Boys in Blue 02 - Reasonable Doubt (2 page)

Mack ran his hands through his hair and stopped in front of the locker room mirror. He looked flushed, but otherwise normal. Splashing a little cool water on his face, he didn’t waste much time lingering. This was the first time they’d fucked at work. Goddamn it if he didn’t feel like there was a sign on his forehead announcing it.

He moved quickly, leaving the lockers behind and stopping at the water fountain to wet his parched throat. Sex with Geo always made him thirsty. It was a workout to let that man take his body. Hopefully, Mack would
top
tonight. He had the strongest urge to tongue Geo and make him as desperate for release.

Up the hall, he saw Reus, Donnelly, and Shepard talking. Mack steadied his nerves and joined them. The case they were discussing was interesting, and Mack offered some suggestions, though most of his senses were trained on the locker room door and whether or not the guys would notice that they’d both come from the same place, looking like they’d taken one up the ass.

Mack wasn’t ready for that. Not yet, although he couldn’t put a finger on why. But Geo didn’t appear right away, and Mack relaxed. He got back to the main room and took a few minutes to fiddle through the industrial metal file cabinets lining the wall. He needed something from them anyway, and any illusion he could provide that everything was normal, went a long way towards calming his jangled nerves.
Geo strode in, a steaming cup of coffee in his hand. At his desk, he put down the mug, and picked up his phone.
How did he do it? How did he make it look like it was the most natural thing in the world to keep a secret like screwing your same sex detective partner, had no effect on him?
“Hi,” a voice by his shoulder announced.
Mack glanced over, not having heard anyone approach. That’s what distraction did for ya. Andy smiled up at him. Barely clearing Mack’s shoulder, Andy’s slim frame and expressive face beamed with pleasure.
“Hi,” Mack answered, not knowing what else to say or why the slip of a man was talking to him.
“So Lauren said I should chat with you.”
“You already have the case records,” Mack said stiffly. The vibe coming off Andy made him uncomfortable.
“That’s not why.”
Mack busied himself flipping through the filing cabinet at nose level. Something tickled him and he twisted his arm to dislodge the spidery sensation. It persisted though and he looked down to find Andy lightly stroking his forearm.
His ears roared. Mack jerked away. “What the fuck, man?”
Andy’s bottom lip pushed out in a sissy pout. “You like guys. I like guys. I really like the look of the guy in front of me.”
“JesusHChristInABasket.” Mack felt his face heat as he stepped away. “Get off me, and stay off me. I’m not interested.”
“I doubt that.”
Mack stiffened his spine and he glared at the smaller man. “Doubt whatever the fuck you want. Just piss off.”
“You’re into that evacuation shit? Never liked being peed on, but for you, I’d try it.” His grin was sly and it set Mack’s nerves on edge.
Andy slipped his hands into his pockets and withdrew a wad of paper towels. Lifting them close to Mack’s face, he peeled back the crumpled white edges to reveal the deflated, slick snake curves of a used condom. He raised his eyes to Mack’s pointedly.
Mack felt his face heat. He glanced sharply around. “Put it away, sick fuck.”
“No need to get nasty,” Andy replied smugly. He folded the condom away and dropped it into the waste basket beside the file cabinet. “I’m just saying that I know who got the receiving end of that pretty little present.” He shrugged. “I’d have figured you for a pitcher, but I guess when you’re both dominant sorts, you play both positions.”
“God,” Mack choked. “Shut the fuck up. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Andy dropped a hand on Mack’s arm. Mack jerked it away.
“I like catching, Mack. I like it a lot. I also give head so good, I wish I could suck my own cock. A guy like you needs to know he’s not only another guy’s entire world, but that he has the power to take another man’s heart and play with it however he wants. I like my men tough. I like being boy-pussy. Can you say that about Geo? Can you say he doesn’t like having a soft, feminine woman in his arms more than having you? From what I hear, he and Lauren had a hot thing going. Do you really think he looks at her and never once remembers shoving his hard cock into her pussy? Watching her breasts jiggle as he fucks her?”
Andy’s words materialised every fear Mack had been putting at bay. His gaze swung to Geo. Lauren propped her ass on the edge of his desk, the toe of her fuck-me pumps resting on the chair between Geo’s legs. If Geo sank down a few inches, he’d have front row to prime female real estate. Did he want it?
“We aren’t together,” Mack said, his throat feeling tight.
“Yeah, you keep saying that, but your eyes say something completely different.” Andy looked relaxed. He, too, noted the attractive pair. “I’m not asking you to admit you just shot your wad with him. I’m telling you I saw you do it. It was hot. Your body is hot. Those two are just about a guaranteed thing, so when you get lonely, call me. I’ll make you forget until you forgot you were trying to.”
“You saw that?” Mack said, his voice falling to a horrified whisper.
“Glad I did, too. Like poetry in motion and all that.” Andy watched him, leaning in to add quietly, “I know about work place biases. Your secret’s safe.”
A sudden, bright laugh tore his attention to the couple across the room.
Stabbing jealousy lodged in the pit of his stomach as he watched Lauren laugh. She leant over, giving Geo an eyeful of firm, creamy cleavage. She was beautiful, and no man who had ever appreciated the charms of a woman would say otherwise. If Geo weren’t the only person he wanted, Mack might have made a play for her.
But she wanted Geo. It was in every line of her body, every covert look and flirty side glance.
“Last thing, and I’ll leave you alone,” Andy promised.
“Lemon juice for the salt in my wounds?” Mack snarled.
“Before we arrived, Lauren told me she would have your partner in bed. Now that she knows you’re competition, it will only make the road to victory sweeter for her.”
Andy wandered away, unrushed as he wove through the desks to the conference room the FBI had taken over.
Geo unhooked his holster and his badge, his eyes glued to Mack’s ass as he leant over the breakfast counter to press the answering machine button. It was the best view of the day and it happened every night when they got home. Then just like usual, as he listened, Mack pulled off his shirt, wadded it up, and threw it into the basket on top of the washing machine in the laundry closet beside him.
He knew he had a sappy grin on his face. Mack had commented on the look a few times when he’d caught Geo looking, but hell, his boyfriend was
hot
. Wide, tanned shoulders, lean waist, tapered hips and an ass to die for. As his gaze travelled back up, Mack turned, a perturbed expression twisting his lips into a grim line.
“So?” Mack asked.
“Yes. Whatever you want, you can have it,” Geo answered, sidling over to his man. He clutched Mack’s hips and pulled them tight against his, hoping Mack could be coaxed out of his mood.
Mack pushed him away. “It’s either ‘yes’, or it’s ‘whatever I want’, but definitely not both.”
“You lost me,” Geo said, shaking his head. “I just want to get you in the sack, maybe eat dinner off those abs and curl up with you on the couch.”
Mack’s expression softened a little. “Lauren.”
Geo wrinkled his nose. “Don’t wanna talk about her.”
“I do.”
He’d known this was coming. Geo sighed and put his hands in his pockets to keep them off of Mack. Otherwise he’d get distracted in lots of delicious ways that Mack clearly wasn’t feeling at the moment.
“She’s back,” Mack added.
“You noticed that, too, huh?”
“I’m being serious. She’s back and she wants you.”
“The great thing about being human is that I get to choose if I want to be had, and I don’t. At least, not by her.
You
, on the other hand, can have me anytime you want.” Geo took the single step to bring their bodies together. “Can ‘anytime’ be soon?”
Mack grinned, looked away like he was embarrassed. “Geo, can we focus for just a minute here? Your ex, the one you were engaged to, lived with, had sex with nightly, she’s back in town on your turf, and she wants your cock lodged deep in her body.”
“We didn’t have sex nightly.”
“Why not?
We
have sex nightly.”
Geo wiggled his eyebrows. “You’re just that good, baby.”
Finally, Mack laughed. Geo took the relief of tension to pull Mack into his arms where he belonged.
“Spaghetti,” Geo suggested.
“What the fuck are you talking about now?”
“Dinner. On your abs.”
“Red sauce and cheese?” Mack asked.
“Too messy?”
“Ya think?”
Geo grinned with inspiration. “Soup!”
“Because
that’s
not messy,” Mack joked.
“Because when it slides all over you, I get to taste it off every surface of your body.” Geo leant in, nuzzling a spot behind Mack’s ear. “Today I have shaky hands. What if it drips over your balls?”
“It would burn like hell. How is that sexy?” Mack snarked. By his husky tone, Geo knew he was getting through to him, though.
“Oh, yeah. Make it Gazpacho.”
“Well,” Mack murmured. “They say tomatoes are great for the prostate. Keeping your prostate happy is on my ‘to do’ list.”
“I have a sure-fire way to do that and it involves you pounding it.”
“Are you sure? Lauren might own a strap-on cock,” Mack supposed.
“Good.” Geo caught Mack’s lobe between his teeth as he spoke around the tasty morsel. “She can go fuck herself.”
Mack pulled his head aside, freeing his ear. “Geo.”
Geo kissed his neck.
Mack nudged him. “
Geo
.”
“Hm?”
Mack’s hands pushing on his shoulders made Geo realise he wasn’t going to distract Mack for long if he didn’t address his concerns. No matter how off base they were. “What?”
“Andy said she’d decided to win you back.”
“Who’s Andy? Oh, wait, that little twink shit?” Geo asked, vaguely remembering the rust-headed, freckled man-boy with the up-turned nose.
“Her partner. She wants you back, and he said she isn’t one to give up on a challenge.”
Geo sighed. “That’s what makes her a good FBI agent and what made her a good detective. But it’s also what made her a sucky girlfriend. When she had me, I no longer presented a challenge.”
He put his hands on the counter, bracketing Mack so that he was loosely trapped. “What’s it going to take to show you that I want you, and only you? Name it. I’ll do anything you want, whenever you want, however you want.”
The distracted look on Mack’s face bothered him. Mack seemed almost disbelieving of him. Since Geo had never given him anything to worry about, he didn’t see why it was a problem now. It couldn’t be as simple as Lauren. Not with the emphasis his lover placed on Geo’s former relationship with her—years ago, he mentally added.
“I don’t know what it’s going to take,” Mack answered after a moment.
“Can you at least give me a starting place?”
“Yeah,” he said, smiling slightly. Mack tapped his lips. “Right here.”
“Now we’re talkin’.”
He moved in, catching Mack’s finger between their lips, enjoying the rougher texture sliding away to give him full access to what he really wanted, Mack’s mouth. He tasted tangy and like the cinnamon gum he’d been chewing as their shift ended. Mack’s general reluctance melted away with softening lips and returned curiosity.
This part never got old. Geo never tired of knowing Mack couldn’t resist a heated kiss. It had been like that from the beginning, when Geo had finally tasted those silky lips after too many beers. It had been a risk since neither of them had been with men before. Geo’s erotic dreams had made him painfully aware of his partner until he’d finally cracked, taken the chance, and allowed himself the pleasure of sliding his fingers into Mack’s thick hair, pressing his mouth on Mack’s mouldable lips.
God, it was a hot memory. That had been the night he’d also sucked his first cock. Drunkenly, yeah, but if he hadn’t been drunk, he wouldn’t have dared. And if he wouldn’t have dared, Mack couldn’t have seen how great they’d be together.
But they were great. Very great and he wasn’t stopping at a mere kiss to let him know it. He knew his man enough to know Mack got to a simmering horny if Geo took it slow.

His look of possession weakened Geo’s knees with lust. Their mouths crashed together, teeth scraping, lips bruising, tongues clashing. Mack went one further, cupping Geo’s cock and giving him two rough strokes through the material, before letting go and walking back to their bedroom.

Their pagers went off. Geo groaned. “What now?” he muttered, reluctantly ending what had promised to be great reassurance sex.
Mack already had his phone up and was frowning. “Case hit.”
Geo scrolled through the rolling text too. “A new abduction. Jesus, this world is fucked up.”
Mack fisted his hand in the front of Geo’s shirt, twisting it and pulling him back against his body. “One for the road until I can fuck you proper,” he growled.
Geo re-clipped his piece and badge. Another minute and his partner had returned with a fresh shirt.
“Let’s go,” Mack said.
“Anywhere your ass leads, baby.”
“I hate that baby shit,” Mack snapped.
“I know.” Geo slapped his sexy ass. “
Baby
.”

Mack turned off the ignition when they reached the station ten minutes later. Having had more than his fair share of insecurity over the past several hours, he opted for a distant demeanour. He didn’t want Geo to think he was needy. It might send him into Lauren’s arms.

But, God, he did need Geo. He needed him so much he ached with it. Geo had become everything to him. More than partner, more than friend, more than lover, Geo embodied all of it. There never seemed to be a point where Mack tired of him.

He got out of the car first. More of that I-don’t-need-to-wait-on-you self-reliance shit he was doing. Yeah, he knew he was pulling crap but somehow he felt manlier for being a bastard after baring his heart to Geo. Jealousy sucked.

It also made Mack an ass, he realised as Geo hollered, then jogged to catch up. He slowed down. The only concession he made to having heard him.
Their relationship was pretty close to perfect. Sure there were those instances where Mack would find his goddamn towel on the floor, but then Mack sometimes left plates in the sink and Geo took care of those.
Symbiotic
, Mack thought. They were in a mutually beneficial relationship. Geo had said it once. Mack had to look that word up, but it fit.
Mack flashed a tight smile at the desk clerk. She buzzed them in and he headed straight for the Child Location Unit. Neither Mack nor Geo spoke until they got there.
“Whatcha got?” Geo said.
“Caucasian female, seven years, last seen at the bus stop this morning,” the officer said.
Mack glanced at his watch in surprise. “It’s eight, what took them so goddamn long to report it?”
“The school didn’t call in the absence and the parents work. There was some confusion about whose day it was to pick her up. She was swiped this morning around seven.”
“Shit,” Geo said, reaching for the report printout. “Email this to us and anything else you’ve got. She’s the right age and the right circumstance to be a potential victim of the guy we’re looking for.”
“You got it,” the officer answered.
“Lauren’s going to want this one,” Geo mused.
“We could short cut the red tape if we just had the CLU send us every report, whether they match our guy’s method of operation or not.”
“Everyone to the conference room?” Geo asked.
Mack shrugged. “Sure, why not? All under one roof. All sharing information as it comes in. Seems like a good way to be on the same proactive page.”
“Instead of just emailing reports?”
“You lose a lot in reports. The guys talk, speculate, details they noticed that the witnesses didn’t…” Mack reasoned.
“Good idea.” He clapped Mack on the shoulder, everything within acceptable guy-guy work environment parameters, and headed towards the back conference rooms. “Let’s call them in.”
Grudgingly, Mack looked through his cell phonebook and pulled up the newly acquired numbers. “I’ll call Lauren. You call Andy.”
He knew it sounded like petty jealousy, and maybe part of it was. Mostly, he didn’t want to talk to Andy and get tangled up in the man’s attempt to get Mack into bed again.
They had the back room loaded less than forty minutes later. Mack introduced the new abduction with the help of the CLU, Geo presented the coordination plan with the CLU, the FBI, and themselves since they’d worked closely with the specifics of the suspect’s profile.
They selected the point people from the CLU to join them in the conference room so that they could deliver live feed information as it came in from the rest of their unit. In another hour, the tech staff had set up call lines and computer equipment to accommodate them.
Pictures made their way to the large whiteboard that dominated one wall of the room. Maps, string maps linking locations and children, computer generated relief maps showing the circles of contact and possible direction each child had been driven in, if the information could be obtained. The parks where the bodies of two girls had been dumped were circled in red.
On another wall, the faces, names, locations, suspect lists, witness descriptions overlapped a city map. Mack stood at corner of the room facing the adjacent findings. The seemingly unrelated abductions listed to the left showed all the missing children without filtering them for the current case, the apparent related abductions to the case mapped to the right. It was the only way to see if they’d overlooked another stolen child as one that belonged to the serial killer.
He folded his arms across his chest, his head the only thing moving as he looked from one wall to the other.
He smelled Andy’s aftershave before he heard him approach.
“Your profile’s off,” he said.
The fuck it was. Mack turned. Andy held a manila envelope with a short stack of papers.
“We just got this from the FBI sector office via Quantico. Your profile’s off.”
He eyed the smaller man with curiosity. Andy had seemed insignificant the day before, full of fluff. Today he exuded confidence. Mack’s respect quotient for the man scaled up a notch.
“What did they find?”
“We’ve been looking for a Caucasian male, between twenty-five and fifty based on the averages of similar crimes,” Andy began. “We should have adjusted the profile after the first two bodies were found.”
“We did.”
“Not enough. Our specialists have analysed the evidence and they’ve discovered a couple of things. The biggest clue is that the girls aren’t sexually assaulted. Nothing about the positioning of the bodies or the dump sites suggest the abductions are sexually motivated.”
Mack nodded. He and Geo had thought the same thing. The Chief had insisted that sexual crime not be ruled out. Because they were dealing with children, and because it was the Chief, they’d agreed.
“The similarities aren’t common enough to suggest a specific displacement syndrome.”
“A what?” Mack asked.
Andy grinned. “Sometimes a child is abducted with specific physical traits which remind the killer of a particular child they can’t get to. They try to take another child who closely matches the one they actually want, in order to act out their fantasy. We aren’t seeing that pattern. Only two of the girls are blonde but their hair lengths are completely different. The only link is age and race, that we can tell.”
“What about religion? If you’re a parent you take your kids to family gatherings, school, social events, and religious institutions. Four of the girls come from the same faith background,” Mack suggested.
“All different churches and denominations.”
“Maybe that’s the link. He’s gathering one from each?”
Andy shook his head. “The profile update I’ve been mentioning is a critical one. The specialists seem to feel that the evidence points towards a female suspect.”
Mack knew he was staring. How could they have been so far off? “Why female?”
“Each child has been tucked. Not under a blanket, but in a position which suggests comfortable sleep. You’ve found small stuffed bears with them, which have been traced back to a rather large supply warehouse. They’re not only in repose, but they’ve been perfectly redressed. Aspects of the clothing, the positioning, the pieces of the layout and the deliberate perfection of dress, plus a list of other things point to a woman’s hand.”
“Meticulous male?”
“Female,” Andy insisted. “It’s the likeliest scenario. I’m printing out new information for the boards. You want to post it?”
“Yeah.”
“Good. Lauren and Geo are doing the CLU update and filling the Powers That Be in on the parameter changes.”
Mack searched the room, but only Andy and he stood there. When had they left and why hadn’t he noticed?
“We’re alone,” Andy said, stating the obvious after watching Mack look around. “Anything in particular you want me alone for?”
Mack started with laughter. “Fuck, little man, I’ll give you points for persistence, but as an investigator, you’re following the wrong clues.”
He smiled smugly. “No, I’m not. Your partner can barely keep his cock in check around Lauren, and you need a good mad-fuck with a willing man you won’t see again when this case is over.”
“My partner’s cock is his business.”
“And yours?” Andy teased.
“Is mine and my fist’s.”
“Too bad for your cock, but I’ll be sure to tell Lauren that your partner is open season for pussy.” Andy walked away.
Mack ran a hand through his hair. Fuck, that hadn’t gone well. Open season? God he hoped Geo would hold up his resolve against Lauren. He searched the office for a glimpse of his partner through the conference room glass. They left the Chief’s office. Mack’s smile died as Lauren rose to her toes and planted a triumphant kiss on Geo’s cheek. Geo blushed but he was laughing and pulled her into a big hug. CLU guys exited the office behind them, equally enthusiastic, yet managing to restrain themselves to high-fives.
Fuck Lauren.
Fuck Geo for fucking Lauren.
Fuck Andy for being right.
Geo let her go and they made their way back to the conference room. Mack stuffed his hands in his pockets. His body felt still, like he waited for the other shoe to drop. He’d be ready when it did. Any minute now, Geo would tell him that munching pussy was far too tasty.
“Hey, Mack, good news,” Geo started.
Yep, here it comes. Good news, Mack, Lauren’s pussy has
secret
sauce and she’s single-handedly solved the case!
“Chief is encouraged by our progress so he’s moving us round the clock,” Geo said. Although he spoke cheerfully, his lips had taken a sardonic twist. His silvery eyes danced with a shared joke. To the Chief, good news always meant more work.
“And we sleep when?” Mack asked the obvious.
“You and I will divide between shifts and so will Lauren and Andy. He wants me and Lauren to take the overnight shift. You and Andy can come in early to overlap and discuss the findings. We’ll do the same thing tomorrow night. If we close in, we can move back to day shift together.”
And why the fuck did Geo find that to be a good thing?
“You and Lauren?” Mack repeated.
Lauren’s lips stretched into a feral grin. Of course Geo didn’t see it. He was looking at Mack. But Mack saw it, and it pissed him off. She knew exactly how Mack felt about the split up. In particular the
who
they were split up with.
“You and Andy should hang out together off-hours, to brainstorm ideas about our suspect,” Lauren said.
Coming from anyone else, it might be a good idea. From Lauren, it felt like a suggestion to scrub his skin with sandpaper.
Mack met Geo’s gaze, a little pissed that Geo seemed perfectly okay with that idea. “The only place I hang is the bar and my apartment.”
“I’m cool with that,” Andy said, easing into the conversation.
“My roommate might not be,” Mack told him, keeping his gaze on Geo’s.
Geo shrugged. “Yeah, sure. It’s fine with me.”
Mack’s lips tightened. Geo’s casual disinterest left bitter bile in his mouth.
“I guess that means we’re off the clock now, huh?” Andy asked. “Let’s go. I’ll spring for beer and we can take it back to your place. Hell, I’ll chip in for pizza too, if you want. I’m starving.”
Andy moved around the room collecting his things. Geo seemed to sense something was off, but he didn’t ask and Mack didn’t offer. Lauren’s smile grew by the minute.
“See ya,” Mack said, after a minute.
“Yeah. See ya,” Geo answered, less confidently.
Mack pivoted towards the door, walked to his desk, and retrieved his car keys and jacket. He waited for Andy, hoping Geo got a jolt of jealousy seeing them leave together. He didn’t look back to see. It stung like hell that Geo hadn’t gotten territorial on his ass.
Andy reached his desk.
“C’mon,” Mack snapped.