Stripped Bare (5 page)

“No, I bloody won’t.” Matthew’s voice grew heated but he knew he needed to keep his temper in check in the hospital. He was also aware just how precarious his job situation was becoming in defying Walter this way. He felt sick, but he had his principles, and there was no bloody way he was giving them up on this issue. “You don’t need me. I’m sure you have enough people in your legal team to help you cover this up. What I’m saying is that I won’t be one of them.”

Fists clenched, Matthew saw Shane looking at him with a glimmer of respect on his face. Walter took a slight step toward Matthew and the lawyer saw Shane do the same, almost putting himself in between him and the approaching man.

It seemed he had a protector. Matthew felt warmth at the thought.

“I don’t need a bloody lawyer that won’t do what I tell them to, Matthew. Have you considered that option, you stupid man? And tell this cocky little sod to get out of my way. Christ, it’s like a bloody plague. You’re everywhere.” Walter’s voice was a snarl. Matthew’s hands unclenched even as he realised with a pang that he was now probably going to be jobless.

“What do you mean by that, Walter? Could you be talking about
homosexuals
?” Matthew’s voice was tight as he emphasized the word. “I always knew you were a homophobic bastard but I’d never appreciated just how much until tonight. You really have a bug up your arse about us, don’t you?”

Roy growled and moved across the room like a panther. “Rather apt choice of words, Matthew. We’re not the ones who have things up our arses.”

Matthew went still at Roy’s contemptuous tone, his slow temper rising. Shane stepped forward, his face white as he squared up to Roy.

“You’re a fucking nasty piece of work, aren’t you?” the blond man spat at Roy. Roy smiled.

“I’d be careful if I were you, little cocksucker,” Roy drawled to Shane. “One wrong move and I’ll break your fucking arm.” He waved a languid hand. Matthew could see the streaks of blood across his knuckles and took a deep breath. It looked like Roy might have done Walter’s dirty work for him.

But this was going nowhere fast.

Matthew suspected Roy didn’t make idle threats. “Roy, there’ll be no need for that. Shane is a friend of David’s and he was worried about him, so he called the house. That’s all. I think we should all take a step back and look at things.”

He was about to give up the best job he’d ever had. God only knew what he’d do next.

“Walter, I’m sorry. You’ve given me no choice. I quit. Find yourself another lawyer. I cannot continue working for you. To be honest, I don’t know why you’ve put up with me for so long.” He heard the bitterness in his voice and the lump in his throat.

The dislike on Walter’s face tore right through to Matthew’s heart. He might not have liked Walter all that much, but he’d thought they’d had a better relationship that what was now unfolding.

“You bloody well know why, Matthew. Your father made sure of that.”.

Matthew was puzzled about Walter’s words. “What are you talking about? What should I know? How was my father involved in this?”

Walter shook his head and sneered, but oddly his eyes gleamed with a sudden relief. Roy chuckled, his predatory gaze on Shane, who was standing looking ready to pounce like a cat on an unsuspecting bird–the bird being Roy. The dislike between the two men was palpable.

“Don’t play the bloody innocent with me. You know exactly why I’ve put up with you over the past three years since your father died.”

“Put up with me?” Matthew’s voice rose. “I’ve worked my backside off for you, Walter. Believe me, I’ve earned every bloody penny you’ve ever paid me. But I draw the line at cover-ups where I believe you, or more likely, this piece of shit from the look of his hand.” He gestured to Roy. “Beat your own son senseless and then expect me to help you protect yourself. And I’ve no bloody idea what the hell you’re talking about as far as the thing with my dad is concerned.” His voice broke.

He hated the emotions building up inside. He wasn’t good with emotion.

Walter was looking at him knowingly. “You really don’t know about it, do you?” he said, almost to himself. “All these bloody years and I was worried about nothing.” His voice was almost wondrous, his face relieved. He turned to face Shane. “How in the hell did you know David was down here anyway? Who told you? And how did you get my home number?” His face turned rosy with anger.

Matthew noted he didn’t contradict his accusation about letting Roy beat his son.

Shane regarded Walter, a sneer on his face. “There’s this fag club I go to in the city. I was in one of the toilets the other day and lo and behold on the back of the door was your name and number. It said you sucked dick really well, so I wrote it down in case I needed it. But now I’ve met you there’s no way you’re going anywhere near my dick.” He shot out a quick, hungry grin. “But I bet he’d like you to blow him.” He motioned at Roy.

The other man went white, his eyes murderous, and he regarded Shane with a deadly gaze. Matthew closed his eyes in dread at Shane’s snark, even as he wanted to snigger out loud at the man’s quick wit. Undoubtedly he just made things worse.

Roy stepped forward, his face full of hate, his hands balling into fists that had already done violence that night.

Shane inched closer to Roy in defiance and Matthew could sense the suppressed violence in the man.

Much as Matthew would like to do the same thing, this was neither the time nor the place. Walter’s face was thunderous, his lips white, and he was probably a minute away from punching Shane himself.

Matthew moved forward swiftly and pulled Shane to one side, stepping in front of him as he faced his soon-to-be ex-employer. “Walter, this is a hospital. We don’t need another beating victim. That would shoot your little story all to hell. Just leave it alone.”

Walter glared at him, but his face said he knew. He couldn’t afford a scene if he wanted to play out his own version of the truth.

“Luckily I’m a gentleman,” he blustered. “So I’ll let that comment pass me by. I also don’t want to soil my hands with your blood. God knows what I could catch. But you are a little shit, aren’t you, pretty boy.” He was looking at Shane with utter dislike.

Shane growled beside him. “You’re just a damned bully, Debussy,” he snarled. “David was petrified earlier to go home. Now I know why, you bastard.”

Roy moved forward toward Shane, his hands balled into fists. He hocked up a wad of phlegm and spat it on Shane’s shoes.

Shane’s face whitened and Matthew grabbed his arm. It took all Matthew’s strength to hold him back. “Leave it, Shane. He’s not worth it.”

Roy smiled like a shark. “Your little pretty toy-boy fuck, is he, Matthew? You want to watch him. He’s a real little slag.”

Matthew wanted nothing more than to punch the smirk off Roy’s face himself, but that wouldn’t help the situation. He was still struggling to hold Shane back, the violence in the man’s body simply oozing the promise of the pleasure of pain to Walter’s factotum.

Walter shook his head, looking amused by all the male testosterone in the air. “Just because you’ve both had your cock up my son’s arse doesn’t mean you know him or me. David deserves everything he gets. He’s nothing but a bloody disappointment and a deviant. If I could cut off his trust fund I would.” He scowled at Matthew. “But your bloody father made sure I couldn’t do that easily, didn’t he, not without a very good reason or me getting into trouble with the law. He had it all sewn up tight like a virgin’s pussy. But everything can be broken with the right motivation.” He smirked. “I have a couple of aces up my sleeve, and I think I might just play them soon.”

The terms and conditions of David’s specific trust fund from his mother were tightly controlled. Matthew had wondered about it when he’d taken it over after his father died. Now he knew why. His father had been trying to protect David’s inheritance from his father’s homophobic hatred. But what the hell else was going on with Matthew’s dad and Walter’s seeming hold on Matthew was a mystery.

“And my son will never tell. He’s still a Debussy. His first loyalty is to me and the family.”

This much Matthew knew to be true. A sense of despair washed over his body.

Walter waved an airy hand. “Fine, Matthew. Go out and find yourself another job if you can. I release you of your duties. Roy will be in touch about what needs handing over. I’ll get a final salary cheque paid into your account. Then we can call it quits. I can find myself a real heterosexual lawyer. And Roy, we’ll need another maid or housekeeper, too. When you get home, check the telephone recording system and find out who spilled the beans to the little fairy here about my son. They obviously disregarded all the warnings we gave them to tell no one anything about it.”

Shane drew a deep breath, no doubt realising he’d just gotten someone fired. Matthew closed his eyes at the gloating tone of Walter’s voice. Walter had just managed to make him feel almost dirty about his sexuality, a feeling he hadn’t felt in many years. A warm, strong hand laid itself on his arm. Shane stood beside him, his eyes sympathetic.

“Matthew, come on. Let’s get out of here. This bastard doesn’t deserve any more of our time, and David is in good hands here in the hospital. We can figure out what to do about all this later.” He reached up a hand and caressed Matthew’s hair. “It’s late and you look exhausted. Let’s go. Come on.” He ignored the look of revulsion the other two men gave them as he took Matthew’s hand. Matthew followed him, unresisting, out of the waiting room into the cool and still-busy waiting room.

Getting to know you…maybe

Shane tugged Matthew outside onto the wide concrete steps of the hospital. The air was warm, almost balmy, and the street was busy but not crowded. He glanced at Matthew anxiously. The other man had started off all confident and feisty, but Walter Debussy’s harsh words had left their mark on him.

When Shane had turned and looked up into Matthew’s incredible deep grey eyes as he stood behind him at the reception desk, he’d lost his breath. Matthew was unconventionally a beautiful man, a few inches taller than Shane. He also had an air of authority and composure that really appealed to him. All of these emotions had surged through his body the minute he’d seen the man. He’d been trying not to let his tongue hang out ever since.

As they stood on the pavement, Shane looked at his watch. It was close to 5 a.m.

He looked at the man now standing beside him. “Matthew? Are you all right? You were really impressive back there, telling that tosser where to get off. I’m glad you did that. I thought you might be inclined to protect that sod, seeing as he’s your boss.”

Matthew gazed at him. “
Was
my boss.” He laughed harshly. “My friend’s in hospital, I’ve just lost my job and I found out that my employer is even more of a rabid gay hater that even I thought. Other than that, I suppose I’m doing okay.”

Shane could hear the hurt in the words. He reached out and touched Matthew’s face. He wasn’t normally that forward with touching strangers but something about this man just brought out the protector in him.

The man flinched. Shane drew back, hoping he hadn’t overstepped the mark. “How does a man with your sexual proclivities get to work for a slimy homophobe like Debussy?” he asked.

“I took over from my dad when he died,” Matthew said. “It seemed to work for both of us until now. He’s never been that obvious about it before.”

“I don’t know how you could have worked for that bastard,” Shane said, his hands waving in agitation. “And that other bloke is a complete arsehole.”

Matthew frowned. “I don’t disagree on Roy. But beggars can’t be choosers. It was a good job. Walter left me alone as long as I did what he needed to sort out his trust funds and financial affairs. We managed to tolerate each other.”

Shane nodded. “Sounds like a match made in heaven.” He ignored Matthew’s scowl. “Do you have a car nearby to get you home?”

Matthew nodded. “Yes, it’s in the hospital car park. I suppose I should get home and get some sleep. I’ll need to start looking for another job later today, I suppose.” He stared unseeingly out across the car park then turned to look at Shane. “How about you? Do you need a lift home? How did you get here anyway? It looked like you’d been running when you came in.”

Shane nodded. “I had. I heard the news and the tubes had stopped running. There were no taxis, so I legged it from the Baglione. It’s no big deal. I’ve run longer distances.” He’d grimaced as he remembered he’d left his treasured laptop, called Bushwhacker, back in the safe. He’d have to go back and fetch him.

“Were you at the hotel with David?” Matthew asked. “I know he was staying there tonight. I thought you said he wasn’t your boyfriend.”

Shane looked at Matthew. “I’m not. I was his escort for the evening.”

“I see.” In those words, Shane thought he sensed judgement and he scowled, his back up.

“I’m not a fucking prostitute. I’m an escort. I don’t sleep with all my clients, only if I choose too. So don’t take that tone with me.”

Matthew looked taken aback by his sudden vitriolic outburst. “Jesus, Shane, don’t have a hissy fit. I’m sorry if I sounded off, I wasn’t judging you. It’s just been a rough morning, that’s all. I’m bloody tired.” He shifted and rubbed the back of his neck. “You don’t have to explain yourself.”

Shane felt guilty. “Sorry. I suppose I misread you. I get fed up when people think I do nothing more than shove my arse in the air for anyone.” He grinned. “I suppose I should explain my earlier comment about David jacking off all over me then? In case you get the wrong idea?”

He saw Matthew’s wince and chuckled. “He’s a bit of a kinky bastard it turns out. He likes to roofie his dates. Then he likes to tie them up on the bed and jerk off. It started out fairly promisingly. I’d already decided I wouldn’t mind fucking him, but then he slipped me something and the next thing I knew I was covered in come.”

“Hell, Shane, don’t mince your words, will you?” Matthew’s mouth twisted in both amusement and possibly distaste. “Thanks for that very graphic picture in my mind. I had no idea David was that way inclined. And I’ve known him since we were teenagers.” He frowned. “You have a real potty mouth, don’t you? Does swearing come naturally to you or is something you’ve cultivated?”