Twisted truths
PREVIOUS
*
“Mr. Padalecki, could you please make your way to the booth?”
Jensen squeezed the man’s trembling shoulder. It was all he could do.
Mr. Shins had the first drilling.
“So, why did you do it?”
Jared looked puzzled, “Um, do what?”
“Kill your sister, of course?”
The hazel eyes widened, “I didn’t.”
“Objection, leading the witness,” Mr. Waters declared.
“Sustained,” answered the judge.
“Okay, then, let's ask something else… How did you seduce Sergeant Ackles?”
Jared’s eyes narrowed, “I never. I didn’t do anything of the sort.”
“You recall you swore to tell the truth and nothing but the truth?”
“That’s what I’m doing.”
“Indeed.”
“Mr. Padalecki, how long did you live with Mr. McMurphy before you were ‘kicked out’?”
“One year.”
“Okay, and in all that time, did anyone notice that you were being ‘beaten’?”
“No, he made me lie, said he would hurt Meg.”
“He made you lie? Oh, how convenient. So in all that time, you were the only one who knew he was ‘hurting’ you?”
“Yes.”
“So no one saw anything, no one heard anything, your own sister didn’t even notice?”
Jared turned to look out the window, his eyes glistening, “No, she’d lost everyone else; I didn’t want to take away her stepdad. Not when he never hurt her. Not when she cared for him. I didn’t want her to think the world was cruel.”
“Right, okay, let me just get this straight: So in a year, a whole year, you were the only one who knew he was ‘hurting’ you?”
“Yes.”
“How is your mental state, Mr. Padalecki?”
“My mental state, what do you mean?”
“I mean, don’t you think it might just all be in your mind? I mean, Mr. McMurphy is a certified doctor. His job entails healing people. Why would he hurt them?”
“He said it made him feel better to hurt me, made him feel powerful knowing that he could snuff out my life at any time. He said he would tell my sister I had abandoned her, and then no one would even notice I was gone.”
There were tears trickling down Jared’s face, but he held his head high.
“Ahh, so here come the patented Padalecki tears. Does it bother you, how easy it is for you to cry? Is that one of your methods of getting sympathy?”
Jared shook his head, “I don’t give a fuck about sympathy.”
“My, my, what a temper, have you always been that heated; that quick to fly off the rails?”
“Fuck you.”
“You see ladies and gentlemen. Now we can see Mr. Padalecki for what he really is: a manipulator with a temper. So tell me Mr. Padalecki, did your sister do something that angered you? Something that made you lose it? Maybe you just got into a blind rage and by the time you finished shaking her, it was too late? Was that it? Was it an accident?”
“I didn’t touch her.”
“Oh, but that’s a lie Mr. Padalecki. We have your fingerprints and your DNA all over her.”
Jared wiped a hand over his eyes, “I… I came into the house. I saw blood on the refrigerator handle and I called the cops. I hung up then because I heard her. I heard her crying. I saw her on the floor, covered in… oh, God… she was covered in blood but she was still breathing.
“I tried to see if I could help her, but she was barely breathing. After checking her pulse and knowing she was dying, I had to hold her in my arms. I had to tell her that it was going to be okay… She kept going on about how she was late for her music lesson, and I had to tell her that I would give her a lift.
“She asked me why she felt so tired and cold; and I had to tell her that mom and dad were calling her, and that she would see them soon. She… she asked me why I was leaving her alone, she asked me to go with her. She told me not to leave her alone. I promised… I promised I would follow her. I told her I would see her there.
“She died in my arms. Her last words were, ‘You better.’
"Then I saw the knife, and I picked it up, I had never broken a promise to Meg, and I wasn’t planning on doing so. That’s about where I was when the cops burst in.”
Jared looked up at the lawyer through tears. In a bitter voice he said, “So, yeah, sorry I got my prints on her, but, well, you know, I wasn’t really thinking that clearly.”
“That’ll be all for now, we’ll continue after a short recess.” The judge hammered on the desk, and people began filing out. Jared didn’t move from where his head was buried in his arms. Jensen also remained where he was.
Shakily, Jared got to his feet, and made his way towards his seat. He slid onto the bench beside Jensen, and just fell into the older man’s arms.
Jensen’s own tears filled his eyes, and he buried his face in Jared’s hair to hide them, as the young man trembled in his arms, silently sobbing into his chest. He held Jared tightly, pulling him even closer. “Hey, shhh, it’ll be okay. You’ll see, after today it’ll all be over.”
When Jared had fallen still, curled up against Jensen’s side, neither of them showed any signs of moving. The kind-hearted guard stationed at the door gave them a heads up, “Recess is over.”
Jensen smiled over Jared’s mop of hair, not yet letting the man out of his grasp. The guard coughed, “Um, they’re outside now.”
Jared pulled away from Jensen’s chest slowly, shifting down and away from him, not looking up into his eyes.
*
“Mr. Padalecki, please resume your position.”
Jared got up and made his way to the booth once more.
“Mr. Shins, do you have any further questions for Mr. Padalecki?”
“No, your honour.”
“Very well then, Mr. Waters, your turn.”
Jensen watched as the lawyer made his way up to stand before Jared.
“So, Mr. Padalecki, why don’t you tell us a bit about how Mr. McMurphy treated you?”
“When?”
“Maybe you could give us a general overview, just so we get the picture?”
Jared nodded, “When he first came, he was great, the perfect stepdad. Obviously he could never replace my real dad for me, but Meg hadn’t known dad as long, so she adopted Stephan as hers.
It was about six months later that he became violent. My mom died of an overdose of sleeping pills, apparently suicide, but no one ever checked what the bruises on her jaw were from. I knew it wasn’t suicide. I knew how much money was in the will.
“Stephan knew that I had figured out what he had done, so, when Megan was at a piano lesson, he tied me up in the basement, beat me with a stick and forced me to perform oral sex on him by cutting off my air supply.
“He told me to tell Meg that I had fallen into an icy river and had gotten a cold - which explained my sore throat - and that I had been tossed around before I managed to get out - which explained the huge bruises.”
Jared gave a watery smile, “She called me a big clumsy oaf, and made me some hot cocoa to help make me better.”
“The second time it happened was because he hadn’t been buying Meg her medicine. She needed it for her heart condition, and the longer she went without it, the worse it was. I confronted him, telling him he had to take responsibility seeing as though he had control of all of my parent’s money.
“He called me an insolent brat and told me that if I cared so much about her, then I would have to get it myself. The worst part was that he acted like the model father to Meg. I had to listen to her saying how great he was, when meanwhile…
“I began working to get money to keep the house stocked with food and Meg’s medicine; he was stingy about every tiny bit of money he spent on ‘caring’ for us.
“Whenever he was angry or drunk or just plain in the mood, he used to send Meg off to her friends, and would beat and torture me, always touching. The fourth time was when he sexually violated me. He didn’t prepare me at all. He just raped me.
“When I couldn’t walk the next day, I had to tell Meg that I had fallen out of a tree and landed on a branch. She believed every single fucking thing I said.”
“It became a regular thing, and I couldn’t do a thing about it, because he began spreading rumours about me being a rude teenager, who got into fights and hurt himself. I couldn’t tell anyone the truth, because he had custody of Meg. If he’d ever laid a finger on her then I would have done all I could - even kidnap her - to keep her safe. But as it was, he was the perfect dad to her, and I didn’t want to take that from her, so I just kept quiet.”
“He kicked me out to sleep in the streets after he started whipping me. Whip marks are a bit harder to explain, so he would just grab me after I came to visit my sister, and then when he was finished he would dump me somewhere on the side of the road.
“This carried on until, just over four months ago, when Sergeant Ackles saw me trying to rob that lady.”
Jared let out a dry chuckle, numb and detached just like the rest of his words had been, “I don’t know why I thought I could do it, but I had just been fired from my job for not showing up - I hadn’t shown up because I had been unconscious from the pain in my back where Stephan had whipped me.
“My sister was getting sicker, and I couldn’t find any job vacancies anywhere. I begged Stephan to get her the medicine, but he just laughed. So I did the only thing I could think of.
“And found I couldn’t do it. Then the sergeant found me at the park, and he loaned me his jacket and gave me money. I thought he was an angel I had dreamed up.”
Jared sent a fleeting smile towards Jensen, before continuing.
“I managed to buy my sister’s medication, and get her some good food as well, but unfortunately, Stephan got home before I could get out. He sent Meg to her music teacher, and then he asked where I had gotten the jacket.
“I didn’t want to tell him, I didn’t want him to know about the angel. He must have seen how much the jacket meant to me, because he decided to whip and beat me with it on. Usually he preferred to whip me while I was naked - maybe it made it easier for him to fuck me afterwards, I don’t know.
“When he was done, I couldn’t move, but I didn’t care about that. He had ruined the angel’s jacket. The angel wouldn’t want to see me again. I thought the angel would be angry.
“I couldn’t move the next day, I just stayed where he had dumped me, somewhere at the side of the road. That night I managed to move again, it took me over three hours to make my way to the park. I collapsed at the tree, and just hoped the angel would come back.
“He did, but when he saw the jacket, he was angry just as I thought he would be. He had every reason to be, but then he noticed the whip marks, and dragged me to the hospital. He thought he was doing the right thing; I don’t blame him at all. But the hospital was where Stephan worked, and he was on duty.
“Obviously Stephan was mad at me for being there, mad at me for being brought there by some stranger. He fed the angel the same story he fed anybody who asked, and the angel believed him.”
Jared lowered his gaze to his hands, “The angel was angry, very angry. He thought I had betrayed him. It wasn’t his fault at all; he shook me; that’s all.
“Then he left, and that was the worst part. I thought my angel had disappeared and wouldn’t come back again. That night Stephan visited me in the ward, and he made me understand to never enter the hospital again.
“The angel came back. I was so happy to see him, but so scared that he hated me. He did hate me. He thought I had hurt myself again. He left, and that time I felt sure it was for good.
“Then, two months or so later, I came to give Meg more medicine, but… there was blood. It was too late. He had been drinking a lot, and he had waited for me to show up, usually he knew when I would be arriving - due to Meg’s medicine supply. But I had been robbed so it took me a day or so longer to put together the money. He couldn’t wait that long.
“Then I saw the angel again. But he wasn’t like an angel. He scared me. He didn’t like me. He hated me. I always knew I was worthless, but to be hated by an angel was horrible. He sent me to a dark place, and I tried to be good. But people kept hurting me. Eventually I realised that God and the angel had given up on me, so I just tried to save as many people as I could from suffering the same as me.
“When the angel came back, he still hated me. I hated God for abandoning me, but I couldn’t hate the angel. But his hate was so deep that it scared me. The next time the angel came, he was strange. He was crying. I didn’t know what to do. I was scared because I knew he would leave again.”
There was a bored huff, and Mr. Shins said, “Relevance your honour?”
“Shut up Rick, go on Mr. Padalecki,” said the riveted judge.
“But he took me from that place, and he’s trying to let people know that I didn’t kill Meg. And he was nice to me. He visited me in the cell. He treated me normally, so did all the others at the station, but he was always there.
“And he hasn’t left yet, and I’m hoping that he won’t but I know that as soon as this is over, he’ll want me to leave.”
Then Jared turned his gaze on Mr. Shins, “And yes, I know that Sergeant Ackles is not an angel. I am not deluded, nor am I mentally ill. I merely used angel as a metaphor, hopefully you know what that is?”
“Any further questions?” The amused judge asked.
Mr. Waters shook his head, “No, your honour.”
“Okay, we will continue with Mr. McMurphy after lunch.”
Once again everyone left, and this time it was Jensen who moved to where Jared was sitting, cheek pressed against the wood of the stand.
“Hey.”
Jared avoided his gaze.
Jensen brushed his fingers through the moisture on Jared’s cheeks.
Softly, he said, “Can I ever be your angel again? After everything I’ve done?”
Hesitant hazel eyes rose up and locked with Jensen’s. “You never stopped.”
Jensen smiled softly, “Can I fly?”
Jared’s eyes crinkled, “You can try.”
“Hey, I think this is nearly all over; just a few more hours. You’ve got the judge and jury in the palm of your hand.”
Jared’s eyes dulled, “Yeah.”
“Jay, what’s the matter? I thought you’d be ecstatic.”
Staring out the window, Jared was quiet for a long while; then he murmured, “I’ve got nothing left. Nowhere to go to… Nowhere to hide… No one to tell me that I’ll be okay…. No one who cares what happens to me. It doesn’t really matter what happens to me.”
Jensen felt his heart clench in pain. He nudged him, “Hey, that’s not true. You have me.”
Jared smiled sadly, “You’re an angel. Angels can’t fly around with demons clinging to their wings. Besides, I bet you guys are dying to see the last of me.”
“No, we’re actually not.”
Jared’s eyes didn’t shift their gaze from the window. The wind-tossed trees were reflected in the shimmering moisture the hazel orbs housed.
Jensen was just reaching a hand out to touch the man’s shoulder, when the door banged open, and Mike bounded in, followed by an embarrassed Tom and untidy Chad.
“There’s our boy,” Mike said loudly. “We brought you lunch, ’cause we knew you wouldn’t want to move, lazy buggers.”
He was grinning as he tossed them each a wrapped burger.
Tom settled down quietly opposite Jared, “You did good, kid.”
“He’s that old, he can actually get away with calling you that,” Chad said smirking.
“Shut up,” Tom retorted.
Jensen smiled at them, ignoring the stab of annoyance at his and Jared’s conversation being interrupted.
“Yeah, just think, this’ll all be over really soon, then we can all go back to our normal lives,” Mike continued innocently.
Jensen was the only one who noticed the increasing sheen to Jared’s eyes. Mike just continued, “Man, I’m going to have a shower for so long, it’ll drown everything away. I just want to forget all this shit.”
Jared stood up suddenly, calling to the guard stationed by the door, “Can I go to the bathroom?”
The guard nodded, “Come on, I’ll take you.”
“Wait,” Jensen said, reaching a hand to catch Jared’s arm.
It hurt when Jared pulled away, more than it should have.
Jensen watched, his chest aching, as Jared followed the guard out the room without so much as a backwards glance.
Tom caught Jensen’s eye, brow raised in question. Jensen just shook his head.
It physically ached for Jensen not to race out after Jared. He had to grip the edge of his seat painfully tight, his eyes never leaving the door, as he waited for it to open.
Chad whacked him on the head, “Dude, I know he’s hot and all, but you seriously shouldn’t be staring after him like a lovesick puppy.”
Cheeks stained dark, Jensen mumbled, “It’s not like that.”
Mike rolled his eyes, “Right, and we all believe that.”
Tom just fixed a steady gaze on him, “Be careful, if you hurt him, you might never get another chance again. He trusts you… for now. Don’t ruin that.”
Staring down at his hands, Jensen mumbled, "You think I don't know that?”
They were interrupted by the door being opened, and Jensen’s eyes snapped back towards it. He ignored Mike’s mutter of, “Lovesick puppy.”
Jared’s face was damp and his eyes were shielded as though he had regained his composure. He didn’t make eye contact with any of them; he just settled down in the seat beside Jensen and grabbed his burger.
Barely minutes after Jared had scrunched up his napkin, the door opened and the lunch break was declared over.
Jensen bit the inside of his cheek to try and distract himself from the overwhelming concern and affection he felt for Jared, who was sitting rigidly at their table.
Mr Waters slid in beside them, smiling at Jared, “Don’t worry, this’ll be over soon.”
Jared gave a smile - which Jensen noticed was a completely fake one - and nodded, “Let’s hope.”
“All rise.”
“Mr. McMurphy, please make your way to the stand.”
*
“So, yeah, that’s when I first noticed he was hurting himself. He would go out of his way to insult guys who were bigger and heavier than him, just so he would get in a fight.
“I caught him about to cut his wrists once, and when I tried to stop him, he became violent. He used to terrify Megan, but she was such a forgiving girl that she always gave him another chance. When he started hurting her, I kicked him out.”
Jensen was taut with anger. Jared was shaking beside him. Relief filled him when Jared didn’t shrug off the hand he laid on the trembling shoulder. That was something at least.
McMurphy had been spouting lies fluidly the whole afternoon. And he wasn’t finished yet.
“He used to come and try to steal her medication. He used it as an addictive substance. I tried to stop him, but each time he made off with some and I saw him the following day with injuries coating him. I think he went to a club or something and hooked up with other sadistic, disturbed young men like himself.
“When Sergeant Ackles brought him to the hospital, I lied and said I only knew Jared from the previous time he was admitted because I was ashamed of him. I was ashamed and scared that I would be blamed for the monster that he was. I didn’t want Megan taken from me. She was my baby girl, so I lied.
“Then, when Jared… killed little Megan, I lied again, because I wanted him to be punished. I wanted him to suffer for what he had done to his own sister. It was wrong, I know, but if you put yourself in my shoes, wouldn’t you have done the same?
“Don’t be fooled by his innocent appearance or his easy tears and youthfulness. See him, as he really is, a monster who brutally murdered an innocent child, a child who loved him. Don’t let him get away with that.”
When the jury left the room, Jensen was feeling nauseous. That had been a good testimony. Not even Mr. Waters could get anything good from the questioning. Things weren’t looking as certain as they had before.
He gently rubbed Jared’s shoulder, revelling in the knowledge that Jared was allowing him to. The room sat in silence, no one quite certain when the verdict would be made.
In such a quiet voice that Jensen nearly missed it, Jared asked, “What’ll happen if I lose?”
Jensen’s hand froze its circling motion; then it started kneading again, “We’d keep fighting.”
When Jared relaxed slightly, leaning into his touch, Jensen nearly broke out into song - manly songs of course.
It was about half an hour later when the jury returned. Jensen took in a deep breath, squeezing Jared’s shoulder slightly, leaving his hand where it was and watched as the piece of paper containing the outcome of Jared’s life in its ink was handed to the judge.
The judge read the verdict, her face revealing nothing, and then handed it back to the guard to return it to the jury.
The jury member stood up, and painfully slowly, began reading, “For the case of the homicide of the six year old girl - Megan Padalecki, we the jury have come to a unanimous decision.”
Jared leaned closer to Jensen, all breaths were being held, the foreman of the jury was being exceeding cruel.
“The sentence of twenty-five years, on the charge on first degree manslaughter, is combined with another fifteen years on the grounds of child abuse.”
It could still go either way.
“We, the jury, find Mr. Stephan McMurphy, guilty on all counts. We proclaim Jared Padalecki innocent and free of all charges. The Padalecki residence and all remaining assets therefore will be transferred to the possession of Mr. Padalecki, legal recipient. Before God and all who witness here today, so we say.”
Jensen felt mountains of pressure lifting off his shoulders, and he laughed happily, “You’re free,” he said to the numb Jared.
Jared turned slowly to face him; there was a stunned pause and then his face broke out into a grin.
Suddenly his arms were full with a warm body pressed against him. Jensen hugged tightly back, feeling the tension slip out of the both of them.
The court was dismissed, and Jensen tugged Jared by the arm, “Come on, let’s get out of here.”
Smiling at the guard, Jensen dragged Jared through the crowds, wanting to avoid the guys; he wanted Jared to himself, at least for a while.
Jensen ran down the road, pulling a laughing Jared behind him.
“What’re you doing? Where are we going?” Jared asked through delirious chuckles.
Glancing over his shoulder at the man, Jensen nearly fell flat on his face. Jared was flushed, and his eyes were bright, his smile absolutely heart-stopping. He looked so damn gorgeous and innocent that Jensen had to wrench his gaze away so he didn’t maul the poor unsuspecting young man.
“I don’t know,” he replied honestly.
He kept a hold of Jared’s hand, even though it wasn’t at all necessary, and the other man never pulled away.
Then Jensen realised they had arrived at the park, where it all had started.
They settled down on the bench in front of the pond.
“So, how does it feel to be a free man?”
Jared smiled through his bangs, making Jensen nearly swallow his tongue.
“Good. I guess. I mean, I never quite expected to be dragged all across town by a madman the moment I was released, but ....”
Chuckling, Jensen said, “Oh, so I’m a madman now? Huh, so much for saving you from the deranged gang of hooligans who would have dragged you to the nearest bar to get drunk.”
Jared smiled, “They’re going to be pissed.”
Catching Jared’s eye and smiling, Jensen said, “It’s worth it.”
The hazel eyes widened slightly, “Oh how’s that?”
Jensen shrugged, “Okay fine. I have a confession to make…I really like ducks.”
“Ducks?”
There was a pause, and then Jared burst out into laughter, “If you’re trying to convince me that you’re not crazy, well, I’m sorry to tell you but, it’s not working.”
Jensen pouted, “No?”
“No.”
“Damn.”
Still smiling, they turned to watch the ducks for a bit, well, Jared watched the ducks; Jensen was too busy watching how Jared’s eyelashes cast adorable shadows across his cheeks. Also how Jared’s lips looked so soft and delicious, that Jensen felt the urge to touchtastenownownow.
He had to grip the rough sides of the bench to prevent any possible molesting.
“Ouch! Shit, fuck!” he cursed as pain shot through him.
He glanced down at the culprit, and realised he had been speared by a big splinter in his right hand, courtesy of the bench.
“Are you okay?” Jared’s concerned voice asked.
Nodding, “Yeah, just a splinter.”
He started to try and pry the confounded thing out, but found it difficult having to use only his left hand.
“Here, let me get it for you.”
Jared shifted closer to him, pulling Jensen’s hand, palm-up, onto his lap. He cradled it there carefully, his face frozen in concentration.
Having an even closer close-up of everything he’d ever wanted, Jensen found himself wishing his injury was more serious so that Jared would keep that near for a little longer.
Jared’s fingers were gentle as they carefully squeezed his skin. When Jensen caught a whiff of Jared’s scent he let out a gasp - it was fresh, with a tang of soap and the smell rain leaves after it has past - causing Jared to freeze his ministrations, “Are you okay? Am I hurting you?”
Not trusting himself to speak in decipherable sentences, not when all he really wanted to say were foolish things that he wouldn’t be able to take back, Jensen just shook his head.
Scooting even closer so that he had a better view of Jensen’s hand, Jared had no idea what he was doing to the older man.
When Jared looked up triumphantly, “I got it,” his eyes were shining happily, and his lips were stretched into a wide grin, and Jensen found himself being turned into jelly, Jensen also discovered that jelly doesn’t have any restraint, and that’s the only explanation for why he was leaning forwards, closing the short distance between them.
Hazel orbs never flickered, but when Jensen pressed his lips against Jared’s, the eyes slipped shut.
Jensen paused, waiting to be shoved away, his heart beating erratically, and his hands clutching loosely at Jared’s.
What happened next was stolen directly from one of Jensen’s better dreams, if not his best one. Jared let out a sigh, a simple puff of air against Jensen’s lips, and his hand came up, until it was lightly curled around Jensen’s jaw, a touch so light that Jensen - needing more - covered the hand with his own, pressing it firmly against his skin.
His other hand slipped around Jared’s neck, coming to rest just over the other man’s nape, playing with the soft curls. Slowly, ever so slowly, Jensen began to move his mouth, pressing gentle kisses over Jared’s lips, his body shifting closer to Jared’s, seeking more contact.
Jared’s eyes remained closed, but his thumb began smoothing circles gently over Jensen’s cheek. Jensen tilted his head slightly, leaning more into the touch.
When Jared’s mouth opened slightly, Jensen let out a desperate sound, muffled by Jared’s mouth, and pulled the man even closer. He ran his tongue over Jared’s lips before gently slipping in, prying the warm mouth even wider. His tongue began exploring, and he let out a moan at finally being allowed to taste Jared.
“Please…” he said hoarsely, voice low and thick, “Please, do something.”
Jared’s hand came to cup Jensen’s cheek, and the man finally began to kiss back. Desperate and heated, mirroring Jensen’s need for more.
Somehow, his voice was still functioning, “Please… your eyes… need to see… eyes.”
Slowly the hazel orbs were revealed, with no sign of fear in them, locking with Jensen’s as the younger man continued to kiss back. Unable to hold back any longer, Jensen began moving closer, gently pressing Jared down to lie on the bench. Jensen followed, one hand holding himself up, as he gazed down at the gorgeous figure laid out beneath him.
His other hand was cupping the back of Jared’ head: cradling it to prevent it from being banged into the bench. Slowly, he began lowering himself to lay flush over the other man.
He could feel the heat of Jared’s chest through their shirts, and he realised with a grin that they were still wearing suits (smartness was essential in court). He slipped his hand up to fiddle with Jared’s tie, tugging and loosening it, before starting to undo Jared’s shirt buttons.
He broke their heated kiss, and pulled back slightly to watch as - with each button he undid - more of Jared’s gorgeous skin came into view. He growled at the sight, and began kissing and biting lightly at Jared’s bare collarbone.
Then he pulled back once more, determined to see the rest of Jared. He had unbuttoned about a quarter of the length, when there was laughter from nearby.
They snapped their heads around to see a chuckling old lady, she grinned, “Don’t stop on my behalf. Just maybe next time I would suggest you get a room.”
Jensen scrambled back off of Jared, falling off the bench landing face down in the dust, blushing furiously as he got to his feet brushing the dirt from himself. Jared was sitting upright again, his face red as he stared at his feet.
Sending the now retreating lady’s back a glare, Jensen settled down beside Jared on the bench.
Jared’s eyes were now on the lake, not revealing anything.
Jensen wrenched his own lingering gaze from Jared’s partially exposed chest, as he too turned to look at the lake.
He coughed, “We should get back, the others will think I kidnapped you.”
Barely blinking, Jared said, “Yeah.”
CONTINUED