PS. Come back tomorrow for a brand new short story featuring my own take on vampires in the Vampire Blog Hop!!
One Night Part 7
“Hey, is there any chance of getting me put in another room?” Bear asked the nurse. “I’m really not comfortable here.”
Her smile crinkled her eyes as she leaned close and mock whispered, “I don’t blame you.” She glanced rather obviously at Jimmy and Kameron who were arguing in quiet voices. She grabbed his chart and wrote something in it and then set it down at the bottom of the bed. “Actually, you should be discharged shortly. You had a dislocated shoulder and you have a possible wrist fracture. The doctor put your shoulder back in place and splinted your wrist. You’ll need to keep the sling on, and your wrist brace from getting wet, but he said you shouldn’t need to be kept too long after you woke up.”
“Can I get some more of whatever drugs you guys gave me to take home?” Bear asked her. He glanced over where Jimmy and Kameron were staring with identical mulish expressions on their faces. “I’m going to need them.”
She laughed. “I’ll see what he can do. Let me know if you need anything, otherwise someone should be by soon to check on you and then get you discharged.”
“Thanks.”
The room was quiet until the door shut.
“Bear¾”
“Shut up Kameron.”
“Bear¾”
“You too Jimmy. You went too far! Making Kameron date me so you could break a case? That’s fucking bullshit.” Bear focused on his anger to avoid feeling his hurt that the connection he’d thought they’d made had been faked on the other man’s part. “I don’t want anything to do with him, and right now, I don’t want anything to do with you either. You’re an asshole.”
Jimmy’s face twisted in a snarl and he stalked over to the bed, looming over him. “Like I said before, that’s too damn bad. There’s a drug war going on Bear, and you’re smack dab in the middle of it. Vilem was double dipping, dealing for two rival gangs but not part of either. Then he ripped one off and blamed the other. It was a god damn massacre of the smaller gang. All their higher ups were gunned down last night. Now you have the Zbrane gang after you because they found out that your boyfriend stashed their drugs instead and they think you know where.”
Bear’s heart pounded. He’d seen a news special on those guys. New to the area, they were a vicious gang. “I don’t!”
“Well I do,” Jimmy said grimly. “The scumbag left them in your apartment. That’s why he’s been trying to get you back. You can’t go home; I’ve cops going over there to find the drugs but the Zbrane might think they’re still there. They will not hesitate to shoot you, Bear, and that’s only after they beat you to find out you know nothing.”
Bear ran his good hand through his hair. “What the hell am I supposed to do, Jimmy? I can’t just put my damn life on hold.”
“We’ll get your computers. You can work on your website stuff from a safe house. You should stay away from Loren; it’ll be safer for him if you’re not working at the bar anyway. Think about that when you’re insisting you don’t need either of us.”
His frustration mounting, Bear snapped, “You know I would never put Loren in danger knowingly. I didn’t have all the information, okay? But now I do.” It killed him to go along with Jimmy but he knew, in this instance, he was right. “I can’t hide forever, you know.”
“No, but you won’t have to. I have a plan. We’re going to set up the Zbrane using your ex, and their drugs, as bait.”
Bear scowled down at his lap. “How do you deal with this shit? I don’t want to worry these guys are going to be after me my whole life because you took them down.”
Jimmy pushed his hair back; Bear jerked his head away. “Stop. I’m still pissed at you.” He looked over at Kameron who had remained silent while Jimmy convinced him of the wisdom of going to the safe house. “And you.”
“Well you’ll have to get over it. I can’t put Kameron out on the streets now. No one knew him, since he’s a new transfer, but the Zbrane have obviously put the two of you together. His hit and run wasn’t so random. We ran the plates of the car in his accident and it belongs to them. You’re both going to a safe house and that’s final. He can protect you, Bear.”
He shook his head. “No.”
“Bear, I’m sorry. I didn’t start out seeing you as more than someone to protect but,” Kameron looked at Jimmy warily, “my feelings for you are not something I’ve made up. I really do care about you. I understand if you don’t want to see me anymore.” His voice wobbled for just a second. He took a deep breath. “But I still want to keep you safe. I won’t come on to you or anything. It shouldn’t be long. A few days to a week, two at the most.”
After everything, Bear couldn’t help but still be attracted to Kameron. His caring nature hadn’t changed and neither had Bear’s desire to snuggle into his chest and breathe in his comforting scent while he enveloped him in a tight hug.
Bear couldn’t do that; he wouldn’t be with a liar. “Fine.” He crossed his arms over his chest. Jimmy was still going to pay later.
“Good, I’ll get everything you need,” Jimmy said.
***
Two days later Bear stumbled out to the coffee pot. Kameron stood in heart print boxers, sipping a cup. He glanced at the date on his watch. “Valentine's Day.” Great.
He’d never canceled their reservations for dinner. Well, at least hiding out meant he didn’t have to see the celebrating couples as he wallowed in singles’ misery.
This was so not the romantic holiday he’d expected.
TBC
Comments? I love to read them! Then check out the other Briefers!
Nephylim f/f
Lily Sawyer m/m
Tali Spencer m/m
Cia Nordwell m/m
Elyzabeth VaLey m/f
MA Church m/m
MC Houle m/m
Julie Lynn Hayes m/m
Victoria Adams m/f
Awww. Poor Bear. Poor Kameron, too. I hope Bear can eventually forgive Kameron, and that Kam can win him back. Love this story. :)
ReplyDeleteKameron definitely has an uphill battle on his hands! Thanks for reading Cyn.
DeleteBear seems like one unforgiving guy. I wonder if he'll give Kam any in to try to get their bond back. It would've been nice for his brother to tell him how Kam wanted to tell him the truth and didn't like hiding who he was. Or for Loren to tell him that Kam had admitted his feelings were real. I feel badly for Kam b/c he was in a bad place. He was told he couldn't reveal the truth and yet he had feelings for Bear that were real. I love how he was in boxers with hearts on them. lol cute way to include them.
ReplyDeletecannd
I think Bear's at a bit of a crossroads in his life, one where he has to make some decisions. There's a lot left to this story though, so we'll just have to see what happens with him and Kameron. I'm glad you liked my inspiration for the prompt, lol.
DeleteI love these two, I really do. Bear is holding fast to his grudge, but I see him taking tiny steps by admitting he longs to be wrapped up in Kam's arms. Kam will probably have to grovel a bit and prove himself before all is done, but I can see them reconciling during a mutual struggle to survive being the targets of a vicious gang. Nice spin. :)
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy these characters too. I don't know how much groveling Kameron will have to do, but you're right, Bear isn't ready to completely write him off. But, can he forgive or forget? Thanks for reading Tali, I hope you continue to enjoy their story.
DeleteLove the story and I feel so bad for Bear. Kam has a lot to make up for but maybe the magic of love will help him.
ReplyDeleteThanks Kayla. Bear has definitely been through a lot. I hope things work out too, but it's a hard world sometimes. Thanks for reading!
DeleteIt's Kam I feel sorry for. He was caught between a rock and a hard place. If anything, he was being unprofessional to fall for Bear but who can control their heart? I hope Bear will eventually realise Kam did what he had to do and that he's honest about his feelings for him. I have a feeling Bear is going to have help getting his feelings straight ;)Nothing like facing danger to make you focus on what's important in your life.
ReplyDeleteHe really was. Kam isn't the bad guy here, not really, but it's hard for Bear to keep that in mind, I think. Feeling like you've been lied to is never fun. It's hard to know what the truth is after that. Thanks for much for reading and commenting Nephy.
DeleteOh, poor Bear and poor Kam, neither of them are in an easy place at the moment and the ironic thing is that they both want to be wrapped around each other. *sigh* It's all Jimmy's fault! And Bear's ex. I hope things get solved positively in the end!
ReplyDeleteIt is Jimmy's fault, and he definitely has gone about it the wrong way. I think his heart might be in the right place. I definitely like blaming Vilem, lol. Thanks for reading Elyzabeth!
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