Broken Angel 5/?
Title: Broken Angel 5/?
Pairing: Jared/Jensen
Word Count: ~5700
Rating/Warnings: NC-17 for violence, sexual situations, and references to non-con(but nothing graphic)
A/N: This story is based off a prompt by the amazing imogen_lily . Thank you so much for the gorgeous banner and for letting me play with this idea! I appreciate all the help sweetie!!!
Summary: Senator Fred Lehne has been brutally attacking, raping, and murdering young men for over a decade, but always evades arrest thanks to his money and power. He has everyone fooled, except one team of detectives headed by Captain Jeffrey Dean Morgan and his protege Jensen Ackles. When things become worse, Morgan goes to FBI agents Misha Collins and Jim Beaver for help. They offer it in the form of Jared Padalecki, hotshot profiler who also happens to be Jensen's boyfriend. But there is more Jared...he also happens to be the only surviving victim of Lehne's...
Senator Lehne slammed the phone onto his desk as he cursed the police department. They’d tried to talk to Lauren…gone to his Lauren’s house. They shouldn’t have gotten that close. He’d always stayed one step ahead. This time he hadn’t even known the police were going there…
A knock to his office door stopped him from doing any more damage to his immaculate desk.
“Come in!” he shouted harshly.
Pellegrino cautiously poked his head into the room. He’d heard a lot of the conversation Lehne had been having on the phone moments ago through the thin wood. The police had contacted Lauren at her home before he or Kurt had had the chance to talk to her. They got lucky…Lauren knew her place and what she was supposed to do. But that didn’t mean Lehne was going to be very happy about these turn of events…
“Mark! What the hell have you been doing?!? It is your job to keep the police off of my case!”
Mark ran a hand through his hair before slumping into the chair across from Lehne. “I know boss. I had our judge keep an eye out for warrants and petitions, but they never filed anything. Lauren invited them in on her own free will. In the long run, it will probably look better. Make it seem like we don’t have anything to hide,” Mark placated.
“Bullshit!” Lehne barked. “You know that! If that bitch-“
“She knows her place,” Mark interrupted. “She knows better than to run her mouth off about…anything.”
“Good,” Lehne snapped. “Make sure it stays that way.”
“Of course I will, sir.”
“And find a way to get some dirt on those damn detectives!”
“I think I already have, senator.” Mark held up a folder that he had been carrying with him. He handed it over to Senator Lehne.
Lehne took it and quickly siphoned through the papers. “A PI?!? You’ve got to be kidding me…”
“No sir,” Mark said, sitting up straighter in the high back leather chair. “He’s not just any private investigator. He’s the best damn PI in the state. If you want someone who can discreetly find dirt for you, Tom Welling’s your man.”
Lehne read through more of the papers, seeing Tom’s credentials and work history. “Can we trust him?” Lehne asked a moment later, not bothering to look up from the documents.
“Had him do some work for me in the past. He’s trustworthy…if he’s working for you.”
“Have any leverage on him?” Lehne continued, still flipping through the papers.
“He has a husband…”
That got Lehne to look up from the papers. He nodded slowly as a twisted grin took place on his face.
“Good…very good…”
*********
The early morning sun broke through the curtains and fell onto the bed. Jensen groaned as the rays hit his face and woke him from his peaceful sleep. He blinked his eyes open and shuffled towards Jared’s side of the bed, only to find it empty. He clumsily pushed himself up in the bed, nearly crashing back down onto the pillows in his half asleep state.
“You are so not a morning person,” Jared huffed from the edge of the bed.
Jensen finally managed to sit up and look over at his boyfriend. Jared was sitting on the edge of their bed, dressed only in boxers. His hair and body were still dripping from his recent shower. The sunlight danced across the droplets and taut skin.
It took a moment for Jensen to stop staring, but by the time he did, Jared was staring at him curiously. He shook his head, hoping to clear it and wake up. “Not my fault you get up at the ass crack of dawn,” Jensen said around a yawn.
Jared huffed out a laugh before leaning over and giving Jensen a kiss. “Woke up earlier than normal,” he muttered.
“Couldn’t sleep?” Worry lines creased Jensen’s forehead as he eyed Jared up and down once more, this time checking for any harm.
“I’m fine, Jen.” Jared crawled back into the bed for a moment and leaned against the headboard. “Just went to sleep early last night after…everything happened with my brother.”
“Ok…if you’re sure.” Jensen pressed a soft kiss to Jared’s temple. “If not though, we could always go back to sleep.” Jensen flashed Jared a bit of a smirk. “I could always tire you out again…”
“Sounds nice,” Jared replied a little huskily. “But I have to get up…”
“Why?” Jensen pouted. He knew he probably sounded like a little kid, but he didn’t care. It was one of the few days off they had had together in ages, and who knew when they’d get another one with the way the Lehne case was going.
Jared couldn’t help but laugh at his boyfriend. “I’ve gotta go watch Tessa while Jeff and Lisa go to the doctor’s for her ultrasound.”
“Oh,” Jensen replied. “You ok with going to see him?”
The argument from last night briefly replayed in Jared’s mind before he visibly shook himself of the thoughts. “We’ll see,” he mumbled, not quite sure how any conversations with his brother would go today. “Besides,” he started, changing the subject, “you promised Chris you’d head over there today to help him paint.”
“Damn…”
“You’re the one who volunteered,” Jared reminded him. He gave Jensen one last kiss before climbing back off the bed to finish getting dressed.
“What made me do that again?” Jensen huffed.
“Pretty sure you didn’t realize what you were saying. He asked you before your coffee after all.”
“Bastard,” Jensen grumbled. He flopped back down on the bed and pulled one of the pillows over his head.
“Come on.” Jared hobbled back over to the bed, now dressed in jeans, a t-shirt, and a hoodie. He pulled the pillow away from Jensen’s face. His boyfriend shot him a glare; it only made Jared laugh. “I’ll make you coffee and breakfast if you get up…”
That was enough. Jensen still was sluggish and clumsy, but he managed to unfold himself from his covers. In his eagerness to get caffeine and food, his feet tangled in the blankets. He tripped and fell into Jared, who was able to help Jensen find his balance.
“Sorry Jay…didn’t hurt your leg, did I babe?”
“You barely put any weight on me,” Jared sighed. “Not gonna break Jen. I promise.” He gave Jensen’s shoulder a squeeze.
“I know,” Jensen replied. He wasn’t sure if it was to reassure Jared or himself. Lately, his mind had been consumed with unrelenting worry over what Jared would soon be facing. Despite what Jared kept saying, Jensen couldn’t help but fear that Jared would break…and that he wouldn’t be able to put his boyfriend back together.
“Jen? You with me?” Jared was still squeezing Jensen’s shoulder. He had moved a little closer though.
“Huh? Oh…yeah…sorry. Just spaced out there for a minute. You know how I am in the mornings,” Jensen shrugged. It wasn’t completely true, yet it would have to work.
“Come on then,” Jared laughed. “Let’s go fix that.”
Jensen forced a smile and followed Jared down towards the kitchen. He vowed to shake off the worry for the moment at least. He wanted to enjoy his morning with Jared…who knew what would happen in a few days with Lehne.
*********
The shrill ring of the doorbell woke Alona from her peaceful sleep. She turned her head into the pillow and tried to burrow away from the sound. It didn’t work. The doorbell rang again. She moaned and managed to untangle herself from her boyfriend. She glanced down at her body, realizing she was still naked, before grabbing a cami and a pair of boy shorts to slip into. The doorbell echoed through the house again as she started down the steps. She spared a look at the clock up on the hall wall.
“Too damn early,” she grumbled to herself. She finally approached the door and stood on her toes to look through the peephole. After that, she cracked the wooden door open and glared at the visitor on the other side. “Do you know what time it is?”
To his credit, Jensen had the good sense to at least look slightly guilty at showing up so early. “Sorry,” he mumbled from the other side of the screen door. “But Chris said he wanted help on painting…”
“And he forgot,” Alona sighed. “Come on in Jen.” She threw open the screen door and allowed Jensen to walk into their corridor. She ran her hand over her face in an attempt to clear the fog of sleep.
“Where’s Chris?”
“Still upstairs…in bed,” Alona laughed.
“Sounds about right. I’ll go up and get him.” Jensen started to head up the stairs.
“Go right on ahead…go get his naked ass up for me!”
That had Jensen stopping dead on the steps and turning to go back downstairs where Alona was smirking.
“Naked?”
“Yes,” Alona chuckled. “You see…when a man and a woman love each other and live together they sometimes-“
“Ah! Come on Al! I don’t need to know details about my baby cousin and my best friend’s sex life!” Jensen even covered his ears with his hands, as if that would block out her voice.
“Like I wanted to know details my big cousin and my best friend’s sex life either?”
Once again, Jensen looked guilty at Alona’s words. “Uh…”
“Don’t worry about it, Jen.” Alona walked over to him and leaned up to give him a kiss on the cheek. “You were Jared’s first. It wasn’t like I didn’t expect him to talk to me about it, hun. Wouldn’t have introduced you guys if I was that afraid of the details.”
Jensen smiled, thinking back to that day all those years ago when Alona had brought Jared into his life.
*********
“Come on Jay,” Alona encouraged, rubbing her slender hands up and down his arms. “It is just a small cookout at my parents’ place. Not a big deal. I promise.”
Jared looked up at her with his puppy dog eyes swimming in unshed tears. “But-“
“Sweetheart, I’ll be there the whole time! Pretty sure your family is coming. Jeff said he was bringin’ his new girlfriend…”
“Lisa,” Jared supplied.
“Right! And Chad’s coming with his new girlfriend…Sophia or something like that. Chris will be there. You really like Chris, remember? He’s the only guy I’ve dated that you actually approve of…”
Jared’s mouth twitched with a slight smile at that. But it didn’t stay. He was too busy panicking.
“Chris is bringing Jensen…you’ve heard me talk about him sweetie! He’s my cousin who just moved back into town. He’s only four years older than us. He doesn’t have that many friends yet. He’s mainly just been hangin’ ‘round Chris and me.”
“Don’t wanna be around a lot of people, Al,” Jared admitted, slightly brokenly.
“Baby,” Alona started, puling him into a hug, “you can’t hide forever.”
“Why not?” Jared asked like a petulant child.
“Because you’ve been doing it for a couple years now Jare.”
“I go out…”
“Jared, you only go to the university and back. You only go there because you hate the online classes and still want your degree.”
“I just…”
“I know it sweetheart.” Alona pressed a kiss to his forehead. “But this would be really good for you. I wouldn’t be asking you if I didn’t think it would be.”
“Fine,” Jared finally whispered. “I’ll go for a little bit.”
“That’s all I’m asking,” Alona said, throwing her arms around Jared once more. “Come on! I’ll drive us!”
Jared sighed, but followed Alona out to her car nonetheless. He folded himself into the small Honda’s passenger seat. Alona kept up a running monologue as she drove to her parents’ house a couple blocks over from her and Jared’s home. Jared had moved in with her not long after they had started their freshman year of college. The house was near both of their families and was in a good part of town. It had the top of the line security as well, much to Jared’s relief.
Moments later, the two of them were pulling in next to the curb in front of the Tal household. A bunch of cars were already parked around the two story brick. Jared recognized his brother’s beat up pickup and Chad’s dented Mustang. But what bothered him were the ones he didn’t recognize. That meant strangers…and strangers could mean a lot of other things…
He startled when he felt Alona’s hand on his shoulder. She had already exited her side of the car and walked over to his. “Sorry Jay.”
“It’s ok,” he sighed. “Just got lost in my head for a minute there.”
“Not surprised,” Alona teased, trying to lighten the mood. “You have a big head there.”
Despite his anxiety, Jared couldn’t help but smile a little. But then he heard noises from the cookout floating through the air and everything came crashing back down onto him. “Let’s go.” He grabbed his cane and hobbled out towards the house.
“Al! Jay!” Alona’s mom squealed as they entered the kitchen.
“Hey mom!”
“Hi Mrs. Tal,” Jared mumbled.
She gave her daughter a quick hug before turning towards Jared. He’d been Alona’s best friend for as long as she could remember, and he was practically a son to her.
“Hey sweetie,” she said, drawing Jared in for a hug. “What’ve I told ya ‘bout that Mrs. nonsense?”
“Sorry…Mary.”
“Now that’s better,” she replied with a grin. “How you holding up?”
Jared tried to smile, but it turned into more of a grimace.
“You’ll get there, baby,” Mary assured. She didn’t know exactly what had happened, but she knew enough. Jared had gone through more than anyone as sweet as him should have.
“Thank you ma’am,” Jared whispered.
“Now, you kids go out back and grab some grub.” Mary ushered them towards the backdoor and out into the yard where everyone else was busy getting food and socializing.
Jared felt his heart plummet as he saw so many unfamiliar faces roaming around the yard. There were a lot more people there than he had expected…than Alona had expected.
“Al!”
Jared flinched at Chris’s booming voice. The bulky, long haired man ran over to the two of them and swooped Alona into a big hug. Jared just stood by awkwardly to the side. In doing so, he noticed another man beside Chris doing the same thing. The guy was decently tall, not quite as tall as Jared though. He was muscular, very well built. He had spiky hair and the greenest eyes Jared had ever seen. All in all, he was gorgeous…definitely the type of guy Jared would be attracted to. If he dated of course…
After a few seconds, the guy cleared his throat and gave an amused look at the couple.
“Oh! Sorry Jen,” Alona quickly apologized. “I didn’t see you there.” She untangled herself from Chris and gave the man a smile.
“Not that surprising Al,” the man laughed.
“Jared,” Alona turned towards him, “this is my cousin Jensen. Jen, this is my best friend Jared.”
“Nice to finally meet you,” Jensen said, sticking his hand out for Jared to shake. “Heard a lot about you.”
Jared tried to smile politely towards Alona’s cousin as he took the offered hand. However, his own hand shook despite his best efforts.
“You too,” Jared replied, voice barely above a whisper.
Picking up on some of Jared’s nerves, Alona placed a hand on his shoulder. “Why don’t we get some food, Jay?”
Jared nodded towards his friend and allowed her to guide him towards the food table.
“Al?” Mary called from the backdoor. “Can you come here a minute and help me with this cake dear?”
“Um…” Alona turned towards Jared as if silently asking for permission. He nodded his head towards the door. “I’m coming mom!” she called over to Mary. “I’ll be right back Jay.”
With that, Jared was left alone near the food table. The guests were all congregating near it and filling their own plates. Most were people that Jared didn’t really know. They all pressed in on him in their attempts to get food. Jared did his best to move out of their way and ignore them. But it all started to become too much. Eventually, a fairly husky middle-aged man accidentally collided with Jared.
“Oh! Sorry, son. I didn’t see you there…”
Jared heard the man’s voice but the words couldn’t register through his panic.
“I didn’t hurt you, did I, kid?” the man asked, putting his hand on Jared’s shoulder.
The simple touch was too much for Jared. He ran from the table towards the side of the house. His bad leg protested at the action, but his mind just screamed for him to get away. Once he reached the side yard where no one could see him, he slid down the rough bricks so that he was sitting in the dirt. His breathing was erratic and he was on the verve of a full blown panic attack.
Another hand settled against the back of his neck, but Jared was too preoccupied with breathing to freak as much as he normally would. He felt himself being pulled towards the body attached to that hand. He tried to buck and fight away.
“Sshh, not gonna hurt you,” the voice soothed. It sounded familiar, but Jared couldn’t quite place it. “Just match your breath up to mine.” The guy’s hand ran through Jared sweat dampened hair as he pulled Jared in closer against his chest. Jared could feel the rise and fall against his own back. “Just keep breathing. There ya go. That’s it.”
Jared’s breathing slowly began to calm and match up to the person behind him. His body still trembled against the hold. Chills wracked his frame as the dizziness continued to assault him. Despite himself, Jared could only relax into the hold.
“I’ve gotcha, Jare. Not going to hurt you. Just keep breathing…that’s it.”
After a few more minutes, Jared had calmed enough to twist and look at the guy’s face.
“J-Jensen?” he stuttered nervously.
“You’re fine Jay,” Jensen replied, the nickname easily rolling off his tongue.
Jared then noticed a slight wet spot on Jensen’s gray t-shirt. He reached up and felt the now drying tear tracks along his face. “God…I’m so sor-“
“Don’t worry about it,” Jensen shrugged. He then settled Jared back against the side of the house and took up a spot beside him. Jared still tensed up when Jensen’s shoulder brushed his. “Longhorns?” Jensen asked, pointing to Jared’s hoodie covered chest. “A UT man?”
Jared only nodded, not completely trusting his voice.
“Went there myself. Graduated early though…got lucky. Was a CJ major and got on the accelerated track so I could get out and into the police force a helluva lot quicker. What about you?”
“Psychology,” Jared whispered.
“That’s awesome,” Jensen said, sounding genuinely interested. “You know what you wanna do with it?”
“Profiling,” Jared answered, stronger than he thought possible.
Jensen smiled at Jared. “Hey, maybe we’ll work together some day, Jay!”
*********
“Jay! Uncle Jay!” Tessa squealed as she climbed on top of Jared back. They’d been playing for nearly two hours. They were both in the floor, completely surrounded by stuffed animals. Jared was on his hands and knees, despite the pain that was starting to flair up in his thigh.
“Woah Tes!” Jared had to pull the toddler off of his back before he collapsed down onto the floor. He’d been fine at first, but he was pretty sure his leg wouldn’t stand much more of this. He twisted so that he was sitting against the couch and swung Tessa onto his lap. The little girl giggled and squirmed closer to her uncle’s chest.
“That was fun! Can we do it again?” She bounced a little in his lap and his leg once again protested.
“Not right now baby,” Jared sighed. “Think we could watch a movie or something? Give your Uncle’s leg a break?”
Despite her young age, Tessa was very intuitive and intelligent. She couldn’t comprehend exactly what had happened to Jared, but she knew that his leg was different from everybody else’s’ and that meant he sometimes couldn’t play for long periods of time.
Tessa nodded her head vigorously before leaning down to press a soft kiss to Jared’s jean covered scar. “Make it better?” Tessa asked hopefully.
Jared pulled Tessa against his chest and hugged her tightly. “It definitely helps sweetheart.” He then pressed a kiss against her messy brunette hair. “Come on munchkin…go pick out a movie for us.”
Tessa carefully scrambled off of Jared’s lap and headed over to the DVD shelf in the corner. She looked serious as she scanned the movies, searching for the right one. The scene made Jared chuckle a little as he climbed on top of the couch. She finally gasped as she found the perfect one and ran over to Jared with the case held high in her hand.
“Nemo!”
“Finding Nemo huh?”
“Yes! It’s my favorite!”
Jared smiled at her enthusiasm. He then grabbed the remote and allowed Tessa to load the DVD into the player. She jumped up on the couch and settled in close to Jared’s side afterwards. The familiar music and Disney castle came onto the screen and the movie began.
Nemo was swimming, desperately trying to catch up to his school despite his small fin, when Tessa pulled on Jared’s hoodie.
“Yeah sweetie?”
“You know why Nemo is my favorite?” she asked in a small voice.
“No…don’t think I do hun. Why is Nemo your favorite?”
“Because…Nemo’s like you.”
“What do you mean, Tessa?”
“Well…he has a messed up fin and has to swim different, just like you have’ta walk different. But he’s still really brave and saves the day. Just like you do.”
It wasn’t what Jared had expected and tears formed in his eyes at her words. “Come here,” he said, pulling her in for a tight hug. “Love you Tessie.”
“Love you too.”
The moment was broken when the front door opened to reveal Jeff and Lisa.
“Mommy! Daddy!” Tessa scrambled off of Jared and ran to great her parents.
“Hey baby,” Lisa greeted. She ran her hand over Lisa’s hair before looking up to Jared in the other room.
Jared was glancing towards his brother anxiously. He had managed to avoid seeing Jeff earlier. He had been called into work that morning, so had left in his own car with the promise to meet Lisa at the doctor’s later.
“What do you say we go upstairs and I show you pictures of you little brother?”
Tessa agreed, thrilled to at the prospect of seeing her baby brother. Lisa guided her up the stairs, leaving the brothers by themselves in the living room.
Jeff looked over towards Jared, taking in the still misted over eyes from his moment with Tessa. Of course the big brother in Jeff felt worry build up at the sight.
“Jare?” Jeff said, walking towards his brother on the couch. “Are you ok?”
“Yeah,” Jared smiled. “You’ve just got an awesome kid in there.” Jared scooted over on the couch so that Jeff would have room to sit. He then tilted his head towards the open space.
Jeff took the hint and sat down. “Looks like we’re gonna have another one in four months too.” Jeff reached into his coat and pulled out a small picture. “Here he is.”
Jared took the sonogram print out from Jeff and smiled at the figure on the paper. “Wow…”
“Yeah,” Jeff replied before turning more serious for a moment. “Listen…Jay…what I said last night was out of line.”
“It was.”
“I’m sorry bub.” Jeff looked up into Jared’s hazel eyes. “You have to do what you have to do. Even if I don’t like it…”
Jared smiled slightly and squeezed Jeff’s knee. “You’ll still have my back though…right?”
Jeff threw his arm around Jared’s shoulders and pulled him into a hug. “Always lil brother…always.
*********
Jensen tapped his foot against the van’s floorboards for the hundredth time that day. To say that he was on edge was an understatement. His hands had shaken the entire time he had helped Jared get ready. They still had a slight tremble to them now, even though Jared had tried to reassure him everything was fine.
A hand settled on his shoulder, causing him to jump in his seat. He twisted and came face to face with Jared’s team member Misha Collins. “Shit Collins!”
“Sorry Jen,” Misha apologized. “Just wanted to tell you that everything will be fine…you know that. We’re here to back Jared up. He’ll do great.” Misha smiled at Jensen, and all Jensen wanted to do was to rip it right off his face.
“You know what Misha…save it. Jared wouldn’t even be in this situation if you hadn’t recommended him for this damn case!”
“You know he was the right one for the job! If I’d known he was going to decide to go undercover, I might not have. But I didn’t…so I did.”
“You should’ve-“
“Will you both shut up and get back to work,” Jared’s voice filtered through their earpieces. Danneel and him were already in place and headed into the campaign function. Danneel wore a fitted black dress that hid the gun that was strapped to the inside of her thigh. Jared wore a simple black and gray suit and leaned heavily on his cane.
“Sorry babe,” Jensen mumbled.
“Good…I don’t need you too bickering while I’m trying to concentrate on this,” Danneel spoke up through her own earpiece. She then turned towards Jared. “You ready sweetheart?”
“As I’ll ever be,” Jared sighed. He wove the arm that wasn’t using the cane for support around Danneel’s small waist.
“Come on hot stuff…this will probably be the only time I ever get to have you on my arm,” Danneel teased. She could tell how nervous Jared was, and was hoping to help ease it some.
Jared gave her a shaky smile and allowed her to guide him into the charity ball. Lehne was supposed to be the guest speaker for the evening. But Jared was almost positive his crew would be scoping out potential victims in the crowd. They walked around, hoping to spot the familiar faces of Lehn’s team. There was just too many people in the small space, and they all began to blur together around Jared.
Danneel squeezed his arm to get his attention. “I’m gonna run to the bathroom for a sec before things get started. I’ll hurry back.”
“Ok,” Jared mumbled. He watched as Danneel left his side and headed towards the lady’s room in the back. She had only been gone for a few moments when a hand settled on his shoulder.
“I’m really sorry to bother you son,” the sickly sweet voice commented near Jared’s ear. “But I couldn’t help but notice you when you and your…friend…walked in. Do I know you from somewhere?”
Jared knew the voice. It had haunted his dreams for years…
After breathing in a shuddering breath, Jared turned around to face his worst nightmare.
“N-no sir. I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure to meet you before senator.” The words left a sick taste in his mouth, however Jared knew he had to sell this or all their work would be for nothing.
“That’s too bad,” Lehne said with a smile. “You must favor someone I know…”
“Probably.” Jared plastered a fake smile on and prayed Lehne would buy it. Sure he’d changed a lot since he was sixteen, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t be recognizable to the man that had tortured him relentlessly for three days…
“Well, since you already know my name…think we should even the score. Don’t you?”
Jared stuck his hand out for Lehne to take and breathed a sigh of relief when it didn’t shake nearly as badly as he had expected it to. “Tristan Ross,” Jared said. The fake name rolled easily off his tongue. He couldn’t screw this up…
“Nice to meet you Tristan. So what’s a handsome young man doing at a thing like this? I normally just get stuffy old business hoping for an endorsement at these functions.”
Jared shifted nervously and leaned heavily on his cane. “Um, well my girlfriend and I strongly believe in the Dallas Youth Association, sir. We think it’s wonderful that a man of your stature supports such charities.”
“Well thank you, Tristan.” Lehne put his arm around Jared. It was all Jared could do to keep from flinching and trembling at the unwanted touch. “You’ll have to be sure to attend the one in two weeks at the Regent as well.”
“Believe our invitation only extended towards tonight’s gala, sir…”
“Nonsense!” Lehne pulled out his iPhone. “Just give me your email and I’ll make sure one makes it for you!”
“Wow…thank you sir,” Jared replied with fake enthusiasm. Thankfully Lehne didn’t pick up on the attitude. He was too busy admiring Jared, looking up and down his lean frame. Jared felt bile rise up in his throat as he typed an email address into Lehne’s cell.
Lehne’s eyes settled on Jared’s cane. “What’s a healthy boy like yourself doing with that?”
Shit…
“Old basketball injury,” Jared lied. He at least looked like an old basketball player thanks to his height and build. “Screwed up my knee in college. You know how it is.”
“Damn…bet you could’ve gone places with that sport. You sure look like you would have,” Lehne flirted.
“I wasn’t too bad…”
“I’ve never been too good at the sport. Course, all the kids round here love to play it at my centers and all. Maybe you could give me some lessons sometime…help me get an edge in with the youngsters…that way I have their attention in a few years when they go to vote,” Lehne laughed.
“I don’t know-“
“Come on! I can take you out to dinner beforehand.” His hand roamed down from Jared’s shoulders to the small of his back. Jared briefly had to shut his eyes to stop himself from completely breaking down.
“Sweetheart?” Danneel’s sweet voice called out from his side. Jared felt Lehne’s arm retract and be replaced by Danneel’s. He graciously leaned into the touch and finally allowed his body to tremble fully. “I’m sorry to break up your conversation…but I’m really not feeling too well.” Danneel had easily picked up on Jared’s anxiety once again and wanted nothing more than to get him away from Lehne.
“O-of c-course dear,” Jared sighed. He then glanced back at Lehne, knowing full well that he had to at least feign disappointment. “I’m very sorry to cut this short, senator. It was nice to meet you.”
“You too my boy.” Lehne squeezed Jared’s shoulder. “Just make sure you come to the next one son.”
“Of course,” Danneel answered for Jared before leading him outside. Jared’s palms were sweaty against her own, and she could practically hear his heart hammering in his chest. “Keep breathing hun,” she whispered to him once they had started walking back towards their car. She shuffled Jared into the passenger seat and drove off towards the team’s van that was parked only a few blocks away.
Jared spent he entirety of the short ride replaying the events of the night. The seemingly harmless flirting played like a broken record through his mind. His body felt phantom touches.
Finally, Danneel pulled the car into the lot where the rest of the guys were waiting. She had tried to talk to Jared a couple of times during the ride back, but it hadn’t worked. Jared had stayed lost in his own head. “Jay?” she said softly. She reached up and brushed the long hair from Jared’s face.
He flinched from her touch and began to struggle out of the car. He ignored her pleading and questioning as he bolted from the passenger seat and out onto the sidewalk. He tripped over his own feet. It didn’t stop him. He had to get away. He couldn’t face anyone right now. He couldn’t face Jensen.
The team called after him in the background, but it only spurred him to run faster. His cane fell from his grasp and landed with a small thud in the grass. The sun had already begun to set and the darkness was creeping in on Jared with every pain filled sprint.
“Jared!”
He couldn’t make out who the voice belonged to. All he heard was Lehne’s voice in his head…
“Baby!”
Jensen had bolted after Jared as soon as he had seen the younger man take off running. He had only paused for a moment to grab the cane that had been discarded a block back. He knew Jared’s leg had to be throbbing at this point. He had to stop Jared.
He pumped his own legs harder and was able to reach Jared’s side. He pulled his struggling boyfriend towards him and got Jared to stop running. He continued to buck and fight Jensen’s hold though.
“Stop! Let go of me! I can’t…”
“Sshh…it’s just me, Jare. Just Jensen.”
“Can’t…have to get away from him…can’t…”
“Baby, it’s not him. It’s just Lehne. He won’t hurt you! I’m here!”
“Lehne’s the problem,” Jared muttered. He was fighting a losing battle with his frayed emotions and barely recognized the words spilling out of his mouth. “He’s doing it again…this is how it starts. Flirting…touching…then it…”
“Sshh,” Jensen tried to sooth. He wasn’t sure what Jared was actually saying, but he knew he had to calm Jared before he hyperventilated.
“No!” Jared pushed away from Jensen a little, but was exhausting himself quickly. He ended up sliding to the ground and taking Jensen down with him. “He’s doing it again! Lehne…again…”
“Jared? What are you talking about baby? What do you mean?”
“Can’t…let him…he’ll hurt me again…”
“Again?”
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Masterpost