“But we left my car at Geoffrey’s,” Dominic grouched. “I rode with you, dumbass.”
“And you can ride back to the office with Andrei who is already on his way.”
Sven spotted Royce’s Mustang in the parking lot and headed that way. All he could think about was what could be happening to Geoffrey. The nausea increased and he knew it had nothing to do with the drugs in his system and everything to do with wanting to tear that ski-masked motherfucker limb from limb. If he harmed one hair on that beautiful blond head, Sven would kill him. He couldn’t bear to think of the repercussions if the man had used the same amount of tranquilizers on Geoffrey’s smaller body. The fear and panic built inside him until he felt like he would explode. Dominic’s shirt flapped around him as he spun, looking for something to punch, then he blinked when Royce got into his face.
“Sven, look at me. Take a deep fucking breath. You are not going to punch any cars. And you sure as hell aren’t punching me again. As it is, half my face will be black and blue tomorrow.”
That caught his attention enough to make him loosen his fingers from their fists. He closed his eyes, trying to pull all the fear back, trying not to think the worst. “I’m in love with him.”
“Larsen, that isn’t news.”
“It is to me. And he should have heard this from me first.” He closed his eyes. “Damn. I think you’re right and I’ve been falling for him for months.”
Royce nodded. “No doubt. You watched him all the time in those classes. We’ll find him, Sven.” He turned, throwing over his shoulder, “Should be fun to see you sitting in my Mustang.”
The car beeped as Royce unlocked it and Sven didn’t bother to get in until he pushed the seat back as far as it would go. His knees were still uncomfortably close to his face when Royce started the car.
Royce laughed. “You have three brothers, right? Someday, I want to see you and all your brothers get into a car. It’d be like those clown cars at the circus.”
“My parents always drove vans. My father is big, too.” Sven closed his eyes and rubbed his temples with his finger and thumb. The throbbing in his skull had started to feel worse than a hangover. Images of Geoffrey rolled through his mind. Him laughing and twirling those stupid drumsticks—the man didn’t even own a set of drums. He thought about how hot he looked when he came. The way he’d slept on Sven’s chest that morning, and that joyful, throw-his-head-back laugh…
The fucker that took him would be lucky to make it to jail.Chapter 17Ward Security had limited customer hours, but there were always employees there to monitor certain security systems. Quinn, especially, spent more of the nighttime hours there, claiming the quiet helped him think. Everyone knew he gamed and nobody cared because the young guy worked his ass off more hours than needed daily.
That night, all was quiet in the IT room where they’d gathered.
Sven, now in jeans and a Ward Security T-shirt, glanced at the clock on the wall. One in the morning and they’d been there for hours as Quinn and Gidget worked to piece together everything they could find. His gut told him that it had to be either Patrick or Kody. Brendon just seemed too stupid to pull this off. All the same, they were watching the social media accounts of all three men to try to locate them.
Gidget’s son slept on the couch in Rowe’s office. She normally didn’t work nights but had insisted on coming in to help. She and Quinn sat in front of their walls of monitors, Geoffrey’s social media accounts open on most of them. He stared as the images of Geoffrey scrolled past, what felt like a permanent knot lodged in his throat. That sweet pain in the ass had to be okay.
He had to be.
Andrei, Dominic, and Royce sat around a large, folding table, combing through print-outs, highlighting anything they thought might help. Cartons of Chinese take-out littered the table.
Everyone here really cared about Geoffrey.
Sven sat close to Quinn, drinking his fourth cup of coffee, his heart aching, but feeling twice its size. They weren’t only here tonight because Geoffrey was a client. Worry darkened their faces and their glances toward him let him know they cared about him as well. Andrei had read him the riot act for leaving the hospital and though anger had twisted his handsome, Romanian features, there had been real concern in those dark eyes.
It hadn’t occurred to him before that the people in his place of work had been becoming true friends.
“Got it!” Quinn suddenly yelled.
Sven winced and grabbed his head.
Quinn instantly chewed on his lip, his expression tight with sympathy. “Sorry.”