“I-I thought you hated me. I thought you were sorry you made me your mate. ”
Blayde pulled away and gazed down at him. “Hated you? Never, baby. I was disappointed, and I felt likeI’d failed you by not giving you enough reason to trust me to tell me the truth. I rushed you, I know that now. Tell me, darling, one last time. The last story you told me, was it the truth?”
“I swear it is, Blayde. Every word was true. I lied to you at first because I was afraid you might take
me to prison. I know I should have been honest, but I was scared. I meant to tell you, eventually. II just wasn’t sure if I could trust you not to send me away. ”
“I believe you, baby. At least,and please don’t be angry at this, I believe that’s what you think really happened. It may be just as you say, and we need to find out for sure. If we find out that the vidthey sent us wasn’t faked, then I think they must havedrugged you, or there’s something else going on, maybe inside your mind. If Partland faked it, I’ll never rest until we clear your name. If I have to choke the truth out of the son of abitch, I’ll do it. Whatever it is we’ll face it together. All right?”
Ryan nodded and wrapped his arms around Blayde’s neck again, then crawled up into his lap and wrapped his legs around his waist. Blayde sat that way with him for a long time, his cock nudgingRyan’s creaseuntil Ryan’s breathing became slow and steady, then he lowered him to the bed and lay beside him, turning him around and spooning him. Kissing the back of Ryan’s neck, Blayde let sleep take him too, relaxing his tension for the first time in several days.
Chapter Seven
Ryan stood in the kitchen of Blayde’s house, preparing a meal in the processor. They’d been home for two days, and things between him and Blayde were good. Blayde had been kind and thoughtful toward him, and the sex between them was amazing. Blayde had brought over a doctor the day before who had examined him carefully with his scanner, and pronounced him healthy. That morning a human psychiatrist Lucas had flown in specially to see Ryan had come in, asking Ryan a lot of questions and even hypnotizing him after asking his permission.
The door opened and Blayde walked in, came over to him and kissed him for a long time, bending him back over his arm until he struggled for release, laughing and shoving at him.
“I got the psychiatrist’s report, sweetheart, and he says you’re perfectly fine. He said you still have a few lingering issues over your childhood, but considering how traumatic it was, it would be odd if you didn’t. All those foster homes. ”
“Well, the last one wasn’t so bad. I stayed there for several cycles and I still keep in touch with those foster parents. A few before that were pretty bad though. One of them was where I first met Blaine. ”
“I know. Since the doctor also gave you a clean bill of health, then the problem has to be with that film Partland sent to the court. It has to be a fake. ”
“Like I tried to tell you, Partland has the money to get almost anything done. ”
“That’s just what I told Lucas. But even if we can prove the vidis a fake, it won’t solve the real problem. We’d need to get Partland to confess,or he’ll squirm out of it. He’ll say we doctored it ourselves or something. No, I don’t think we’ll ever get any justice with him, baby, but we can try to help our own situation. ”
“How can we do that?” Ryan asked.
“By talking to the Lycan ambassador and having him grant you asylum. We could go to Lycanusitself, but Lucas knows the ambassador on Earth really well, and we’ll have less problems getting him to do it. ”
“What good will that do?Can’t you just go on with your life and let me be a part of it? I’d like to travel with you, help you with your work. You could show me how to do that. ”
“I’d love that, baby, but you’d still have this thing hanging over your head. And your handsome face is so recognizable. Even those prisoners knew who you were right away. We can’t go through life hiding out from everyone. It’s not fair to you, sweetheart. No, we’ll move to Lycanus and live there. The Alliance can’t touch us then. ”
Ryan sighed and sank down on one of the stools at the bar. “All right. What do we need to do?And don’t say let you handle it. We’re in this thing together, so don’t go all macho master/slave on me. ”
Blayde looked uncomfortable. “I can’t help it. I hate the idea of you exposing yourself to danger. ”
“Well, the same goes for you. ”
Blayde stared at him for a long moment before pulling him back in his arms. “I love you, honey. Ican’t get enough of you, and I don’t think I ever will. ”
“I certainly hope not,” Ryan said, smiling. “Now stand over there so I can think and tell me what we’re going to do. ”
“The first thing to do, I think, is to figure out just how he faked that film, so we can convince the ambassador. I’ve been thinking about it, and I want you to see it, even though I know it’s hard for you to look at. The first part of the vid is definitely Blaine, and then the next part was you, pulling at Blaine’s shoulder and pushing him down, like you said you did. Even when you climbed on top of him and faced the camera. All you. But then they must have doctored it so someone else came in to slam Blaine’s head on the floor and then back away from the body. After looking back at the vidover and over, there’s no hint of the face in that part. Whoever they got to impersonate you had his hair falling over his face. ”
“Makes sense,” Ryan agreed. “But how did they make it look like me?”
“Do you know of any actors who look a lot like you? At least, the same size and general build? Maybe another blond with long, curly hair?”
“Sure, there are a lot of them. You think that’s how they did it?”
“Had to be. Put a man your size with your trademark curly blond hair in the same clothes and it would be hard to tell the difference. That and paying off a lot of people to testify against you. The hotel security videos don’t really mean anything. You admit to being there. No, it was the so-called eyewitness testimony that was so damning to you. Some of it from your own friends. We need to find them and see what he offered them to lie for him. ”
“Or what kinds of threats he used, more likely. He used to threaten Blaine all the time. He even tried to threaten his family, until he found out Blaine didn’t have any. That set him back a little. He even threatened me once, Blainetold me. ”
“Sweetheart, I h ave to ask you. Were you and Blaineever lovers?”