Chapter 22

Vacation. Paul snorted as he poured bourbon into a glass until it was nearly to the rim then carefully raised it to his lips and gulped as he tilted his head back. He hissed and ground his teeth as his chest burned then laughed. He returned from New York and used two days of vacation leave to give himself a four day weekend so he could celebrate his one true love: bourbon. He was going to drink all of it. If he was really lucky, he’d die in the arms of his beloved.

There was a knock at the door and Paul’s eyes narrowed and he tugged his tie loose as he approached it. He worked too much to have friends and his neighbors probably thought his condo was vacant, he was never home. But it couldn’t be Reginald unless he really hauled ass. From Prague. Paul pulled the door open just a little and peeked over the chain.

“I’m so sorry,” Reginald said as he leaned on the other side then craned his neck and pushed his nose through the gap and touched his lips to Paul’s. He shut his eyes and shook his head.

“I’m not letting you in. I can’t say no to you and I don’t want to waste anymore time waiting for someone who’s never coming back,” he said and Reginald shushed him.

“I know. I should have told you I was leaving and where I was going,” he said then kissed him again.

“That’s not it,” Paul said then winced. “It’s part of it. I don’t want to be afraid every time you leave the room. I don’t like not knowing if you’re going to walk out and not come back. I don’t know if I’ll hear from you in a day or a week, or ever,” he explained and Reginald’s brows pulled together.

“I asked you to help me, you knew I’d come back,” he said and Paul’s lips pulled tight.

“When you needed help with this thing with Holderson,” he pointed out and Reginald groaned as he slouched.

“It did start out like that. You were so hot and there was so much we could do to help each other…”

“You used me,” Paul corrected and Reginald rolled his eyes.

“Yes but I did it for very good reasons and it was good for you as well,” he argued and Paul’s brows rose.

“That doesn’t make it better though.”

“Fine. I’m sorry I had other motives but I would have come back. If I found the fake Holderson in Prague and somehow got rid of him, I would have come back,” Reginald vowed and cold fear bloomed and spread through Paul. He shut the door and slid the chain free then pulled it open. He grabbed Reginald by the lapels of his coat and hauled him into the house and shut the door.

“You went to Prague for that? Alone?” He yelled and Reginald pushed his hands away and reached for his chest and patted it soothingly.

“I told you it was important and I don’t think I was in any more danger than I am right now. He’s been leading me on a scavenger hunt for months, he could have killed me a thousand times,” he said and Paul shook his head as his nerves tightened.

“You can’t go after him by yourself!” He said and Reginald nodded as he stepped closer.

“I was hoping you’d come with me from now on,” he said and Paul stumbled back a few steps and scrubbed his hands over his face.

“You’re going to have to give me more. Not knowing where you are or how to get a hold of you or when I’ll hear from you isn’t acceptable,” he said as he pointed then swore. “That sounds really fucking terrible,” he admitted and Reginald winced sheepishly. Paul pushed out a hard breath as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “I want us to be like regular guys who are dating. I need to have a number I can call if I’m worried about you and I want us to communicate about what we’re doing and where we’re going. Until this fake Holderson thing is resolved, I need to know you’re safe, I want you to stay as close to me as possible,” he said gently and Reginald hummed as he kissed him.

“I have something for you,” he said as he reached into his coat and Paul’s head tilted warily as he pulled a large jeweler’s box out of his pocket.

“What is that? A watch?” Paul asked as he searched Reginald’s eyes. “Are you going to say anything about the rest of it?” He said and Reginald gave him an extremely pointed look as he held the box out to him.

“I was worried you wouldn’t be pleased when you woke up so I ordered it when I left for Prague. I picked it up on the way here,” he explained and Paul stifled his temper as he opened it.

“You’re giving me a smartwatch?” He asked in confusion and Reginald snorted dismissively as he took the box and removed it.

“The band’s rather elegant. It’s 18k white gold and reversible. There’s pave diamonds on the back, for when you’re pairing it with something a little more formal,” he explained as he turned it over and Paul set his fists on his hips and shook his head.

“I’m not going to shut up because you bought me a fancy watch or whatever this is,” he said and Reginald snatched Paul’s hand and tugged it close so he could slide the band onto his wrist. The lock clicked and he released Paul’s hand.

“Just touch the screen,” he ordered gently. Paul tapped it with his middle finger and watched as the black glass glowed and two coordinates were revealed.

“That’s all it does. P and R,” Reginald said as he pointed. “Paul and Reginald. We’re together right now so our coordinators are the same,” he said and Paul reached for Reginald as joy and warmth rushed through him. He hooked his arm around Reginald’s neck and kissed his hair as he pulled him close. Reginald’s arms tightened around him before he leaned back and raised his left arm. “He had a tracking device implanted in case I went missing. He’s the only other person who can see my location. I added my number to your Contacts list on your phone. I’ll always answer but you’ll never be able to trace it. It has to stay untraceable, I might have to hide that phone in case of an emergency. I can’t promise that I’ll always be here but I’ll always be here whenever I can,” he said and Paul held on as relief and happiness swelled.

“This is so much more than I was expecting. Thank you,” he said as he tilted Reginald’s face back and kissed him.

“There’s a million ways I’m going to fuck it up with you but I can fix this, it’s too easy,” he said and Paul made a pfffttt sound then paused.

“He’s the only other person who can track you and nobody else has your number?” He confirmed and Reginald hummed.

“I assure you, I’m not planning to buy more than one of those,” he said and Paul’s lips twisted as he inspected it.

“I’m completely blown away and I don’t want to sound ungrateful but this is super fucking extravagant!” He finally admitted. “Are you insane? I can’t wear something like this to a crime scene. It’s beautiful and… Seriously!” He said as he held up his hand. There had to be a car’s worth of diamonds on his wrist. Reginald made a weary, suffering sound as he shoved his hand into his pocket and pulled out two different bands and Paul felt legitimately relieved and honestly moved. There was a more conventional Rolex style band and a basic leather band. Paul picked the leather band and Reginald snorted in disgust.

“It’s reversible, it’ll match either of your belts,” he grumbled and Paul moaned sympathetically as he threw his arms around him and buried his face in the corner of his neck.

“I can’t explain to you how terrible it was waking up without you. I wasn’t ready to let you go, I wanted you so much and I waited so long to finally touch you and taste you and you were gone. I don’t want to control you and I’m definitely not strong enough to change you but I don’t want to be passive anymore and wait for things to happen. You can’t make me need you then leave me addicted and desperate,” he said. “I know your life is insane and this isn’t going to work like a normal relationship but being able to see where you are and having a way to contact you when I want to hear your voice is enough for right now.”

“It seems fair, I can always find you,” Reginald whispered as his fingers brushed through Paul’s hair.

“I will always be here and I will always come when you need me,” he vowed and Reginald flashed him a large, too bright smile.

“I’m glad you said that,” he said and Paul’s eyes narrowed as he felt a hint of foreboding.

“Why?” He asked slowly and Reginald’s eyes clung to his and for a moment, he could see behind the smile and the charming facade. He’s scared.

“I know who’s been hacking into my computer and tracking me,” he said and Paul’s brows pulled together as a mix of dread and mortification plumed within him.

“Ummm… Someone’s been hacking you and we’ve been…” He said as he pointed vaguely in the direction of his laptop. Reginald waved dismissively.

“I doubt any of that was at risk and honestly, hackers are so bored with porn, we barely even look. We’ve literally seen everything. And that’s the least of our worries at the moment. I set a trap and caught a very large fish this evening. A very large, very dangerous fish. Not only that, he knows he’s been caught and things are about to get very scary,” he warned.

“How scary?” Paul asked and Reginald cleared his throat and swallowed hard.

“There’s a good chance Mr. Holderson, Lane West and myself will die very soon if we don’t act quickly. We have to go to Lake Cliff.”