Once the door closed, Catlin returned his attention to the trembling man. Something had happened to the guy for him to act like this. Catlin had seen enough abuse victims in his line of work to recognize the signs. The anger surging through him, however, didn’t make any sense. He’d always been able to stay detached before, but this guy made him want to hunt down Gallo’s tormentors and do things to them. Things that were definitely not legal.
“They’re gone, baby,” he whispered into the patient’s ear, the endearment slipping out without conscious thought. Rubbing his hands down Gallo’s back, he caressed the skin exposed by the open-backed hospital gown. To his pleasure, Gallo relaxed against him.“No one will hurt you,” he added.“I promise.” But he damn well wanted to find out who had abused this man in the past.
“Oh, you smell good,” Gallo muttered against his neck, rubbing his cheek along the tendons attaching to Catlin’s shoulder. The move sent tingles of awareness through him, reminding Catlin that he had two hundred pounds of sexy, nearly naked man pressed against his side. Before he could formulate an appropriate response, he felt Gallo’s tongue flick across his skin, then teeth scraped up his neck, making him shiver.
“Come on, Gallo,” he muttered around a groan.“We can’t do this here.”
“Yes, we can,” Gallo countered, sliding a hand under Catlin’s t-shirt.
Catlin’s skin pebbled under the massaging fingers, and his muscles rippled with pleasure. He gripped Gallo’s wrist while shifting their bodies on the bed so he was looking down at the handsome man. He pinned those questing hands to the mattress.“We need to get out of here first, Gallo.”
That had Gallo’s eyes widening and his gaze darted around the room.“Yeah. No more tests,” he whispered.
“That’s right. No more tests,” Catlin affirmed, wondering what kind of tests Gallo thought the doctors would run. He gently released the patient’s wrists and, much to his straining dick’s displeasure, eased away from the sexy black man.“Are you well enough to get dressed on your own?”
Gallo nodded and slid from the bed. Once standing, Catlin realized the other guy stood about three inches shorter than his own six feet two inch height. Maybe it was the small bed that had made him seem so much bigger. He watched Gallo pull on the sweats and t-shirt Catlin had left for him that first day, and he wondered what he was going to do with the man. Gallo seemed to have imprinted on him, almost.
The man cautiously glanced toward him several times as he pulled on the clothes, although his gaze never reached Catlin’s face. Catlin had swung into one of the local BDSM clubs a few times a year when he couldn’t ignore his desire to dominate a lover any longer. He hadn’t missed the clear submissiveness in Gallo’s gesture. It raised all kinds of questions in his mind, like was the man hurt during a scene? Was it a Dom who’d put him in the hospital? It certainly explained Catlin’s immediate protective urges.
Once Gallo was dressed, he realized the next part would be a little tricky. Catlin crossed to Gallo and urged him to sit on the edge of the bed.“I need you to wait here,” he said. “I’m going to get the release paperwork from the doctor.”
Gallo’s dark skin paled.“You’re leaving me?”
Catlin crouched in front of the man and cupped his jaw so he could lift Gallo’s face and force him to meet his gaze.“I will be right back, Gallo. No more than five minutes,” he promised.
After a couple of seconds, where Gallo’s blue eyes seemed to search his face, he nodded. “Okay,” he whispered.
Catlin strode from the room and found the doctor at the nurse’s desk.“I need Gallo Ricci’s release papers,” he stated flatly.
“B-but,” the doctor stuttered,“he’s not ready to be released.”
“Yes, he is,” he countered.“He’s a witness in my case, and I need him calm. He’s not calm here.” He glared at the doctor and crossed his arms over what he knew was an impressive chest.“Release him into my custody. I’ll make certain he’s well cared for.”
He’d never allowed his dominant personality out of the bedroom, or the interrogation room, but couldn’t stop himself now. Plus, it seemed to get the doctor’s attention. After a few grumbles, and one scathing look, the man obeyed, pulling a chart from a bin then typing up some paperwork on the computer.
Catlin glanced at his watch and saw that four minutes had passed. Something in him made him realize he couldn’t be late getting back to Gallo, so he gave the doctor one more stern look and said,“Bring it to the room as soon as it’s ready.” After getting a quick nod from the other man, he hurried back to Gallo.