Page 171 of Crocodile Tears

Peter grinned. “You know, it must be my lucky day, because first a tall blond hunk in tight black leather screeches in on a motorbike and accosts me, and then it turns out he’s my fiancé. You do look very hot in those leathers, Joe.” He looked Josiah up and down – slowly.

“Oh yeah?” Josiah grinned and moved in close. He hoisted Peter up onto the jeep and unzipped his trousers.

Peter laughed. “You gonna fuck me here?”

“Why not? You’re not the only one who likes living dangerously.” He pulled Peter’s trousers open, and Peter obligingly lifted his arse so he could strip them away.

It was the hottest sex they’d ever had, Josiah fully clothed in his leathers, Peter arse-naked on the hood of the jeep.

Afterwards, Josiah rested his head on Peter’s shoulder, while Peter lightly caressed his hair. He felt Peter’s ring against the side of his face, and it made his chest swell with pride.Hehad put that ring on Peter’s finger. This charismatic man had chosen to marryhim, for some reason. He was suddenly overcome and buried his head in Peter’s shoulder to hide his tears.

“Idiot,” Peter whispered affectionately.

Josiah managed a shaky smile as he drew back. “Guilty as charged, Captain.”

“So, how do you want this to work?” Peter asked, sliding off the side of the jeep and pulling up his trousers. “What will we say to the unit?”

“We’ll tell them, and if they want to make a complaint about us, they can. I won’t ask them to lie for us. From now on, I make my own bloody rules – and rule number one is that you’re mine, I love you, and I’ll protect you with my life.”

“I did manage to stay alive before I met you, you know.” Peter grinned.

“Well, that’s my job now,” Josiah said firmly.

He could hear a knocking sound somewhere, but he ignored it. He was with Peter, and he wanted to stay there forever.

The knocking grew even louder and more insistent, and then the door burst open.

“Investigator Raine? Sir?” a voice called, and then, in a firmer tone, “Josiah!”

A hand grasped his wrist and held on tight, bringing his frenzied punching to a halt, forcing him to return to the present. He blinked. Alexander was standing in front of him, his dark hair standing up in tousled points.

“Joe, are you with me?” he asked gently.

Josiah stared at him blankly, his chest heaving.

“I heard noises… I was worried,” Alexander said, guiding his arms down to his sides. “What’s going on? Can you tell me?”

Josiah squinted at him blearily, sweat stinging his eyes. “I said I’d protect him, but I didn’t. I let him down. If I hadn’t left the car, if I’d been more bloody careful…”

“Don’t do this to yourself. It wasn’t your fault.”

“You don’t know – you weren’t there!”

“Everyone knows what happened that night – it was all over the news.”

Alexander took hold of his face and held it firmly, forcing Josiah to look at him. “Listen to me – you arenotto blame. Nobody could have predicted what happened to Peter.”

“If I’d run faster, got there sooner… if I hadn’t left him in the car…”

“You couldn’t be with him every second of the day. You couldn’t have known he’d be attacked.”

Josiah gazed at him helplessly. “I couldn’t save him… I tried…”

“Of course you did.” Alexander’s eyes were full of compassion. “You did everything you could. It wasn’t your fault.”

“I failed him.” He was back by the car again, Peter’s body resting in his lap, his blood soaking him to the skin. He didn’t want to remember that.

He glanced over Alexander’s shoulder at the punch bag. He had to do something – anything – to block out the memory.

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