Page 34 of Secret
Kasey shook his head. "I hope he gets what's coming to him. Do you know how the boy is?"
Noam shook his head. "It wasn't my case, but I'm guessing you know how hard it can be. You saw Faith go through it when you met her, right?"
Kasey nodded. "I wasn't there for a lot, but I know from talking to Xander what she has struggled with."
"The guy last night was in pretty bad shape. He'll be in the hospital for a while before going back to prison and facing new charges. I'm just glad he won't be hurting any other kids. We didn't know until we got to the scene, but the pervert had taped the whole rape and was sharing it with other pedophiles. We found an account he'd set up to allow people to pay to watch him. My gut tells me it would have been only a matter of time before he did it again just so he'd have another video to sell to other sick fucks."
Kasey traced his fingers over Noam's leg. "It has to be hard seeing that all the time."
"It is, but lately it's been worse than usual. Crime rates are up, and child victims are more common. I don't know what is causing the surge, but it's becoming a problem. We've had several kidnappings over the last few months, and the number of child molestation cases has tripled."
"What do you think is causing it?" Kasey asked.
"Fall of humanity. God knows what's causing it. All I know is it's getting harder and harder to answer my phone when a new case comes in. There is nothing worse than having to face a mother and father and tell them you can't find their child." Noam blew out a long breath, twisting and scooting to the edge of the couch. "Anyway, I didn't come over here to talk about all that. I came here to forget it all."
"I can help with that. Come on into the kitchen, I need to pull the food out of the oven." Kasey bent in and kissed Noam's cheek. "You make a difference. I know sometimes the bad might get too much and you forget about the good you do, but you make a difference. You fight that darkness and the evil that is out there."
"Thanks, some days it's hard to remember why I chose this job." Noam stood with Kasey and followed him to the kitchen.
"Why did you choose this line of work?" Kasey asked as he pulled a roast out of the oven.
"I'm not completely sure why. I just sort of fell into the job." The smell was amazing and before sitting down, Noam walked over to see if it looked as good as his nose thought it would be. "I had no idea you could cook." Noam splayed his hand over Kasey's back. "You just keep impressing me."
"It's only a roast, but I actually like to cook. It helps take my mind off things when I'm stressed."
"Are you stressed now?" Noam looked at him concerned.
"No, this time I was just trying to impress some guy I like a whole lot." Kasey grinned.
"Well, it worked." Noam leaned in and brushed his lips over Kasey's ear. "I like you a whole lot too."
Kasey turned, catching Noam's mouth with his own, drawing them into another long, deep kiss. It was almost overwhelming to feel Kasey's hard body pressed against him. He'd thought about it so often. To actually be able to hold him like this, feel every inch of him as he ran his fingers over his back was a dream come true.
Still, in the back of his mind, he was sure it was a mistake. It couldn't end well. Wouldn't end well. Not once Kasey found out about his problems.
Breaking the kiss, Noam stepped back. "This is dangerous. I haven't felt this way with someone in a long time."
Kasey gripped the edge of the counter as he leaned back against it. "It's the same for me, but I don't want to run from this."
Noam ran his fingers through his hair. "I don't either, but…" He shook his head as he turned around. He went to the table and stared out the window near it. "I work a lot. I'm on call all the time. My job is dangerous sometimes. Are you sure you can deal with that?"
"I know what you do, Noam. I know the dangers and I know your hours. We've made it work so far. I mean it hasn't been long, but we will find the time. I'm not some needy sixteen-year-old who is going to demand all your time. I work odd hours too. We'll figure it out. I'm not looking for sex, not looking for some quick fling. I like that we can go out, talk, have fun. I miss having someone to hold, to laugh with, to just call when I've had a rough day."
Hearing him say he wasn't looking for sex helped to ease Noam's mind, but sooner or later, Kasey would expect sex, and that was when everything would change. Once he found out about his problem, he'd walk, just like every other man he'd tried to date did.
His head told him to run, but his heart wanted to stay. He wanted the same things Kasey did. He was tired of being alone, of not having anyone to lean on. Kasey was everything he could want, but he wasn't sure he would be enough for him.
"What are you thinking so hard about?" Kasey came up behind him and wrapped his arms around him. "If you don't want this, just say so. We can be friends."
Noam turned to face him. "No, it's not that. I want this. It's just that it's been a long time, and in the past, things didn't go well. I'm just nervous."
Kasey smiled. "So am I. This is new. We're still learning about each other, finding out who we are, separate and together. This might end up a total disaster, but right now, I can't see that happening. It's too good between us. I don't do this, Noam. I don't date, I don't invite men over to my home, and I don't bring them around Faith. You're different. We're different." Kasey ran his palm down Noam's cheek. "Relationships are always a risk. We put ourselves out there and risk being hurt and rejected. I don't want to grow old alone. I want someone by my side. You're worth the risk, Noam. I don't want to think back on us and wonder what if. I want to know that we gave things a try. Whether they will work or not, I don't know, but I do know that when I'm with you, I'm happy, and it's been a long time since I've been happy. Let's see where this goes."
Noam closed the few inches that separated them, hugging Kasey tightly. It was the perfect chance to come clean and tell Kasey about his injuries, but he was so scared it would change everything. Scared that things would end right here. It would be easier to walk away without telling him, end it himself instead of waiting for him to find out about his problem and walk out on him. Still, he couldn't bring himself to bring it up. "Okay." He brushed a soft kiss over Kasey's neck. "We give it a go."
"Good." Kasey pulled back so he could look at him. "We'll take it slow, okay? I'm in no hurry. We'll just see where it goes." He stepped back. "Now take a seat so you can try my cooking."
"Can I help with anything?"
