Gabriel's Pretty [Rescue for Hire 6](Siren Publishing Classic ManLove) Read online

  “Cade said he had just hired you. Do you live in the area?” Pete asked.

  “Would you believe I just flew into town this morning at about four-thirty? I had just accepted Cade’s offer of a position with Rescue for Hire when his phone rang and it was Eric’s mother.” Gabriel chuckled. “To be honest I’m not sure where I’ll be sleeping tonight. That is, unless you’re offering me your bed?” Gabriel dramatically raised his eyebrows up and down a couple of times at Pete.

  Much to his delight Pete laughed. Gabriel’s dick lifted, wanting Pete’s body closer.

  “I’m sure Cade has a place for you to stay. I wouldn’t worry about it,” Pete said. “You never said where you’re from?”

  “One thing you should know about me, pretty Pete. I’m not a worrier,” he said. “And to answer your question, I’m originally from Arizona. I grew up just outside of Phoenix. My parents and little brother still live there.”

  “Are you close to your parents?” Pete asked.

  Gabriel studied Pete’s face. Something in his voice when Pete asked that question drew his attention. “Yeah, I am,” he answered. “Actually, from the sound of Eric’s mother, she’s a lot like my own mom. Always checking on what I’m doing and where I am. I’m very lucky to have parents that have always supported me no matter what.”

  That’s when he saw the yearning on Pete’s face. With sudden clarity Gabriel knew his pretty bird wanted a nest to call his own, with a partner and baby birds to take care of. Part of him wanted to give Pete that, and the other part of him wanted to run as far and as fast as he could the other way. Up until now he tended to be a little wild and crazy, not settling down in one place for long. But he had accepted the Rescue for Hire position with the intent of not only settling down, but making a home. Finding Pete made his new life, suddenly very real.

  Grabbing the glass of water, he drank it down until it was empty. As he sat it back onto the table a sudden thought struck him. His life, like the glass, had been full of fun and wild good times. Now, like that empty glass, his life was changing and ready to hold a whole new set of experiences.

  Looking up at the man across from him, he reached into his pocket for his wallet. Taking out a few bills, he set them on the table. “Come on, pretty Pete. Let’s go home.”

  * * * *

  The headlights of Pete’s old truck pierced the darkness, as he drove away from Cade’s house. Pete couldn’t stop thinking about his now tender lips or how they felt swollen from the kiss Gabriel had given him. A kiss that had lasted so long it had steamed up the insides of the truck windows. He also refused to think about what happened after the kiss ended.

  Over the last couple of years when Pete had flown the business men to whatever city their corporate offices were, he had found a few casual hookups. But sex with those strangers was nothing like the tangle of tongues and the press of bodies he had just shared with Gabriel. The moment he had turned off the engine in front of Cade’s house, Pete had found himself over the console and in Gabriel’s lap before he even registered he was being moved.

  Firm lips covered his and Pete could only grab onto Gabriel’s soft dark T-shirt as Gabriel pulled him closer, securing him against the man’s hard muscled body. Gabriel deepened the kiss, while Pete’s fingers mapped out the contours of the bigger man’s wide chest and strong shoulders.

  Gabriel’s tongue pressed for entrance and Pete let him in. At that point he was helpless to deny the sexy man anything. Pete’s finger tips brushed the ends of Gabriel’s hair at the back of his neck. He had admired the wild shiny waves from the first moment he had seen them. Now he couldn’t resist sifting through the satiny strands with both hands.

  Gabriel continued to kiss him, his tongue exploring Pete’s mouth. By now Pete’s breathing was ragged and his prick was demanding attention.

  A large hand cupped the back of his head, holding him securely in its grip. Slowly Gabriel separated their lips until there was a few too many, in Pete’s opinion, inches between them.

  “I have to go in, and you need to get home, pretty Pete.” From the glow of all the little lights of the dashboard, Pete could see Gabriel’s eyes searching his.

  “You have to let me go then.” Pete was still securely incased in the cage of Gabriel’s arms.

  “Ah, now that might be a problem. I’m thinking the chances of me ever letting you go are pretty much nil,” Gabriel informed him.

  “How can you say that? We just met this morning.” Trust was not something Pete had a lot of. Life had taught him early on that saying and doing were two different things.

  “Sometimes you just know when it’s right. Admit it, there isn’t much wrong when we’re here together like this.”

  Pete automatically pulled his bottom lip in between his teeth. Pain made him wince, his flesh tender from the bigger man’s kiss. Gabriel leaned toward him bringing their mouths together. Pete felt Gabriel’s tongue probing demanding his bottom lip. Pete released it and Gabriel’s tongue immediately started bathing it, soothingly. Pete felt his lip gently sucked into Gabriel’s mouth. His body reacted with his cock painfully pressing against the metal zipper of his jeans.

  Slowly Gabriel released Pete’s lip. Looking at the handsome man, Pete felt the pull that Gabriel was talking about, and didn’t want to be apart from him. But he really didn’t have a choice. Gabriel had a job to settle into and he had to go back to the apartment above the hangar.

  “Well, I’ll see you later.” Shit, that sounded lame, but he didn’t know what else to say.

  “No, you’ll be seeing me sooner,” Gabriel said.

  Pete looked at Gabriel, confused. “What do you mean?”

  “I may need a few days to get things settled, but then you’re going to find me on your doorstep,” Gabriel answered. One of Gabriel’s hands cupped his cheek and he brought their lips together in a brief kiss. Pete felt the loss of the warmth of Gabriel’s arms, when he finally let Pete go.

  Straightening up Pete opened the door and slid out of the truck. He had parked Cade’s truck next to his own rusty Chevy, so just a couple of steps had him at the driver’s door. A sudden hand on his shoulder spun him around and a hard body trapped him against the side of his truck.

  Instinct kicked in and he immediately raised both arms and covered his head from the blows that would come.

  Over the roaring in his ears, he heard, “Holy shit. Pete, it’s me, Gabriel.” Pete felt the soft hairs of a beard press close on the outside of his bare raised arm. A calm, gentle voice spoke next to his ear. “I would never hurt you, pretty Pete. Put your arms down and let me in, sweetheart.”

  Tenderly he was enfolded in Gabriel’s strong arms. Now that his body was calming down, embarrassment replaced the fear that had overtaken him. There was no way Gabriel didn’t now know that Pete was an abuse victim. Like most victims, Pete felt ashamed by what had happened to him in the past.

  Pete lowered his arms and using all of his strength he shoved Gabriel away. Turning he yanked on the handle of the door and with a screech it opened, raining chips of rust onto the ground. Sliding onto the seat, with both hands he lifted and dragged the door shut. Picking up the keys from the middle of the torn vinyl seat, Pete jammed the key into the ignition and cranked again and again until the rust bucket piece of shit started.

  With a cloud of black smoke filling the air behind him, he stomped on the gas and got the hell out of there. All the while Gabriel stood there motionless, watching him.

  As he drove away, Pete reached up and wiped away the wetness on his cheeks. He would swear to his dying day that his eyes were watering from the acidy smoke of the truck. So much for Gabriel’s vows of never letting him go.

  Chapter Four

  Pete felt like a decrepit old man, his feet laden with stone, as he climbed the wooden stairs to the apartment above the airplane hangar. After he reached the landing, he shoved the key into the door and opened it, intent on doing nothing but taking a shower and getting into bed. He was so done with this
day and didn’t want to think about anything until after at least three cups of coffee in the morning.

  The ringing of his cellphone in his pocket stopped him in his tracks. He held his breath and hope filled him as he pulled out the phone. That hope died when he saw his cousin Haley’s name, on the glowing screen.

  “Hello,” he said. Sliding off his tennis shoes, he carefully lined them up next to his worn tan work boots.

  “I got your message that he’s dead.”

  “Yeah, he died Monday. I buried him this morning.” Pete found it hard to believe that the funeral had only been this morning, with all the craziness that had happened since. Looking at the clock, he saw that it was only minutes before midnight.

  “You having trouble sleeping again, Haley?” Sometimes Haley took insomnia to a whole new level, not sleeping until he was almost catatonic.

  “You know I should have been by your side this morning, Pete. But I couldn’t.” Haley’s voice was trembling as it rose in volume. “One bastard might be dead, but we still have one to go. Not to mention my lowlife brother.”

  “I know. I encounter both of them at the cemetery.” Something niggled at his mind. “Hey, Haley.”

  “Yes.”

  “We both know they are running drugs out of my dad’s house.” Pete refused to think of that house as his home. It hadn’t been anything but a hell to him since his mom took off. “Why would your dad warn me off the house and the land this morning?”

  “Think about it. There’s a little over a hundred acres that house and all those sheds are sitting on. That’s a lot of land that has nothing on it but thick forest and wild animals.”

  “So, what are you thinking?” Pete’s cousin Haley had always been the smart one between them, even if Haley was three years younger. It was taking every cent Pete made, but Haley only had a half of a semester to go before he had his teacher’s certificate. That was the one thing Pete could do to make up for the three years he had left Haley alone with his uncle and dad, when Damian had gotten Pete out of that hellhole.

  “I’m thinking that somewhere in the middle of that land, there is a lot of marijuana growing thick and healthy, ready to make them a lot of money. As nasty as our fathers are, no one is brave enough to go anywhere near that place. It’s actually perfect to hide all the shit they’re into.”

  “How do you come up with this stuff?” Pete sat down on the old yellow metal kitchen chair and leaned an elbow on the mottled gray Formica tabletop.

  “In the news last week, they found acres of the stuff up north in the middle of one of the national forests,” Haley said. “It got me to thinking that running that kind of operation would be right up my dad’s alley. My brother would be right in the middle of it too, since he’s the one that deals all their stuff.”

  Pete’s lip was back between his teeth as he thought that over. “You know, I think you’re right.”

  “Pete. Don’t try to do anything about it,” Haley warned. “They will not hesitate to beat and cut you up in your sleep.”

  Pete knew Haley was talking from experience. There was a reason he couldn’t sleep most nights and hardly ever in a bed.

  “It’s just something to think about,” Pete assured his cousin. “Your dad said something about my name being on the deed and now I’ll have to pay the taxes. What do you think that’s all about?”

  “I wouldn’t put it past your dad to try and screw you even in death. Just sit back and wait for any papers to arrive or for someone to call you. It’s best not to stir up a hornet’s nest.” Haley continued. “So, anything else exciting happening other than you’re finally free of bastard number one?”

  The conversation continued with Pete telling his cousin about his flying trips and the exciting rescue that day. He avoided any personal reference to Gabriel, just saying that Rescue for Hire had hired a new team member. That subject was still a little raw inside.

  It was after two in the morning when Pete, with hair still wet from his shower, but combed just so, fell into his soft queen-sized bed exhausted. Though he slept deeply, his dreams were filled with bright green eyes, wavy jet black hair, and a hard muscled body pressing tightly against him.

  * * * *

  Two days later Damian called Pete early in the morning and informed him he needed to fly a group of business men to their corporate offices in Iowa. He was told upfront the meetings the men were attending could last at least four days. If Damian was surprised that Pete decided to stay in Iowa instead of flying back and picking them up when they were ready, he didn’t say anything.

  Night one in Iowa

  “Hello.”

  “Hi.”

  “How did you get my number?”

  “Damian gave it to me.”

  “Oh.”

  “Pete.”

  “Yeah?”

  “What’s your favorite color?”

  “Blue. Why?”

  “Because when two people are in a relationship, they should know each other’s favorite color.”

  “You still want to be with me after what you saw the other night?”

  “Of course.”

  “I’ve got to think about this.”

  “Okay, good night, pretty Pete.”

  Night two

  “Hello.”

  “Hi, pretty Pete.”

  “Hi.”

  “Which do you prefer? Roses or wildflowers?”

  “Why?”

  “So I know what to get you when I’ve pissed you off about something.”

  “You think that’ll work?”

  “It should get me close enough so I can love on you until you forget that you’re mad at me.”

  “Oh.”

  Night three

  “Hello.”

  “Hi, pretty Pete.”

  “How are things going at Rescue for Hire?”

  “Intense. I didn’t realize how many permits and certificates I would need, to be able to do my job. I’m slowly making my way down the list Bret gave me.”

  “I know Damian and Treb are always renewing something or another.”

  “How’s your trip going?”

  “Okay. Um, Gabriel?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What’s your favorite color?”

  “Green.”

  “Oh.”

  Night four

  “Hello.”

  “Hi, pretty Pete.”

  “I should be flying home tomorrow.”

  “Shit.”

  “Oh.”

  “The whole team is going over to Lake Michigan and practice water rescue training exercises. It’s going to be an overnight event.”

  “Training is important.”

  “Yeah, but I wanted to be here to welcome you home.”

  “Maybe I’ll see you when you get back.”

  “Pretty Pete?”

  “Yes?”

  “You damn well know you’ll be seeing me. And if I have my way, you will be seeing all of me and I plan on not only seeing, but tasting every inch of your body.”

  “Oh.”

  * * * *

  Gabriel lifted up on his toes, stretching his body as far as he could and reached up for a small hand hold on the ragged rock surface. Fifteen feet away Treb was adjusting his foot, looking for another purchase to use to get further up to the top of the sheer rock wall.

  The Midwest wasn’t ideal for free-climbing, not like Arizona. But Gabriel loved it and when Treb said he knew of a spot they could go, he jumped at it. Maybe Treb had forgotten to tell Gabriel that the spot was in the middle of a state park posted with signs that warned people of the dangers of climbing on the walls.

  Gabriel had looked at the sign and then over at Treb. Their eyes met and an understanding passed between them. With a smile, together they started up the wall.

  It was already in the middle of the second week since Gabriel had been left standing in Cade’s driveway, watching a beat-up rusty truck drive away with a little piece of his heart. So many emotions had been going
through him when Pete had reacted like Gabriel was going to hit him, instead of taking one more kiss, before letting him go home.

  He had lain awake for most of what was left of that night, hurting for what Pete must have gone through and wanting some alone time with whoever had abused him.

  “Are you going to get your ass moving over there, or just keep looking at the rock?” Treb’s voice broke through his thoughts.

  Gabriel climbed another ten feet. Tipping his head up, he estimated there was about twenty more to go. Treb was just a little ahead of him, but the smaller wiry man had a tough out-crop coming up and was going to have to take his time getting over it.

  The warmth of the sun heated Gabriel’s back as he advanced a few more feet, and he was glad for the small breeze that kept him from overheating.

  This last week had gone well. It had been decided that he would stay at Cade’s until he found a place of his own. The rest of the team had finally made it back about two days after his arrival and there had been a team-meeting the next day. He had learned then that the team met at Cade’s for a meeting every week, although everyone was in and out of Cade’s office most days.

  With one last foothold and using his arm strength, Gabriel made it over the ridge and landed on his back, taking a moment to catch his breath and look up at the bright blue cloudless sky. Seconds later Treb was joining him just a few feet away.

  “So, you want to tell me why Pete got all flustered when Damian asked him how everything went, when he took the helicopter out on a rescue with you?” Treb asked.

  Gabriel blinked. He really had two choices dealing with the deadly man. He could answer him honestly. Or, he could answer him honestly. The only one scarier than Treb on the team was Cade’s brother Shane, who everyone called, Commander. Gabriel knew a few moves of his own, but he wasn’t foolish enough to take on either of those men.

  “You’re taking too long to answer and thinking too much. Am I going to have to cut something off to get you to talk?” Treb asked.