Page 14 of Artifacts

I just said the first thing that came into my head in that alley, when he caught me staring. Yeah, that should go down great.Darrell pulled his gaze from the pale, bruised figure in the bed and switched it to Elliot. “I came to apologize.” He included Aldric as he continued, “I was curt. Rude.”

“You were indeed.” Elliot Douglas pursed his lips.

“Green!”

“Excuse me?” Darrell said to Aldric, who’d uttered the word, in a tone of discovery. “What—”

“Dark green.” Aldric colored, and it made his hospital-pale complexion look sallow. “Nothing. I’m concussed. But, you, earlier…it’s okay.”

“It’s not.” Darrell clasped his arms behind his back, his feet shoulder-width apart. “I’m here to apologize.”

“You’ve done enough, from the sound of it.” The other man by Aldric’s bed, who Darrell presumed was a co-worker, joined the chorus.

“Is there a problem here?” The doctor Darrell had seen outside entered, looking from one person to another. He half-turned to the nurse with him, raising his eyebrows in what Darrell judged to be a pre-established signal that she could alert security.

“No, sir.” Darrell snapped open his wallet and presented his SAPD badge.

The doctor nodded to the nurse, who pushed the dispensing trolley over to the bed and passed Aldric a small medical cup and a larger cup of water to swallow down the meds that the plastic beaker contained.

“This is the officer who was called to the scene of the attack,” Mr. Douglas explained.

Attack.That word hurt. Aldric reacted to it, and Darrell flinched for him. Aldric was bruised, yes, but still, well—beautiful, was the adjective pushing its way to the forefront of Darrell’s mind, ambushing him with its softness and gentleness.

Aldric hunched into himself, and Darrell wanted nothing more right then than to make him uncurl.To bloom.He pulled himself together and addressed the doctor. “Can Mr. Beamer leave? I’d like to offer him a ride home.”To make up for my behavior earlier, he didn’t add, because he wasn’t sure that was the entire reason.

The doctor straightened with a grunt from where he’d been bending down to Aldric and shining a pen light in his eyes. “He can, yes. He has mild concussion following his loss of consciousness of less than thirty minutes, but he’s alert and his pain is managed.” He gave one of those fleeting medical smiles that doctors were too busy to let settle, then finished scribbling on Aldric’s chart. “But he shouldn’t stay alone, of course.”

“I’ll stay with him.” Darrell jutted out his chin at Aldric’s boss and co-worker, his watchdogs, when protests sprang to their lips.

Aldric pushed off his hospital sheet, then swung his feet to the floor. “That would be fine.” He swayed a little, surprise on his face that Darrell thought was maybe due to what he’d just said, as though he hadn’t known he was going to say that, or why he had. He stood straight and added, “Thank you.”

Darrell smiled. That was good enough for him.

* * * *

He wished he had more clothes for Aldric to wear. His were dirty and his shirt had blood down the back of the collar. Still, Aldric had accepted his jacket to wear over it. Darrell snuck looks at him where he was sitting next to Darrell in the passenger seat of Darrell’s pickup, and more than once his gaze snagged with Aldric’s, because Aldric was doing the same to him.

“So—”

“Don’t ask me anything about what happened. I can’t remember more than I said. I didn’t see anything before or when I was out. Well, I wouldn’t.” Aldric’s brow creased.

“I wasn’t. I was going to say I’m rarely in this area. It’s one of the calmer ones.” Darrell tilted his head at the streets they were driving along. Did Aldric usually babble on like that? It was— Again, soft adjectives likesweetandendearingsurprised him. Aldric was looking better, too. While still tight with tension, he had more color, and the pain meds must have been kicking in.

“It’s an old neighborhood. And an old apartment. Just along here.” Aldric’s voice had dropped to a mutter as they approached a small square building set back a little from the bigger house to one side of it.

Darrell cleared his throat. “It’s—”

“Decrepit. Oh, a charming garage conversion into a bijou vintage town home, I’m supposed to say. Maybe it even was, back in the day.”

“Would you stop interrupting me and saying what you think I’m thinking?” It wasn’t the meds that were loosening Aldric’s tongue, Darrell would have bet. He pulled up near the building then walked behind Aldric, not helping him but near enough to, while he headed up the steps to the unit. Darrell’s eyes were drawn to Aldric’s bubble butt. It was as cute as his rambling. The guy seemed timid, yet Darrell remembered how he’d challenged him, back in the alley.And look at me, checking out a guy with a head injury, who’s just out of hospital. Je-sus.

Aldric hesitated, his key in hand, and Darrell eased forward. “Here. Let me.” The key stuck and needed forcing, as did the door, but he got it open and stood back for Aldric to enter.

“This is the living area,” Aldric announced, unnecessarily, in the tiny hall space just inside. He spoke to the floor. “And there’s the kitchenette and dinette. Lots of ettes. Bathroom. Bedroom, with patioette. If that’s a word. I grew up in this area and when my parents sold up and moved—they couldn’t wait any longer and it wasn’t fair to make them—this came up.”

He half-twisted and gestured on the wordthisand because Darrell was so close, Aldric’s hand landed on his chest. Aldric looked startled, more so when Darrell trapped it with his. Aldric looked from their hands to Darrell’s face. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, but Darrell got in first, fascinated by this man.

“What’s green?”

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