Chapter Ten
Brady
Brady didn't think he would be able to fall asleep in the small holding cell, but his sudden confusion and sore back told a different story. He had slept and now he was awake because someone was making a ruckus down the hallway.
"You can't bring that in here," the deputy yelled, right before there was a loud squealing and then a lot of crashing and shouting. Brady sprang up from the thin cot he'd spent the last couple of hours on and grabbed hold of the bars. He pushed his face against them to try and see down the hallway toward the sounds and commotion. Seconds later, a large pig barreled down the corridor, spotted Brady and stopped. She pushed her snout through the bars, trying as hard as she could to fit her wide body through the narrow space.
Brady patted her head and neck. "Shh, it's okay, girl, shh."
The deputy, a younger guy who recently moved to Riverside to take care of his grandfather, came quickly on the pig's heels. He skidded to a stop when he saw the scene in front of him.
"Doc, should you really be..." the deputy's words trailed off.
"Are you afraid of a little pig?" Brady asked, grinning.
"Not afraid, just, cautious. That thing is huge. Don't they kill like a hundred people in Florida every year?"
"I think you are thinking of boars. Pigs can kill, but this one most likely won't."
"Most likely."
"Okay, you've got your pig, there is no crime here, let Brady out," Glenn barked.
Brady's stomach flipped at the sight of him. He wore all black. His shirt was a little tight, like it was a size too small. His hair was still wet and drying. Parker was beside him looking shifty.
The deputy stood straight. "I, uh, it doesn't work like that, mister. He's been charged--"
"You better believe it works like that," Glenn replied with a low tone.
"Glenn, stop. He is just trying to do his job," Brady said. Both Parker and Glenn growled in response. Their eyes found the deputy and seemed to look at him with new anger, like it was his fault that Brady stood up for him. "Maybe you could call Officer Lorne," Brady suggested gently.
"Yeah, okay." The deputy lifted his walkie talkie from his belt and sent out the call for the sheriff. A gruff voice answered in moments. It was eventually decided, after much cursing and questioning of the deputy's competence in doing the job without the sheriff around, that Robert Foster would be called down to come claim the pig. After that, Brady settled back on the cot as Glenn and Parker paced the hallway. The deputy had herded the pig into the pen with Brady, claiming the pig would be safer that way. Brady just assumed the deputy was afraid of the big beast and didn't want her roaming around since they didn't have another pen to hold her.
If Brady had been the deputy, he would have worried more about finding a place to put the two pacing shifters. Something had happened between them while Brady had been sleeping in the cell. That idea both excited and scared him.
Had the two shifters finally realized their attraction and decided they were better off without him? Then why would they come back with the pig? Guilt. Brady reminded himself that Glenn still needed him to care for the wolf and that Parker wouldn't have a place to stay if it wasn't for him.
It was dawn by the time Officer Lorne showed up. She'd been unable to get Foster to come down in person so she took a picture of the pig and sent the picture to him. "If we can clear this up, then there is no harm and no foul," Officer Lorne said into the phone. "Did you take a look at the picture? Is that your pig?"
Both Glenn and Parker made angry noises, telling Brady they had heard Foster's response and that it wasn't favorable to their cause.
When Officer Lorne hung up the phone, she looked at Brady with tired eyes. "He says it ain't his. I know he's lying, but for right now, I can't let you out unless it's on bail."
The pig had burrowed under Brady's cot. He heard her rhythmic breathing. It was probably for the best if she didn't go back to Foster anyway. He didn't deserve the pig, or any other animal for that matter. "She must not be his then. If you'll let Glenn and Parker take her home, I have an animal transport crate in my truck."
"This is bullshit!" Parker exclaimed. "Do you think pigs like this just wander around the forest. Look at her, she is obviously domesticated and recently gave birth."
"It's okay," Brady replied.
"No, it isn't," Glenn responded from the shadows that he'd sunk back to.
"Well, I'm sorry, but I can't legally let you leave right now. Later, we can take a look at his papers for the animal, maybe get witness testimony stating they have seen this pig on his property and then maybe I can arrest him for obstructing justice or lying to the police," Officer Lorne replied angrily. He knew her anger wasn't directed at him.
"I've got bail," Parker said, pulling out a stack of bills.
"Parker, no, you told me that's all the money you have left, it isn't right," Brady said.
Parker acted like he hadn't heard him and stepped up to Officer Lorne, facing her head on. "I'd like to post bail."
The two of them disappeared while Glenn continued to stare at him from the shadows.
"What?" Brady asked loudly. When he didn't answer or even look like he was going to answer, Brady got up. He moved so fast it startled the pig and she turned as if trying to burrow further under the cot. "You two seem cozy. What happened?" He hated the edge in his words. He sounded like a jealous lover. He wasn't either of those things, except, he kind of was.
"We kissed," Glenn said.
Brady didn't expect it to hurt as much as it did.
"Oh, well, congrats," he said, more to fill the silence than for any other reason.
"That's all we did, Brady. It didn't feel right. Not without you."
"Excuse me?" Brady asked just as Parker and Officer Lorne returned.
Officer Lorne unlocked the cell door and opened it.
"Let's get you home," Parker said, reaching his hand out.
Despite his jealousy and anger, Brady grabbed it.
Brady slid in the middle seat of his banged-up truck. Glenn sat in the driver's seat while Parker slipped in on the other side of Brady. They had loaded the pig in a large animal carrier Brady kept in the back of his truck. Like earlier, he could tell something had changed between the two shifters, except now that they were in an enclosed area, the change felt more extreme. "So, how did you manage to find the pig?"
"We caught her scent in the woods. She ran, fast little thing. I doubt a human would have been able to catch her."
He ignored the slight burn.
"Glenn fell in the water trying to get her," Parker said like he was trying to make up for his human comment. "It looked hilarious."
Brady smiled but his insides were all twisted. There it was again, further proof that the two men had grown closer together while he'd been separated from them. He was being petty and small. If they were happy that was all that should matter, right?
"Well, thank you guys for all you went through. I'm sorry that Foster was still such an ass."
"Don't apologize for him," Glenn said darkly. "You have nothing to do with his actions."
Brady tried to fidget in his seat so that he had a little space between him and the imposing figures on either side. Parker looked over at him.
"You should be wearing your seatbelt," he exclaimed, leaning across Brady's body to grab the belt. He slid it over his lap and then clicked it in place.
So much for getting space. Brady had inhaled a lungful of Parker when he'd leaned in. It was like a shot of alcohol to his head, making him feel fuzzy and warm. "Thanks," he mumbled. He looked ahead out the window at the town of Riverside. He hardly ever just looked at the small buildings that made up Riverside's main road. A bar, a grocery store and a post office, there wasn't much to it. Brady's clinic was on the opposite end to the police station and there wasn't a whole lot in between. It suddenly felt silly to be so afraid of a handful of opinions, of the opinions of the people who inhabited these spaces. Except, that was reducing them to their smallest parts.
They weren't just numbers, figures on a graph, they were people with opinions. They held his life in his hands. People like Robert Foster. That thought made him very angry. "Don't let it be weird now between us, okay? I understand and am completely open minded." He'd swallow his jealousy and not let anyone around him, including these two men, make the mistake of hiding what they truly wanted.
"Okay," Parker said while Glenn merely grunted.
"I mean it," Brady said, leaning forward in his efforts to get his point across. "I don't want you guys to censor yourselves. Not around me or anyone. It isn't healthy. Life can--"
Parker gripped his chin, turning Brady's face toward him while Parker's lips slid over his, silencing Brady immediately. It wasn't so much a kiss as it was a graze. It felt almost like a dream, and if it weren't for the tingle on his lips, he might have thought it hadn't happened at all.
Brady looked over at Glenn immediately. Was he searching for permission? It wasn't like Glenn had any claim on him. Except, it kind of was like that. If Brady thought he was going to find any anger from Glenn, he was wrong.
The shifter kept his eyes mostly on the road, but his glaze flickered over them enough for Brady to know he had absolutely seen. That, and the bulge in his pants, were a clear indication.
"Kiss him again," Glenn demanded, but it was Parker who complied, grabbing Brady's face. He pressed his lips more firmly this time, not quite in the all-consuming way that Brady longed for, but with more force.
It felt almost like a test and while Brady didn't enjoy being tested, he didn't mind the means. He was almost able to forget that anyone looking at them driving by could see. Luckily, it was still early. When Parker finally pulled back, his eyes went to Glenn first and then Brady followed.
"I need to get us home," Glenn said, pressing the gas pedal.
They were only a few minutes out but with each bump, Brady felt the friction. His lust had been burning at a low, like a pot simmering in the background since he met Parker. It burned like an inferno now. But what would happen when they got home? Brady knew what he wanted. Images flashed in his mind of three pairs of legs twining together, three sets of hands. He would hardly know where to kiss, where to bend. Brady bit his lip to stop the hedonistic moan at the thought of the three of them together. It was too perfect to ever come true. And yet, here they were, in the cab of his truck.
"Go inside and take a shower, take your time. I know you probably don't feel great after a night in a cell," Glenn said as he parked.
Brady blinked, trying to understand his words. While showering was definitely a good idea, he didn't like the part where he'd be showering alone.
"We need to get the pig back to the barn and secured. And reintroduce her to her piglets if possible."
The sexual haze cleared in Brady's mind long enough for him to feel guilty. There was an entire clinic of animals that needed his care and all Brady could think about was his dick... And two other dicks.
Glenn leaned over to unbuckle his seat belt while Parker left and went back to the truck bed. "Don't worry and don't beat yourself up. I want to help you. We want to help you."
"Why?"
"Because you are ours."