Page 52 of Wanted

Knox was gay. As gay as one could be, if he was turned on by sucking another guy’s schlong without being touched back.

Pretending otherwise would have been useless. Denying it? Pointless. And Liv didn’t care. In fact, he’d seemed more than happy in bed with Knox. So why did it hurt so much to be adisappointment to a father who’d never been kind, and whom Knox would likely never see again?

Or was he just inconsolable because what happened earlier proved once and for all that his life would never be the same? He could no longer pretend to be a guy who didn’t have that high of a libido. He couldn’t be one of the guys ever again, because the dudes he’d grown up with could never see him as such if they found out he could potentially, maybe, be into them.

He shamelessly let out another sob.

Another thing his father had been right about.

Knox was a crybaby.

A wuss.

Weak in bodyandmind.

How pathetic was it that even now, despite all that happened, all he wanted was for Liv to reassure him by doing something normal, like having a drink while watching sports together?

As if Liv hadn’t saved his ass enough times. Even with Vlad. Who the fuck knew what would have happened if Liv hadn’t been there. It should have been Knox’s fight, but Liv had stepped in to deliver the final push and take on the burden of killing the bastard.

Another thing to be ashamed of: his reliance on another man, when he should have gone off to lead a life of his own long ago. He kind of hoped he and Amanda could have moved in together, and if that happened, then maybe-possibly, he could have forever lived blind to his true nature.

Would that have been so bad?

Deep down he knew the answer. It would have been miserable, and he would have argued with Amanda constantly. If not about the kids that would have surely appeared, then over him spending his free time with his buddy Liv instead of her.

As difficult as that was to admit, maybe Liv really did save his ass by taking her from Knox?

A bark tore him out of his thoughts, and when he looked up, several flashlights turned their blinding rays straight at him.

At his shame.

The fuck?

“I see him!” called out a voice, and moments later, the door of the old truck was ripped open, leaving Knox face-to-face with the masked man who’d chased him and Liv down the night before. But just as he leaned back, ready for the inevitable stab with the spear, the man, Jag, leapt back and gave a strange howl.

“Here! Here!”

Knox quickly used his T-shirt to rub his face, but one glance at his eyes in the rearview mirror told him he couldn’t hide the fact that he’d been crying.

“What’s going on?” he asked as Jag stepped back, making room for Liv sprinting their way over a pile of squashed cans.

Jag crossed his arms over his leather-clad chest. He looked back to the fast-approaching flashlights. “I told you I’d be better than the dog.”

“The dog didn’t have anything that could have properly soaked up the scent, because Ezra is laundry-mad,” Shane complained somewhere in the background.

But then Liv grabbed the open door and the handle attached to the side of the truck and pulled himself up, filling up the entrance.

“Jesus, Knox!”

Before Knox could have said a thing, Liv climbed inside and pulled him close. “Fuck, I was so worried!”

Finding himself in Liv’s arms was comforting and infuriating all at once. “About what? I’m fine,” he muttered, but when Liv hugged him, his voice broke anyway.

Liv pulled away and grabbed Knox’s face with one hand, digging his fingers hard into Knox’s cheeks. His brown eyes were on fire, and as he spoke, his face twisted into an uglyscowl. “What thefuck? You just left without a word after what happened at the party? You can’t do that to me! I was worried you might have fainted, or just fucking left, or fell into a trap—”

“I’m not a baby! And what fucking trap?” Knox asked, confused when a flashlight shone straight in his eyes. He pushed Liv, overwhelmed by all the attention. This was exactly what he’d tried to avoid.

Liv seemed blind to all the people around him and just kept talking, pulling Knox out of the cab. “Yes, you are a fucking baby! You refuse to talk and then just walk out on me. What the actual fuck? You’re the only one I have, Knox! The only one! Don’t you fucking dare do this again!”