Page 11 of Salacious

“If you refuse, we kill your father and then, we’ll do the same to your mother, so I suggest that you follow instructions just this once.” There was no way that the assholes who took his father would ever be able to find his mom. He and Ross had moved her to a safehouse after his father went missing. It wasn’t easy to convince his mother that she needed protection. She was fierce and thought that she could handle herself, and maybe she could, but he wasn’t taking any chances. His mother might be stubborn, but there was no way that she’d ever put herself in danger.

“Good luck finding them, asshole,” Leo growled into his cell phone. A notification chimed, telling him that he had a new text message, and for some reason, he suddenly felt sick to his stomach.

“Look at your text message, Leo,” the guy insisted. “I can wait.” He put the call on speaker and looked at the message that the guy had just sent him. Leo groaned when he saw the picture of his mother sitting in the kitchen at the safe house. He’d recognize that crappy wallpaper anywhere.

“If you lay one finger on her—” Leo started.

“You’ll what?” the guy challenged. “I seem to be holding all the cards here, Leo. You want your father back, you come to the office, alone. I’ll be waiting for you there, along with your dad. If you bring that guy that you seem so fond of or anyone else, I’ll kill you and everyone with you.” Leo believed him too. If he was going to such great lengths to find his mother and sister, he’d probably have no problem killing Leo and everyone around him.

“Fine, I’ll do as you have asked, but I want your promise that nothing will happen to my family,” Leo said.

“Just do what you’re told to do and don’t fuck it up,” the guy growled, “and, maybe I’ll keep your father alive. Understand?” Leo knew that he had no choice but to play by the asshole’s rules, even if he’d give him a fight when the time came. There was no way that Leo was going to let this asshole take his family from him, and Ross was part of his family now. Losing Ross was going to hurt like a son of a bitch, but he knew what he had to do to keep him safe. He just hoped like hell that Ross wouldn’t be able to see right through his lies.

“I understand,” Leo agreed.

“Great,” the guy said, “I’ll text you the time to be there, and I’m sure that you remember the place.”

“Yeah, I do,” Leo grumbled.

“See you then, kid,” the guy said just before ending the call. There was something familiar about the way he called Leo, “Kid,” but he couldn’t put his finger on it. All he knew right now was that he had to break things off with Ross and make him believe that it was for good. Leo didn’t need his guy following him and getting them both killed. Then, he’d figure out how to keep his family safe, even if it meant sacrificing himself to the asshole who was waiting for him at his family’s office building downtown.

Leo walked into the kitchen where he knew he’d find Ross cooking. He could smell the delicious aromas from the bedroom and all he wanted to do was sit down at the table and tell Ross everything. In a short time, Ross had become his whole world—best friend, business partner, and lover. Lying to him was going to break Leo’s heart, but he had no choice if he wanted to keep Ross and the rest of his family safe.

“I can’t stay here,” Leo almost whispered. He hated what he was about to do to Ross, but it was the only way to get to see his father. The guy on the phone was very specific—if he wanted to see his father alive again, he needed to be down at his father’s office in one hour, and not bring anyone with him. Leo knew Ross well enough to know that if they were together, there would be no way that he'd allow Leo to go to the meeting with his father’s kidnappers alone. The only way that he’d be able to ensure his father’s safety was to hurt Ross and that was going to destroy him too, but he had to do it.

“What, babe?” Ross asked, turning the burner off under the pot that he had been stirring. “I couldn’t hear you.” God, he was going to have to say it again when once was painful enough for him. Leo cleared his throat and this time, when he told Ross that he couldn’t stay with him, he knew that his guy had heard him loud and clear.

“What the hell is going on, Leo?” Ross asked. “What’s happened?” Ross knew him too well, and he’d probably see through his lie, but Leo needed to stick with his plan. It was the only way to get his father back.

“Nothing has happened. I’m worried about my father, and I think that I used it as an excuse to move in here with you. We rushed into things, and I’ve used you as a crutch. I’m sorry, but I can’t keep doing this. I can’t stay here with you.” Ross sunk into the chair next to Leo and he didn’t miss the disappointment on his face. Leo wished he could take back his words and take away that look on Ross’s face, but he couldn’t. He had said the words and now, there was no taking them back.

“This is bullshit,” Ross shouted. He stood and paced the kitchen; a sign that he was feeling completely out of control—something that he hated feeling. Leo knew how much Ross craved control and he was taking that away from him right now. He was making all the decisions for the both of them, and Ross wasn’t going to take that lightly.

“I know that you’re worried about your father, but you’re not thinking things through. You’re scared, Leo, and you’re running from us. I can help you. Let me help you find your dad and be there for you,” Ross begged. Ross had been there for him through everything, but this time, Leo couldn’t allow him to tag along. If he did, he’d end up getting them both killed. Leaving Ross was the only way to keep him safe, no matter how much it was destroying Leo.

“I won’t change my mind,” Leo insisted. “I have to do this, Ross. I’m sorry,” he whispered.

Leo stood to leave, and Ross grabbed his hand, stopping him. “Please don’t do this Leo,” Ross begged. “I’ve been waiting for you for so long now. Do you know how hard it is to get your attention? Because I do. I’ve been trying to get you to notice me since our first kiss, and now that you finally have, I don’t think that I can live without you. I love you,” he breathed. Leo took a step back from Ross as though he had physically slapped him. Had Ross really just said that he loved him? Were they even to that point in their relationship? Leo knew that Ross was saying whatever he needed to say to get him to stay. Maybe he didn’t even mean those words, and that thought broke Leo’s heart.

“Listen I have to run over to my father’s office for a few minutes. Can we talk more about this tonight at the club?” Leo had no plans to meet Ross at their club tonight, as they did most evenings to check on things. He was going to have just enough time to follow the orders that the creepy voice on the phone gave him. He needed to get over to his family’s office building by seven if he wanted his father back alive, and Leo planned on following the orders to a tee.

“You’ll be there?” Ross hopefully asked.

“I will,” Leo lied. He knew that he had broken Ross’s heart and maybe giving him false hope was mean, but he couldn’t help it. The minutes were ticking by, and he had to get across town during the evening rush. He leaned in to gently kiss Ross’s lips, knowing that it was the last time that he’d ever do so. Leo wasn’t just going to break Ross’s heart, he was going to break his own too, but there was no way around it.

Leo sat in the parking lot at his family’s office building and looked it over. Everything was dark inside and he wondered if he had the time wrong. Leo checked his watch, noting that he was about ten minutes late, and cursed quietly to himself. Breaking things off with Ross had taken longer than he had hoped it would. Hell, he wasn’t sure what he was hoping for, but breaking Ross’s heart was the only way to get to his father’s office on time. Maybe that was all for nothing if he broke his word by not showing up ten minutes ago.

He got out of his car and noticed a shadow moving in the front window. He wasn’t alone and he suddenly felt very unsure about his next move. Should he walk into the building, as he had done so many times before, or should he knock on the front door and ask permission to enter his family’s building? He went with his gut and pulled the front door open and walked into the dark lobby.

“Hello,” he said to the shadow in the corner. When the shadow didn’t answer, he took a step toward it. “I can see you there. Where is my father?” Leo asked. “Is he okay?” The figure took a step forward and Leo thought for sure that he was imagining things when he saw his father’s face in the dim evening light.

“Dad,” Leo almost shouted. “Are you all right? How did you get away from your abductors?” he asked.

His dad crossed the lobby to stand right in front of Leo and he didn’t miss the gun in his father’s hand. “I’m my abductor,” his father said as though making his whole family worry wasn’t a big deal.

“Why would you make us worry?” Leo asked. “Why would you make Mom worry?”

“Your mother’s tough enough to handle a little lie. As for making you worry, I really don’t care. You see, I know about you and your cousin. How could you get involved with Ross? He’s family.” His father wasn’t wrong—Ross had quickly become his family and Leo had given up the love of his life to save a man who didn’t need saving. He felt like a fool for falling for one of his father’s schemes.

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