Page 9 of A Thousand Cuts

“That’s private.”

“You agreed to a release of personal information with Nexus when you hired a cursebreaker. It’s so we can use it to reference past cases and help break new ones.” Fix was silent for amoment, eyes twinkling. “Unless, of course, you didn’t sign anything like that?”

“You don’t even know what the curse was, so how would you need it for reference?” he asked weakly.

“You’re right, I don’t,” Fix conceded easily. “And your business is your business. I’d never want to invade your privacy more than necessary. But like I said earlier, I really do feel responsible for your case. Do you mind if I take a look around, at least? Just to make sure everything is good. Think of it like a follow-up.”

“I…”

He didn’t have another excuse handy, and his resolve was weakening in the face of Fix’s repeated assertions and seeming sincerity.

He didlooksorry. More than that, he looked concerned for Liam, and that had him a little weak-kneed.

He chewed on his lower lip for a moment.

“I’ll just keep coming back,” Fix said.

It wasn’t said in a threatening manner, but there was a steel undertone that left no room for doubt and made him shiver.

Liam was unlatching the door in the next second.

King was barking in the one after that.

Liam grabbed him by the collar, urging his anxious figure away from the door so Fix had room to get in.

He entered cautiously, eyeing King but not looking especially terrified by the deep barks. Which was sort of a first. King was intimidating. As much of a lovebug as he was, Liam was under no illusions about how people perceived him and his breed in general.

He grabbed King’s starry blue character harness from its hook by the door and slipped it on him so he could get a better hold on him with his leash. On the very rare occasions he had anyone over, he’d usually put King in the bedroom to ease his anxiety,but today that wasn’t an option. He didn’t want King getting hurt when he was unsupervised.

“I’m sorry,” Liam said over the barking once he had him hooked up, trying to stroke King to soothe him. “He’s like this with everyone. He’s very protective of me and wary of new people entering our space. He wouldn’t ever do anything.”

“It’s fine. I’m used to worse, you’ll just have to trust me on that. I’m glad you have something protecting you at least,” Fix said, thumbing over his shoulder, expression turning perplexed. “Did you know that the lock on your building is broken?”

Liam nodded, straightening up when the barks settled to low whines and growls. His robe slipped from his shoulder in the process, the ties having loosened when he bent over. He quickly caught it, eyes catching Fix’s as they ran over the exposed skin before he looked away again.

There was desire there, hidden under the veneer of respect—Liam was trained to pick it out.

Did Fix think he was pretty?

He hated that he wanted the answer to be yes.

He was used to men wanting him, desiring him, taking him. He’d never had a man turn his head before. He wanted to ask why. Maybe Fix didn’t think he was pretty. Maybe there was nothing about Liam that would be appealing to someone like Fix.

He wrapped King’s leash around his wrist and quickly double knotted the tie on his robe, swallowing the self-loathing. “It’s been that way for months. The door.”

Fix risked a look back and only fully turned when he saw Liam was fully clothed again. “Isn’t there a building manager you can call?”

Liam couldn’t even laugh. “It’s not that sort of building.”

Fix pressed his lips together for a second before glancing around them.

Liam tried not to feel self-conscious. His apartment was run-down and old, but it was all he could afford. And Liam did whatever he could to make it seem like a home. The first one he’d ever truly had.

The tiny living room they were standing in held a vintage, floral sofa Liam had saved from a garage sale and cleaned as best as he could. He’d thrifted some fluffy throw pillows to match and a nice knit blanket that kept him warm despite the frayed edges.

Across from it, he’d managed to tuck a small shelving unit and display the little hand-painted figurines he collected. They were his favorite comic book characters and ones he liked to cosplay as when he managed to save enough money for fabric and other materials.

Next to the shelf he had a dingy desk with an old sewing machine on it. After his camera and laptop, that machine was his most prized possession. He was in love with it.