"Byung. He's the one making sure I eat and try to sleep—my babysitter."
Leo took a breath as his heart began racing. His fingers curled into fists as something sped through his veins leaving him feeling plain rage. He bit that back, wondering why he was jealous of someone he'd never even met.
"You're not wearing a ring." The words were out of Leo's mouth before he could stop himself. When Anderson lowered the menu and stared at him, Leo felt like a completely moron.
"No. Not married. No one has cared enough to ask."
"Didn't you hear? The woman isn't supposed to ask the man. You're supposed to ask her."
"Haven't you heard? We live in enlightened times. A woman can do whatever she wants, including popping the question."
Leo's heart broke then. A part of him was hoping that sexy, dark-skinned morsel was single and into men. Repeatedly he'd had thoughts of Anderson Williams—raunchy thoughts that would get him in serious trouble if he ever acted on them. At least now he knew he could just suck it up and do his job without worrying about anything happening before them.
"What's going on in your head, detective?"
"Leo… please. And I was just thinking of who would break into a house like yours and take nothing. You have plasma screen televisions, expensive artwork, jewelry on your dresser, and it's all there—all of it, right?"
Anderson nodded. "Nothing was taken. Even my mom's wedding ring is still there. Whoever broke in was looking for something else."
"Can I take your orders?" a friendly voice asked.
Leo told Anderson to go ahead. While Anderson ordered, Leo couldn't help watching his thick, full lips move.
"And for you, sir?"
"Coffee and a muffin."
The waitress took their menus and left. She returned to fill their water glasses and was gone again. Anderson was sitting, staring out the window so intently, Leo had to look. There was nothing out of the ordinary there.
"What are you thinking?" Leo asked.
Anderson inhaled and turned. "This diner—my father and I came here once when I was about nineteen. I was home for the summer from university and he wanted to spend some time with me. I wanted desperately to be on a plane heading to South Korea with Byung."
"Byung is Korean?"
"Half. His mother is Chinese and his father Korean. He was born in Korea, lived in China for a while, then moved here. He was still young so he was raised here. Anyway, dad and I sat right over there. That's when he asked me if I thought he had been a good father to me. I was offended he'd even ask that and I told him so. Eventually I answered his question."
"And? Was he a good father?"
"I can't believe you had to ask that. He was like a father to you, right? What do you think?"
Leo nodded and said, "Touché. A part of me is happy my mother isn't alive now to go through this. She looked up to your dad. I remember when she started dating again she asked Jazmon what he thought, then the man had to meet Jazmon for the stamp of approval."
Anderson chuckled. "I can just imagine how that ended."
Their food came then and Leo took a sip from his coffee without adding anything to it. "Yeah, about as well as you thought. He was a leech and Jazmon saw that. I used to pray she'd date him but it never happened."
"Every child wants their parent to be happy."
"Yeah. I was too young then to understand what marriage was. I was thinking about where you're staying tonight."
"Oh?"
"My place is a decent size. I mean it's not what you're used to, but its mine and safe. You're welcome to stay there tonight. Even though I offered to stay at your place with you tonight, that was kind of thoughtless of me. You probably don't want to stay here since… well, you know…"
"I couldn't ask you to do that. I can stay at a hotel or with Byung—either way I won't be completely homeless. The thought of knowing someone was in my house—a stranger was in my house without me. It just makes my skin crawl. I don't know if I'd be able to sleep even if you were there with me."
"You're not asking, Anderson. I'm offering."
"If you're sure. I just don't want to get in your way—you know? And I'm not a baby. I can still take care of myself."
"Are you always this infuriating?"
Anderson shrugged.
* * * *
After leaving the diner, they went back to Anderson's place so he could grab a few things. The forensic team was finished but the cleaning crew was still at it. The place still looked like a bomb hit it. Anderson felt violated. Strangers were in his house again, touching everything, sticking things against his furniture. He could still see where the forensic teams had dusted for prints or trace.
Climbing the stairs, he kept looking over his shoulder, as though he expected someone to be there. He didn't like that feeling.
His bedroom was cleaned up and he hurried and grabbed a small travel bag from his closet. He dumped a toothbrush and other toiletries he would need the next day before work. He packed a pair of track pants for sleeping and a change of clothes for the next day. He didn't know how long he'd be gone from but he wasn't going to assume anything.
Downstairs again, he grabbed a pile of assignments that were already due back to the students and set his mind to spend the night marking them. He doubted he'd be able to sleep in a strange house anyway. He walked with his bag and papers to the squad car and Leo climbed out to open the door for him.
"What's in the big bag?" Leo questioned.
"Assignments. They were due back to my students already. I figured if I don't sleep tonight, I'll spend the time marking some."
"You teachers never stop, do you?"
Anderson grinned and brushed by Leo to drop the bags on the back seat.
"You know, I may seem like a boring conversationalist, but I'm not."
"Leo, I didn't mean you were. I just… I'm behind on this grading and… you're laughing at me!"
Leo laughed softly. "It's good to see you thinking about something else for a change."
"Gimme a sec, okay? I have to call someone."
"Okay. Take your time."
He took a deep breath and turned toward his front door with his cell phone pressed to his ear.
"You all right?" Leo called from where he now sat on the hood of his car.
"Yeah. I'm fine." Anderson waved just as Byung's voice came over the line.
"Hey, Bee," he spoke in Cantonese. The last thing he wanted was for Leo to eavesdrop on his conversation. "My house was broken into."
"Shit! Are you okay?"
"Oh I'm fine. One of the detectives insisted on me staying at his place tonight."
"So… you're spending the night as his place, huh?"
Anderson heard the insinuation in his friend's voice and laughed. Just the thought Leo Sung Kim was gay was laughable. The man had a body like a brick house and he looked like he was into football and a good raw fuck with a woman. Anderson couldn't help thinking it was Leo's loss. "It's nothing like that."
"That why you're speaking in Cantonese rather than English?" Byung teased.
Anderson simply laughed and the conversation carried on.
"But listen," Anderson said. "I'll be fine. He's got a big gun."
Byung laughed. "I bet he does."
"You know it's hard to talk to you when you get like this," Anderson joked.
"Uh-huh." Byung laughed harder.
"You're an ass, you know that? Leo isn't gay."
"Now you're on a first name basis with this guy? You two are moving faster than I thought."
Anderson rolled his eyes and took a glance at the detective. Leo was sexy, leaning against the cruiser, trench coat dancing about his ankles, arms folded across his muscular chest with his gun and badge glistening in the sunlight.
"There's no moving." Anderson tore his eyes away from the perfect statue before him. "I just wanted to call you and let you know where I was, so you don't worry."
"All right. Call if you need me. And you know you could have stayed here, right?"
"I know. But if someone is after me, I'd rather lead him away from your doorstep… Bee… you know I love you, right?"
"I know. Try to get some sleep tonight, Andy. You sound tired."
Chapter Five
Leo rarely had guests because he was so absolutely ashamed of where he lived. If he wanted, he could have bought a house but he didn't see the point. He was barely at home at all and didn't think it would make any sense. The only time he even thought about that shame was after he invited someone over. When he thought of where Anderson lived in comparison to his place, he felt like a moron bringing him there. He wasn't sure what he was thinking—he mulled over it silently and realized he wasn't thinking. His cock was doing that for him, even after Anderson all but told him he didn't swing that way.
For some strange reason, he couldn't get over it. He looked at Anderson and all he wanted to do was everything he swore he'd never do. He never wanted to fall for a straight man. But he turned off the ignition and gripped it tightly. He could do this—he could protect Anderson Williams and not touch him.
I can do this.
With that mantra playing over and over in his head, Leo helped Anderson carry his bags to the apartment then walked him down the hall to the extra room. He'd gotten a two bedroom apartment because sometimes Daniel spent the night when he and his wife got into it. The room had the bare minimum in decor. Aside from the bed and dresser, there was a single chair by the window and a tall standing lamp.
"I'm sorry it's not much. I'm a cop and I knew when I took the job it wasn't a get-rich-quick scheme. If you want a desk, you can use the dining room table."
"Leo, you worry too much. I'll be fine here."
"Sorry. I just—I know what you're used to."
Anderson walked by him into the room and once more his scent sent Leo's body into a heightened sense of arousal. "I'll leave you alone."
He hurried from the room before Anderson could reply and walked to his own bedroom. He closed the door behind him and pressed his back to it. Once he gathered himself enough, he left the room to gather his files and crime scene photos he knew he had strewn all over the dining room table. Once he had them in his safe, he checked the fridge. It barely held anything—a box containing cans of beer, a jug of milk, a couple of eggs, and an old sweet pepper. He picked it up and sniffed.
"How long has this been in here?" he muttered.
Footsteps coming down the hall caused him to chuck the pepper back in and close the door. He turned in time for Anderson to walk into the room with an armload of papers.
"The fridge doesn't really have anything. I wasn't expecting a guest."
"I take it you're not married." Anderson placed the paper on the table.
"No. No one has asked."
"Don't worry. We can eat out or order in."
"I should give you the grand tour."
"I'll find things. Just give me a couple of hours to go through some of these."
Leo smiled. "I have some work I need to get done anyway."
He left Anderson then, listening to the chair at the table scrape across the floor. It was strange having someone else in his house. He removed his files and stuff from the safe and spread them over his bed. With painstaking accuracy, he went over each picture, each of the notes both from his notebook and photocopies from Daniel's notebook. He made new notes in a larger book but at the end of it, he still wasn't any closer to anything.
His ringing cell phone only served to irritate him, but he grabbed it and pressed it to his ear. "What?"
"Hello to you too, handsome," Isha said.
"I'm sorry. I'm just stuck."
"Well, maybe this will help or push you further into the quicksand. The plant we found at the Williams crime scene is
Amaranthus caudatus
."
"Is that English?"
Isha chuckled. "No, Latin. The English name is love-lies-bleeding. It's a flower. Remember when I said my neighbor had a whole field of them after her husband left her? I was right. It's the same flower. You have to be careful in cultivating it because you plant it indoors in pots then transplant it outside after the last bit of winter."
"So you're telling me you can plant this
Amaranthus caudatus
anywhere."
"Yeah. That's why I said this information can help or make it worse."
"Did the result come back from the red powder?"
"Yeah. It's the same thing—love-lies-bleeding. Someone dried it and ground it into powder."
"So I guess it's safe to say the killer was also in Anderson's house."
"I'm afraid so."
"I was really hoping it was just a random break-in." Leo pushed some air out his mouth and rubbed his neck. He walked to the window and stared out at the night descending over New York. "I just don't get it. There were so many things in that house they could have taken."
"They didn't take anything?"
"Nothing. Jewelry, art, money—nothing was taken. Who breaks into a house like Anderson's and steals nothing?"
"I don't know, love. That is why you're the cops and I deal with the
deadies.
You should be talking to Daniel about that."
"This is just more confusing than before."
"All I can tell you is no one ever died from eating love-lies-bleeding."
"It's edible?"
"Parts of it. It's mostly used in Thai food."
"Listen, have you seen Daniel?"
"Not since the scene. He's normally hovering around my table. You two didn't have one of your epic arguments again, did you?"
Leo shook his head needlessly. "Nope, but he should have called me by now. Anyway, I have to go check on Anderson."
"Anderson? You at his place?"
"Other way around. I'll talk later."
Leo quickly hung up before Isha could pry into his sex life. She was famous for that around the precinct. He ran through the info in his head again and couldn't understand what that strange plant had to do with the murder scenes.
Shaking it off, he changed into a pair of track pants and a NYPD T-shirt and made his way into the corridor. It was quiet, but the light in the kitchen was on. When he entered the kitchen, he found Anderson dressed in nothing but a towel.