Chapter 15

In the back of his mind, he knew he should knock on the door. He knew Luke wasn't aone, but old habits die hard.

Raymond stopped suddenly as he entered Luke's room. He averted his eyes as soon as he realized what was going on. His throat dried out as he tried to find any place to look other than the bed.

He knew Luke's preferences. He'd even covered for him when he would sneak Antonio into his office or the VIP lounge. He'd even lied to Amos when Luke went through his Grindr phase. But he had never walked in on Luke going down on someone before. Then again, he had never brought someone home either.

His brain short circuited when he saw the look on Jud's face. He was completely head over heels for Luke. Raymond had been charged with keeping an eye on Luke because Amos hadn't a clue where his son had been disappearing. When Raymond found the townhouse, fear had run through him. He'd thought Luke was a rat, and the family killed rats.

But Amos had assured Raymond that Luke was loyal and had urged him to watch Luke closely. He had seen something in Luke's face he had never seen before. He was happy, then and now. That emotion Raymond had never seen while he was fucking around, but with the cop, he was genuinely happy.

Because of that, Raymond once again covered for his best friend. He'd make sure the club was shut down then he'd make the short drive to Jud's. He'd wait in his car, sometimes catching moments through the living room window. He had always told Amos where he was, but those tender moments were his to keep. He loved seeing Luke happy even if he had to hide it.

Jud ran his hands through Luke's hair. "Love, as much as I'm enjoying this, you need to stop. We have a visitor."

Luke made a displeased noise then lifted his head. He looked at Jud with a pout, drawing a laugh from him. Then he sat up and looked at the door. Raymond waved awkwardly, the papers in his hand fluttering as he did. He waited for Luke to cover himself up before venturing in further.

"Don't you know how to knock?" Luke demanded.

"Sorry. I forgot Jud was here. I'm not used to you bringing anyone back home. It's always been at the club," Raymond said.

Jud put his glass on the nightstand and swallowed his drink. "You've never brought anyone home before?"

Luke shook his head. "No, up until recently, I didn't think anyone knew so I kept it away from the family. I should have known better, but there are still people who are closed minded. Now that Dad knows, he'll handle as much of the bullshit as possible."

"The only thing I worry about," Raymond said, "is what they will do when you inherit the title of King of the Kings."

"That's a long way down the road. And maybe by that time, they'll be in nursing homes, assisted living, or dead. But you're forgetting one thing, Ray." His friend raised an eyebrow at him. "I may not want the position by the time my dad steps down."

Raymond licked his lips. He looked at Jud. The officer leaned back against the headboard seemingly disinterested in the conversation, but his eyes were bright. He realized they had never talked about it. Where the family thought Luke would just take over, Luke was uncertain. The only person who knew that was Raymond.

They'd had the conversation way before Jud had come into the picture. It was when Luke had been struggling with his sexuality. Their senior year of college had been very life-altering. Raymond's mother, Amos's sister, had died of cancer leaving Raymond to raise his teenage sister. They had moved into the mansion so Amos could help. At the same time, Luke had started sleeping with more men than women. Raymond had been the only one to know.

The topic of succession had come up when Luke had told Raymond his thoughts. They'd known at age twenty-four that some people would be unhappy with a gay head of the family. Luke hadn't had a steady partner at the time so they hadn't worried about it. But Raymond had known Luke would find someone, and he would give up everything for him.

"They won't have an issue with Luke being gay," Jud disagreed. "Their issue will be that I'm a cop they can't buy."

"You have to heal from this before you can do that," Luke said. There was an unspoken tension between them, but Raymond wisely stayed out of it. "Anyway, why are you here?"

Raymond handed over the papers in his hand. Luke took them as Jud reached for a pair of glasses. One he put them on, he read over the pages carefully.

"What is this?" Luke asked.

"I took the liberty to make a list of people with connections to both Baymont and South Bay. I figured when we host the event, we can invite all of them. Jud's team can run security and their faces in facial recognition," he explained.

"What do the asterisks mean?" Jud asked.

"Those are the people who know or have been in business with Miguel Arturo." He paused and rubbed his hands together. "There's one person we have to invite though."

"Who?" Luke asked. His friend didn't answer right away. Luke looked up, frowning deeply. "Who did you have to invite?"

"Michael Stone." The color drained slowly from Luke's face. Raymond's frown deepened. "I know, but according to Andreas, Michael has been prowling around South Bay. He thinks Michael is scouting for drugs so he had Winston dig into his finances."

Jud couldn't hide the chuckle. "That's illegal."

"That may be true, but when it comes to this bastard, anyting goes."

The tone struck Jud as crass. He looked at Raymond. His knuckles were white as he clasped his hands tightly together. He looked at Luke, noting the tightness between his eyes. He reached over and rubbed the back of Luke's head. His shoulders sagged as the tension left him with that simple touch.

"What did he do?" he asked. His voice was pitched low to keep from initiating a complete shut down.

"He tried to steal money from me," Luke said. He sighed as he flipped a page. "Ray caught him rummaging through my desk at work. At the time I kept my paperwork and books in my desk as well as the deposit bag. He tried to find the black one before we opened one evening."

Raymond sputtered in indignation. "He was looking for anything to sell. He was behind on his payments to his dealer."

Luke nodded. "He was the one you ousted from the club that night."

Jud looked at Luke. His face had contorted into an expression of utter devastation. He didn't have to ask to know how Luke felt about the other. He had witnessed it the night he had shown up at the club to try to ruin Luke. He had always felt bad about being hateful with that man. Now that he knew the entire details, he didn't feel as bad.

"Luke?" he whispered. It took a minute for him to look at him, but when he did, his eyes were desperate. Jud motioned to the paper. "All these names, are they all the people you've been with?"

Luke nodded. "Some of them are from right after college, but most were two to three years before that. The last one, Michael, was right before you."

"Were you in a relationship with any of them other than Michael?"

"One; his name is at the top of the list. I'm still friends wth him since we didn't end on bad terms. He's my attorney."

Raymond took the paper and pointed to a long row. "There on the left are the influential people he's been with. Most are only one night stands. The others are ones he tried to pursue a relationship with. Their social crowds are the same so they see each other from time to time."

Luke tossed the covers off and strode to the bathroom. He was unashamed to walk around Raymond naked, but his humilation was not anywhere near where it should be. He was more embarrassed about the list.

Raymond looked at Jud. He was reading the list again, more than likely memorizing it. He didn't look like a man who had just learned of his lover's past. His entire being was focused on the papers in front of him. He knew that following Luke would make things worse.

"You're a better man than I am," he said. Jud lifted his head to look at him but didn't say anything. "If I had just found out my lover's ex was going to be invited to a party, I would be livid."

"I am mad, but not at Luke or you. I'm mad at the bastard who's targeting him. Well, that and at this Michael character. Luke was doing what he wanted, and it was well before me." Jud removed his glasses and set them on the bedside table. "I'm formulating a plan."

"What does it entail?"

Jud explained his thoughts. They would need to be in the club to set up extra security footage and mic some of the staff. Anyone who wanted extra time with a host would chat up the staff and try to lure them away. But those who wanted to have a foothold in Baymont would make a beeline for Luke. He was their main goal, the Prince of Baymont.

He saw Luke leaning against the door as he spoke. He was back for the moment, and Jud knew he wasn't liking what he was hearing.

"I have a friend who is deeply undercover. I'll give him a call for him to show up as a "Saint"," Jud said. "We'll have him play the part, and I'm sure those who want to be in his good graces will be extremely jealous if he's talking to Luke."

Raymond licked his lips then looked between the two. "If you want to sell this, he has to be his usual flirty self. No one in our establishment knows - or knew- the two of you are - were- together. To them, Luke is a bachelor." He paused for a moment. "He's going to have to flirt to get this to be believable."

Jud met Luke's gaze. There was some hesitation there. He didn't want to be in trouble if he did this. He didn't want Jud to think he betrayed him.

"In police work, we have to do things that we sometimes can't discuss or can't take home," Jud said. It clearly didn't ease Luke's mind. So he changed tactics. "I will monitor everything. You don't have to worry about me being mad. It was my idea."

Luke and Raymond looked at each other. A silent conversation passed between them, the only thing giving them away being their eyes. It was a heated discussion, and it amused Jud. he had never seen two people as in sync as him and Myka before, but here they were.

Raymond groaned then looked at Jud. "He's worried about the consequences."

"As long as he doesn't take it to heart, there will be none." Jud clasped his hands together. "Think of it as a play, and you're the actor. As long as you do your best, we'll take care of the rest."

Luke scratched his head as he sighed. "All right. Go ahead."

"I'll be with you the entire way," Jud reassured.

The younger man nodded and disappeared back into the bathroom. Raymond collected the papers and left the room. He was going to call his friends to help out. It wouldn't be a party without them.

Jud watched the bathroom again hoping Luke would reemerge. When he didn't, he sighed and reached for his bag. There was a burner phone that he used to contact his friend. He was glad he hadn't left it at home. He sent a quick text and waited patiently for Luke to come out. He would finish their earlier moments, and no one would interrupt this time. He got up and locked the door to make sure.