Chapter 3

Rubbing his hand over his mouth, Danny pushed to his feet, doing his best to look steady as he dashed to the bedroom to dress, even though his head was still fuzzy from slipping into the zone he craved. There was no time to feel sorry for himself over things being cut short. Shea obviously needed to get to work to handle some crisis. Maybe his client was being chased by a crazed fan. Or stuck in an elevator that was about to plunge down a dozen floors. Or hiding from a sniper. Or facing some kind of maneating beast.

The last is unlikely...

Danny frowned as he tugged on one of Shea’s big, black hoodies.

Maybe.

It wasn’t until they were in Shea’s work SUV that he finally learned what the problem was.

Which had his mouth hanging open. “Your client ran away from his security detail? But...why? That doesn’t make any sense. Does he have a death wish?”

Jaw ticking, Shea lifted his shoulders. “Fuck if I know. He’s the son of a senator who’s been getting a lot of negative attention lately. His mom’s the one who hired us. She’s going to lose her shit if we don’t find him soon.”

“I can imagine.” Danny inhaled slowly as Shea drew up to the gates of The Asylum. “You can just drop me off, I’ll be fine. Either Keiran or Avery will be watching the cameras while I go in so no one will have a chance to grab me.”

Rolling his neck, Shea seemed to take a moment to tamp down his aggravation before meeting Danny’s eyes. “I’ll be watching you go in.” He cupped Danny’s cheek, giving him a soft kiss. “I love you. And I’ll try not to be too late. I know I don’t need to say it, but stay here and be careful. If there’s anything, go to Jared, he’ll keep an eye out for you.”

“Yes, sir.” Danny rested his cheek against Shea’s palm, stealing a few more seconds of comfort to last him the day. He wouldn’t remind Shea that Jared was pulling a double shift at the clinic since Seth and Quint were both off on missions. No need to worry his Dom when he had enough on his plate already. “I love you, too. And I won’t go anywhere.”

“Good boy.” Shea sighed, pressing his lips to Danny’s forehead. He drew back and nodded toward the gate. “Go on, they’re buzzing you in.”

Another smile and a nod and Danny slipped out of the SUV, going through the gate, then waving at Shea when it closed behind him. His Dom didn’t drive away until he waved again from the front door.

Inside, the bar was quiet at first, sounds coming from the kitchen where Keiran was likely making all his breakfast pastries while Avery kept him company. No one was sitting at the bar yet, but someone was behind it. Bottles clinked as Pike placed them. He glanced over at Danny, grinning at him in greeting as he rose up on his tiptoes to get a bottle on one of the top shelves. He gripped the edge of a shelf to help himself reach, shoving the bottle into a space much too small for it.

Danny’s lips parted as he started to warn Pike to be careful.

Right before several bottles crashed down around him.

Hands over his face, Danny braced himself for what he knew he’d see when he moved them. His mind went over every single worst case scenario, but that didn’t stop him from moving forward. He could help Pike.

As long as the young man was still alive.

The rough sound of pain was somewhat comforting, though Danny’s throat tightened as he reached Pike’s side.

It looked like the other sub’s day wasn’t off to a good start either.

Not really comforting.

Things have to get better from here, right?

Yeah…

Don’t count on it.