Page 49 of Wanted

Shane shook his head and slid out of the car first. “That’ll be a while…”

Liv grinned at Knox and followed suit. “Wanna join me in the shower?” he asked but Knox shook his head.

“No. After all that noise and smoke I need a bit of fresh air.”

Fair enough, even if a bit of a waste.

Liv walked around the car, gave him a firm smooch that made a couple of fireworks explode at the back of his skull, and ran into the house to see Shane kissing a young, lanky guy with long, wavy hair. Being around so many gay guys was still very new.

“I take it that’s Ros?”

Shane hesitated a little, but it wasn’t like he could hide his boyfriend any longer. “Yep. And if you ever try anything, our dogs are—”

“Come on, Shane. What’s he gonna do?” Ros rolled his eyes and got off the elegant emerald green couch where he’d been sitting with Ezra and Cerberus. “Knox?”

“Nah, I’m Liv. Knox is taking a breather outside.”

“Smoking’s bad for you,” Ezra said without taking his eyes off the TV.

Liv waved it off. “He’s got this heart thing, he’s not allowed to smoke. He just needs air after the party. And, by the way, I’ve seen your sculptures. Big fan,” he said with a grin.

Ezra sighed. “He probably wants something from you.”

Liv raised his palms in defeat. “Hey! I said I’d wash the dishes, and I did, didn’t I? And I said the porridge was amazing, ‘cause it was. No fakery with me.” Which was kind of a lie, since he’d lied about Knox being his boyfriend, but it was becoming true, so no harm done.

“I take compliments without prejudice.” Ros smiled and pushed his long hair behind his ears. He wore a strange blue topwith sleeves ending in fingerless gloves and a print featuring a whimsical wolf howling at the moon.

Shane grabbed two beers from Frank’s fridge as if it was his own, so they were all definitely close. “Frank’s in the workshop?” he asked Ezra.

“He’s been tinkering a lot lately. Maybe he’s trying to repair that old clock you found?” Ezra mused, drinking red wine from a glass almost as big as his face.

One look at the lady in a big historical gown taking up the TV screen told Liv he wasn’t interested in staying to watch the movie, so he excused himself and went straight into the shower, eager to join Knox outside.

They could scoot together for warmth and have beers while watching the starry sky until the mood took hold. Or not. He’d be happy either way, as long as they enjoyed time together, safe and away from the cops. Maybe it was wrong of him but he tried not to think too much about the way things went down with Vlad. About the blood, of the smells, of the terror—

He shook his head, eager to forget it. But when he went outside after the shower, all refreshed by Ezra’s almond soap, Knox wasn’t where Liv had last seen him. Shane and Frank sat in the back of a truck, drinking and clearly also not in the mood for costume drama.

So maybe Knox went to sleep, and they’d left the workshop to give him peace?

A smile tugged on the corners of Liv’s mouth when he thought of the innocent faces Knox made when sleeping. A couple of times, Liv had pranked him by tickling his feet until he woke, but he usually didn’t have the heart to fuck with him when he was enjoying much-needed rest.

His condition didn’t affect him all the time, but good food, rest, and peace made the episodes rarer, so these days Liv was very careful about Knox’s needs being met to the best of theirability. He tried to be very quiet upon entering the workshop, and switched on only his cell phone for light, but when he stepped into the little office temporarily converted into their bedroom, he found the mattress empty.

“Knox?”

Nothing.

So Liv tried again, in the workshop itself, but it wasn’t as though Knox would be hiding somewhere to prank him.

A bad feeling settled on his shoulders, but Frank’s house had more than one door, so maybe they just missed each other? It would have been typical for Knox to try and get one more snack in before bed, especially after all they’ve been through today.

He walked back but when it turned out that neither Ezra nor Ros had seen Knox, Liv rushed right back outside, heading for the truck.

“Have you seen Knox?” he asked, already out of breath, because his lungs suddenly felt too small for all the air he needed. Something was off. He could feel it in his gut.

Frank shrugged. “Thought he went to bed.”

Shane ran his hand over his face. “Not again. What did you do to him?”