Free Chasing Justice (Gay Detective Romance Novella) by Corynn Crawford Page A

what?”
    Luke turned to him and met his eyes.
    “Oh shit .”
    “You said life’s too short to worry about anything other than pleasure. A nice long fuck was part of that as I recall,” Luke said.
    “I said I wasn’t expecting you to reciprocate, Luke. I meant that. You don’t owe me anything.”
    “I know, Eddie. I simply want to be with you for a little while.”
    Eddie leaned back in his seat, and put his hands behind his head. “I think we can manage that.”
    + + + + +
    The drive out to Queens took almost an hour in traffic. Luke was quiet for most of the ride as he contemplated his decision to sleep with Eddie. Was he ready for something like this with a virtual stranger? His entire sexual history up until that point had been getting to second base with his freshman year girlfriend, and then getting married. But he couldn’t deny the physical attraction he and Eddie shared, nor could he adequately describe the way his entire body felt after getting that blowjob in the alley. It was liberating to give in to pleasure and not care about the consequences. He wasn’t thinking about Kathy, or the divorce, or anything that had been keeping him up at night for God knows how long. All he wanted in those moments were Eddie’s mouth on his cock and the sweet sensation of release.
    His neighborhood in Queens was old—most houses were built in the 40’s and 50’s and then rehabbed as the original owners passed away. Luke’s house was a small two-story bungalow with a brick facade and vinyl siding. Scrolled wrought iron pillars on the porch supported an aluminum canopy awning that matched the tan color of the house. The small patch of front lawn was surrounded by a decorative brick walled fence. The driveway in similarly colored brick led to a detached garage behind the house.
    “Cute,” Eddie said as they got out of the car.
    “Took us forever to save up the down payment.”
    “You’ve been living here alone?”
    “Kathy already found a nice apartment close to the school with the kids. I think she let me stay here out of pity. Once the divorce is final we’ve agreed to split the proceeds of the sale.”
    “Seems like a shame,” Eddie said as they walked up the brick steps to the porch. “Looks like you put in a lot of work.”
    “Guess I’ll have to get over it.”
    While Luke wasn’t the best housekeeper now that he was living in the house alone, it was still relatively tidy inside. The living room was neat and the kitchen clean, and after entering Eddie took off his leather jacket, tossed it over an armchair, and settled in on the couch.
    “Your wife has an eye for design. I wasn’t expecting the open concept.”
    “Before we remodeled, every room had a door, even the kitchen,” Luke said, grabbing two beers from the fridge and walking over to sit down next to Eddie. “I picked out the hardwood.”
    “Nice,” Eddie said, tapping his boot against the floor. “Tastefully decorated.”
    “It was all Kathy.”
    “What about that?” Eddie asked, pointing to the fist-shaped hole in the wall.
    “That? Oh, it’s nothing.”
    Eddie propped his head up with his hand. “Luke. C’mon.”
    “What do you want me to say? It’s exactly what it looks like.”
    “Does that happen a lot?”
    Luke shrugged. “Only over the past few weeks.”
    “Since the separation, I take it?”
    “Yeah,” Luke admitted.
    “All this anger isn’t healthy, man, and you know it. Between Thayer and that incident in the bathroom, to punching that paper towel dispenser, and now this? It’s worrying.”
    “I know,” he admitted.
    “Have you thought about talking to someone about it?”
    Luke chuckled darkly. “That’s what Elizabeth said.”
    “You should listen to your partner. The more you talk, the more the pain will fade,” Eddie said, leaning his head back on the couch. “Soon it’ll be nothing but a scar and you can move on with your life.”
    “You’re speaking from experience.”
    “Hell yeah. I’m