Free Accidentally on Porpoise by Tymber Dalton Page B

anger simmered, threatening to boil over. He wanted to beat the crap out of the son of a bitch for sticking his nose in where it didn’t belong. Friends all their lives and then turning on him like that?
    Fuck. Him.
    By the time four o’clock rolled around, he’d accomplished very little except narrowing the field of possible rental houses to three good choices. He had appointments to go look at them tomorrow.
    They all had pools and private, fenced backyards.
    That boosted his mood somewhat.
    He gathered his things and called it a day. He had to go grocery shopping.
    A grin split his face. I get to cook for my mate.
    * * * *
    Erik watched from the parking lot across the street, where he’d parked in the deep shade under a stand of trees off to the side where Emery wouldn’t spot him. Emery would have to cross the highway and make left-hand turn to head south. Erik could pull out a few cars behind him. Erik suspected he’d be going to his mate’s house again tonight since he hadn’t gone home at all the night before.
    He’d find out where the mate lived and track down more information on him from there.
    He hated the shit-eating grin on Emery’s face because he knew he wasn’t the one who’d put it there.
    It was that damn human he was grinning for.
    When Emery’s car passed, Erik made his move, staying far enough behind Emery’s Mustang that he wouldn’t be spotted. He’d borrowed a friend’s car, because Emery would spot his Cherokee.
    The next stop was the Pine Street Publix in Englewood. He was in there over forty minutes and emerged with a cartful of groceries. Then Erik followed him to a crappy apartment complex north of Dearborn Street.
    Erik turned a street before the apartment when he saw Emery pull in. He waited, circled the block, and cruised by in time to see Emery hauling a load of groceries into apartment 4.
    He didn’t dare risk getting any closer for fear of Emery spotting him. He kept moving, circling around to the Publix where he pulled in and called Joseph Nadel.
    “I have an address, but not where he works yet… Yes, sir. I will get that for you soon. Very soon.”

Chapter Eleven
    Sean fought the urge to speed on the way home. Then again, his craptastic truck probably wouldn’t have handled it very well. When he pulled into the driveway, relief at seeing Emery’s Mustang parked there flooded through his body.
    Part of him, despite their frequent, sexy text message banter throughout the afternoon, and talking to him before he left Sarasota, had worried he wouldn’t be there.
    When he walked in the door, the luscious aroma of garlic hit him. “Wow!” He walked to the kitchen where Emery was in shorts and nothing else and preparing a salad. “Something smells delicious!”
    Emery leaned in for a kiss Sean didn’t want to end, but had to. “Thanks. Hope you’re hungry.”
    “I am. But I need a shower first.” He grinned. “Want to join me?”
    Emery looked like he wanted to pout, but then a sexy smile filled his face. “I want to but I can’t. Still need to finish this.” He grabbed Sean by the shirt and hauled him in for another kiss. “I’ll get you at dessert time.”
    Dinner was delicious. Sean felt almost too full to do anything but fall over into a garlic bread coma on the couch, but he got up to help Emery clean up the kitchen. “So tell me how things went with your dad today,” Sean said.
    He didn’t like the way Emery’s expression darkened, how his brows knitted together. “Let’s just say I don’t think we’ll have any trouble deciding whose house to go to for holiday dinners.”
    “That bad?”
    “Do we need to talk about him tonight? What I’d really like to talk about are rental houses. I found a couple I’d like to go look at tomorrow.”
    “I did mention I’m not rich, right?”
    “Well, for starters, they’re not bad. I could afford one by myself if I had to. How much are you paying here a month?”
    “$650 plus utilities and