Toni and Jaiden remained in the bed, exploring each other with their lips. But the moment didn't last for long because Toni's phone chimed. He sighed and reluctantly shifted his body off Jaiden.
Jaiden didn't fault him. He knew that it was probably work, which meant that the notification was for him as well.
"Chief is hoping for updates." Toni said with a groan.
Jaiden ran his hands through his hair. "I figured. This case is... complicated."
Toni gave him a concerned look. "You regret taking the call?"
Jaiden sat up in the bed and smirked. "I think the call was definitely worth taking... but I hate how the story is incomplete."
Incomplete was putting it mildly. It was a fucking mess. The crime scene was organized, staged, and frustratingly free of any evidence that pointed out a suspect or motive. He wasn't ruling out the possibility of it being cult related, but a cult didn't feel quite right. So, in the end, he had more questions than answers. Why was it staged? Why Lady of Guadalupe? And why mutilate her? Perhaps there was something less than pure about her that was discovered. Was someone jealous?
Jaiden played with the ring on his hand as he ran through scenarios. But he was jarred out of his train of thought when Toni stood up and held out a hand. "Before we start the day, let's take a shower."
Jaiden grinned, remembering how the last shower ended with them. He knew that there was no time for a repeat but didn't mind teasing Toni with a small preview of future adventures.
However, after the shower, Jaiden was less than thrilled about his decision. Teasing Toni was his own undoing because now he had to go shifting through annoying paperwork in the office while being sexually frustrated. He knew he was going to be walking around with a hardon pressed against his jeans all day.
Fucking showers.
In the middle of it all, Toni had offered Jaiden to stay at his place to crash during most nights while working on the case. Jaiden's resolve had already dissolved with a naked and wet Toni in front of him, so in his sexually hazy state, he mindlessly agreed.
Toni knew what he was doing, so now Jaiden had to deal with Toni's cocky and triumphant grin that tended to make Jaiden's pants even tighter.
However, because of this decision, they now needed to stop by Jaiden's apartment to pack some more clothes and items. As they were walking down the hall, he saw several his neighbors standing in their doorways and looking towards his apartment. He knew something unpleasant was happening, especially when he heard a familiar shrill voice. Jaiden stopped his steps while Toni gave him a confused look.
This was the last thing he wanted to deal with today. His migraine was gone, but that didn't mean he wasn't in the best shape. The last thing he needed was a war with his stepfamily before diving into a murder.
Lupe, his neighbor, saw him and rushed towards him and spoke quickly in Spanish. She told him that the crazy woman from before brought the police this time.
Jaiden groaned and Toni stifled a laugh. "Crazy woman?"
"Remember how I mentioned my family situation may not be the best?"
Toni nodded.
"My stepmother is decidedly proving my point." Jaiden said with a glare towards his apartment.
Toni rubbed his jaw. "Stepmother? Does she not know what you do for a living?"
Jaiden looked embarrassed. "No. Our conversations had never been productive, so she just assumed I was doing something unsavory. I gave up trying to tell her... You can wait in the car if you would like. You do not need to deal with this first thing in the morning."
Toni's hand found the small of Jaiden's back and rubbed small circles to soothe him. "Why? You think I'll run off scared?"
Jaiden hesitated. "I wouldn't blame you if you did. I can guarantee that it's not going to be pleasant... but if you want to join the chaos, then we should go before Nate opens his mouth."
On cue, Nate's voice ripped through the floor. "My god woman, you are an annoying bitch. Why are you even here? You're not even relevant anymore!"
There were some protests from Brandon, but Nate spoke up again. "He should have broken that jaw of yours instead of your nose, asshole."
Toni practically growled and turned towards Jaiden, stopping both of them in their tracks. His thumb brushing against his healing lip. "So, the pandejo who did this is in your apartment?"
Jaiden sighed and nodded. Toni gave a dark smirk and started to move towards the apartment, his steps embedded with anger.
A couple of other voices spoke up, trying to calm him down.
"I appreciate your help, Wallace and Ruiz, but you probably don't want to deal with my roommate and should consider leaving. I don't think he will be in the best of moods." Nate said with a snort.
Jaiden frowned. He knew those names; they were younger cops but were still intimidated by him. Hell, they were all intimidated by him. And now Nate was basically using him as a threat as if he was el cucuy.
Toni gave Jaiden a playful look as he had reached the door. He had heard the horror stories about Jaiden, but he was starting to see past the cold exterior and noticing a different side of him. He found that Jaiden was much more than what everyone thought he was.
"I want that disgraceful man arrested! He assaulted my son!" Tracy yelled.
"He was protecting me, officers, he did nothing wrong." Patricia argued.
Nate chimed in. "And that idiot hit him first!"
"If you're not going to do anything, then I want your supervisor!" Tracy said crossly.
The officers laughed. "That's not how this works."
"What is the name of the other person involved?" The other officer tried to chime in, Jaiden recognized the voice as Ruiz.
Nate laughed and shook his head. It was at that moment when Toni opened the door and walked in.
The officers jumped and paled when they saw him. "Detective! Why are you here? There shouldn't be any reason why you were called here."
However, they practically turned white when Jaiden walked out from behind Toni.
Tracy jumped when she saw Jaiden with his holster. She pointed a trembling finger at Jaiden. "The maniac has a gun now! Arrest him!"
The officers looked between the cackling Nate and Tracy's horror-stricken face, and they pieced it all together.
Ruiz gave Nate a helpless look. "Jaiden Ryder? Really? Nate, I thought we were friends."
Nate shrugged. "I warned you that you didn't want to deal with my roommate."
The officers tried to keep their calm and Wallace greeted him hesitantly. "Detective Ryder. We weren't aware that this was your residence."
Brandon seemed to be sputtering his words. "Detective? How? When? He's worthless!"
Toni stalked up to him with a glare. He examined his face and saw the two black eyes and bandage over the bruised nose. He knew exactly who he was. "Shall we have a conversation as to why you attacked an officer?"
Brandon fell silent, unsure of his next retort.
Jaiden let out a long breath and shook his head. He checked on Patricia. "Are you ok?"
She nodded. "Just angry."
"Sit down and let me make you a cup of tea." He said and turned to Wallace and Ruiz. "Although a shot of Patrón is more favorable in this situation, how about settling for some coffee instead?"
They were confused. "Um... sure."
He patted their shoulders and gave them a sheepish smile. "Sorry that you had to deal with this so early in the morning. I didn't want to pursue it, so I never reported our... altercation."
Toni scoffed. "You should have. I can put them in cuffs now if you would like."
Jaiden laughed a little. "I think we can just encourage them to go back home and out of New Mexico."
Brandon seemed to find his nerve again. "What about my child that Patricia is carrying? I will take her to court so fast!"
Jaiden shrugged as he was readying the hot beverages. "That's fine if you want to try. I have a friend who's one of the top lawyers in New York. He'll be happy to assist her in a custody battle."
He wasn't lying either. His family may have looked down on him because he went to a high school for delinquents, but everyone one of his friends have made something of themselves, including getting into law. They were all willing to drop everything to help each other out, even if he hadn't seen them in years.
Brandon knew this as well and he looked like he wanted to collapse. "Still, you hit me."
Jaiden nodded as he started to hand out the mugs. "I did. And if we wanted to pull the cameras from Maria's to understand why I did, I can call that in right now. Imagine what that would look like for your promotion?"
"Are... are you threatening me?"
Jaiden shook his head with a chuckle. "Not at all."
Brandon opened and closed his mouth for a moment and realized that he was fucked. It was foolish to have ignored Jaiden when he said he worked in law enforcement. Perhaps he should have asked about his career years ago. If he knew, he would have minded his behavior and wouldn't have pushed his luck. He felt his legs give out and he collapsed on the couch.
Tracy was coming to the same conclusion and let out a sob. Ruiz and Wallace were a little uncomfortable and drank their coffee as quickly as possible and left with a quick goodbye. Jaiden had never seen the two move so fast before.
After the officers left, Toni leaned against the kitchen counter near Jaiden, while Nate and Patricia sat at the kitchen table.
Jaiden looked at the both of them and felt no remorse or pain to see them floundering. "It's about time you left. My patience is exhausted, and this is the extent of my courtesy. Lose my number and disappear from my life."
"But... I raised you..." Tracy said quietly.
Nate hiss out an angry 'puta' when he heard this and was about to launch into another verbal attack but stopped when Jaiden started laughing.
The laugh was slow and menacing then faded to a heavy silence. Jaiden ran his hand through his hair. "I'm grateful that I wasn't thrown into foster care at the age of 14, but don't pat your back and claim you raised me."
"I... I paid for your high school."
Jaiden nodded thoughtfully. "And what type of school did you pay for?" He scoffed when she fell silent and looked away from him. "Come one Tracy, you're the one who likes to spread that information."
"It was a school that fitted your... behaviors..."
Jaiden's jaw tightened. "My behaviors?"
Tracy nodded. "You were volatile."
"I was mourning! I was 14 and just watched my dad die! Instead of support or understanding, you tossed me into some dorms for a school for delinquents! Brawlers! A last chance school for troubled teens! All I wanted was to come to terms with my father's death!"
His voice had become raspy with emotion and he slammed his coffee mug down on the counter, hearing it crack and the liquid started to spill out. Toni stepped towards him and grabbed his hands, checking to make sure they weren't cut or burned.
"But... didn't you say it was a good place for you?" Brandon asked meekly.
Jaiden sighed. "It was. That school became home." He said quietly.
Toni was still holding his hands, and gave him a look that seemed to silently imply that he would like to learn the whole story one day.
"I gave you a home, Jaiden. Don't forget that we're your family." Tracy said quietly.
Jaiden forced a tight smile on his face. "My father was grasping for something worthwhile during the last leg of his life, and you just happened to be there. But the moment he got sick, you bolted. You ran away. And for a year, I had to visit that hospital by myself. At 13 years old, I had to talk to the doctors about chemo, about surgery, about the hopelessness of his situation. And for a year, I had to feed him and clean up after him when he was losing control of his bodily functions. At 14 years old, I planned a funeral by myself because you disappeared. So, stop with the fucking family bullshit. We were never a family, Tracy. And I am tired of pretending to be one."
"We're all you've got." Tracy spit out with a glare.
Jaiden shook his head and turned back towards her. "That's where you're wrong. I'm an angry, fucked up bastard, but the last thing I am is alone. I've built a family, a large one, that does not include you."
Jaiden picked up the broken mug and roughly tossed it in the trash. The silence in the apartment was as heavy as the tension. Toni was watching his every move with concerned etched on his face. Jaiden reached out and squeezed Toni's hand for a moment to reassure him.
"Here's what's going to happen." Jaiden started. "You two are going to delete my number from your phones. You are going to leave and go home. And you're going live the rest of your lives pretending I'm dead. You are never to call me or visit me again."
His eyes caught Patricia who was giving him a proud look. He smiled towards her. "Also, Patricia and her child are part of my family now. You will talk to her only if she wants to. But if she never wants to see with you again, you will respect that."
Brandon wanted to protest, but Jaiden held up a hand. "My lawyer will contact yours to solidify custody." He said.
Brandon rounded on Patricia when he no longer had a leg to stand on with Jaiden. "I know your parents, Patricia. You think they will let you go back home while pregnant out of wedlock? You will have nowhere to go."
Nate stood up quickly and glared at Brandon. "She doesn't need to go back. She has a place here. She's home here." He flushed a little and turned to her. "That is, if you want to stay here."
She gave him a tearful smile. "I would like that."
"You will let the child grow up with a father figure?" Tracy asked with disdain.
Nate pointed at him and Jaiden. "What do you mean? The kid already has two of the coolest uncles to help raise him." He then looked at Toni and smirked. "Three, actually, if Jaiden doesn't fuck things up."
Toni laughed when he heard this. "Por supuesto." He confirmed Nate's statement and then gave Jaiden a wink.
Jaiden coughed and his cheeks were a little pink. "See, were covered here."
But the two people stayed standing in their living room.
Jaiden then groaned when he saw how they were still hesitating. "Tracy, Brandon, there's no point in continuing this family charade. You two kept me around to inflate your egos. I endured you out of obligation, but I'm done with that shit. Just go."
Brandon and Tracy gave them all a wary look and finally took off without saying another word.
Jaiden's body was heavy with exhaustion, and he supported himself against the counter. But Toni pulled him to his chest and held him tightly.
"Welcome to the chaotic hell called 'my life'." Jaiden muttered, unsure if he should be sad, angry, or mortified that the first man he really wanted to be with witnessed the collapse of his original family.
Toni kissed his temple. "I wouldn't want to be anywhere else." He whispered.