Shaken out of a lovely daydream where the exhibition match with Ethan had continued with no interruptions and in a strangely empty arena Spud cursed his ringing phone. Picking up with a grumble he had to swallow down a reflexive kick of fear at hearing Bully had invaded the office. Neither of the Carters took Bully as a serious threat but he'd seen the madness in the other man's eyes and he wasn't about to put anything past him.
Hastily adjusting his clothing and mustering his patience he walked out, determined to provide damage control. Not that it did much good since Bully ignored him as if he wasn't there and proceeded to invade Dixie's office as if he owned it. Rubbing his temples in an attempt to stave off a headache he decided it would be best to indulge Bully until the oaf grew tired of his game and left. Without a doubt he knew Dixie would only blame him for any negative publicity if he called the cops.
The last straw came when Bully wrangled the entire staff into a meeting, turning the office into a flimsy excuse to drink beer. Teeth clenched against the urge to curse Spud stormed into the conference room and slammed his hands on the table, glaring as his startled co-workers looked up at him guiltily, "that's bloody it, I want you all to get back to work." Crossing his arms he waited impatiently as the staff sheepishly filed past him before turning his attention to Bully's smug smile, wishing not for the first time that Ethan was with him, "it's time for you to leave now Mr. Ray, if you don't I will call the police and have you escorted out on a trespassing charge."
"I'm not leaving until I get what I want," stepping up Bully sneered as he towered over the shorter man, refusing to be impressed when Spud didn't back down. Dressed head to toe in tiger print it was impossible to take him seriously even if he'd wanted to.
"Yes, you are. I've told you repeatedly Mrs. Carter is not in today nor is she expected," throwing his hands up in frustration when Bully cracked open another beer Spud glared. "What else could you possibly want."
"You know I don't understand you Spud," causally leaning against the sturdy conference table Bully tilted his head, looking the other man up and down as Spud slowly flushed. "You're not a bad wrestler, I've seen your work and yet you toady to the Carters. Tell me honestly, you can't actually like working for Dixie."
Pinching the bridge of his nose Spud sighed wearily, head pounding as Bully emptied his beer can and opened another, "this may be hard for you to understand, since loyalty is apparently a difficult subject for you, but I very much enjoy my job. Mrs. Carter and indeed her whole family have been nothing but kind to me." Resolutely he tried not to flush at the memory of how 'kind' Ethan had been last week. They hadn't talked about it, Ethan had been rather subdued after his meeting with Dixie but there was a new awareness between them now that made him strangely nervous.
"Whole family, right," smirking Bully set his beer down and eyed the side table, a truly inspired idea causing his mouth to curl in a sly grin, "well if I can't … speak to Dixie I guess I'll just have to settle for second best." Grabbing Spud before he could so much as step back he hoisted the smaller man over his shoulders, fingers digging in cruelly to prevent any chance of escape. It took little effort to slam Spud through the table and even though he felt a momentary twinge of regret when the other man's head banged viciously off the floor it wasn't enough to stop him from searching through Spud's pockets and stealing his phone, sneering at the other man's pathetic efforts to slap his hands away.
"You may not be the one I want to put through a table the most Spud but you'll do. Plus somehow I have the feeling this might just piss off Ethan and that is a bonus is my books." Leaving Spud's groaning form behind Bully made his escape as several office staff started to poke their heads through the door. Proud of the chaos he'd caused he smirked at hearing one person cry out to call Ethan Carter, almost wishing he could stick around to see to see his reaction.
Screeching to a stop in front of headquarters Ethan glared the parking attendant who opened his mouth to protest into silence. Taking the steps three at a time he could already hear the murmur of agitated voices, following them his focus arrowed in on Spud's soft accent as he approached the conference room door. The crowd of people easily parted before him and he finally caught sight of his target, Spud was slumped at the table, ice pack pressed against his head and naturally trying to reassure everyone he wasn't in pain. When dazed blue eyes rose to meet his with such clear relief he fought back the need to gather the smaller man into his arms until he'd cleared the room.
"Everyone out," ordering roughly Ethan kept his eyes fixed on Spud as the room quickly emptied, moving to gather the other man into his arms the second the door closed. "Are you okay tiger?" Curling his hand around the back of Spud's neck he let out a breath as the smaller man leaned into his grip with a barely audible whimper that made his other half snarl in rage.
"I'm okay Sir," closing his eyes Spud couldn't stop the low moan of appreciation from escaping as Ethan's fingers massaged his aching muscles. Flushing at Ethan's low chuckle he conversely stepped back despite the desire to press closer, "I should get back to work Sir. I'm sorry Karen called, I told her not to disturb you." His gaze flew up at Ethan's low growl, a ball of heat curling through him at the possessiveness in the fingers wrapping around his arm.
Tugging Spud to his side Ethan fought back the emergence of his fangs, warring with the desire to simply pick the smaller man up and throw him over his shoulder at his ridiculous suggestion of going back to work after being slammed through a table. "You are going home with me Spud, where you're going to rest," he glared until the smaller man's stubborn expression finally eased and he gave in with a huff.
"Alright Sir, but I don't think your Aunt is going to be too pleased," biting his lip Spud was secretly glad Ethan insisted he leave. The longer he was on his feet the more he hurt, a hot stabbing pain that made it a struggle just to remain upright.
"You let me worry about that," smoothing his hand down Spud's back Ethan pushed him gently forward, "I'll explain the situation, she'll understand Bully is the only one at fault here." Securing Spud in the front seat he drove carefully, even going well under the speed limit and avoiding as many bumps as possible by the time they arrived home Spud's face was pale and sweaty. "Come on tiger, let's get you to bed," murmuring softly he eased the smaller man out of the car, hiding his worry when Spud barely muffled a pained whine at the movement he wondered if he should have taken him to the hospital.
Dizzy Spud clutched Ethan's arm, biting his lip against the pain he focused on putting one foot in front of the other until they reached his room. Groaning in quiet protest when Ethan stopped him from collapsing on the bed he blinked up in confusion at the other man.
Smiling faintly despite his worry Ethan brushed his fingers through Spud's hair, "let's get you out of this suit first, hmm." Easing Spud's jacket off he had his bowtie undone before the other man gripped his wrists and stopped him.
"I can do the rest Sir," licking his lips at the way Ethan's eyes dropped to watch Spud had to concentrate to stop his hands from shaking as he unbuttoned his shirt. There was an electric sizzle in the air and he shivered, biting back a groan when Ethan stroked gentle fingers across the exposed bruising along his ribs. "Ethan …"
"I'm going to make Bully pay for hurting you," growling at the breathless note in Spud's voice Ethan's eyes rose from the darkening bruises, wanting nothing more than to drag the smaller man into a kiss and wipe away his pain. Dropping his hand he forced himself to step back, "get some rest tiger, I'll check on you in a few hours." Almost fleeing the room he knew if he didn't feed tonight he wouldn't be able to resist the siren allure of Spud's blood.
Hours later, once the house had settled into silence Ethan paused by Spud's door, hand on the knob he fought with himself before giving in and slipping inside. Creeping closer he stood over Spud, watching him sleep peacefully for several long moments his fingers twitched with the need to smooth back an unruly lock of hair. Closing his eyes he breathed in deeply, that honey sweet scent mixed with the intriguing hint of electricity just before a thunderstorm filled his lungs and he realized what a mistake it was when his fangs descended so rapidly they cut into his lip. It took every ounce of his decades worth of self-control to take a step back … then another until he was out the door. Only breathing again when he had the closed door between them he leaned his head against the cool wood and swore in every language he knew, time to find someone to feed from before he forgot all the reasons he had for staying away from Spud.
