Page 32 of Hidden Desires
“But… Dad. Please. You’ve got to be kidding me.”
His father kicked him hard in the leg, causing Blade to stumble.
“Get the fuck out, homo!”
Staring into his father’s pitch-black eyes, he knew there was no love there for him any longer. His father had disowned him, choosing a life without a son, rather than living with one who was gay.
Feeling betrayed and all alone, Blade grabbed his knapsack and shoved some clothes and the little money that he had saved, and exited the trailer.
Hiding behind the following trailer was Jerry. The guy looked terrified.
Fuck him for leaving him alone to fend off his father, and fuck his father for being so close-minded.
He didn’t need these assholes.
He didn’t need this place.
“Blade! Ace! The big guy wants to see us,” Caden called from the open door leading into the back of the bar.
Ace glanced over his shoulder at Blade. “We’ll finish this later.”
It hurt that he couldn’t be honest with the guy. But he couldn’t lose another family. He couldn’t stand to have Marcus hate him. He couldn’t betray his friend by sleeping with his younger brother, no matter how much he cared for the little guy.
10
ACE
There was a weird tension in the air when Ace and Blade walked into the main part of the bar.
All the customers had been kicked out, and all that remained were the members of the Shadow Vipers. Cade, Nikolai, and Lucas all sat at a table, waiting for Marcus to start whatever meeting he had suddenly called. Across from them, Alexis sat in Jake’s lap, while he discreetly slid his hand along her thigh and up the side of her dress.
At the bar, Midas was sipping a whiskey while chatting with one of the new waitresses Marcus had plucked fresh out of nursing school. Apparently, she didn’t do too well on her final exam, but she looked fantastic in a nurse’s uniform. She promised to model it later for Midas.
“We all here?” Marcus asked once Ace had taken a seat next to Blade.
He wasn’t going to let the man continue acting all weird and shit. So what if he played with the dude’s dick? It wasn’t a big deal. Straight guys had their dicks played with all the time.
“Yeah, boss,” Nikolai said, leaning back in his chair and folding his arms across his chest.
“Earlier today, I got a call from Chester Milzner. For those of you who don’t remember, Chester used to be a member of the Shadow Vipers until his wife got pregnant, and they decided to move their family out to Vegas.”
“Oh, and how is old Chestnut doing out there in titty land?” Nikolai asked, running his hand through his short blond hair.
Ace didn’t really remember much about Chester. He was young when Chester was a member. From what Marcus had told him, Chester had been a big drinker, but got sober when his son was born. They moved to Vegas when his wife was offered a job working as a floor manager at one of her friends’ casinos.
“Earlier today, Chester’s son’s body was found dead out in the desert.”
The room fell silent.
“They aren’t sure how long he’d been out there, but when they found his body, it was covered in lacerations and flies.”
“That’s horrible.” Lucas gasped, placing his hands in front of his mouth and leaning into Caden for comfort.
“Do they know if he died of exposure?” Caden asked, pulling his boyfriend into his side. The man was always his protector.
“Chester said that when they found the body, there was a three-inch knife sticking out of the young man’s left eye. So, no. It doesn’t sound like he died from natural causes,” Marcus muttered, clearly pissed off by the situation.
Next to him, Blade shifted in his seat uncomfortably.
