Page 37 of Sean's Sunshine

“You’ve got a job and a real life,” Billy retorted bitterly. “I’m just a whore. I don’t know how equal you think it’ll get!”

“You’re not a whore,” Sean snapped. “You’re an engineering student working your way through college. I….” His voice cracked, and the look he gave Billy was miserable. “Man, I got dumped in the hospital, Guillermo. Just let me have a little pride.”

Billy’s mouth twisted. “Why you gotta… with my real name?” he finished, feeling as vulnerable as Sean professed to feel.

“’Cause Billy’s the guy on the porn vids,” Sean whispered. “Guillermo’s the guy who tucks me in at night and reminds me to poop. You’re wrong about wanting it to be porn. I dated a fireman, for fuck’s sake. He was an insensitive closet case who was pissed because I had the nerve to get stabbed and my friends called him quietly to tell him. Iknowthe difference between the fantasy hero and someone who’s a really good person in reality. You… you’re areallygood person.” He took a deep breath and then another, and Billy watched his lips move in a “Dammit” as he cursed his inability to make long speeches.

Billy smiled in spite of it all. “Don’t hurt yourself,” he said fondly. “You’re not having sex today, and I get what you’re saying. Can you imagine it? I’d be banging away and you’d literally pass out from lack of oxygen. I mean, people talk about passing out from good sex all the time, like it would be fun, but I’d never get another boner after that, so, you know. Wait. I get it.”

Sean squeezed his eyes shut. “Tired,” he said. “Let’s go home. I’ll call Andres after my nap.”

“Deal.”

Billy helped him up and into the Charger, realizing he felt a guilty little thrill at the thought that Sean might need his assistance out of the car, the kind where Sean had to put his arms around Billy’s neck and Billy stood up slowly.

So slowly they’d be face-to-face for one of those breathless moments.

And then Billy would positively, absolutely have to kiss him again.

Snooping

“NO,” SEANsaid patiently. “I’m not pushing it too far, too fast, and I’m not working for Rivers.” He frowned. “Why? Are Rivers and Cramer doing anything interesting?”

Andres Christie’s laugh was strained, and he leaned back in the kitchen chair and crossed his arms. “Well, you know how he has a knack for finding the bad apples in any tree?”

“Oh my God, yes,” Sean muttered. He’d called Andres after his nap, and his friend—and partner—had asked to stop by before dinner. Sean had been proud of being able to get him some chips and salsa and a beer all on his own since Billy got called in for an emergency wait shift. He couldn’t believe he’d thought he’d only have a nurse for a week after he got home from the hospital. It was like functioningwithoutthat kid should earn him a medal and a commendation.

But it was good that Billy was gone. Besides a chance for the kid to escape captivity with Sean (and it could not have been a whole lot of fun stuck in the house as much as they had been, no matter what Billy said about loving the peace), it gave Sean a chance to talk to Andres alone.

He felt badly in need of a friend, one who was still in law enforcement and had a good relationship and who had hated Jesse with a passion.

“So Rivers,” Andres continued, “managed to find a bunch of flatfoots who arrested a guy with mobility issues for doing a thing he could not possibly have physically done, and then these guys put the kid in the hospital for resisting arrest.”

Sean grunted. “That’s… heinous.” God, he remembered how indoctrinated he’d been the year before when he’d met Ellery and assumed that all cops were good and all defense attorneys were sleazy. Sometimes people just needed some help against a massive system.

And sometimes the massive system had big pockets of rot that needed to be rooted out with a dental tool and a backhoe. Ellery was the finely honed dental tool. Jackson was the backhoe—and Henry was the hammer.

“It’s even worse than it sounds,” Andres said in disgust. “The four guys—Rivers calls them choirboys—are besties with the DA, and the judge, who is normally a decent guy, isn’t giving them much of a chance to plead their case.” Andres shook his head. “It’s a scary world out there, my friend. Be glad you’re stuck here for an extra couple of weeks.”

Sean snorted. “I’m bored,” he said. “Billy wants me to find something to do besides puzzles so I don’t make us both crazy.”

“Billy…?” Andres raised his eyebrows in a delicate inquiry. Andres—a handsome, slick man in his late thirties—was pretty much the best work partner a boy could ask for. Smart, tough, and a dedicated family man, Andres worked very hard to keep his part of law and order squeaky, squeaky clean. He had a dry sense of humor and a keen sense of fairness, and while the pinball machine aesthetic of Rivers and Henry drove him a little batty, he’d stopped questioning their agenda. They’d pretty much proved—in blood, no less—that they didn’t mind when bad guys ended up in prison, as long as they had representation. It was the innocent people who ended up there who made themreallymad, and they worked hard to keep that from happening.

His question about Billy was all about Sean, and Sean appreciated him to the soles of his slick, shiny oxfords.

“Yes, Billy,” Sean said. “Whom we will talk about in a minute. Business first. Can you do me a favor?”

“Anything.”

Sean outlined the break-in situation around the park, and Andres nodded, taking notes on his phone. “I’ll talk to the property crimes division tomorrow,” he said. “If an entire neighborhood is getting hit like this, I should be able to get you times and places.”

Sean nodded. “And another thing—this neighborhood is balls to the walls dogs. Everywhere. It’s like people found the neighborhood because they had a dog. It’s like a selling point. But none of the people hithave a dog.I’m thinking it’s someone who works in the neighborhood—knows where the milk bones are buried.”

Andres nodded, eyebrows up. “That’s interesting. You could be right. You and Billy keep your eyes peeled when you’re out and about.” He paused, leaned back, took a sip of his beer, and smiled. “Now, about that other thing….”

Sean couldn’t help it. He blushed, and on his fair skin he knew it was like a giant red flag of guilt and desire, one on each cheek.

“Really?” Andres asked, impressed.