Christmastime at Papa Lee's Read online

  In all his twenty-eight years of life, nothing had ever felt more right than this. He hoped Casey realized he was never letting him go, no matter what his stupid ass had said this morning. He was lucky Casey had seen straight through his bullshit act and called him on it.

  Sleep evaded him as he lay there in the dark. Way too many things rushed through his mind like a river of unwanted thoughts.

  Every time he closed his eyes, flashes of the night he was beaten swamped him. His memory was trying to tell him or show him something he couldn’t quite get a handle on, and until he did, Marty knew he was going to keep getting bombarded by all those nightmarish images. The laughter and voices rang through his head as they taunted him with every savage blow they forced upon his body. Words meant to hurt and humiliate and warn.

  Warn him about what, he couldn’t remember. But he knew whatever they said would one day come back to him, and then he would know the reason behind what happened to him.

  Everything happened for a reason, and he was almost beaten to death because someone was sending him a message. Or maybe it was a message intended for his family. The words flooded his mind in snippets, never making a whole sentence and never making any sense whatsoever.

  The fight to stay awake was a losing battle, and sooner than he wished Marty fell asleep to the tumultuous and nauseating memories trying to destroy him from the inside out. This time he tried to focus on what was happening. There were four guys hitting kicking and punching, but there was another, someone who never touched him at all. He was the one who shouted all the words which were meant to hurt him more than all the physical pain he was receiving. They were hard and filled with such savage rage. They were aimed at him but not for him.

  Why?

  Marty’s eyes flew open, and his whole body felt like one big heartbeat as panic swallowed him whole. He knew. He knew the why of it all. He knew now why he was targeted, and it was for none of the reasons they or the police thought. His family was going to be upset when they found out. Picking up his cell phone, he punched the number for Officer Houston and filled him in on what he finally remembered. Closing the cell, he placed it back on the bedside table after he had gotten the policeman’s promise he would come over first thing in the morning when he had to tell his family.

  § § §

  For the first time ever, Papa Lee’s had a closed sign on a day they were supposed to be open. Marty had no trouble getting everyone to come to the house. His ma had just reheated the coffee pot when there was a knock at the door, and Marty saw it was already nine am when he looked at the clock. His father looked grim as he opened the door and let Officers Baker and Houston in. Casey sat on the sofa beside him, holding his hand as both men took a seat and waited for Marty to talk.

  “Marty, do you want to tell them or would you like me to?”

  Officer Houston asked gently.

  Marty shook his head and sighed when he felt the grip on his hand tighten a fraction. “I remembered something last night. Well, at least I think I remembered something about why this happened to me.”

  “What did you remember?” his dad asked.

  “This has nothing to do with John or Casey. I think it has all to do with Sonny winning the bake-off. I think Robert Jones is the person behind it. I remember them yelling at me about the fact Sonny won, when it should have gone to someone else. They were yelling about how Carmichael’s Bakery was robbed by ‘an upstart wannabe baker’ and his ‘fruity little café.’” He focused on the pale look on his brother’s face. “I don’t think they were after me at all. I think it was you, Sonny. I think they meant to get you and got me by mistake. In the dark they couldn’t tell us apart.”

  “But why?” Sonny shuddered.

  “Because up until a couple of days before John quit, you had been working closings, and I had been on openings with Dad. I don’t think it even crossed their minds we alternate shifts. They didn’t want you heading to the bake-off in the New Year. With you out of the way, Carmichael’s entrant would go in your place seeing as they came in second. They wanted to be able to defend the title they had for the previous five years. They weren’t prepared for and never suspected you would beat them, as you’re a nobody who decided to enter on a whim.”

  Marty watched his brother as tears of pain flowed down his cheeks. He understood it wasn’t Sonny’s fault, but Sonny would blame himself anyway. Marty also knew he needed to knock the pity party Sonny was about to launch into right on its head.

  “Listen, this is what you’re going to do. You’re going to practice night and day and come up with the perfect thing to blow the minds of the judges and show absolutely everyone how good you are. Sonny Lee, the best damn pastry chef this side of the world. Your pies are going to put Clayton’s Bay on the face of the map. People are going to come here and beg for a taste of the creations you and Dad come up with.”

  Sonny nodded and sat back into the recliner and listened to what Officer Houston had to say, even though Marty knew his brother was far from being able to forgive himself.

  “This morning, we went around and spoke with the owners and staff of Carmichael’s Bakery and found out Marty was correct. He was a mistaken hit. Sonny was the real target. Five of the staff, as well as Mr. Carmichael himself, were taken into custody and charged with battery. They’re still in custody, each and every one of them swearing it was the fault of the others and not them.”

  “It’s finally over then?” Casey asked.

  “For now. When it goes to trial you’ll all be called in to give testimony as to what you know.” Officer Baker said with a harsh grin aimed directly at him, “I know it’s not much to smile about, but at least you all know now there’ll be no further actions to come. The young men who beat you up the first time all handed themselves in, not wanting to be blamed for the second assault, and they’ll be going to court as well. All in all I say this ended up pretty well.” Officer Baker faltered as he saw the state of shock on everyone’s face, and Marty knew he was wearing one as well.

  “What I meant is at least now you’ll be able to go on with your life not waiting for the next beating to happen.”

  Officer Houston groaned. “What he means is he will shut up now before he sticks his foot any further down his throat.”

  This got a chuckle out of the room, though Marty didn’t find much to laugh about. His mind raced with what had happened and what was going to happen next. He knew by the look of devastation on his brother’s face, Sonny was going to continue to blame himself for what happened, and it was going to drive him nuts. The fact that Casey hadn’t let go of his hand was a sure indication now the unknown was no longer on the table, and he was going to wage the war to keep Marty. At least this was one war Marty knew he wasn’t going to fight. With a squeeze of his hand, he tried to reassure his soon-to-be lover everything was going to be okay now.

  And it would be.

  After the police left, Marty sat and thought about the next big step in their lives and the secret he had been keeping from Casey. Not that it was really bad but maybe one Casey might not appreciate when he found out about it. As secrets went, this was a big one, and oddly it was going much better than he anticipated.

  He honestly hoped everything didn’t backfire in his face when the big reveal came around. He’d started to do this the night he heard Casey’s story in his parents’ kitchen. If things did backfire, he hoped Casey would be able to forgive him.

  “What’s got you thinking so hard?”

  He grinned as Casey dropped onto the sofa beside him.

  “Nothing. I’m only thinking. I can’t believe it’s finally over. Our lives can get back on track now.”

  A wary look appeared on Casey’s face. “Does that mean you’re going to stop pushing me away?”

  Marty stretched his arm out and snagged it around Casey’s shoulders, pulling the younger man into his sides. “Yeah, it does.”

  His voice softened. “I didn’t want you to get hurt. I know, looking back now it
was a stupid thing to do, but I wasn’t really thinking straight.”

  “You weren’t thinking at all,” Casey snorted. “If you were, you’d have seen I’m an adult and can choose for myself who I want to be with. Can I ask you something?” The shy way he glanced at Marty before dropping his gaze tore at Marty’s heart and made his chest constrict painfully.

  “Yeah, you can ask me anything.” Marty replied.

  “Why did you listen to everyone when they told you not to date me?”

  “Jeez, come out swinging why don’t you?” Marty joked even though he knew it was no laughing matter. The seriousness on Casey’s face let Marty know his actions had really hurt the other man. “To be honest, I don’t know. Usually I would have told them all to go to hell, but at the time they all seemed like they had your best interest at heart. And then I got to thinking that maybe they thought I wasn’t good enough for you or that the age gap was too large and I was robbing you of your youth. After a while — after I had already started to push you away, I didn’t know how to undo what I had done; I guess I ignored my feelings for you, or at least I tried to.”

  “What you did hurt me, you know.”

  “I know, and I’m sorry. If I could go back and change the way I went about things, I would.” Marty leaned back into the sofa, pulling Casey tighter against his frame. “I have a lot to try and make up for. If you’re willing, I’ll try not to fuck up so badly again. I only had your best interest at heart.”

  Casey moved slightly, and Marty took the opportunity to swoop in and claim his mouth in a kiss. At first he thought Casey was going to pull away, but then Casey fell into the kiss, parting his lips to allow his tongue entry, and Marty relaxed. The taste of the man in his arms was exquisite, and it called to Marty more than he ever thought it would. He realized in that exact moment, he could quite happily drown in the taste of the other man. As the kiss progressed, Marty’s body started reacting, and his cock tented the loose sweats he was wearing. His nipples felt like they had been hooked to an electrical socket, and the merest touch would have him bursting into flames. It was about this time he realized Casey’s hands had begun to wander all over his stomach and chest. Getting carried away in the kiss turned out to be not that good when he lifted his hand and the plaster cast slammed into the side of Casey’s face. They broke apart as Casey hissed in pain.

  “Oh, Casey, I’m damn sorry.” Marty tenderly touched the cheek he accidentally abused.

  “I know you didn’t mean to hit me.” Casey grinned. “But just so you know, I’m telling your mom that you are bashing me to be able to have your wicked way with me.”

  “You wouldn’t,” Marty gasped.

  “The hell I wouldn’t, if it gets me the sympathy vote and an extra chocolate muffin. I’ll be telling tales to get my way.”

  “You’re mean; do you know that? Here I am with a broken leg and arm, and you are gonna use me to get more baked goods.”

  “You bet your sweet bippy I am,” Casey laughed.

  “‘Sweet bippy’? Who are you and what have you done with my beautiful goth boy?” Marty asked in mock seriousness.

  Casey blushed, “It was something my mom used to always say to my dad.”

  “Okay, tell me, what’s a bippy?” Marty didn’t like the sadness filling his boyfriend’s eyes.

  “Honestly, I have no fricken clue.” Casey’s forehead scrunched as if in deep thought, and to Marty it made the man look even cuter and sexier that he already thought.

  “You have beautiful eyes,” Marty said without thinking.

  The surprised look he received was nice, especially the way Casey’s eyes grew large, and his mouth dropped open. This alone made Marty damn happy he couldn’t have stopped the smile even if he had wanted to. “Don’t be shocked. Even with the make-up, which, by the way, I find as sexy as hell, you’re one very beautiful-looking man.”

  “Men are not beautiful,” Casey blushed again.

  “Yes, they are. To me you’re very beautiful, and I’m damn glad I have the chance to have you in my life.”

  A sound from the direction of the kitchen brought Marty back to reality. He had almost completely forgotten they weren’t in the house alone. His parents were out in the kitchen making brunch. Sonny had gone into the café, making sure at least the evening shift would still be able to go ahead. Marty had rung a few minutes ago and Sonny had let him know their customers understood the need for the closure and were glad the men who hurt Marty were under arrest. He wondered how long it would take before Sonny stopped trying to make up for what had happened to him.

  “Thank you.” Casey pressed his cheek gently against Marty’s chest, and Marty couldn’t help but feel how right it was. Somehow, someone decided Casey was to be Marty’s reward for what he endured lately, and Marty was going to hold on and never let go. He never believed he would find that special someone, but after being around Casey, he came to understand he didn’t have to look any further. He already had that special someone in his life in the form of Kevin “Casey” Chambers, and he was the luckiest damn guy alive. Hence the reason he wanted to make this Christmas a special time for Casey.

  Chapter Seven

  Frustration was not a feeling Casey enjoyed. Even though Marty opened up and let him into his life, there was still something happening which Marty was keeping close to his chest. Casey got the feeling Catherine was involved in whatever Marty was planning. Being down one guy at work, everyone else had to pull on their big-boy or -girl pants and step up, which meant he had no spare time to ferret out what was going on. John had come around seeking his job back, and Graeme had told him thanks but no thanks. They didn’t need his kind of drama in the café.

  The weeks were rolling by, and Christmas was now only days away. They managed to decorate not only the outside of the café but the house as well. Casey found out that Christmastime at Papa Lee’s was a very big occasion where everyone pulled their weight. Deliveries were being brought in from many of the surrounding businesses, who were all willing to donate items of food or something to add to the gift bags for their soon-to-be guests.

  The grocer was supplying a whole heap of fresh vegetables to put toward the meal and even signed on to be part of the help for the day. Last year when Casey attended as one of the homeless, he never realized quite how much went into the day and its organization. It was nice this year to be on the inside and have his chance to pay everyone back for what they had given him.

  Casey realized this was exactly the way the community seemed to feel and why they were all willing to help the Lees put on the day.

  The roster was quickly filling up with volunteers who were willing to participate on the day. Casey learned there was more than one lunch time provided. They worked in shifts as there were three meals cooked and served on the day, four if you include the one for all the volunteers. This year Casey was looking forward to the whole day. It was the first time he had been excited about Christmas in a long time. The rush of preparation was a good thing as it took his mind off his own family — the family who no longer wanted him.

  But none of it explained what secret Marty was keeping from him. Every time he tried to wheedle it out of him, Marty would clam up and tell him it was a surprise. Casey hated surprises, but he didn’t tell Marty so. He hoped Marty hadn’t gotten him anything big or expensive for Christmas, as he hadn’t spent a lot on Marty. He had gotten him a coat to replace the one which had been covered in blood. Most of his pay was still being left in his account where it was quickly adding to the total to pay back his father and Astrid. He had gotten each of the staff and the Lees something small and desperately hoped it was going to be enough of a thank you for the family who picked him up and saved him by offering him a new life. He knew deep in his heart he would be forever grateful for everything they had done for and given him.

  His thoughts came back to the present when Sonny slammed through the staff room door and dropped yet another box of supplies onto the floor with the rest of the ever growin
g pile stacked against the wall. Sonny said this year they almost doubled the contributions from other community businesses.

  “So, are you going to tell me what your brother’s up to?”

  Casey asked as soon as Sonny unloaded his burden.

  Sonny turned and looked at him, “Casey, if I knew I would tell you, but I haven’t got a clue.”

  “Haven’t you got that twin bond thing where you automatically know what is going on with each other?” Casey asked gesturing wildly with his hands as if that was going to help his cause.

  The roll of Sonny’s eyes said it all. “What drugs are you on? No, for your information Marty and I do not in fact share some secret twin bond.”

  “Well it would be much easier if you did,” Casey said with a grin.

  “Sorry, you’ll have to find out on your own what my brother is up to.”

  “He and your mom, they both have their heads together and are working on whatever it is. Every time I ask they give me the runaround or plead innocent.”

  A wicked smile graced Sonny’s face. “Then I guess you’re plumb out of luck and will have to wait like the rest of us to find out what they are up to. Knowing Mom and Marty, it won’t be too bad.”

  Casey didn’t get to answer as Sonny left the room, leaving Casey alone to finish adding the newly delivered items to the rapidly growing Christmas list. There were going to be some very happy people to go along with the full bellies this year.

  § § §

  When Casey helped lock up and finally made his way home, he was so fricken tired he could hardly keep his eyes open and was thankful Deidre gave him a lift. Considering he didn’t have a license or own a car and seeing as Graeme’s was still out of commission, they were down to sharing Marty’s car.