Page 57 of Avenging Kelly

I glanced at Kelly, who was pumped up. “So, we need to bring your bike to the apartment. I can rent a space in the garage to park it so it’s out of the weather,” I stated, bracing myself for rejection.

Kelly turned to me. “Like, we’re moving in together?”

“We already did.”

His low chuckle warmed me. “I, uh, I don’t remember being invited to move in. I thought I was staying with you for convenience because it takes a while to get to Brooklyn from my mom’s place.”

I swallowed the lump forming in my throat. “Oh. Yeah, uh, that makes sense,” I replied, prepared to drop the subject.

“But I wouldn’t be opposed to moving in with you. I try to be tidy and courteous because that’s how my momma raised me. You’ve met the woman. She’s extremely strict.”

We were sitting at a stoplight, so I turned to study him, seeing a smirk. I lifted my right hand and shoved the cocky bastard for being an ass. He lurched into the door and then released a cheerful laugh, which was music to my ears. “I’m sorry, but I never figured you for being insecure. Of course, babe, I’d love to wake up next to you every morning. I just don’t want to push you into a pity invitation.”

“The only thing I pity is your mother for putting up with your smart ass all these years,” I replied, gunning the motor to get to Manhattan as fast as possible so we could get control over the shit storm.

My phone buzzed in the console tray. I glanced at the dashboard screen to see it was Ryan, so I hit the button on the steering wheel. “St. Michael.”

“Am I on speaker? You know I hate that,” Ryan complained. He definitely hadn’t changed.

“Too bad. I’m driving. What do you want?”

“That’s no way to speak to someone who’s doing you a favor,” Ryan complained. I glanced into the rearview mirror to see Casper was still following me.

“Is this a social call? Because if it is, I’m hanging up,” I threatened him. Kelly chuckled next to me.

Ryan must have heard him. “Is someone with you?”

“Kelly Brown. I believe you’ve heard of me. Whatcha got, Doc?”

It was my turn to smirk. “We know some of what I’m sure you’ve found out. Steroids, vitamins, cocaine, meth. Anything else?” I asked. We were nearing the Williamsburg Bridge, and I wanted off the phone with the egotistical prick as fast as possible.

“Yeah, all of that, but there’s one compound that I’ve never seen before in a cocktail of this sort. It might make this a little more complicated for you, Kelly,” Ryan explained.

I turned to see Kelly leaning forward in his seat a bit, his elbows resting on his knees as he held his head in his hands. Of course, that was the last fucking thing he wanted to hear. I wasn’t too thrilled about it, either.

“What’s it close to? Is it a synthetic of something?” I asked impatiently.

“Antiretroviral drugs are included in the cocktail. Are you HIV-positive?” Ryan asked.

Kelly was silent, and I was in a panic. We’d been safe, but we’d talked about getting rid of condoms. I’d still love the guy, even if I’d accidentally gotten infected.

“I-I… I don’t know,” Kelly whispered. He was being completely honest and I could see it.

“Anything else, Ryan?” I asked, ready to end the call. When—not if—I got my hands on that bitch, I was going to wring her goddamn neck.

“I’m reporting her to my boss,” Ryan responded.

I chuckled. “No need. She’ll be dealt with.” I hit the button to end the call.

“Don’t panic. We know nothing yet. One step at a time,” I insisted as we continued on our way in the hellish traffic that was a constant for New York City.

If he was positive, it wasn’t a deal breaker. I knew there were people living healthy, happy, love-filled lives with HIV. Hell, Nemo had mentioned he was positive once and had been for a while.

We were all playing pool at a bar in Williamsburg one night when he was in New York, and he’d told me he carried neoprene gloves with him at all times because he was positive, and if he got injured, he wanted us to find them and put them on before we touched him. I remember how much in awe I was at his admission in order to protect his fellow operatives.

He and his husband, Ben, seemed perfectly happy as I’d gotten to know them better at various events we all attended. I wasn’t going to panic about this latest revelation, and I’d do my damnedest to make sure Kelly didn’t either.

23

---