“No. Wait.” Liam held out a hand like he thought Marcus was going to leave. Fuck that, there was no way Marcus was going anywhere.

Marcus moved the chair even closer and kissed Liam’s hand. “Tomorrow is fine.”

Liam ignored him. “Yes, I believe Hank could suggest to someone else that I was available for anyone to use. It happened before, he threatened it, but no one carried through on it.”

Marcus’s heart twisted and grief balled inside him next to the anger and guilt. If only he’d been there for Liam, either tonight in the barn or when Liam was a teenager suffering from all that fear and pain. He tried not to let it show—instead he focused on Liam and what he might need now.

“What do you want to do now?”

“Sleep,” Liam said gently.

“I didn’t quite mean that.”

Liam sighed heavily. “I know you didn’t.”

“You ever think of telling someone about what happened at the Bar Five in detail? Besides the cops I mean? Someone, anyone?”

“Every time.” Liam shut his eyes. “Every. Single. Time.”

“Whatever you decide to do, if you want to tell them, I’ll be here.” Marcus wanted to add three words to the end of the sentence, but even though he wanted Liam desperately and loved being with him, it was too soon to consider himself in love. No one fell in love at first sight. What he felt for Liam was responsibility, affection, and lust and an unhealthy mix of anger and hate toward anyone that hurt him. Even though this was what Marcus wanted to say, he didn’t. Hell, he’d scare Liam away with everything that was in his head. Instead he rested his forehead on their joined hands.

“With your mad ninja skills,” Liam muttered. “In your suit.”

“Yep.”

“You gonna teach me some of those moves?”

Marcus chuckled. “If you like.”

“Feel safe, then,” Liam slurred. Marcus glanced up at Liam. He was asleep, his mouth parted and long dark lashes fanned on his pale skin.

Marcus considered how this was going to play out when Liam woke up. Was Liam going to go all introspective and close down on him, or would this break down another barrier between them? When he’d walked into that barn to find Liam—all he’d wanted was to say hi, maybe steal a kiss before he went up to Liam’s place and waited for him. Instead he’d found Liam on the floor groaning in pain and that man with a knife. Even now he could close his eyes and see the glint of light on the knife and the intention in Yuri’s face, and he was nauseous with it.

Please talk to me in the morning, he thought, please don’t shut down on me.

* * * * *

Jack slumped down at the kitchen table. His throat burned, his head throbbed, but most of all he was beyond pissed. “He was at my ranch,” Jack said and punctuated the sentence with a cough.

Robbie had just gotten back from the hospital, and he had temper etched in every line of him. Jack knew where he was coming from. Someone had come on the ranch with intention to harm and it wasn’t right. Somehow the D would become, at least for a few weeks, a place where you didn’t feel entirely safe. Jack recalled the fire where Riley was hurt or Hayley’s uncle with all his intentions to get Riley’s money at the end of a gun.

“I should have seen,” Robbie said immediately.

Riley interrupted the thought process that Robbie was going down, and Jack was pleased for the help, given his voice was near non-existent. “You weren’t to know, hell, Yuri’s some kind of psychopath to think he’s getting away with any of that. What kind of fucking moron attacks a man like that?”

Riley placed the rifle back in the cabinet in the hall, and Jack heard the click of lock. In all of this Riley had been the one with the presence of mind to grab a weapon. Jack groaned and buried his head in his hands. He was clearly dying right here, right now.

“You okay?” Riley massaged his shoulders.

“Feellikeshit,” Jack mumbled into his jacket.

Robbie sighed heavily. “I’m gonna go spend some time with Solo and give the barn a onceover.” Jack nodded, even though Robbie wouldn’t see the action given his head was scrunched up in his arms. Solo was restless at what had happened, spooked by the fact that fucker had caused chaos in her space. “I gave the hospital your mobile as well as mine, so if you hear anything, can you let me know?”

“Where’s th’other guy?” Jack croaked.

“Vaughn? He went with the cops to answer questions. Eli said he heard him saying to the cops, all this shit about how Yuri and Hank at the Bar Five shared guys.”

Jack lifted his head. “Liam?” he asked carefully. The thought of Liam being hurt turned his stomach, add in Liam being shared around, and he wasn’t able to put a lid on his temper. Fuck being ill, no one messed with anything in Jack’s world.

“Not Liam, hence why Yuri was all up in on him in the barn.”

Robbie left and as soon as the door shut, Riley helped Jack to stand. “Bed,” he ordered.

Jack groaned. “Not up to much, maybe you can just blow me.”

Riley cuffed him around the head. “To sleep, asshole,” he said with no heat.

“I like blow jobs,” Jack protested. He allowed Riley to pull him toward the bedroom.

“Shhhhh, Carol will hear you,” Riley laughed.

“The kids okay?”

“Carol was fine, kids slept through it all.”

Jack felt ice trickle down his spine. Their kids. Hayley was old enough to know fear and to assess the situation. Max wouldn’t understand but would hate the chaos, only the twins would have no memories. “Thank god,” he said softly. “I love our kids,” he added with a cough.

“I know, cowboy.” Riley helped Jack strip, and for a second Jack’s cock made a valiant attempt at hardening. Then he coughed and his vision watered, and he knew Riley was right. He wasn’t even up for a freaking blow job.

“You owe me a blow job,” he said and yawned at the same time.

“How’d you figure that?” Riley asked as he laughed.

“Math,” Jack pointed out as Riley pulled up the covers. “Your mouth, my cock equals one blow job owed.”

Riley kissed him on the forehead then against on each cheek.

“That makes no sense. Anyway, my mouth, your cock, our new dildo and some rope? Now that is a blow job,” Riley teased.

Jack groaned at the pounding in his head. “I hate you.”

“No, Mr Campbell-Hayes. You don’t.”

Chapter 18

Liam opened his eyes, and for a moment couldn’t recall where he was, the ceiling wasn’t the hospital or the tent or even his place over the barn. He blinked up at high white ceilings and realization hit him when he sensed a warm body next to him. Marcus’s place. He’d stayed one night in hospital, but when he’d been released, Marcus had convinced him that his place was closer to the hospital.

Every part of him ached and he closed his eyes again with a low groan.

“Hey,” Marcus said from somewhere under covers to his left. Liam felt the bed dip, then heard the clink of a cup and the rattle of papers. “Here, meds.” Liam took them as instructed but didn’t open his eyes.

“Thanks,” he muttered.

“How you feeling?”

“Like a bull sat on me,” he answered truthfully. The sore ribs were the worst of all of this. Bruising he could handle, he’d been in enough horse tumbles in his time to know they would heal in a couple of days and be gone, but even though he didn’t have a crack in his ribs, breathing hurt like nothing. He had meds for the start, then instructions to not do physical work for two weeks and to move over to Tylenol.

“Well the bull has been arrested,” Marcus confirmed. “Robbie texted me early on.”

“That’s good.”

“They’ll need you to talk to them, the cops.”

“Okay.”

“Okay? You’re fine with that?”

“Needs to be done.” He had every reason to believe he knew exactly what Marcus was implying. Yes, he hadn’t been treated right when he’d finally reported the previous incidents, but this was different. Marcus witnessed the attack, there was a knife, and the man had near as spilled his guts when it happened anyway. Now was the time he took a stand.