Free Mastering Will by Amber Kell Page A

types. You think you can protect yourself, but this is a gang of thieves who’ve fooled most of the art experts in the country. They don’t have a history of harming people, but they’ve never lost one of their members before. They aren’t going to follow a predictable pattern.”
    “I appreciate you watching my place, but I’m not leaving Will.” His lover stayed home most of the time. If the Feds were watching their condo, Will should remain safe.
    Calthers nodded. “Fair enough. Let me know if you have any problems. We can put you in protection against your will if necessary. We’ve been trying for years to nail this ring, and this is our first solid chance of arresting them.”
    Lindi met Calthers’s hazel eyes. “Let me make one thing clear, Agent Calthers. If you kidnap me and leave my boy out in the cold alone, I will have my very good friends in government chew you up and spit you out. There is nothing in this world that will have me abandon my lover, and if you even try to arrange it, I won’t testify.”
    With those parting words, Lindi left his gallery. It would be all over the news by evening that he’d stopped a forger. The agents had warned him he would be a target for media attention. Lindi was glad Will didn’t watch the news. His boy didn’t like hearing about all the bad things in the world. Lindi would do anything to keep his boy safe. It was time to pull his guns out of storage.
    Although he’d spent the past eight years running a gallery and dressing in expensive suits, that didn’t erase a childhood running with gangs or his years in Special Forces afterward. Lindi knew how to protect his sub, and there weren’t any limits on what he’d do in order to keep Will safe.

Chapter One
    Present Day
     
    The club pulsed with a symphony of slaps and groans, a counterpoint to the piped-in background music.
    “Here you go, sir.” A skinny kid in shiny shorts and nothing else set a glass of scotch and a bottle of water before Lindi, with an unnecessary amount of eye fluttering and smiling.
    “Thank you.” Lindi tossed a tip onto the tray.
    “Your food order is on the way. Anything else I can do for you, sir?” The server’s eyes insinuated anything else was on the table.
    “As my sub is obviously sitting beside me, I find your behavior disrespectful. I’d suggest you go help someone else before I decide to talk to your boss.”
    The sub paled. “Yes, sir. Sorry, sir.”
    He fled with impressive speed, considering the tightness of his outfit.
    “You’re in a pissy mood today, Lin,” Carlyle commented before taking a sip of his dark beer.
    Lindi adjusted his cuffs. “I don’t like people disrespecting Will.”
    He cracked the lid of the water bottle and handed it down to his sub, sitting on the pillow beside his chair.
    “Thank you, Master,” Will’s soft voice smoothed over the harsh edges of Lindi’s temper.
    “You’re welcome, Pet.” Lindi slid his fingers through Will’s hair, brushing down the bits that always tried to stick up. Will hated disorder.
    “I’ll talk to Greg for you if you like,” Victor Jones offered. “I’m having dinner with him and Stephen later.”
    “No, that’s all right. The waiter is correcting his behavior, he just needs to learn some manners.” Lindi frowned. He didn’t want to get the waiter in trouble with Greg Carter, the club’s owner.
    “Any problem at your galleries?” Carlyle asked. “Did your reputation take a hit?”
    “No. Luckily, I was able to tell everyone I detected the fakes before any of the paintings left my gallery. Now I’m sort of an art celebrity. Business has never been better.” He smiled at Victor. “With all the increased traffic, Stephen’s pen-and-ink drawings sold out in a day.”
    “That’s because he’s incredibly talented.” Victor had every right to look pleased. His sub, Stephen, had an insane amount of artistic skill.
    Last month, Stephen had signed an exclusive contract for Lindi to carry