Gambling Debts 33/?
Chapter 33
They slept in the playroom but in the morning they had to face the world again. It was kind of a miracle that they hadn't been disturbed during their Wednesday with what was going on around them and Derek had a feeling that he had to thank Isaac for that.
Before they went to their rooms to get ready for the day Stiles drew him in for a kiss and before they parted, he brushed his thumb over Derek's still sore nipple. The lotion was doing its job, keeping his abused flesh raw and tender.
Derek gasped but Stiles just smirked at him and sent him off to get ready for the day.
In his bathroom Derek debated for a whole minute if he should take a shower or not but in the end he just washed up at the sink. Then he put on the tightest undershirt he had. The stretch of the fabric against his nipples sent a tingle down to his groin. He would feel it with every breath, with every move over the day.
Then he hurried to get dressed and join Stiles for breakfast.
"How do you feel?" Stiles asked, sipping his coffee.
"I didn't wash off the lotion." Derek said and Stiles spilled his coffee.
"You …?" He spluttered. Then his eyes wandered down to Derek's chest. Derek squirmed under that gaze which only sparked the throbbing in his nipples.
"Can I?" Stiles asked and before Derek could even figure out what he was talking about, Stiles was out of his seat and standing behind Derek, his hands on Derek's shoulders.
"Yes." Derek let his head fall against Stiles' stomach.
Stiles' fingertips whispered over his shirt, just the ghost of a touch, and then they brushed over his nipples. Derek's breath hitched.
Stiles gave them a sharp flick with his thumbs and Derek couldn't help but buck his hips. He had been half-hard since he'd put on the undershirt but his cock was rapidly filling now.
"I want to blow you." Stiles breathed into his ear. They weren't in the playroom, Derek wasn't wearing his wrist cuff, this was just them, Stiles and Derek.
As an answer he turned sideways on his chair and let his legs fall open.
They were late for their first meeting of the day but they both had stupid grins on their faces when they met with Isaac.
"I don't want to know." Isaac told them after one look at them. For the whole meeting he refused to meet their eyes and it was rather amusing but Derek had trouble focusing, every breath was a reminder of last night, but he even managed to contribute to what they were discussing.
Then Detective Morgan wanted to see them and Derek dreaded her visit. He knew that she couldn't pin anything on him and Stiles had once again assured him that he had his back, he would tell the police that they had spent the night together if it turned out that somehow the log files weren't enough to eliminate Derek as a suspect.
Detective Morgan didn't even mention that possibility, so it was likely that she just had shot in every direction in hope to hit a target, but now after the police had time to actually work on the case, she told them that the email hadn't come from somewhere inside the Red.
Which ruled out Derek and everybody else who had worked the early shift but didn't really help them.
"We're looking into what you told us." She said to Stiles and Derek could only guess that she was talking about Andrew. "It's possible that this was a random act which has nothing to do with the casino or you, Mr. Stilinski, personally but it's too early to rule it out."
"Our head of security has already tightened security measures and he won't let me go out without at least a bodyguard. And apparently my werewolf assistant doesn't count." He gestured at Derek who was standing behind his shoulder.
That had been one of the things they had been discussing with Isaac and one Derek had agreed on. He might be a werewolf but he wasn't a trained bodyguard. He didn't know what to look out for or how to react to a threat. Sure, he knew how to use his claws in a fight but that didn't mean that he would be able to protect Stiles. And if he was honest, that was a responsibility he was glad to leave for somebody else to carry.
Detective Morgan frowned at the word assistant and Derek wondered what kind of rumors she had heard about him over the last two days.
Turned out that the answer to that was quite some because after she had said goodbye to Stiles she asked to have a word in private with him.
"Take my office." Stiles offered. "I have a meeting with the Executive Board in five minutes. Derek, can you check in with Boyd when you're done here? I don't know what's bugging him but it sounded important."
With that he left. Detective Morgan waited until the door was closed before she turned toward Derek.
"Mr. Hale." She started but then she let her guard down and gave him a smile. "Is it okay if I call you Derek?"
Derek nodded and took Stiles' seat behind the desk. If he was right and this was about his arrangement with Stiles he wanted to sit and have the desk as a barrier between himself and the detective.
"Derek." She said, her posture more open now. "I heard a few things about you."
"Like I said, rumors." He tried to shrug it off. He was okay with people thinking those things about him. By now most of them were true anyway with the only difference that he was with Stiles because he wanted to be with him and not because he was some kind of sex slave, but he never knew how to react when people pitied him.
"Are you sleeping with Mr. Stilinski?" She asked bluntly.
Suddenly very aware of his sore nipples Derek held her gaze.
"I don't think that's any of your business." Derek said coldly. "Is there anything you want to discuss with me regarding the case you're working on?" Working with Stiles and adopting some of the lawyer talk that was essential to managing a casino came in handy now.
"Not at the moment." She looked at him with sorrow in her eyes. "If you can think of anything else, give me a call." She wasn't only talking about the case. "Derek, I can help you."
"Thank you but I don't need help." He said and, because he didn't want her to get the wrong impression of Stiles, he added: "I know what you've heard but that's not how it is. Stiles is my boss but he's also a friend."
If she were a werewolf she would be able to hear the truth in his heart-beat but he hoped that as a cop she would pick up on it.
After she had left Derek just sat in Stiles' chair for a moment longer, not sure what to think of the fact that the police knew about his arrangement with Stiles. Or better, about what everybody was supposed to think of his arrangement with Stiles. She couldn't prove anything, Derek had a contract and he got paid for his work, but that didn't mean anything. It could very well be just to cover Stiles' ass, as he'd put it.
However, Derek had other things to take care of so he went to find out what was bothering Boyd.
The police had been through the security logs and suspicious emails they had gotten lately and had probably been through some of the staff files as well. Derek didn't know because he'd been tied up and sleeping yesterday, but Stiles trusted Boyd and Isaac to take care of things on his day off.
"Derek, come in." Boyd greeted him.
"Stiles says something's bugging you?"
Boyd glared at him but then his attention was back on the screen in front of him.
"Adrian Harris." He said the name as if it left a bad taste in his mouth. Rather unusual for the composed man but Harris had called Erica a whore the first time he'd seen her and gave her leering glances every time she came into the Red. Knowing Erica, Boyd probably knew every little detail about every encounter she ever had with him.
"What's with him?" Derek dropped in the chair in front of Boyd's desk with a groan. He and that security guy would never become friends. Harris never left out a chance to give Derek a dismissive look or make a snide remark.
"He called in sick yesterday and he isn't in today either." Boyd said.
"Lucky us?"
"He hasn't been sick a day since Stiles took over the Red." Boyd informed him. "He's one of the people the Executive Board wants to stick around."
So he was one of the old guard, Derek wasn't really surprised.
"You think he's something to do with this?"
"I don't know." Boyd leaned back in his chair. "So far the only odd thing about him is that he's called in sick and that he's a douchebag in general."
Derek bit back a chuckle, hearing Boyd using words like that was just hilarious on the rare occasion it happened.
"Is there something we can do?" Derek asked. He doubted that this was all. Boyd could have informed Stiles about this over the phone.
"I'd like to have a closer look at him." He gestured at his computer. "Financial records, who he's in contact with, things like that but …"
"That's not exactly legal." Derek nodded in understanding. Issac had mentioned that Boyd could do stuff like this.
"With the police snooping around I'm not sure if I should do it right now." He finished his sentence.
Derek was pretty sure that by now the police had everything they needed from the Red but who knew if there wasn't the next threat tomorrow. Better keep their noses clean.
"Not from our system." Derek decided. "But if you happen to talk to Erica about this, she might have some ideas."
They grinned at each other in understanding.
It was possible that Harris was just sick but Derek left Boyd's office with an uneasy feeling in his stomach.
He found Stiles back at his office, nursing a cup of coffee but he had a second cup waiting for Derek. Or for himself if Derek failed to show up before he was done with his first one.
After a short briefing, Stiles found it as odd as Boyd and Derek that Harris had called in sick the day after they had gotten a bomb threat, they went through the schedule for the rest of the day.
"I should call Peter." Stiles suddenly changed the topic.
Right, his alpha was the other thing on Derek's mind.
"What are you going to tell him?" They had been over this before but knowing Stiles he had changed and added some things since then.
"Since you assist me with other stuff as well, I've decided to pay you for that." Stiles recapped his plan. "Those hours don't count for Peter's debt but he doesn't expect to get you back any time soon anyway. I won't give Peter money, I don't want to leave the impression that I'm paying him for your service." He stressed the last word. "But what you do with your money is up to you, if you want to give it to your alpha …" He made a vague gesture.
It could work. Derek could stay with Stiles and Peter would get whoever else he owed money to off his back.
Derek had thought that he would use the money Stiles was already paying him but Stiles had other plans.
"You work hard for your money." Stiles pointed out. "You've earned every cent of it. Besides, you don't want to remind Peter that you have a bank account he can check on."
Which was true. After what Peter had done to him, and had been about to do again, Derek wasn't keen on letting his alpha know that there was quite some money just sitting around in his account. So Stiles would pay him cash and he would meet Peter weekly to give him the money and have some bonding time with his alpha. It sounded like the setup for a drug deal.
Two phone calls later, one from Stiles and one from Derek, Peter had agreed to the plan and it was set.
Chapter 34
Masterpost