“Can you really separate the man and brother from the murderous criminal?” Jake asked himself as he climbed the steps of his stoop then unlocked his door. He might help Dilan for the right reasons but at the end of the day, he was still helping the head of a brutally violent crime family. What if Jake found Bannon’s murderer but discovered proof that Dilan was a monster in the process? What if Jake was another one of the O’Shea brother’s victims and this was one of Roan’s con jobs? “You treated him like a patient. It was the right thing to do,” Jake reassured himself then pushed out a long, groaning breath. “Maybe I did the right thing then but what about the rest?” Jake wondered as he dropped his keys in the bowl and hung his coat on the hook.
“You’ll drop this now, if you know what’s good for you,” Dilan drawled from the couch and Jake stifled a shriek as he jumped and squinted at it.
“What are you doing here?” Jake hissed and Dilan made a weary sound as he rose.
“I like you, Jake. You’re a clever man but you’re going to get yourself hurt or killed if you don’t let this go,” he warned as he prowled toward Jake but he didn’t feel threatened. He felt a spark of defiant, indignant anger and a spark of something a little too warm and too low in his groin but he ignored it.
“You stole my body and you think I’m just going to let that go?” He asked in disbelief then squeezed his eyes shut as Dilan’s gaze wandered down his body. It tingled and Jake shifted as he scrubbed his hand through his hair. “You know what I meant,” he muttered and Dilan blinked a few times but he remained still.
“I don’t need you in the middle of this right now. Stay away from that warehouse,” he said and Jake’s brows fell.
“Sorry for the inconvenience but you kidnapped me,” he reminded him and Dilan nodded.
“And I promised you’d be fine then sent you on your way when I was done with you,” he replied and Jake’s head pulled back as his temper bubbled.
“Done with me?” He laughed. “I saved your life and I didn’t arrange for you to be relocated to a jail cell while you were unconscious and under my care. You could have cost me my career and my medical license and you destroyed evidence in a murder case but you thought you were done with me? Motherfucker, you’re not close to done with me!” He vowed and the muscle in Dilan’s jaw twitched.
“I’m trying to protect you,” he ground out and Jake snorted.
“Fuck that! You drugged me and do you know how mortifying it is to lose a whole damn body? I’ve never lost a file but I blew a whole fucking case when I let you leave with that body. And then I disappeared with you for days. My credibility is fucked if people find out and Bannon’s killer walks!” Jake said loudly as he pointed at the window and Dilan hushed him as he stepped closer.
“I told you! I’ll confess to this if I have to and I’ll tell anyone you want that I made you help me,” he growled and Jake shook his head.
“You don’t fucking get it. The only way I’ll be ok with this is if Bannon’s killer is caught and behind bars,” he explained then pointed at Dilan’s nose when he opened his mouth to argue. “Save it. You didn’t do it and there’s no way you’ll convince me. Right now, you’re just helping a murderer frame you,” he stated and Dilan’s brows rose but his head lowered slightly as he swayed just a little closer.
“How do you know?” He asked slowly and Jake gave him a flat look despite the tightening of his body. He refused to be intimidated or distracted by the heat trickling into his groin.
“Because I went to school and studied the body and death and forensics,” he said then smiled. “I also know it wasn’t Roan,” he added and Dilan’s eyes widened as his head cocked forward in shock. Their noses almost brushed and Jake felt the huff of his breath against his lips.
“It wasn’t?” He asked and Jake pulled a face.
“All you had to do was check the number. It wasn’t Roan’s. The phone was a clumsy prop and you fell for it because you were scared and in a hurry,” he explained and Dilan’s tongue pushed against the inside of his cheek.
“I only had moments to come up with a plan,” he countered. “I had a body to get rid of and a mortuary around the corner. I just needed a way to get Bannon there so I ran and started the incinerator then went back and waited for you guys to load him up for me,” Dilan said and Jake shook his head.
“I could have cleared you and Roan in about a day, if I had that body,” he said and Dilan shrugged. His chest pushed against Jake’s as Dilan made a wry, sarcastic chuckle.
“That’s hindsight for you.”
“No. That’s science and why evidence matters. Do you know how much harder it is to prove you didn’t do it without the body?” Jake argued and Dilan’s eyes flicked upwards.
“That was the point. We were in trouble and I had to act fast. I’m not going to let Roan go down because of me,” he said and Jake nodded as his nerves and his frustration tangled and wound tighter and tighter. He wanted to strangle Dilan and he needed to taste him.
“And that’s exactly what the killer was counting on. You made the case infinitely harder to solve and left yourself as the main suspect,” he pointed out and Dilan snorted dismissively as his head tilted and Jake held his breath as their lips brushed. His lips vibrated and they felt hot as Jake tightened his fists to keep from pulling Dilan against him or punching him. He was too close and it was making Jake beautifully and uncomfortably frantic.
“I’ll deal with it but I don’t need you getting in the way,” Dilan grumbled but it was weak and distant as his eyes clung to Jake’s. Jake raised a brow at him.
“I’m not really worried about what you need. I have a case to solve and my reputation is at stake,” he stated. He wasn’t going to mention Roan or his own twisted, conflicted feelings. Jake had no idea what to do about them or if they even mattered.
“Why do you have to be so fucking…!” Dilan complained then swore as his hands locked around Jake’s face. Their lips crashed and Jake gasped as Dilan backed him against the wall and kissed him hungrily. Their teeth clicked as their tongues lashed and thrust wildly and it was intoxicating and desperate. Dilan rolled his hips and pinned Jake’s and heat exploded.
“Oh, fuck!” Jake whimpered as he wrenched his lips free and pulled Dilan’s face into the corner of his neck. “Don’t stop, O’Shea!” He ordered and there was a ragged groan as Dilan’s teeth and lips pulled at his skin. He sucked and lapped and Jake’s eyes rolled as his cock throbbed. Jake bucked as his fingers twisted in his hair and he became more frantic as Dilan panted against his ear.
“Please, call me Dilan,” he breathed and Jake nodded drunkenly and shivered before Dilan’s lips found his again and he kissed him hungrily. The heat was staggering but Jake wanted to get closer and touch and taste more. His hands shot to Dilan’s waist and tore at his belt and fly. “Christ, Jake!” Dilan hissed as he attacked Jake’s buckle. Their tongues twirled and flicked blindly as their hands pushed and pulled as the sound of grunts, curses and gasps surrounded them. Jake’s hands closed around thick, solid heat and he drank Dilan’s strangled cry as he gripped his long, throbbing erection. Dilan’s hand pushed into Jake’s boxers and closed around his shaft and a bright rush of need and fire burst in his groin.
“Yes! Dilan!” Jake cried breathlessly as his back arched and his sack tightened. He knew Dilan O’Shea was responsible for more than a few of the bodies that came across his table and Jake knew he’d destroyed nearly all the evidence in the Bannon case but he couldn’t deny the pressure building in the base of his cock or the hard shiver of pleasure that rushed up his spine. This kiss could destroy the whole case and ruin Jake’s career but he didn’t want it to stop.
