Sex can be a dangerous business. So can love. On the worst day of his life, Wren Gallagher wants oblivion when he steps into Tricks for a drink. When a mysterious stranger steps up to pay his tab, he offers Wren the key to fulfilling his dreams of prosperity and true love. But appearances are not always what they seem. His savior owns the escort agency ? Louer, and he wants the young and handsome Wren as part of his stable of men-for-hire. Down on his luck, Wren figures, why not? He needs the money. When he joins, though, he doesn't count on meeting Rufus, another escort with whom he falls hopelessly in love. But their love story will have to overcome the obstacles of not only trading love for money, but ? Louer's dark -- and deadly -- secrets.

A Dangerous Game

He watched his exhaled smoke as the wind carried it upward, listening to the rustling sound that same wind initiated in the leaves of the big maple tree in front of the three-flat redbrick building he called home. This part of the Far North Side neighborhood, Rogers Park, was pretty quiet. Wren’s building was about eight blocks west of the lake, where traffic, both automobile and pedestrian, was much heavier. But out here on West Lunt, the apartment buildings and homes were modest and the neighborhood less transient than those closer in to the water.


Chapter 11