Bad Idea (Stonewall Investigations Miami Book 1) Read online

  “Wendy really fucked up.”

  “Huh?”

  We were in Fox’s living room, the door to the outside open and letting in a warm ocean breeze, soft and fresh. He didn’t have much light in his living room; aside from a nearby floor lamp and a dimmed overhead light, there was nothing else. It created an orange glow that cast long shadows across the stacks of my life, held in bulging cardboard boxes, the duct tape already looking frayed and strained, a direct reflection of how my emotions looked.

  “How did she let you go so easily? How was she not fighting tooth and nail to keep you at her side?”

  “Because that would mean messing up her manicure.”

  “No, fuck that. I consider myself a good judge of character, and I’ve got full confidence in saying you’re a good fucking man. A great one. And for Wendy to have treated you the way she did, how she neglected you when you needed someone the most… it makes me sick.”

  “It’s fine. I wasn’t exactly the world’s greatest boyfriend either.”

  “Only because you had the wrong judge. Someone else would peg you ‘the world’s greatest’ in a heartbeat.”

  I shook my head. As much as I wanted to take what he was telling me as truth, I just couldn’t. I was beginning to feel like shit. Not so much for Wendy, but for dragging Fox into all of this. He could have been out in some club right now, but instead he was playing therapist with someone who was beyond help. “You’re nice, Fox. Really, too nice. I don’t know what I’ve done to deserve any of your kindness, but I’m grateful for it… I really am.” I took a breath. His scent filled the air. I picked up on something more than cologne. His natural scent, an intoxicating mixture that had me seeing stars. “I… you have me thinking all kinds of thoughts, Fox.”

  “Oh really?” He cocked his head. “Like what?”

  “Like… like how I’m the happiest I’ve ever been when we’re together. Even if we’re in a grimy alley or a sexy beach or inside of my old bedroom, wherever we are, I’m happy around you. And that’s weird. Isn’t that weird?”

  Fox shook his head and remained silent.

  “And then I think about how much I don’t want that feeling to end. How I want to chase it, chase you. I’ve never… no one has ever been on my mind as much as you have, Fox. I don’t know why… I don’t know…”

  A swell of frustration rose through me. I turned, facing away from Fox, and rubbed my face, taking a deep breath so that my hands could steady themselves.

  “It’s all right,” he said, his voice low and deep and close. I felt a hand on my elbow. I turned, Fox in front of me, looking down into my eyes. He was taller than me by a few inches, but right now it felt like we were separated by miles.

  And I wanted to cross every last one of them for him.

  When had Fox gotten so close to me? When had the air between us shifted? When did it shoot up fifteen degrees in here? Was I sweating? Hallucinating?

  “Jonah…” His voice was lower now, more gravel shaking my bones.

  No space between us now. My heartbeat was soaring. The walls around us disappeared, as did the ceiling, along with the floor. An inky black expanse of twinkling stars surrounded us, Fox’s bright hazle green eyes shining the most light.

  We may not have been boyfriends, but this sure as fuck felt like we were soul mates.

  I kissed him. My body needed it. My lips needed it. My tongue found his as his mouth parted, allowing me in, allowing me the taste I had learned to crave after only a couple of hits. Hands were flying, gliding. Our bodies pressed together, pushing away any space between us and replacing it with pure heat.

  The kiss brought me back to us on the beach, in the water. My paranoia had led me to feel eyes on me then, but now I knew for a fact it was only us. Two men, two bodies that needed release, two hearts that were quickly becoming intertwined.

  And the fact that we were so alone… it made me do things I normally wouldn’t. I thrust my hips forward, bold with how hard I already was and surprised when I felt Fox push back, rubbing his own hard cock over mine, only separated by a couple layers of very annoying fabric.

  I was quickly losing all control. And this wasn’t fueled by rum or a risky card game, this was being fueled by pure want and desire. I felt the fire burn inside me, taking away my breath. Fox’s big hands traveled down my back, over my ass, squeezing me in his hands and drawing a deep moan from me.

  I couldn’t see straight. I don’t know how I managed to separate and walk over to close the door without tripping and falling. But I did. And when I turned around, Fox was already tugging off his shirt, pulling it over his head and tossing it to the side, his fingers flying down to work on his pants, the crotch visibly strained by everything it was trying to hold back.

  A moment of fear flickered inside me. This was all so new, so wild. I wasn’t a hundred percent sure I was doing the right thing.

  I’m a hundred percent doing the right thing.

  I went over to Fox, not even bothering with my clothes, just wanting to feel him, touch him, taste him.

  My hand went to his crotch as our lips crashed together, his pants still on. He started to work on taking off my shirt, grabbing at the edges and tugging up, over my arms, past my head.

  Our lips were back together, this time our bare chests pressed against each other. I could feel his soft hair and his hard muscles. I could feel it all against me, and it filled me with an uncontrollable heat. It was such a viscerally different feeling than having Wendy’s paper-smooth body against mine.

  And I fucking loved it.

  I loved Fox’s big hands gliding up my back, encasing my head as the kiss continued to consume us.

  I needed more. So much more. Something came over me. I broke the kiss, but not because I was done.

  No, things were only beginning.

  “Jonah,” he said, his lips gleaming, his breath heavy. “Jesus, I can’t stop kissing you.” His lips came up against my forehead, leaving a soft trail that sent sparks through me. My hands landed on his hips and I pulled, tugging him harder onto me.

  “I want to try something.” It was my way of not chickening out. By saying it out loud, then I couldn’t silently back out. My heart was thumping, and my brain was mush, but I knew for a fact that I wanted Fox in a way I’d never had any man before.

  “Huh?” he asked.

  His answer came when my hands moved from his hips and traveled over his hard bulge. I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t believe I was touching another man, one who was rock hard and throbbing for me.

  And I still wanted more.

  I took a step back, my entire body buzzing. Fox bit his lower lip as I slowly fell to my knees in front of him. I’d seen Wendy do this plenty of times—I could manage it. The fear was powerful, but my attraction and arousal were even stronger.

  I moved forward, my knees sliding on the hardwood floor. I looked up, feeling myself getting lost in Fox’s gaze, especially at this angle. Fox towered above me, his erection pushing against the fabric of his pants, almost casting a shadow on my face.

  “Jonah, we don’t…”

  “Take off your pants.” It came out like more of a command than I expected. Fox’s eyes opened wide before his smirk took over, his fingers moving to undo the button and zipper on his pants.

  This is crazy. This is crazy.

  Fox’s pants came off, dropping in a puddle at his ankles. The sight left me wanting to join that puddle.

  He stood there, thick hairy thighs leading up to a strained pair of black boxer briefs, the fabric darkened where Fox was leaking gallons.

  “Holy fuck,” I said, not realizing I was speaking out loud.

  “Like it?” Fox knew damn fucking well I liked it by the way my jaw was coming unhinged.

  “Yes,” I answered anyway. He started to stroke his length through the thin fabric, up and down, cupping his balls, hypnotizing me like a reverse snake-charming situation.

  The charmer becomes charmed by the snake.

  “
Take these off for me.” Now Fox was the one giving the commands, and fuck, did it rock me.

  I did as he asked. I tugged his underwear down, having to stretch it out so that his cock had enough room to spring free.

  There I was, eye to eye, literally, with the object of my most intimate, secret, and wanted desire.

  It didn’t hurt that Fox had an absolutely magnificent fucking cock. I’d seen it before, but not this close, and never this sober. He was perfect. He was thick and heavy, with a full pair of balls, his pulsing pink cock leaking and inviting me, a couple of veins down his shaft serving as a trail for my tongue.

  “Fuck, you’re so hot.” I couldn’t help it. Something was coming over me. I was seeing a scarlet red that was reserved for pure passion.

  “Taste it.” Fox’s hand rested at the base of his hard cock, a thumb pushing down and aiming his head directly at my lips.

  I couldn’t think too much about it. Just had to do it.

  So I did. I moved forward, opened my lips, and put a cock inside my mouth for the first time in my life.

  I don’t know what exactly I was expecting, but what I got was… well, it was really fucking good.

  Thankfully, I had a decent idea of what Fox would like from knowing what I liked, so I got to work, trying to fit as much of him inside my mouth as I could, moving up and down his length, my tongue exploring every inch of him. My own dick was throbbing hard against my jeans, a pressure building up inside me that felt monumental.

  Fox didn’t taste strongly of anything; he was a little salty, and the size of him had my jaw stretched open to fit him. I didn’t know what to expect and I was nervous as all hell to stick Fox’s throbbing cock inside my mouth, but once his head was resting on my tongue, pushing deeper, leaking… I wanted more. I fucking loved it. I found myself loving the sensation of his length pushing up against my throat, of looking up and seeing Fox’s head thrown back in pure bliss, exposing his throat, his chest already flushing a light pink.

  And then there was the scent. Purely masculine, and purely intoxicating. Before I popped my blowjob cherry, I had unfairly assumed I wouldn’t like it, mostly because I was raised around thinking guys were smelly and gross. For some reason, I thought every dick would smell like the essence of a locker room up close.

  Nope. Not in the slightest.

  Smelled like fucking heaven.

  “Fuuuck, Jonah. Keep sucking, God that feels incredible.”

  His urging and moaning dumped gallons of gasoline onto the fire. I couldn’t fit him entirely down my throat, but fuck me I was going to try.

  “Oh fuck, Jonah, yeeesss.” His fingers tangled in my hair, tugged, guided me as I sucked him off. I started to taste his precome, his salty-sweet excitement. It was addictive. I wanted more. I started to palm his balls, feeling them in my hand, relishing in the warmth, the tightness. I used another hand to stroke whatever of him I couldn’t get in my mouth.

  “God, Jonah, you’ve got me close. So fucking close.”

  That only spurred me on. My own cock throbbed, my own balls tightening, but I didn’t want to stop to take off my pants. I didn’t want to take Fox out of my mouth. I kept sucking, bobbing up and down, looking up as I did so, the sounds of my greedy slurps filling the room, mixing with the grunts and moans that came from above me. Fox rocked his hips forward, giving more of himself to me.

  I was beyond turned on. This was a different astral plane I’d been thrown to. I started to rub myself over my pants, continuing to slurp and suck and taste, loving every single thing about this experience.

  “Ohh fuck, fuck, Jonah—” I knew what was next. A split-second decision: did I pull back or keep him inside?

  His come hit the back of my throat in thick jets, and I swallowed every last fucking drop. He convulsed and groaned like an animal as he shot his load. It was so hot. So fucking hot. The way he tasted, the way he felt as he gave me everything I wanted.

  It was hot enough to bring my own orgasm rocketing forward. My eyes shut, Fox’s cock still in my mouth, as my own started to twitch and spasm inside my pants, filling up my briefs with come and instantly making me soaked. I had to hold on to Fox’s thighs for balance as my own legs shook.

  I couldn’t see straight. Was I dead? Had that orgasm killed me? I looked up, vision still full of stars, but Fox’s face made itself clear through the chaos, his smile lighting up the room like the sun itself. He helped me up onto my feet, knees clicking and popping as I stood back up, my legs shaking slightly as I caught my breath.

  “Holy… okay. Wow.” I was speechless. I wiped my lips, still tasting some of Fox on me.

  Fox didn’t need words. He came in and stole a fiery kiss, his hands falling on my hips and holding me for a moment.

  “That was… yeah. Wow.” Fox also looked a little lost for words. His smile widened as he laughed and took a step back. “Fuck, you came.” His eyes dropped down where a massive stain was spreading across my crotch.

  “Yeah…” I was a little embarrassed, but the hungry grin on Fox’s face pushed that away.

  “That’s so fucking hot. Jesus, Jonah, you’re something else.”

  I was glad it appeared like my first blowjob had been a glowing success. The nerves I’d felt going into this were all gone, replaced by a desire to do it all over again.

  We played around some more that night… all right, we played around much more that night. And when we were done, my body feeling more alive than ever before, when we were lying there on the bed, breaths heavy and chests pink, Fox had said he would set up the air mattress in the living room.

  He didn’t make it out of the bed. We fell asleep. Only when I woke up the next morning did I realize we were tangled up like a pair of eternal lovers, our legs entwined and my arm thrown over his chest, my head nestled against his.

  I woke up that morning feeling happier than I’d ever felt in a long time.

  And that scared the shit out of me.

  TWO DAYS LATER

  The hospital was buzzing with an energy that came out of a team of people working day and night to save lives. It was midday and the waiting room was currently packed with coughing, sneezing, and groaning patients. Thankfully, the nurse I had come to see was already waiting for me by the front desk, so I didn’t have to wait too long.

  I wanted to get in and out of here. Hospitals weren’t exactly my favorite places to spend time in. Also, Fox had set plans for us to go bird-watching later, and that was way more preferable to spending time under the fluorescent hospital lights.

  “Hi, Donna?”

  “Hello.” She was an immediately warm woman, as most nurses seem to be, with a smile that put me at ease. We shook hands as she led me through the big double doors and back to where the nurses’ station was. Her scrubs were a soft pink with lavender-colored flowers sprinkled throughout, adding to her calming demeanor.

  “So, Mr. Brightly, I understand you’re investigating this Dragon outbreak?” She leaned against the counter of the nurses’ station. There were a couple other nurses sitting at computers behind her, a doctor listing out a chart of things she wanted done for her patient.

  “I am. Thanks for meeting with me, Donna.”

  “Of course. I’ve seen some stuff, but nothing like what Dragon does to these kids. I want to do anything I can to try and stop it.”

  “How many kids do you think you’ve seen come in suffering an overdose?”

  “Oh, an easy twenty. And that’s in the span of less than a month. It’s shocking.”

  “What’s the treatment like?”

  Donna’s brows wrinkled. “Mr. Brightly, there is no treatment. We pump their stomach, get them hooked into IVs, and monitor them twenty-four seven. Some patients feel so overcome by the burning sensation that we’re forced to put them into a medically induced coma just to handle it. There are some drugs that have medication we can give. Opioids, for example—we can give naloxone, which blocks opioid receptors and reverses the overdose. But that’s the thing, no one seems
to be able to figure out what’s in this Dragon thing. If there is a medication for it, we won’t know because there’s something in there that’s untraceable.”

  “What’s the survival rate?”

  She cast her auburn eyes down at the tiled floor. “We’ve lost half.”

  “I’m so sorry.”

  “Just do whatever you can to stop this, Mr. Brightly.”

  I nodded, feeling more determined than ever to get to the bottom of this before it spiraled out of control.

  Donna wasn’t the only person I was at Miami Memorial to see. I glanced down at my watch, double-checking the time. “Is Matthew ready to meet with me? I promise I’ll keep the questions short.”

  “Of course, yes, come, follow me. He should be finishing up his lunch right now.”

  I followed Donna down the hall, her bright orange hair reflecting some of the light from the long row of fluorescent bulbs above her. She stopped in front of a room with its doors open. Inside was a young man lying on a hospital bed, eating a cup of red Jell-O and looking up at the television on his side of the room, his brown hair tousled and damp with a little sweat. The other side was divided by a thin blue sheet, rustling a little from the breeze coming from the open window. There was a strong smell of chemicals that seemed to be originating more from the other side of the room.

  “Hey there,” I said, waving and offering a smile.

  Matthew looked to me and matched my smile, but his wavered and disappeared much faster than mine. “I’m not in trouble, right?”

  “No, no, not at all.” I moved closer to the bed. “I’m here to ask some quick questions. I’m trying to hunt down the source of this Dragon drug before more lives are taken by it.”

  “Right, right…” He looked at me, still a little wary.

  “I’m Jonah,” I said, offering a hand. “The one you talked with over the phone.”

  He set the Jell-O down on the tray table at his side and shook my hand. There was a light in those expressive brown eyes that I was glad to see wasn’t dimmed after all he’d been through. “I’m Matt.”