No, it was something despite the sexual tension between them. That was so thick sometimes, Bikky could have punched holes in it. While he protested a lot and attacked Dee at every opportunity, warning him about his advances, he was actually glad that his foster father had someone like Latener. Dee might be over the top sometimes, but he was caring and he did love Ryo.
Bikky might be just be a kid, but he was a street wise kid. He had eyes.
Still, right now all his street smarts couldn't help him decipher the mixed signals Ryo was giving off. There was sadness, depression, fear, sometimes sparks of anger, and a kind of resignation he had never seen with the man before. Ryo never resigned, he never gave up. So what had hit him so badly?
Dee hadn't shown up in three days either. Ryo lost no word about him. He rarely spoke about work or his partner anyway. They talked about school, about Bikky's grades, about Carol, about the upcoming class trip, but never about anything concerning Ryo.
"Something's wrong," Bikky muttered.
Carol gave him a quizzical look. "Yeah, but what? He's not exactly moping, but he's… like in mourning or something."
Bikky nodded. He wanted to do something, help Ryo, but he had no clue how. He had kept trouble down to a minimum, had been good in school but nothing got a reaction out of the man.
What was going on here?
Buck had returned to New York after Ryo's call. He knew Dee would take
this hard, but McLane was the one suffering the most. Dee had taken a week
of personal leave, which had been granted, and Ryo hadn't seen a sign of
him since. The detective was making himself sick with guilt and blame,
and by the time Buck arrived, he was a shadow of his former self.
"When was the last time you slept?" Wilmington asked softly.
He had picked Ryo up at his apartment, had seen the mess the place
was in, and he knew it was just a mirror of the other man's soul.
Ryo sighed and massaged his pale face. In the wintry sun, he looked
like death warmed over and only the slight flush to his cheeks, brought
on by the cold, helped revive him a little.
"I don't know," he murmured as the two men strolled through Central
Park.
It was a wonderful sunny Saturday. People were outside, enjoying the
snow and the good weather, but fun in the sun was farthest from Ryo's mind
at the moment.
"Ryo…?"
"Hm?"
"Do you love him?"
McLane stopped and looked at Buck with wide, dark brown eyes.
"Do you?" Wilmington insisted.
"I want to be with him," Ryo said softly, almost as if to himself as
he stared out over the slightly frosted grass. "I like the way he feels
when he's close, the way I feel. I like his touches, his kisses… I don't
want to be without him. Ever since he… left… I felt alone. It's cold."
"Do you love him?" Buck repeated.
The slender man at his side bit his lower lip and Buck saw the struggle
that the simple question evoked.
"Yes, I love him," Ryo finally said. "I love him so much and I miss
him, Buck. I should never have told him. It was a mistake."
Wilmington placed a hand on the narrow shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly.
"No, it wasn't. Having a lie between you wouldn't have worked. All allies
who are in relationships, serious relationships, told their significant
others. There's no way you can keep it a secret and still work effectively.
Dee loves you, Ryo. He truly does, but the news were a shock to him."
Ryo shook his head, his expression bleak.
"You think Dee's home?" Buck wanted to know.
A shrug. "I tried calling him, but he won't pick up. I talked to his
answering machine too often to try again." Ryo sounded beaten.
Buck stopped him, making the smaller man look at him. "I know you don't
think so, but you did the right thing. Dee just needs time."
"I don't think time will change anything."
"Oh, maybe not alone, my friend. But Ol' Buck will kick him in the
right places. Leave it to me."
Ryo blinked up at him, then shrugged again. Buck was close to shaking
the slender man, but he also understood the resignation and desperation.
Dee, we're gonna talk. Long and hard. And I'll make you see that it's
not some sort of prank or joke. This man needs you badly.
"Buck?!"
Dee's pale, slightly drawn face was a mask of surprise as he opened
the door and found his old time friend standing there.
"Hey, Latener. Can I come in?"
Dee stepped back from the door and Buck walked into the apartment.
Nice, he thought. A bit bare, but nice. Bare brickstone walls gave the
whole room a rustic look and the likewise bare pipes running under the
ceiling added to that. The hardwood floor was covered by a carpet. The
most outstanding feature was the semi-circle window at the other side in
front of which a couch/daybed had been placed. Cozy.
"When did you get back to New York?" Dee asked, closing the door.
"This morning. Took a Red Eye." Buck turned to pin his friend down
with a sharp look, giving him a once over.
Like Ryo, he was pale. Like Ryo, it looked like he hadn't slept a lot.
Like Ryo, he was suffering.
"Your partner called me."
"Ryo?"
"The very same. Talked to him just an hour ago. Have to say, he looks
like hell. Compared to him, you look like blooming health, Dee."
Dee's face closed up. "Why did he call?"
"Because you've been acting like an ass ever since he told you he's
an ally."
"You know?!" Dee stared at him in disbelief.
"Yes. It's why I came here with Vin in the first place. We had ally
business here and Ryo was the one we had to talk to. He also told us about
his insecurities, about how much he wants to be with you, but being an
ally keeps him from opening up. Now that he has, you kick him out of your
life."
"I didn't…" Dee started, rallying for a thought.
"And what do you call a week of so-called personal leave? What do you
call not answering your phone? What do you call ignoring the man you told
me you loved so much?" Buck drove his point home.
"Buck… what he told me… what you're telling me… it can't be real!"
"It is, kid. It's as real as you and me. Believe me, I doubted it,
too. Not any more. I've been through too much shit anyway. Personally."
Dee shook his head.
"Ryo said he introduced you to a vampire."
A muscle twitched in Dee's face. "I don't believe in vampires. Whatever
the guy was, he's good at tricks."
Buck slipped out of his jacket and threw it over the chair. "It's not
a trick. I know some vampires personally. My boss is one, for instance.
His lover is. One of our team is a warlock in training…"
Dee clenched his hands into fists. "Buck…"
"I know it's had to believe. Vampires don't really show much outward
signs of being different. But there is a way to show you that this is real,
that Ryo's not lying…"
He pulled his pullover over his head and began to undo his pants.
"Buck!"
Before Dee could protest further, Buck was completely naked – and initiated
the change.
Dee sat on the couch, mug of coffee in his hands, pale as a sheet. Buck,
dressed and decent again, had made it and pushed the mug into Dee's hands,
who was still trying to digest what he had seen. Witnessing your friend
change from human to a black wolf uprooted even the most doubtful person's
life.
"How?" Dee whispered hoarsely.
"Vin bit me."
"He… too?"
Buck nodded, rubbing over his right forearm where Dee had seen the
faint scarring before.
"Long story."
"I don't think I'm going anywhere." Dee tried a smile and it was a
weak copy of the real thing.
"True. I just think that Ryo deserves to be here, too. He knows Vin's
a wolf, but I never revealed my own identity to him."
Dee hesitated, then nodded, shivering a little. Buck reached for his
cell phone and called McLane.
Dee was shocked a second time the moment he had his first look at Ryo.
His partner and friend looked like he hadn't slept in days. His hair was
more tousled than normally, his eyes held a tired, exhausted and beaten
expression, and his skin was pale. Dark brown eyes looked at him, filled
with so much hope and wariness, it broke something inside the other man.
"Ryo…" he murmured and reached out with one slightly trembling hand.
It was caught and Ryo looked at the still visible bruises Nacho had
left when he had gripped him.
"I'm so sorry," Ryo whispered. "It shouldn't have happened. I didn't
want it to happen like this. It was a mistake…"
Dee shook his head and stepped closer. "Don't," he only said, then
his free hand cupped the pale face.
Ryo leaned into the touch, actively seeking it, and his eyes flared
with hope. Dee wordlessly pulled him into a kiss that was a simple brush
of lips against lips. His hand snaked around his partner's neck, bringing
their bodies together, Ryo still holding his wrist.
"You want some coffee?" Buck called from the kitchen, breaking them
apart.
They looked at each other, seeking and finding the reassurance both
needed. Ryo nodded, eyes still on the burning green gaze.
"I love you," Dee mouthed, then bestowed another small kiss on Ryo's
lips.
They ended up sitting on the couch, not yet as comfortable together
as they had been before the whole debacle. Buck took his place in the couch
chair, looking at the two so different men.
"I think I convinced Dee that the paranormal is not some trick," he
started. "Quite easy when you're a werewolf."
Dee gazed at his partner, surprised at how calmly he took it. Ryo just
nodded his understanding.
"Dee asked me about my past. I thought it would be best to tell you
both. You are the ones who need to talk afterwards."
Another nod.
"Okay, kids. This started some years back when we met a guy called
Ezra Standish. He's a vampire by the way. There was this strange murder
case and he was our contact…"
And Buck launched into his story.
They had talked more in the last forty-eight hours than Dee could ever
have thought possible. He had been introduced to a world that was so fantastic,
he hardly believed it. But there was proof. Like Nacho, the crazy vampire
guy Ryo called his 'contact'. And Buck, his own friend. The werewolf.
He had had so many questions. Where there demons? What were vampires
really? And werewolves? What about witches and wizards? And why had Ryo
become an ally. His partner had answered them calmly, competently, and
without ever getting annoyed. Dee was so stunned, so incredibly baffled
by it all, it took him a while to really appreciate what secret Ryo had
been carrying around with him. No one knew, not even Bikky.
Dee had been the first Ryo had ever told. The very first…
Tonight, four days after the shocking, change-my-world revelation of
Wilmington's, almost two weeks after Ryo had told Dee that he was an ally,
Ryo had invited him over for dinner. It was Friday, Bikky was away for
the weekend, and it was just the two of them. Dee had accepted.
Now, sitting on the floor, comfortably leaning against the couch and
the large cushions, Dee had the other man in his arms, both of them watching
TV. It was a relaxed atmosphere, Dee's hands playing over the firm body,
slipping underneath the wide shirt and caressing skin. Ryo didn't protest.
He seemed to melt further into the embrace, his head lying against Dee's
chest, Latener's chin resting on the light brown hair. He experimentally
nuzzled one temple and Ryo moved his head a little, Dee's lips sliding
down to nibble at the exposed throat. Bolder, he continued his ministrations
and he was rewarded with a soft, encouraging noise.
It was almost like a dance, their movements slow and sensual, unlike
the 'attacks' on his partner Dee had sometimes started. The dance ended
with Ryo on his back, deep brown eyes looking up at him, the face relaxed,
inviting, no visible hesitation. Dee leaned down and caught the lips in
an affectionate kiss. When the other answered it, opened up, he deepened
it more and more. His tongue slipped into the warmth of Ryo's mouth and
Dee felt his lover's arms come up around him. Fingers clenched into his
t-shirt, holding on.
He pulled back a little, studying the so well-known features. They
had been at this point countless times before, but Ryo had always pulled
away after a while. Scared of whatever. Dee had never known.
Now he did. So much of his partner's history had been revealed.
"Ryo?" he queried nevertheless.
A hand cupped his face, the thumb caressing his skin. Ryo smiled slightly,
almost shyly, then drew him down again. Dee felt something inside of him
burst with joy at the unspoken invitation. He kissed Ryo's mouth, his chin,
his jaw line, then worked his way down the throat arching into his nibbles
and gentle bites, taking in the whispers of pleasure.
Nimble fingers opened the dark shirt, exposing the lean, muscular chest
and abdomen he had kissed and touched before. Twice he had been able to
go even further, bring his lover the pleasure he always wanted to show
him, but Ryo had been like stung afterwards. Dee had thought long and hard
why. Did he see their pleasure as a sin, as forbidden? Did he feel disgusted?
But Ryo had always willingly fallen into his embraces, his kisses, more
touching. Still, he had denied his own sexuality in a way. Was it because
he was scared of loving a man? Or scared of loving in general?
'I was afraid to let go.'
The words came back as he drew a wet trail down the quivering stomach.
'I was afraid to let myself fall.'
I'll catch you, love, he thought. Always.
The pants were opened and Ryo moaned in the back of his throat as Dee
stripped him, exposing him completely to his hungry, loving gaze. Dee shed
his own clothes in a hurry, not wanting to leave Ryo alone for too long.
He blanketed the lithe form with his body, rubbing himself against the
hard evidence of his lover's arousal.
"Dee…" Ryo whispered pleadingly.
He looked into the expressive eyes, almost black in this light. "I
love you, Ryo. I'll catch you… let yourself fall."
Ryo's eyes widened and he wrapped his arms around the dark-haired man,
pulling him into another kiss.
"I want you," he whispered.
Dee's heart flew. How long had he waited for these words?
Two years… and two years ago, his response would have been a lot different.
"Ryo?" he whispered, separating himself from that addicting body. "Have
you ever done this before?"
Chocolate brown eyes me this openly. "Not all the way," came the honest
answer. A small smirk appeared. "But I know the technicalities involved."
Dee laughed. "Good." He kissed him again. "Very good.
He pressed a little kiss to the wonderful mouth, then began his slow
seduction of Ryo McLane. He would show his lover everything there was about
male loving, how good it could be… and that there should never be any doubt
about his feelings for him.