other time.” He shrugged. “I merely followed your dictates.” 

The words might sound conciliatory, but only a fool would accept them at face value. And in spite of everything he was, the older man was not a fool! 

Waves of irritation emanated from him. “I’m not an errant schoolboy to be summoned to the headmaster's rooms, and I resent like hell your treating me as such!” 

Guy's mouth stretched in a smile, but his eyes remained cold and flat. “If I saw you as a naughty schoolboy, believe me, you’d be face down over my desk right now!” 

The older man’s face darkened with anger ... and something else. “You have no right to speak to me in that manner!” 

“Don’t I? The size of my bank account says differently!” Guy approached the man who stood in the middle of his office. “Your son resembles you a good deal; are you aware of that?” 

“That little fag? Of course I knew! It’s one of the reasons I didn’t throw the narcissistic bitch I was married to out on the street, along with that useless disappointment she whelped! That, and the birthmark Kane has on the inside of his left wrist!” He held out his hand to reveal a similar marking. 

Guy merely raised as eyebrow at that information, although he found it very telling. “Do you mean to say you didn’t have a paternity test done?” 

“Of course I did! Do you think I was born yesterday? I trusted my wife no farther than I could throw her!” Kane’s father sneered at the man who represented all he desired for himself: a respected name, the wealth of the ages, and the approbation of The Community, the old money families of the city. 

He had married into old money, but his wife's family had been too knowledgeable, and had tied up all the assets he burned to have in his possession. A trustfund had been set up for his son, who was now the only one with the authority to access it. 

As if he would have raided it, he thought sourly, conceding that he’d have liked nothing better! If he could only have gotten his hands on it, he would have increased its value. He’d be living on easy street. 

He totally ignored the fact that that already was his address. 

Guy watched him with hooded eyes. “Your son loves you very much. He was devastated when you denounced him. He didn’t deserve that kind of treatment.” 

“Yes, yes, you told me this the last time we met, and you coerced the keys of the Porsche out of me! As far as I am concerned, I have no son, not as long as he’s living with that fruit of an actor!” 

“And as long as you can’t touch his money?” Guy examined his neatly buffed nails. “I have come across some very interesting information that insinuates you’re trying to overturn the trustfund. That would leave your son penniless.” 

The older man looked uncomfortable. He was a miserable miser, but he had the sense to try and conceal it from The Community. If it was ever discovered how far he was intending to go to get at his son's money, he could very well be ostracized, and lose any standing he had with them. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about!” 

“Vraiment? I think you do. I want your word that you will leave the boy alone.” 

Chocolate brown eyes, so similar to the ones he had come to like, grew shrewd and canny. “Of course. I have no intention of doing anything to harm the boy, but you have my word!” 

Guy cocked his head and watched the older man in amusement. “And you really think I’d believe anything you tell me now? Wealth is the be all and end all for men like you: amassing it, hoarding it, treasuring it more than a lover, as if it was a lover!” 

His hand went to a button on his desk. In the quiet of the room, the lock on the door could be heard engaging. Kane’s father jerked at the sound, and again his face flushed. 

“What are you doing?” 

Guy leaned back against his desk, his legs stretched out before him. “Nothing,” he said innocently. “Not a thing!” 

It suddenly dawned on the older man that, so late after working hours, no one else was in the building. He was alone with a man who had no reason to think well of him, who stood before him exuding sexuality. In spite of himself, he felt his cock harden, and he became panic-stricken. 

“I must leave!” 

“Must you?” Guy taunted softly, shrugging out of his suit jacket. His hands loosened the patterned school tie he wore with casual aplomb and then began working on the buttons of his silk shirt. 

The older man felt his mouth go dry and nervously he licked his lips. “S--stop th--that!” he stuttered. 

“Why? You know you’ve wanted to get your hands on me since I got those keys away from you! You want to put your tongue in my mouth, you want to suck my dick, you want more than anything to fuck my ass!” 

Kane’s father was gasping for breath, his eyes riveted on the fingers that were now lazily unfastening the belt around his adversary's waist. He watched, mesmerized, as the zipper slid down. 

And then he took a step toward the younger man, fighting the urge, but helpless to resist it. Guy's cock stood out proudly from the wiry curls that clustered at his groin and he reached for it with hesitant fingers, the desire to stroke it, take it deep within his mouth and suckle it to completion almost overpowering. 

With a tortured cry, he backed away, staring at Guy in horror. “No! I’m not like that! I’m not queer! I don't want you!” 

The corner of Guy's mouth twisted in a complacent smirk. “Yes, you do! You want me so badly you can almost taste it, taste me! You want to show me who the dominant one really is, teach me a lesson for butting into your family business! You want to shove your cock up my ass and fuck me so hard I can’t walk for a week! But you know what you want even more?” 

Guy pushed away from his desk and began stalking the older man. His voice became a silken whisper. “You want me to do all those things to you!” 

The older man was pulled into a brutal embrace. His erection was seized by clever fingers that teased it until it wept. Hard lips traveled up his neck, to settle on a spot just below the jaw and begin feasting on the flesh that was rough with stubble.

Ineffectual hands pushed against Guy's broad shoulders, striving to separate their bodies. “No...” the protests became weaker. “Please, no...” They changed to moans. 

And then the hands tightened and pulled the younger man closer. 

“Please...Yes!” 

Part 7   

Warm, demanding hands were cupping David's buttocks, exploring the cleft that divided them. His cock, deep in a hot, wet mouth, was being teased by a tongue that lapped the moisture beading at its tip. His hips undulated upward, seeking maximum penetration of that wicked mouth. 

David smiled in his sleep and then moaned as a clever finger pressed against the ring of muscle that guarded the opening to his body. Sensation pooled low in his abdomen and his balls tightened, signaling the onset of a very satisfying climax. 

And then the shrill of the telephone shattered the atmosphere, just as he was on the cusp of excessive pleasure. "No," David groaned. "No!" 

He tried to recapture the heat and tingles  that had been streaking along his nerve endings, but they were fading out of reach. "Damn! I'm sorry, baby." 

It was only as he rolled over and fumbled for the phone that he came fully awake. "This had better be fucking important!" he snarled into the receiver. 

For a beat there was only silence. Then a deep, masculine voice spoke. "McMillan?" 

"Fuck! Is that you, de Villiere? Damn it, don't you ever sleep?" 

"Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you. However, it is noon, you know," he responded testily. 

"Yeah, well, some people work nights!" David heard a muffled snort on the other end. "What did you have to tell Benita that couldn't wait until a civilized hour?" 

"Sorry," Guy said again, somberly. "Benita’s not the one I must talk to. I doubt it she’s going to want to talk to me! This is really important. We have a problem. Is Kane there? I need to speak with him." 

That was when David realized he was alone in the big bed he shared with the younger man. "Hold on, he must be in the other room." 

He untangled himself from the bed linens. This developed into a more delicate process than he had anticipated, since the passionate grip of his dreams turned out to be the sheets wrapped snugly around his cock. By the time he was safely freed, his mellow mood had evaporated like mist on a warm day. 

"Kane!" Guy could hear the irritation in his voice over the phone line. "Get your ass in here! The rich man’s on the phone for you! Something going on I should be aware of?" 

Guy winced. 

David stalked into the other room. Maybe if they quickly resolved this tempest in a teapot de Villiere was concerned with, he could talk his young lover out of whatever clothes he had on, and into bed for some wild, sweaty, mind-boggling monkey sex!! 

A lascivious smile curled David's lips and his eyes grew slumberous in anticipation. 

Benita was just cleaning up after a rather messy session the night before, involving whipping cream and maraschino cherries. "Morning, David. Are you looking for Kane? He went out to run some errands for me. Is that Guy?" She felt a tiny leap of excitement and her stomach attempted to tie itself in knots. 

David didn’t hear her last, hopeful question. He was annoyed that  he'd have to put his erotic plans on hold for the time being. David walked into the kitchen and poured himself a cup of lukewarm coffee. "Guy," he scooped up the wall extension and cradled it between his neck and shoulder. "Kane's not here right now. Want to leave a message with me?" 

The response was so loud and staccato, David had to hold the phone away from his ear. "What? Where is he? When did he go out? How long has he been gone?" Guy barked the questions one after another, giving the other man no chance to answer them. 

But the tension in his normally controlled voice had all David's senses on alert and he could feel the hairs on the nape of his neck standing to attention. 

"What's wrong?" 

"Find Kane and get him back to Benita's apartment as soon as possible. I'm on my way over. I don't have time to get into this right now! Suffice it to say, things may have gotten a little out of hand." 

"What do you mean, 'a little out of hand'?" 

"I had a... confrontation with Kane's father, and I think I may have pushed the bastard off the deep end!" 

David suddenly couldn't catch his breath. He had seen up close and personal just how  irrational the older man could be. "What did you do? 

"I don't want to go into the details over the phone. I'll explain as soon as I get there!" 

"Wait a minute! Is Kane in any danger?" 

"Nnnno....I don't think so. I don't think it's likely. I... Just get him the fuck off the streets!" 

Before David could question him further, Guy had hung up. 

"Shit! Shit! Shit!" 

Benita watched in surprise as David ran past her into the spare bedroom. "David?" 

He emerged with his shoes in one hand, trying to do up the buttons on his shirt. His trousers gaped open and his feet were bare. 

"Here, let me help you." She took over buttoning him up while he tossed his shoes to the floor and stepped into them. Impatiently he waited for her to finish her task, then tucked in the tails of his shirt with shaking hands. “What did Guy say?” 

"Guy says something happened with Kane’s father. He says to find Kane, and get him back here immediately.” For a second, David looked scared, as he considered all the possibilities that could be endangering his lover. “ He says there might be trouble!" 

The psychic suddenly felt lightheaded. "Did he say what the trouble was?" 

"No." David was sliding his arms into his black leather jacket and heading for the door. His attention was suddenly arrested. "Are you getting a feeling?” 

Benita pressed cool hands to cheeks that had abruptly flushed. "What?" 

“Were you able to read him this morning?” 

She shook her head. “No, this is something else.” She didn’t want to tell David that whatever it was, Guy was involved in it up to his elegant eyebrows. The psychic was drawing a blank on the young busboy, but her erstwhile lover’s actions were coming through so strongly she was nearly bowed under the weight of  it. Panic-stricken, she turned to David. 

“The quad! Kane was going to the quad to pick up your laundry and I asked him to do some shopping for me too. Hurry, David! Please hurry!” 

David didn’t pause to question her. He bolted from the apartment and took the emergency exit to the stairs, not wanting to waste time waiting for the elevator. 

The door slammed behind his back and Benita sank to her knees, burying her head in her hands. Guy was one of the most ruthless men she had ever met. So far she hadn’t read anything in his aura that would cause her to fear for her own safety, but she had ‘seen’ things that he had done in the past. To competitors, to faithless lovers, to anyone who crossed him. 

He had the money to back his actions, the indomitable spirit needed to head up his family’s consortium. Those who thought his age made him fair game for takeovers quickly learned otherwise, to their immeasurable loss. And he had the audacity to bend the rules to suit his will. 

The sound of her intercom startled her out of her musings. 

“It’s Guy,” came the terse response when she thumbed the control. 

Of course. 

She didn’t bother to acknowledge him, just buzzed him in and waited for him to arrive at her door. 

Kane’s father was not just bad, he was evil. She had sensed, through David’s touch, what the man had done to his son, preventing him from attending his mother’s funeral, destroying his possessions, devastating him emotionally. 

She had also seen, although she was unsure if David was aware that he had broadcast it to her, the rapacious glitter in the older man’s eyes as he had observed his son clad only in a thigh-length robe. 

Guy had done something to Kane’s father. Something physical. She could feel it. 

Now, she had to ask herself, could she accept it? 

Part 8   

Kane sauntered through the area known as the quad, contentedly running his errands, never giving a thought to the way he looked. He had a mirror, but ignored what it told him. He was oblivious to the long, dark hair that curled around his shoulders, the soft chocolate brown eyes that viewed the world soberly. 

The happiness that radiated from Kane drew more than one pair of eyes toward him, appreciating the way his snug jeans hugged the curve of his sassy bottom and caressed a burgeoning arousal. His hair was loose around his face and shoulders and his eyes held a glint of excitement. He had someone waiting at home for him, and as soon as he finished picking up their dry cleaning and getting some things for Benita, he planned on luring David back to bed! 

Having been raised primarily by servants, he had never known the unquestioning approval of his parents. His mother had been a hedonist who desperately sought the fountain of youth, and younger and younger lovers. His father was a ruthless Midas whose only goal in life was to amass wealth, and still more wealth. 

Neither had spent time with him, especially once he reached that coltish teenage stage. He finished high school, and his days morphed into a sea of monotony through which he aimlessly drifted. And then, by sheer chance, he had run across the one person who had meant anything to him in his formative years: Toby of The Beavertons. 

Oh, it was actually David McMillan, the actor who portrayed him, but that was irrelevant. Toby was the one who showed him what family life could really be like, what values mattered, and that was all the lonely teen cared about. 

Kane wrangled a job in the restaurant where the former actor was now working as a waiter. He became David’s busboy, and before too much time had passed, he discovered himself passionately in lust with him. Kane began pursuing him, trying to impress him with his black Porsche, almost courting him in a manner of speaking. David refused to take his advances seriously, and lightly rebuffed him. But Kane kept coming back to him. 

Until the night the older man took him to his psychic friend’s apartment for a reading, gotten him high. David wanted his hands on Kane so badly he could almost taste it, but he told Benita to jerk him off. He saw it as exercising restraint. Kane saw it as the final betrayal. 

So he refused to see David again after work, using the excuse that something had come up that he couldn't get out of. 

David had gone to The Palladium seeking relief for the restless desire the younger man stirred in him. He was splitting a beer with Sal, a sometime lover, when he spotted a familiar, tousled mane of brown hair. Kane was on the lower level. 

With a girl. 

Unable to accept how deeply he cared for his busboy, awash in disappointment, David had bolted down the stairs and out of  the trendy nightspot. Kane had followed him into the parking lot and they had quarreled. The heat of anger had transformed into the heat of desire. David had gone home with Kane and they had spent the night making wild, passionate love. 

Starting that relationship had cost Kane the sole surviving member of his family. His father had denounced him as gay in front of servants, associates and acquaintances. He repudiated him, and Kane had felt as if his heart had been cut out. 

David had been there for him, standing up to the old man, which no one had ever done before for Kane. And then he had taken him home. And cared for him. 

**** 

Kane came out of the supermarket, his arms full of groceries, and the dry cleaning over his shoulder. He was passing the Lite and Bite, the deli his friend Mike ran and on impulse he poked his head in the door. "Hey Mike!" he called. 

The blond head jerked up and a broad smile split his face. "Hi Butch! How they hanging?" 

"Primo, number one!" Kane laughed back at him. 

"When am I going to see you again, kiddo?" 

"You're seeing me now, Mike! Gotta go! David's waiting for me!" 

He bounced back to the sidewalk and continued on his way. As he passed a nearby alley, a large hand grabbed his arm and yanked him in, and suddenly he was surrounded by a gang of punks dressed in baggy pants, their caps worn backwards. Kane's smile wobbled for a second, and then he firmed it. "Excuse me, please." He took a step to the side, but they moved with him. 

"We got plans for you, rich boy!" 

Kane tried to keep the fear out of his eyes. "Do I know you?" 

"Nah, you don't know us, but your old man does!" 

"My father?" he repeated stupidly. How was that possible? Kane's father would never condescend to speak with street kids. 

"Yeah. Seems he's not happy with you, and he paid us to teach you a lesson!" 

"What...could you teach me?" Kane asked cautiously. 

"We're going to teach you how to go down on each and every one of us!" The groceries were pulled out of Kane's arms and thrown aside as the leader of the gang crowded him back against the wall, running his hands over the young man's crotch and squeezing. "I want you on your knees, bitch!" 

Kane's breath had gone raspy and he glanced down in horror as the youth in front of him unzipped his baggy pants and pulled out his cock, stroking it tauntingly. He grinned, a snide curl to his lips, as he pressed down on Kane's shoulders. "Suck me!" 

"No! I won't!" he gasped. 

The gang was taunting him and tugging at his clothes as he fought desperately to protect himself. 

And then an enraged roar froze the tableau in the alley. 

The gang took one look at the blond at the mouth of the alley and began snickering. "We supposed to be scared of you, man?” the leader of the gang taunted. “We know all about you! You're as light in the loafers as this little fag!" 

Mike's eyes narrowed and abruptly he relaxed. "You think, Chooch?" 

The youth started at the use of his name. 

“Oh yeah, punk! I know who you are! And your scumbag friends too! You want to be serviced?" He motioned to his chest with both thumbs. "You come to me!" 

"You think you're Dirty Harry, man?" the leader jeered. 

"Mike, no!" Kane cried. 

"'Sokay, kiddo. You just stay out of the way!" 

With a howl, the gang sprang toward the compact man who stood calmly before them. But Mike had only come to running the Lite and Bite in recent years. The crowd he used to hang with could have told the pack charging down on him that he wasn't a man to fuck with. 

Mike had learned to fight in the mean streets, and he fought the only way he knew how: down and dirty. 

Kane wasn’t about to let his friend face this gang alone. Shouting in fury, he jumped on a random back and wound his legs tightly around his target’s waist. He was pounding away on the hapless gang member, twisting his hands in the mohawk and yanking for all he was worth. Taking advantage of proximity, he bit down on a dirty ear, too focused to gag. 

And then he was being pulled off and spun away from the fight. He turned with a savage growl, to find himself face to face with David. "Oh shit!" he said in a small voice. He was certain his lover would be furious with him. 

"You want to tell me what this is all about, baby?" 

Kane was afraid to meet the older man’s eyes. He started uncontrollably when he felt gentle hands on his hair, straightening his clothes, and he finally dared a glance up. 

David's eyes were frantic as he ran trembling hands over the younger man, making certain he was unhurt. And then he was holding him hard, kissing his cheek, murmuring in his ear. 

"Mike!" Kane struggled to look around David, searching for his friend. 

"He's okay, baby. He's just holding the leader for the police." 

"David," he whispered shakily, "it might not be a good idea to get the authorities involved with this." His voice became even softer. "I think...my father may have had something to do with it!" 

"What? Son of a bitch! Mike, forget about the cops!” David barked.  “This is a family matter!" 

The gang leader spat out a mouthful of blood and tried to sneer at them. Mike regarded him distastefully. "You want me to let him go?" he asked, incredulous. 

David smiled, and the youth suddenly wished he hadn't taken the money from the old man. It had sounded like an easy way to make a hundred bucks, but now he was sorry the gang  hadn't just fucked his ass and robbed him when they found him wandering in their turf. 

'Oh, no. I want to know what Kane's father has to do with this. And so will Guy de Villiere!" 

Mike let out a low whistle "You know him?" 

"Let's just day he's a friend of a friend!" David rummaged in his pocket, pulled out a handkerchief and tossed it to Mike. "Wipe your nose, will you? You're bleeding all over your shirt!" 

Mike grinned and hauled the gang  leader up to his feet. "C'mon, asshole! You're going to see how the other half lives! Where we taking him?" 

"De Villiere is meeting us at Benita's apartment. He met with your father, baby, and apparently all hell has broken loose. He was worried about you and he sent me out to look for you and get you back to Benita's. Mike, I owe you, man. Big time! I'll never be able to repay you for this!" 

"Hey, Kane's my friend. It's just lucky that I followed him!" 

Kane raised his head from where he had been resting it against David's chest, listening to the reassuring beat under his cheek. "Why did you follow me Mike?" 

The deli man scooped up an iridescent blue teddy from the dirt in the alleyway. "You dropped this, kiddo!"

And Kane blushed bright red.   

Part 9   

Mike manhandled the gang-leader Chooch into the elevator. David and Kane were right on his heels. 

The occupant of the elevator stood with gaping mouth, his eyes bulging at the sight of the blood that covered the unlikely quartet. At his feet the little Yorkshire Terrier yapped away,  advancing and retreating.

David held on to Kane, still shaken by the attack on his young lover. "You're sure you're okay, baby? You're not hurt somewhere I can't see?" 

Kane rubbed his cheek against David's chest. "I'm all right, honey man. But I just don’t understand it! Why would my father want that gang to hurt me, like that?" 

"What do you mean, 'like that'?” 

“Umm.” Kane didn’t want to answer. 

“They were just going to beat you up, weren't they?" 

Kane urged David's head closer to his mouth. "They wanted me to...you know, take it in the face." he whispered, ashamed to admit that much, ashamed that they wanted much more. 

"What?" David's voice reverberated in the elevator cab. "This piece of shit wanted to do what?" 

The door slid open and the man who was in the cab with them reluctantly got off, fascinated in spite of himself, the little dog dragging along behind him. 

They continued on their way up to Benita's apartment. 

"Don't make me repeat it, David! I feel so dirty! He touched me and..." 

Before Kane could continue, his lover’s fist shot out and the gang leader took a solid blow to his face. There was an obscene crunching sound and a gout of blood spurted from the damaged nose, spattering onto the floor. 

"Jesus, David! Was that really necessary?" Mike complained. 

"Yes, it was!" David spat out from between gritted teeth. 

"Well, you could have waited until we were someplace less public!" he groused. “Someone’s gonna have to come back here and clean this up!” 

"Ask me if I care! I'm gonna kill the fucking bastard! Do you know what he was going to do to Kane?" 

"I heard, man. I'm not deaf, you know. And you'll have to get in line. I have first dibs on this scumbag!" 

By this time they had reached Benita's floor and dragged the young hoodlum to her apartment. David unlocked the door and they bundled him inside. 

**** 

Guy had been pacing the floor, more worried than he wanted to admit to the psychic. Of course she sensed his distress, but she said nothing, simply offering him tea laced with whiskey, her competent hands trying to rub the tension out of his shoulders. 

His head jerked up when he heard the key in the door and he started forward. David and Kane entered first, and he was relieved to see that Kane appeared unhurt, although his clothing was disheveled. 

"Kane!" 

The eyes that were raised to him had a bruised look, and Kane’s throat worked as reaction set in. 

Guy was alarmed that his actions had rebounded onto the younger man, which was the last thing he wanted. "David?"  He needed reassurance that Kane was all right. 

"Kane was attacked in an alley off the quad. Shit-for-brains and his gang grabbed him." 

The gang-leader had not reached his position on the streets by backing down before what he perceived as a threat. More than one member had been forced to submit to his sexual domination. He had achieved his status by stomping the former leader into the ground, battering the youth so badly that he would spend the rest of his life sipping his meals through a straw. 

His gang terrorized their portion of the city, randomly assaulting the old and young, the poor as well as those better off. 

And he terrorized his gang. 

Chooch, the name signifying his mule-like stubbornness in handling all manner of situations, suddenly found himself up against someone who was a genuine 'bad' man. A bad man to cross, a bad man to challenge, a bad man to have as an enemy! Although dressed in a manner he often derided, there was nothing 'gay' about the man confronting him. 

"So, you were going to sodomize Kane?" 

He struggled in Mike's grip, but the blond simply yanked the arm he held behind the gang leader’s back further up his spine, as if he wanted to wrap Chooch's hand around his neck. "Answer the man, ass wipe!" 

"Or what?" Chooch challenged. "You can't do anything to me! The law won't let you!" 

“This is the same law that you constantly defy?” Guy leaned back against a wall, relaxed. "You think that law will ever find out what goes on in this apartment? I can have you killed and your body disposed of. No one would ever think to question me or my friends." 

"Is that supposed to scare me, fairy?" 

If Chooch thought the epithet would upset de Villiere, he was sadly mistaken. Instead, Guy burst into laughter. 

"You're funny, Chooch. You're a very funny guy! Maybe I won't have you killed after all! Maybe I’ll do it myself! Now why don't you tell me what made you attack a friend of mine?" The last words were spoken in a furious snarl. 

The look in Guy's eyes gave the gang leader pause. He wasn’t afraid, he assured himself.  He could never be afraid of a fruit in a suit! Still... 

Ah, what the hell, he owed the old fuck who wanted his son debased nothing! 

"Yeah, sure, I'll tell you. But not cause I'm a-scared of you!" 

"No, of course not," Guy murmured. "Mike, why don't you give this maggot some slack?" 

"Is that wise, Guy?" David asked, wary of the dangerous youth in their midst. 

Guy took a length of wire from his suit pocket and wound it around his fists. "I think so. Chooch will tell us everything we want to know, or I will kill him, very, very slowly!" 

And he smiled. 

The gang leader suddenly felt as if someone was dancing on his grave. Oh yes, this was a very bad man! 

He began to talk. 

**** 

David stood with Kane in his arms, the younger man's body shaken with tremors. 

Mike returned from seeing the gang leader off the premises. None of them trusted him enough to have him wandering unescorted through the building, so Mike had been elected to make sure the lobby door was securely closed behind him. He had pounded on him a little, just to get the point across that he did not appreciate his friends being attacked, before he had tossed him out. 

The compact blond glared at Guy as he bounded back into Benita's apartment. "I hope your taste for revenge has been satisfied. You nearly managed to get Kane badly hurt. And I don't care how wealthy and powerful you are. If something bad had happened to Butch, I'd have come after you!" 

Guy refused to take exception to what Mike said. He had to agree with him. If the young man had been assaulted as a result of the actions he had taken against his father, Guy would have been devastated. 

He would have seen that everyone involved, including Kane's father, got an extensive tour of hell, but his conscience would have troubled him considerably. 

"I can't tell you how sorry I am about this, Kane," he apologized. "If I had any idea that getting fucked would unbalance your father this much, I would have used another method to deal with him!" 

Benita was the only one in the room who realized that Guy was speaking literally when he claimed to have fucked Kane's father. 

**** 

The older man had finally begged for it, while Guy’s cock was in his mouth, and Guy had seen no need to use any finesse on him. He had bared the older man’s ass with hurtful fingers, and and rolled on a lubricated condom as a matter of course, but foreplay had merely been a hard hand around his cock as Guy shoved roughly into him. 

The older man's breath had whined from between his lips as the rhythmic thrusting of Guy's hips pounded against his ass. And when he had felt the hot liquid of the rich man's climax in his channel, he began spurting his essence against the desk Guy had bent him over. 

His response toward being dominated was unexpected. He had turned toward the man who was his adversary with softened eyes. Until he had seen Guy distastefully cleaning himself off. That was when he had the sudden realization that what had just been done to him was what he wanted to do to his son! 

His sense of who he was had precluded him from doing that once, but not any longer! Not since Guy had made him his bitch! 

Guy had torn away the blinders that kept him from seeing this aspect of his nature. Carefully, making sure the wealthy man could not see what was behind his eyes, he adjusted his clothing. 

A soft snick signaled the unlocking of the office door, and he gave the impression that he was whipped, slinking away until he was out of Guy's line of sight. Then he straightened up, and strode to the bank of elevators that would take him to the ground floor, wincing as his anus protesting the hurried movement after the vigorous fucking it had gotten. 

Earlier the older man had dismissed his driver upon arriving at Guy's office building, anticipating triumph, it's taste sweet upon his tongue. 

Now he was leaving in defeat, but that was only a temporary thing. An idea had taken root, and as soon as he carefully examined all of its ramifications, from every possible angle, he would put it into effect. He would have to be very careful, and make sure de Villiere never became aware of his plan. 

But this would be even better than thwarting his adversary in business! 

He began to walk, his aimless wandering taking him into one of the more dangerous sections of the city. And then he had found himself surrounded by a pack of dangerous young thugs, who threatened his bodily integrity. 

And the final piece of his scheme tumbled neatly into place. Kane's father had  smiled, and there was a hint of the unsettled about it. The gang backed away from him as he proposed a joint venture. He would pay them a hundred dollars each to attack his son sexually. There was no  need for  them to understand the reasoning behind his offer. 

The older man licked his lips and his eyes glittered evilly. 

Once Kane was defiled in that manner, the... person... he lived with would no longer want him. 

But his loving father would!

Part 10

Kane was getting restless. Just recently  promoted to the wait-staff, he was immensely proud of the white dress shirt with the French cuffs and the tuxedo trousers that was the uniform the waiters at Salante’s wore. He  brushed at an imaginary speck of lint on his sleeve and glanced impatiently at the clock. 

His night shift at the trendy restaurant was over.  All he wanted was to go home and go to bed. Preferably with his lover. But the men in his life, his lover and his friends, refused to allow him to travel through the city alone. 

Ever since he had been attacked in the alley. 

So he had to wait for one of them to accompany him home. 

Tonight, Guy was taking Benita out on an honest to God date. Wining and dining her. Kane wondered if Guy was going to take her to one of the private dining rooms in Amore’s, where David had taken him, in more than one sense, and he sighed. It was so romantic. 

And David... 

Well, David had made use of some personal time, and not come in to work. He had been doing that frequently. Very frequently, now that Kane gave it careful consideration. What was he doing? And... with whom? 

Was the handsome actor/waiter getting bored with his young lover, and looking for greener pastures? Before surrendering to his passion for Kane, before he had bent Kane over the pool table in his father’s house that first time and made sweet love to him, gently invading his virgin passage, David had had a reputation as a heartbreaker, a love ‘em and leave ‘em kind of guy, who had more notches on his bed post than there were grains of sand on the beach. 

Was David about to resume his old habits? Was he going to leave Kane? 

No. He couldn’t. He had declared his intention of marrying the younger man! And Kane was determined to keep his lover no matter what. Candy, David's former roommate, had given Kane a hint of what to do, so that would put paid to the whole matter! And he just wouldn’t dwell on it any longer. 

Instead, he had best consider how he was to get home. 

Mike was the only one available, and so he would do the honors tonight. The young man shot another look at the clock. Where the hell was he? 

They all had to be over-reacting to that attack. Surely the danger was over by now? Kane had been overwhelmingly devastated when the thug Chooch revealed the extent of his father’s involvement in the assault, but his father really couldn't have wanted  ...THAT done to his own son! Could he? 

No, of course not. 

And everyone was worried for nothing! Kane nodded to himself. He was just going to take himself off to Benita’s apartment and show them all that he could take excellent care of himself! After all, he was an adult now! 

He patted his pocket to make sure he had the key, then slid into his leather jacket and let himself out the back door of the restaurant. 

His black Porsche was not in the parking lot. Damn! David had taken it on his mysterious errand. For all his vaunted adult status, Kane didn’t have enough cash on him for a cab.

And it was after two; the buses had stopped running for the night. 

He’d have to walk all the way home. 

Kane swung around and headed down the sidewalk to the brightly lit thoroughfare. It was a pleasant night, and the walk wouldn’t be a hardship. The air was crisp, with just a hint of winter in it. Suddenly, he felt good. 

He’d wait up for his lover, if David wasn’t already home, and then he would torment him until the older man realized there was no way on earth that he could live without him! Kane loosened the thong that kept his hair back from his face and shook the long brown strands free, just the way David liked it. 

Excitement was fizzing in his blood now, like chilled champagne, and there was a jaunty bounce in his step. At the corner he waited for the light to change. A shout from the rear of the restaurant caught his attention. 

“Hey, Butch, wait up!” 

With arms akimbo, Kane turned to face his friend. “Well, hurry it up, Mike! I want to get home sometime tonight!” His eyes were bright with laughter. 

He never noticed the car that pulled up behind him. He never saw the door open or the arm that reached out to drag him into the late model Mercedes. 

But Mike did. His cry of warning came too late. 

Kane had been abducted. 

**** 

Mike was frantic. He beat on the door of Salante’s, trying to get someone’s attention. Finally, one of the cleaning crew cracked open the door. “We’re closed man! Go ‘way!” 

“Please, I just need to use the phone!” 

“What do you think this is, the freakin’ travelers’ aid? No can do, amigo!” 

As the door was about to slam shut in his face, Mike shoved his foot in the way and grabbed the cleaning man by the soiled collar of his ratty tee shirt. “You know Kane, who works here? Well he’s been snatched, and if you don’t let me in to call for help, I will reach down your throat and rip your lungs out!” Mike was shouting in his face by this time. “Have I made myself clear, amigo?” 

Shaken, the custodian raised his hands and backed away and Mike stormed in. 

Reaching into his wallet, he pulled out a paper with pertinent phone numbers on it. The first one he dialed got him through to David. 

“Major trouble, man! Kane’s been taken. Meet me outside of Salante’s as soon as you can!” 

He hung up on David’s frantic queries and punched in another number. This was one that many in the business world would gladly kill to posses: Guy de Villiere’s private cell phone number. 

The connection was established on the first ring. 

“What is it?” Guy barked. 

“It’s Mike. Kane’s been snatched. I’m at Salante’s.” 

“We’re on our way!” 

Mike let himself out of the restaurant and began pacing the parking lot, chewing the toothpick between his teeth to splinters and running his hand through his blond hair. By the time David got there, Mike’s hair was so disheveled he looked as if he had gone backwards through a hedge. 

The former actor bounded out of the Porsche, leaving the keys dangling in the ignition and the motor idling. “Where is he? What happened? Why the fuck weren’t you with him?” 

Before Mike could answer, Guy rolled into the lot and coolly exited his own vehicle. Benita was at his side. She went to David and put a calming hand on his arm. 

“David, beating Mike senseless will not bring us closer to finding Kane.” She gave him a shake. “Control yourself!” 

“Yeah, well, where the fuck were you McMillan?” Mike demanded hotly. “You missed another shift! If you had been here, he wouldn’t have been out on the street by himself!” 

David’s eyes turned blind with distress, and Mike  had the grace to look abashed. “I...” 

“Never mind!” Guy said shortly. “We don’t have time for recriminations!” He flipped open his cell phone and made a call. “What do you have for me?” he asked, putting the call on speakerphone so everyone could hear the conversation. 

“I’ve been following the old man’s car as you requested, sir. A couple of his people took it and were watching the restaurant where the young man works. They grabbed him about half an hour ago and brought him to the office building that houses the old man’s business.” 

“Has anyone left since you took up your position?” 

“No, sir. No one else has come in either.” 

“Very well. Thank you. Stay there and continue watching. If Kane is taken from that building, I want you to tail them and get in immediate contact with me. You have this number. In the meantime, I’m on my way!” 

“Yes, sir!” The connection was severed and the speaker settled back to continue his surveillance. 

He had no idea why the old man put the snatch on his own kid, but he wouldn’t want to be in his shoes for all the tea in China! When his boss spoke in that clipped manner, it usually meant someone was going to get it up the ass! 

He shuddered, glad he was not on the receiving end of that contained anger. 

“David, you and Mike go in the Porsche. My Lamborghini is too snug for the four of us. You know where the business is? The old man’s apartment is in the penthouse of that building. It’s my bet that’s where he’ll have Kane!” 

David shook his head, fear gripping his gut. “Kane may have mentioned the address, but I can’t remember it.” 

Guy got behind the wheel. “Follow us, and stay close, I won’t be stopping for any lights!” 

The sexy silver sports car leaped forward into the street, the black Porsche hard on its ass. 

“Guy, how are we going to deal with this?” Benita asked, nervously tearing at a thumbnail. 

“Trust me, ma petite. Trust me!”

Part 11

The older man cast an acerbic glance at the figure that was lying helpless on the loveseat. 

What an ironic name for that particular piece of furniture. 

The idiots he had designated to do this job had proven to be incompetent to the nth degree. When he instructed them to use any means necessary to bring his son to him, he had not the least inkling that they would actually render the boy unconscious by using a sap on him. 

Those fools would pay dearly for their bungling. 

He had been relishing the fantasy of his son dragged before him, begging and pleading for mercy. He would wrap his fingers in that long, brown hair and drag that tempting mouth under his own. And while he ravaged those lush lips, his other hand would be busy stripping the trousers from the lissome form, and fondling what heretofore had been forbidden to him. 

He growled under his breath and stroked his arousal through the material of his slacks. 

Well, that was still to come. It was merely a matter of delaying gratification. Meanwhile, he would just have to maintain some semblance of patience. 

The trickle of blood that seeped sluggishly from the wound in his son’s scalp caused him to curl his lip and walk away from the gory sight. There was a decanter of Dewars on the credenza. He poured himself a couple of fingers of the fine scotch and settled into a cushioned chair to wait for his son to regain his senses. The alcohol warmed its way down to his cock, and he closed his eyes, once more enjoying the vision of  Kane on his knees before him, only this time, he was using his mouth for something other than begging. 

**** 

The elevator to the penthouse was secured for the night. There was no way the quartet could get up there through that venue. 

But there is always more than one way to access an upper story. 

A thin strip of light was visible from under the closed doors of the executive offices that belonged to Kane’s father, indicating that someone had either come in exceptionally early, or had stayed exceedingly late. 

Guy cautiously tried the knob, and was surprised when it turned easily in his hand. 

The woman who was seated at the desk started in panic when she realized she was no longer alone in the suite of offices. Her head jerked up, and Guy swore silently. 

Her eyes were red and swollen. Mascara had run down her cheeks. What he first took to be her lipstick, smeared over her chin, he discovered was blood from a badly cut lip. A palm print stood out in stark relief on her cheek. 

Her blouse hung open, the buttonholes ripped and buttons missing. One cup of her bra was torn, revealing a breast covered with bite marks. 

She grabbed for a tissue and blotted her face, making a futile effort to cover herself. “Who are you? What are you doing here?” 

“I’m looking for a friend of mine. You would do well to help me. And in return, I will help you.” 

“How can you help me? she responded bitterly. 

“I’m de Villiere!” 

She moaned and buried her head in her hands. 

“Who did this to you?” 

“Who do you think? That son of a bitch I work for!” 

“Kane’s father?” 

She nodded. 

“Help me, and I’ll see that he pays!” 

The blue eyes she raised to his burned fiercely with the need for revenge. “Anything!” 

She rose to her feet and haltingly came from behind her desk. Her skirt was askew and her pantyhose had been shredded. “I’ll need to make some repairs. Just tell me what you want me to do!” 

Guy watched with compassion as she limped to the washroom. Blood streaked the backs of her legs. He was about to ask what the bastard had done to her, but then decided it would be too cruel, too prurient to make her go into the details. 

“Do you want me to call a doctor?” he asked. 

“No, I’m not as badly hurt as it might look. We’ve done this before, although never to this extreme. He didn’t prepare me this time.” A sob caught in her throat. “I’ll be all right.” 

She returned to her office, her face wiped clean and her hair once more in order, her clothing rearranged. A new pair of pantyhose covered her legs. 

A very resourceful woman, the old man’s executive secretary! 

“Now, what do you want me to do?” 

**** 

Kane’s head hurt. His hand found the lump under his hair, and came away wet. He opened his eyes to see what caused the dampness, and winced, as the light seemed to knife through his pupils. 

His stomach roiled and he clamped his lips together. 

“Ah, you’re with us once more, my boy! Don’t try to pretend you’re still unconscious! Open your eyes and look at me!” 

“Papa? What’s wrong? Why is my head bleeding?” 

“Those feebleminded cretins who brought you here didn’t understand the meaning of the word ‘moderation’! The fools!” he muttered under his breath. 

“Where am I, Papa?” 

“You’re in the penthouse apartment. And I don’t want you to call me that anymore! From now on I am going to be your honey man!” 

“What?” Suddenly it all came back to Kane, the attack in the alley, the fact that it had been instigated by his own father, and now his abduction. He bit down hard on his back teeth. 

“You’re going to be mine, boy! I'm going to be the one fucking your ass from now on! And no one will do anything to stop it!” 

“David won’t...” 

“That promiscuous fag? He’s just going to think you want to experiment with all the varied pleasures that are available to a pretty boy like you!” 

“No!” Kane shook his head, and then moaned as the motion made him increasingly nauseous. “David knows I would never leave him!” 

“Perhaps, but that’s not what he’ll think when he gets the note from you!” 

“I’m not sending him any note!” 

“Oh, you might not personally write it, but Miss Winstead is quite good at copying another’s handwriting. And I have quite a few examples of yours handy. Trust me, dear boy! David will want nothing more to do with you when she gets done. I will see to that!” 

The older man approached the loveseat and Kane shrank back, afraid of what his father was going to do. The brown eyes that looked back into his were no longer quite sane. 

“I never would have dreamed of doing this to you, do you know that? You have your friend de Villiere to thank for my change of attitude! Did he tell you what he did to me?” 

Kane shook his head and winced again. He didn’t want to know what the ruthless businessman had done to drive his father past all acceptable boundaries, but even less did he want his father to put his hands on him. “What did Guy do, Papa?” he whispered through clenched teeth. 

“I told you not to call me that!” the older man shrieked. His hand shot out and Kane’s head rocked back as his father’s palm connected violently with his cheek. “There now, see what you made me do, you naughty boy!” The suddenly playful tone of voice frightened Kane more than anything else. 

Turning to glance casually around the room, the older man spotted the chair he had been seated in and pulled it close to the loveseat. He settled himself comfortably and leaned toward his son. “You see, I never wanted a male lover. Not consciously. But then de Villiere forced me to go down on him. And when that wasn’t enough, he sodomized me!” 

Kane’s chocolate brown eyes were agonized. His father was clearly insane! Guy would never do that! 

“Oh, don’t be horrified, dear boy. I quite enjoyed it, once I got over the shock of having another man’s penis in my ass. In fact, I thought the experience might be even more rewarding if it was my penis in your ass! And then I thought what it would feel like if you took me in that sweet mouth of yours! 

“And you know, it doesn’t even matter if you call me ‘daddy’. I’ve heard that you sometimes referred to your former lover that way! Just don’t call me ‘papa’!” 

The older man inclined his head forward, his gaze fastened on his son’s mouth. “Kiss me, sweet boy, kiss me!” His voice was hoarse with desire. 

Kane’s eyes grew huge, and an expression of misery crossed his face. He turned his head away. 

His father gloated at the distress he was causing the younger man, and he reached for his lips. 

And then Kane relaxed his jaw and whipped his head around. The rapid motion upset his already queasy stomach and set in progress a specific chain of events. 

As his father brought his face closer to his own, Kane lurched forward and began emptying the contents of his stomach all over the older man’s very expensive, very exclusively made, very alligator shoes! 

Part 12

David felt as if his heart was being ripped out. His lover was behind that closed door, alone with a man who should only have his well-being at heart, but who in fact wanted to abuse and defile him. 

He tore at a cuticle, and felt blood begin to drip down his finger. David stared at it blankly, then stuck his finger in his mouth and sucked on it. The bleeding stopped almost immediately. And he began worrying another cuticle. 

Mike gripped his arm in passing, and continued pacing  the corridor. 

“What are they doing in there?” David hissed. 

“Have patience, David!” Benita advised. 

“Goddammit!” he spat. “You wouldn’t say that if it was your lover in there with a pervert!” 

“Guy will get him out of there! Trust him!” 

“Why should I trust him? Do you?” 

Her eyes widened and she stared at her friend in shock. “I do!” 

“What?” 

“I do trust him!” 

“How the fuck did that happen?” David demanded. 

She shrugged helplessly. “I...don’t know! He must have sneaked up on me when I wasn’t looking!” 

Knowing how lost she was feeling, David put his arms around her and hugged her close. “Falling in love is a bitch, isn’t it, Nita?” 

Benita gave a spurt of laughter and leaned into him. 

And Mike continued his pacing. 

**** 

Miss Winstead’s task was to distract the older man. “But I felt sure you would love some of this Dom Perignon ‘64, mon ange!” she cooed. “After all, this is a special occasion, is it not?” 

For a moment, confusion filled her sometime-lover’s chocolate brown eyes. “It is?” 

She nodded toward where Kane was slumped on the loveseat, his face bearing a palm print that matched the one on her cheek. “You’ve wanted to do this for such a long time, mon coeur! Here, a glass of champagne to celebrate?” 

The confusion left his eyes. “Fucking bitch! I fired you! Get your ass out of here and leave me to the boy!” he turned away from her. 

“Ah, ma vie, you no longer wish to make love to me? I’m just so fucking devastated!” With a lightning-like move, her hand shot out and she jabbed his buttock with a syringe. 

“What have you done?” the older man howled. 

“Nothing but what you’ve deserved for a very long time!” Guy spoke softly as he emerged from the shadows. 

“De Villiere! What are you...how did you...” Kane’s father found his tongue was becoming tangled in the simplest of sentences. 

“Get him out of here!” Guy nodded toward Kane, and the executive secretary got an arm around him and urged him to his feet. 

“Come on, sweetie, you don’t need to be here for this!” She paused as they reached the door. “Do him a violence, M. de Villiere! Make him pay!” 

The two walking wounded left the room, she making sure the door was firmly closed behind them. 

**** 

David let Benita go so quickly she staggered. He reached his lover and had him firmly in his arms before she could regain her balance. The psychic smiled ruefully and looked away to give the pair a modicum of privacy. 

The older man fussed over Kane, murmuring in dismay over his blood-soaked hair and the bruise on his cheek. “Are you all right? How badly did him hurt you? Oh, baby, I was so worried about you! I’m so sorry this happened!” 

“It wasn’t your fault.” Kane’s voice dragged with weariness. “I wasn’t careful. I just couldn’t believe he would do something like that to me. I mean, it isn’t as if he ever even liked me. He always ignored me!” 

Gentle fingers ran through his hair. “Oh, you may have thought he was ignoring you, but he used to watch you! This past year or so, whenever you would come up to the office, I saw the way he looked at you.” Miss Winstead stroked the curve of his cheek. “My angel!” 

“That’s what you called my father!” 

She grimaced. “He insisted on those French endearments, don’t ask me why. You’d better sit down, Kane. I think you may have a concussion.” 

“I should have thought of that myself!” David castigated himself. “I want that cut on your scalp looked at, baby.” 

“You’re not going to take me to the hospital, are you David?” 

“Kane, if I have to drag you kicking and screaming, I’m going to make sure that you see a doctor!” 

“Mr. McMillan!” The executive secretary was shocked at his seemingly brutal words. 

Kane laughed, and then flinched as pain speared through his head. “It’s all right, Miss Winstead. I know David loves me.” 

His lover scowled at him. “Then why won’t you mind me? You need to see a doctor!” 

Kane glared right back at him. “You’re not my father!” he retorted. 

“No! I’m your dad-dy!” 

Kane’s eyes clouded and David became panicked. “Baby, what’s wrong?” 

“He wanted me to call him that!” 

“Shit!” David wanted to take the older man apart with his bare hands. “Baby...” 

Kane was reliving that frightening moment. “He hit me when I called him Papa, but he said he would be my daddy, because he knew I called you that sometime. But David,” the younger man looked confused, “I never called you Daddy!” 

“Your father has ears all over the city, Kane,” Miss Winstead said wearily as she took a seat in one of the settees in the lobby of the penthouse suite. “He’d have found out everything he needed to know, no matter what it took, or how much it cost him.” 

Unintelligible cries suddenly erupted from behind the closed door. For a moment they became understandable. “No, please! Get away from me! Leave me alone!” They rapidly escalated into screams of unholy terror. “Jesus God, help me! No!. No...NO!” 

The crescendo abruptly ceased, and the group in the lobby regarded each other highly shaken. 

Mike wiped a hand across his mouth. “What the fuck was that?” 

The door opened and Guy looked out. “Ah, Miss Winstead. You’re still here. Excellent! I hate to impose, but I believe we’ll need a mobile crisis unit on the scene, if you would be so kind as to call for one?” 

The composed executive secretary approached her former employer’s deadly adversary. She glanced over his shoulder into the room beyond. Huddled in a corner, cowering, Kane’s father had his head buried in his arms and was gibbering incoherently to himself. 

Her blue eyes met dark ones that were merciless, and in spite of herself, she shuddered. “I think, perhaps, it might be better if I got in touch with Doctor Schoenfeld, his psychiatrist.” 

Kane whirled around in surprise, and then gasped in dismay as his stomach heaved from the sudden movement. He swallowed hard and began breathing shallowly through his mouth. “I didn’t know my father saw a shrink!” 

“He didn’t.” The soignée woman had the grace to look ill-at-ease. “It was for your mother. He wanted to have her committed, but she died before he could do that. But this psychiatrist is on his payroll, and it would behoove him to act expeditiously.” 

David went to offer Kane what comfort he could, but the younger man brushed past him and went up to Guy de Villiere. “Is my father crazy?” 

“Like a shit-house rat!” Mike hissed under his breath, but fortunately his friend didn’t hear him. He was concentrating on the other man. 

“I’m not in the medical field, Kane. I could hardly diagnose anyone.” Guy had forgotten that Kane grew up in the same circles as he, and was unafraid to challenge him. 

“Take a guess, rich man!” 

Guy paled. He liked Kane, and hated to hear him use the epithet Benita was wont to hurl at him when she was trying to keep him from getting close to her. He could never tell the young man that his father had been injected with a psychosis-inducing drug that pushed him over the edge. 

Or that Guy’s seduction of him had driven him to that point. 

Guy would never be able to forgive himself for the actions that had placed Kane in such potential danger, and that was something he would have to live with for the rest of his life. 

Confession might be good for the soul, but his soul was going to have to do without it. Never could he tell the younger man that he had literally fucked his father. It had been with the purest of intentions, but Guy was well aware that he had just laid another yard of cement paving the road to hell. 

He could never tell Benita, either. If she knew his questionable actions, she would sever any connection with him so fast he didn’t think he’d be able to survive it. And that was not a chance he was willing to take.

But Guy had badly miscalculated. 

He didn’t need to say anything to the psychic. Each time she touched him, she was able to read him, more and more clearly. She knew what he had done to Kane’s father. She had known from the day after, when Kane had been attacked in the alley off the quad. 

And it didn’t matter. Who he was, what he did. His heart was linked unalterably with hers. 

He had wanted her, had burst into her life determined to make her acknowledge him, make her his. He had battled her to a standstill, but that battle was over now. Finally. 

He just didn’t know it. 

And she was the winner. 

Part 13 

The door slammed shut behind the young man, and Benita winced at the force of it. David was late again, and Kane had no choice but to leave for work without him. 

This made four out of five nights that the former actor had not shown up in time for the drive to the restaurant where he waited tables. Kane feared his lover was in danger of losing his job, although Jacques, the manager, seemed unconcerned about the repeated absences. 

But what was worse was that the younger man feared he was in danger of losing his lover. 

It had been some time since his father had been hospitalized after the kidnapping and assault, and not once had David tried to make love to him. Oh, he held him, and cuddled him, but each time Kane attempted to initiate anything physical, David shied off, citing work, or...other things. 

Kane got into his black Porsche convertible and carefully inserted the key into the ignition with hands that weren‘t quite steady. David meant more to him than any other person in the world. He would do whatever it took to keep him in his life. 

A horrid thought insinuated itself into his mind. What if David no longer wanted to be in his life? What if he thought Kane was too high-maintenance, too needy, too much trouble? 

The younger man swiped a sleeve across his eyes and sniffled inelegantly. If David had been there, he would have smiled and handed him his handkerchief, making a teasing remark about his youth. 

But David was not there. 

Kane had to drive to work alone. 

**** 

His shift was half over when the recently promoted waiter spotted a familiar face. “Candy!” He was surprised to see her at the trendy restaurant. She had always complained that the clientele was too up-scale for her taste. 

“Hi, Kane. How are you?” 

Although he had known David’s former roommate for a number of months now, he still wasn’t quite comfortable with her. But she was his lover’s good friend, and she accepted that the relationship she once had with David was over. Candy and David had been lovers, a long time ago. For about two seconds, according to David, long enough for him to accept that making love to a woman was just not for him. 

But Candy could never quite let go. Even when David told her there was no chance of them ever becoming anything more than friends again. 

“You don’t look too good!” she commented, regarding her friend‘s lover closely. 

Kane’s chocolate brown eyes turned bittersweet. “Thanks.” 

“No, seriously! You look like you haven’t been sleeping well. What’s wrong?” 

He was reluctant to discuss this with the woman who was essentially the fifth wheel in his relationship with David, but he needed to talk to someone. Anyone. 

Benita was too involved with Guy de Villiere, the wealthy man who was determined to make his way into her life. His friend Mike would just scowl and threaten to beat the crap out of David. 

And David...just wasn’t there! 

“I ...I’ve got a few minutes; let me tell Jacques I’m taking a break!” 

Candy smiled as the young man hurried to find his boss. She knew David would never be hers again, but it had been a long, dry spell between lovers. Jeri, the grade school teacher, and her only experiment with an alternate lifestyle, and Robert the bartender who couldn’t decide if he was married or not, were in the past. There was nothing to occupy her spare time, except to think up ways to cause some mischief. 

Oh, she meant no harm, she assured herself. She just wanted to amuse herself until something turned up to take her mind off the fact that her bed was exceptionally lonely these days. 

Kane returned with a white wine for the young woman, and a beer for himself. Candy took a sip and waited with growing impatience for Kane to unburden himself. 

Finally, “Look, Kane, if you don’t want to tell me what the problem is, I have a deadline tomorrow and I really need to get home!” As she hoped, that gave Kane the nudge he needed, and he began to pour out his woes. 

David was seldom at home these days; he was late for work or skipping shifts completely. And worst of all... 

Candy couldn’t deal with a distraught male! She shifted uneasily in her seat. 

Kane couldn’t bring himself to tell her that David hadn’t made love to him in weeks. Instead, his breath hitching in his throat, he pulled a handkerchief out of his breast pocket. 

Carefully, he placed it on the table between them and began to unfold it. Now that Candy was certain the young waiter wasn’t about to break down in her presence, she leaned forward and examined the square of material intently. 

Saved within its folds were four strands of very blond hair. 

“Yeah, so?” Candy asked crossly, disappointed that nothing major was revealed. 

Kane lost his temper. “The last time I looked, Candy, I was not a blond!” 

“Ohhh!“ Candy’s eyes lit up with understanding. “You got these hairs off David’s clothing?” 

Miserable, the young man nodded reluctantly. “What am I going to do?” 

She couldn’t believe she had been handed such a priceless opportunity. Mentally she was rubbing her hands together and jumping up and down. “You really want my advice?” 

Once again, Kane nodded. 

“Okay, then I’ll tell you what I would do if I found hair that wasn’t mine on my lover!” 

**** 

David was nervous. The house he and Kane had been remodeled was finally finished and they had invited everyone they knew to the housewarming. 

The first floor had been thrown open and all their friends were wandering through the rooms, commenting on the lush decor and homey elegance. 

Except for Bernie, who left a message on Candy’s machine that he had been sent out of town on business and would be unable to attend. 

When Candy called to pass on the message, David was relieved. And ashamed that he was relieved. He didn’t question the fact that Bernie’s company never sent him anywhere for any reason. 

All extraneous thoughts were pushed from his brain. Where was Kane? 

This was an event they had been looking forward to for months. As kind as Benita had been in allowing them to stay in her apartment until the house was ready, both David and Kane wanted their own home. 

David, especially, had plans to take his younger lover in every room of the house, starting with the conservatory, which also contained a pool large enough to swim laps in. He had visions of stripping Kane naked and going down on his knees before him, worshipping the sweet flesh between his thighs that had been increasingly unavailable to him. 

For the young man had been acting strangely in the weeks since his father’s attack, and David’s level of anxiety was rising higher and higher. What would he do if Kane was so traumatized by those events that he no longer wanted a male lover? What if he no longer wanted to commit to the actor? 

David held a ring box in his hand and popped it open. He spared a glance at the ring in its nest of amber velvet, then irritably snapped the lid closed, repeating this process a number of times, before Benita lost patience and snatched it away from him. 

“Stop playing with that thing, David!” she ordered. “What’s the matter with you?” 

He took her arm and let his emotions pour through to her. The psychic staggered back. De Villiere, who was never far from her side these days, caught David’s wrist and flung it away from the woman he cared most about. She angled her slight frame between the two men and elbowed Guy. Because she was shorter than he was, it caught him in his diaphragm and he ‘oofed’ as his breath was driven out. 

“Stay out of this Guy; this is not your concern! Why do you think Kane doesn’t love you anymore, David?” 

“Well, where is he now?” the actor demanded. 

Benita was not about to admit that her friend might have a point. She hadn’t seen much of Kane; he had been making himself exceptionally scarce in recent days. And he was nowhere in the house that evening. 

Just then the door was flung open and a blast of icy air swept through the foyer, ushering in Candy, and the object of their discussion. Kane wore his black leather jacket but his nose was red from the winter cold. On his head, clashing violently with the color of his nose, was a chartreuse and eggplant ski cap, drawn down to his eyebrows. 

“Where have you been?” David snapped. 

“Hi, David!” Candy chirped as she leaned up to place a kiss on his cheek. 

“Oh, hi, Candy,” he replied distractedly, kissing her in return. 

Kane turned his back on his lover and shrugged out of his jacket, hanging it in a walk-in closet that most people mistook for a sitting room upon first finding it. He ignored David. 

“Kane!” 

“WHAT?” Kane shouted back at him, at the end of his tether. 

Their interested friends took a giant step back. 

David grabbed his lover and shoved him into the closet, closing the door firmly behind them and snapping on the light. “Do you realize how late it is? Everybody’s ready to leave! They‘ve been wanting to see you all night!” 

“So ask me if I give a fuck!” 

David felt as if he had been attacked by a kitten. 

In spite of his bravado, Kane’s insides were tied up in knots. Their relationship was on the line, and if Candy’s advice didn’t work, he didn’t know what he was going to do. 

“You’ve been acting really weird, Kane!” 

“I've been...?” Kane pulled off the ski cap and flung it at the man he loved. “You’re never home anymore! You haven’t made love to me in I don’t know how long, and you accuse me of being weirded out?” 

David’s mouth dropped open and he couldn’t say a word. He stared in shock at his lover. His very blond lover. Gone was the long brown hair he loved to wrap around his fists as he pleasured Kane. 

“What did you do?” he whispered hoarsely. He grabbed Kane’s arms. “What the fuck did you do?” David punctuated each word with a harder and harder shake. 

Kane was scared; he hung helplessly in the older man’s grip. David’s reaction was not what he expected. He had thought going blond would win his lover back. 

But the results of the hair dye that Candy used were not what the box promised. Instead of a soft, golden color, his hair was now yellow. 

Not blond, not flaxen like the strands he had pulled off David’s clothing, but bright, bright yellow. He had only just prevented himself from weeping at the disaster his hair had become when Candy had removed the towel she used to dry him. 

And it was becoming more and more obvious that David concurred with that. He was so angry he was almost vibrating with the effort it took to control himself. 

 A single tear rolled down Kane’s cheek. 

“Oh, no you don’t! Tears aren’t going to soften me! Don’t even think I’m going to let you get away with this! What possessed you to do such a goddamned, stupid thing?” 

“These!” 

David’s eyes crossed trying to see what Kane shoved under his nose. He jerked his head back and the long blond strands came into focus. “Where did you find that?” 

Kane swiped the tears with the heel of his hand. “Where do you think? Off that white shirt I got you for our two-month anniversary! How could you, David?” 

“How could I what? Don’t start pushing the blame off on me! I‘m not the one who bleached his hair!” 

“You wore my shirt to see someone else!” 

“What?“ Ahhh. So that was the problem! It was starting to fall into place. 

David had needed something especially nice when he went to audition for a new play by an up-and-coming playwright, and he had worn that for good luck. “Baby...” 

Before David could explain, the younger man threw himself into his lover’s arms. “You haven’t called me baby in weeks, David! I thought you found someone else! I thought you didn’t want me anymore!” 

All thoughts of an explanation fled. David was suddenly so hard he was trembling. He tightened his arms and bent his knees slightly to accommodate his shorter lover. His lips found Kane’s and pressed until that lush mouth opened to admit him. 

Soft moans spilled from Kane’s mouth into David’s, who swallowed them eagerly. “You’re mine, baby! I’ll never want anyone else!” 

Kane tore his mouth free long enough to catch his breath. “You haven’t touched me in so long!” He rubbed himself frantically against his lover’s arousal. Deciding that breathing, at this point, was unimportant, he went back to kissing David ravenously. 

“I was afraid it would bring up bad memories...” 

“Nothing you do to me would be bad, David, don’t you know that?” He seized his lover’s lips and kissed him some more. 

David decided that this was much better than trying to be noble. He just wasn’t cut out for the far, far better thing shit. Later he would find out whose bright idea it was for Kane to color his hair. They would deal with the whole misunderstanding, later. 

Much later. 

Part 14 

Kane had no idea where his lover would take things. He knew David was shocked that he had colored his hair, and he knew he would be furious when he learned that it had been done in a desperate attempt to win his lover back. 

An attempt that now seemed futile, in that he was never in any danger of losing him! 

David stripped the younger man bare, whispering in iambic meter, “’I am ashamed that men could be so simple, to offer war where they should kneel for peace!’” He snapped a set of conveniently placed handcuffs on the unsuspecting Kane. In a voice dark with desire, he continued, "And you are going to kneel before me, aren’t you baby? But only after I finish fucking you so hard you have no doubt that I want you! Only you! You're mine! I'll never let you go!" 

Then David hoisted him up to his feet and secured his bound wrists to a hook mounted on the wall in a recessed corner of the huge walk-in closet. He hung there, forced up onto his toes, a helpless, but willing sacrifice to his lover. 

Long fingers brushed that yellow hair aside, baring the curve of his throat, allowing David to plant nipping kisses along the smoothly-shaven skin. "Maybe this will teach you to talk to me before you dream up any half-assed schemes!" 

Kane shivered at the hoarse tone. Before he could protest the injustice of that statement, David took his lips in a punishing kiss and he moaned helplessly, all thought fleeing his mind. Only Kane’s ragged breathing broke the silence of the large closet, until the sound of David unzipping his trousers and freeing his rampant erection caused the younger man's heart rate to escalate and inarticulate sighs to pass from his lips. 

Pressing his firm, young rump back against the cock that was rubbing teasingly along the crevice of his ass, Kane could feel the moisture leaking from it, causing it to glide over the sensitive skin just behind his balls. His lover's arousal began to press forward, seeking entrance into his body. "David!" he moaned softly. 

It had been too long since David had buried himself in his lover's snug channel, and he found himself painfully hard and eager to dominate Kane. Lube warmed by the heat of his fingers eased the passage, preparing the way for a larger intruder. 

Kane whimpered and struggled to turn his head. "Kiss me, David," he pleaded, and the older man took his lips even as his cock plunged into his lover. Kane moaned and thrust back onto the arousal that was measuring its length in him, only then feeling loved once more. 

David gripped Kane's narrow hip with hard fingers and forced him to hold still for his plundering. He took the younger man's cock in his other hand and stroked and squeezed him, pleasuring him in ways they had both delighted in discovering. 

Pulling him a step backward, David compelled Kane to angle his hips in a manner that had him shuddering at the sensations that rippled through him like a riptide and settled in his balls. He could feel them drawing up, tightening, preparatory to coming. 

"David! David!" Kane sounded desperate. 

The older man plunged against the spot that set him free. "Come for me, baby!" and Kane began to pour himself over his lover's hand. 

The tension of those inner muscles milking his long-neglected cock triggered David's own climax, and with a stifled groan he too came, in long, shuddering spurts. 

The pressure of David's weight along his back was straining the ligaments in Kane's shoulders, but he relished the discomfort, accepting it as a sign of his lover's deep emotional connection. He hummed with weary pleasure as the older man lightly stroked his nipples, prepared to stay as he was all night if need be. 

"We've got guests!" David groaned as it suddenly dawned on him that the two of them had been incommunicado for much too long. Someone was bound to come looking for them. 

And he had neglected to have a lock put on this particular door! 

**** 

Three people stood before the walk-in closet. If one didn't know better, one could assume that they were guarding it. 

And one would be correct: at least two of them were. 

Mike strolled up to Benita and Guy, inhaling the last of the delicate puff pastries his old man had prepared for Kane and David’s housewarming. When he learned that the house the young man and his lover had purchased was finally remodeled to their satisfaction, he had insisted on doing the catering. 

Kane had been the deli man’s friend for a long time, ever since Mike had moved into the neighborhood near an elementary school. He worked in the deli below the apartment he shared with his old man, learning the ropes so he could help out while his father recovered from a serious illness. 

It was only supposed to be for a few months, but Mike found he had a talent for the business, and so he stayed. And met a young boy who one day wandered in when his father’s housekeeper refused to make him lunch. 

The kid had been punched and knocked down and his lunch money had been stolen. Mike had felt sorry for him and made him a bologna sandwich. He had no use for the children of the wealthy; too often they were parasites who only lived to cause trouble. 

But Kane was different, and the former gang leader had taken a liking to the poor little rich boy who was so often alone, even when he was surrounded by a crowd of people. The kid needed a friend almost as badly as he needed to be one. 

Carefully licking his fingers, he grinned at the pair sipping the expensive champagne his young friend had ordered weeks ago. Kane was so excited about finally moving into his own home. "Where's Butch? I haven't seen him all night." 

Benita stifled a giggle and buried her face in the tweedy jacket the rich man wore. Guy gazed indulgently down at sable curls that covered her head. "He's with David." 

Mike scowled. "Well, where are they? I have to start cleaning up after this lot, and I want to catch them before they decide to disappear somewhere together." 

"Too late for that!" Benita sputtered, her eyes dancing with merriment, and she nodded toward the closet door. "They're in there!" 

"Huh?" Mike leaned forward, but Guy stepped in front of him, blocking his way. 

"I think they need some…. privacy right now!"  He stared down his nose at the attractive brunette standing with them, and yet not with them. Her eyes tangled with his for a hostile beat before uncomfortably shifting away. 

"What's going on?" Mike picked up on the young woman's tension, and his glance became decidedly interested. 

"We'd better let Kane tell you the whole story! Unless, of course, Candy wants to regale us with her machinations?" 

Shrugging and studying her wine as if it was the most fascinating thing in creation, Candy shook her head briefly. "I don't know what you're talking about, I'm sure!" 

David chose that moment to open the door and step out of the closet. His hair was wildly disheveled and his clothing was in disarray. And he exuded an air of such satisfaction that even Mike, rabid epitome of het sex that he was, was intrigued. 

The actor glowered at his former roommate. "Candy!" 

"Um, David, everyone is going home, and I think it's about time for me to call it a night too. I had a marvelous time. Thank you so much for inviting me! Um, I'll be seeing you?" 

Her sentence ended with a squeak, as David grabbed her wrist in a bruising hold and jerked her toward him. "Would you mind explaining yourself?" 

"I didn't do anything!" she responded sullenly. 

David huffed in impatience and Mike became even more interested. "What's going on David? And where's Kane? I need to know how much of this stuff he wants me to save. St. Enselm's is making up food baskets for the holidays and I can donate whatever the two of you don't need." 

"Nice idea, Mike," David said softly. His eyes glowed with remembered passion. "But Kane's tied up right now." Benita and Guy exchanged startled glances and dissolved into muted laughter. The other man scowled at them, distracted. "Let me check out what we have left. And Candy!" 

She had been easing her way toward the door and stopped short. "Yes David?" she asked, innocently. He knew she was in this up to her penciled eyebrows, and he wasn't about to let her get away without an explanation. 

"Don't. Leave. This. House!" 

Unseen by the others, the closet door had opened quietly and the young man stepped out into the foyer. His jeans were zipped, but not buttoned, he was barefoot and shirtless, his hands cuffed in front of him. 

“David!” he said plaintively, holding out his hands. 

But it wasn’t his bound state that drew everyone’s attention. The bright lights of the hallway glinted off the yellow hair tangled around his face and curling past his shoulders. 

Benita and Guy visibly flinched, and Mike’s mouth dropped open in shock. Yellow was not Kane's best color. 

"Jesus, Mary and Joseph! Kane, what did you do to your hair?" 

“That’s what I want to know!” David looked clearly unhappy. 

Kane looked clearly embarrassed. 

And Candy looked clearly… guilty!

~End Part A~

~On to Part B

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