Running From Empty (Men of the Vault Book 3) Read online

  The front door leads to a sterile looking lobby, similar to my dentist’s office. A cute guy with blond hair and startling blue eyes smiles at me as I walk in. “Hi there. Welcome to The Vault.”

  The Vault? This place doesn’t look like any vault I’ve ever seen before, but I don’t care about that right now. I give the man my most charming smile. “Thank you. I’m here to see Rodman Tanner, please.”

  The man’s smile drops for just a moment, and he grabs on to the edge of his desk. “I’m sorry, sir. Mr. Tanner hasn’t been feeling well and is home right now. Is there something I can help you with?”

  “I need to see him. Can you get me his address?”

  Before he can answer, a burly man dressed in all black with an earpiece and a clipboard enters the room behind the desk. “Asher, I need you to help me with something.” He looks at me and steps forward. “Is there something I can do for you?”

  I ignore the new guy, who is obviously some kind of security guard, and keep my attention focused on the young man in front of me. “Please, it’s important. If you can just call Rod and tell him Landon Johnson is here to see him, I’m sure he’ll tell you it’s okay to give me his address.”

  The young man, Asher, turns to the guard and they exchange subtle nods. “Just one moment please.”

  Both men disappear from the reception area, and I have a seat. There is really nothing in the office to indicate what kind of business this is, but the presence of an attractive and very buff security guard has my hackles raised. There are only a few reasons to have on-site security in a warehouse in the middle of the Nevada desert on a Saturday night, and I’m not naïve enough to believe that whatever going on here is legal.

  Now more desperate than ever to reach Ian, I call his phone directly…again. It’s been going to voicemail, but I pray he finally picks up. When he doesn’t, I hang up and send him a text. Call me urgently. 911.

  Ian calls me back immediately. “What’s wrong, Dad? Are you okay?”

  “Where are you? Are you at The Vault? I’m here now, and I’ll tear this fucking place apart until I find you.”

  “You’re at The Vault?” Ian sounds shocked and scared.

  There’s some background noise, and then a voice I never thought I’d hear again speaks to me over the line. “Hi, Landon. It’s Tanner. I think we need to talk.”

  “No shit, Rod. Where is my son? If you’ve got him wrapped up in some kind of sex club thing, I’m going to fucking kill you.”

  “He’s fine, Landon. He’s at my apartment on the Strip. Do you want to come to us? Or do you want me to pick you up?”

  I breathe out a sigh of relief at the fact that Ian isn’t here. Not that I know exactly where here is, but I do know it’s no place I want my teenage son to be around. “I’ll come to you. What’s the address?”

  9

  Ian

  Dad is here. No, it’s much worse than that. He’s at The Vault. I close my eyes as I pace back and forth in front of the windows in Tanner’s living room. “He’s going to kill me.”

  Tanner is just as worried about facing my dad, but I can tell he’s trying to be strong for me. “You haven’t done anything wrong. He’ll probably be just as disgusted by what I do for a living as you were, but he’ll get over it. Obviously, he just wants to see that you’re alive and not being held against your will.”

  I open my eyes and look right at Tanner. “You don’t understand. He’s never gonna let me stay if he knows that you’re a pimp.”

  Tanner rolls his eyes at my use of the term. I guess that’s not exactly the right word to describe what he does, but it’s as close as I can come up with under the circumstances.

  “He can’t make you leave, Ian. You’re an adult, and if you want to stay here, you can stay here. I’ll do my best to convince him that you’re in a safe environment, but ultimately, the decision is up to you.” He takes a few steps forward until he’s just a foot away from me. “And I mean that sincerely. It’s up to you. If you decide you want to go back to Denver, I won’t be hurt or upset. I’ll still give you enough money to get your own place, and I’ll pay for school if you want to go back, so don’t feel like you have to choose between us. He’s the dad you’ve known your whole life, and Denver is where your friends are. I’ll understand if you decide to go back. But I want you to know, you’ll always have a home with me. Whether you stay now or come back in the future, you’ll never have to choose between us.”

  The weight of Tanner’s words is crushing as I drop onto the couch and lean back, listening to the secondhand tick on my watch. Time seems to be moving slower than it ever has before. Dad will be here soon, and I have no idea what I’m going to say to him.

  What if he tries to beat up Tanner? Both men are in pretty good shape, but Tanner probably hits the gym more often than Dad has in the past few years. I turn my head and peek at Tanner. “Just promise you won’t hurt him if he tries to kick your ass.”

  Tanner looks surprised for a second and then busts out laughing. “Yeah, I can see him trying, but don’t worry. No one will get hurt.”

  Tanner’s eyes are focused toward the window, but his smile doesn’t fade. It looks like he’s thinking about a happy memory, and I want to ask what it is. After a minute, I give in to my curiosity, desperate for any kind of distraction. “What are you smiling about?”

  Tanner startles as if suddenly realizing I’m still sitting right next to him. “Oh, just thinking about this time your dad tried to kick my ass because he thought I cheated during a game of poker.”

  “Did you?”

  Tanner laughs harder, finally meeting my gaze. “Hell yeah, I did. I couldn’t beat him without cheating, and he knew it.” Tanner waggles his eyebrows. “But I was really good at cheating, so he could never catch me, even though he knew I was doing it.”

  “So, what happened when he tried to beat you up?”

  Tanner smirks and a faint blush fills his cheeks. “I let him. Just like always.”

  “Did Mom cheat on him to be with you?”

  The smile quickly fades from Tanner’s face and he looks down at his folded hands in his lap. “No, but…it’s complicated. I think Landon should be the one to talk to you about it.”

  I pound my fist against the sofa cushion then stand up and walk toward the window, resuming my pacing. “That’s what they always said too. What is with you guys and your fucking secrets? Why won’t anyone just tell me the truth? Did you rape her?”

  Tanner’s jaw drops, and he looks appalled. “God no. Nothing like that.”

  “Then why the fucking secrecy? Just tell me! I came here for answers, and you’re no different than my dad.”

  The house phone rings, and we both look at it, knowing it’s the lobby. Tanner picks it up and confirms he’s expecting a guest while I take a quick look around the apartment to make sure I haven’t left any messes out.

  It takes several minutes for Dad to get to the door from the lobby, but when we finally hear him knock, my stomach drops, and I assume I’m as pale as Tanner. We both take a deep breath and prepare for a conversation neither of us want to have.

  I just hope I can be strong enough to do what’s right for me, not what’s right for everyone else.

  10

  Tanner

  Opening the door is one of the hardest things I’ve had to do in a long time. As soon as that gorgeous face is staring back at me, all those feelings from when I was a kid come rushing back. Landon was the love of my life. The only person I’ve truly loved as more than a brother or a friend.

  But the beautiful brown eyes staring back at me aren’t the same. These are filled with hate and disgust and hurt. I want to drop to my knees and beg for forgiveness and understanding but Landon’s gaze doesn’t linger on me for long. His eyes immediately lock on Ian and he rushes to his son.

  “God, Ian, are you okay?” He pulls Ian into his arms and holds him tight. Both men are a close match in size, but Landon has at least thirty pounds of muscle on him.
/>   “I’m fine, Dad.” Ian sounds like an annoyed teenager, but I can hear the love in his voice. “I’m sorry I took off.”

  “Did anything happen to you?” He holds Ian by the shoulders and takes a step back to get a good look at him. “What have you been doing here?”

  “He hasn’t been doing anything, Landon.” I walk toward the fridge and open the door. “Can I get you a beer or something?”

  “A beer?” Landon steps in front of Ian as if protecting him from me. The move stings. He really thinks I’m a monster. “Is that how you recruit people? You get ’em drunk and send them out to your compound to do god-knows-what with god-knows-who?”

  “Dad, it’s not like that.” Ian places his hand on Landon’s shoulder. “Just let us explain.”

  It’s hard to look at Landon now that the smile I used to live for is a scowl that I’ve never seen aimed at me before. The man I loved has never hated me the way he does right now. And I’ve never hated myself and my choices more than in this moment.

  “Fine. Start explaining.”

  I pull two bottles of water from the fridge and put them on the coffee table before heading to the bar. Landon might not want a drink now, but he could change his mind, so I pour two glasses of scotch. If he doesn’t, I’ll drink both. With the drinks in my hand, I make the ominous walk toward the sofa and take a seat. This is going to be one of the hardest conversations I’ve ever had to have, and I don’t want to be completely sober for it.

  Landon and Ian both turn to me, waiting for me to speak. I don’t know why I’m on trial here since they were the ones who showed up on my doorstep, but I can understand the fear and confusion Landon must be feeling right now so I cut him some slack and start talking.

  “I’ve invested in many businesses over the years. Some are more politically correct than others…and some are more legal than others. The Vault is a business I co-own with a few investors, but I manage the day-to-day activities.” I can’t look at either man, so I stare at the glass in my hand, swirling around the liquid as I continue. “It’s a male brothel offering extremely wealthy and highly vetted clients access to healthy and discreet men who are willing to do just about anything. The men I hire come to me eager for the job. I pay a base salary of two hundred thousand dollars for a one-year commitment. All their expenses are covered and many men end their year with a half million dollar paycheck.”

  “No shit?” Ian sounds awestruck at that number and both Landon and I shoot him warning glares. “What? I just didn’t know it was that kind of money.”

  “Don’t get any ideas, mister.” Landon’s nostrils are flaring as his anger rises again. Clearly, I’m not making him feel any better.

  “When Ian came in, I knew he wasn’t right for that place. I don’t hire vir…innocent men because they don’t fully understand what they’re signing up for.”

  Landon looks at his son with wide eyes, but Ian’s gaze is firmly fixed on the fireplace. I feel bad for embarrassing him, but we need to hash this out now so we can all move forward.

  “Anyway, the environment is safe and very well controlled. My boys are rarely injured and in the rare situation that someone really needs to back out of their contract early, I’ve never forced someone to stay.”

  Landon’s throat is thick with emotion when he turns to his son. “You were going to sell yourself to be close to him?”

  “No.” Ian’s response is quick but doesn’t feel genuine. After glancing at me, he exhales and closes his eyes. “Maybe.”

  “God, Ian.” Landon stands up, digging his fingers into his hair and yanking in frustration. “Do you really hate me so much that you’d whore yourself out just to get away from me?”

  “Dammit, Dad.” Ian stands up and gets right in Landon’s face. My instincts want me to get between them, but this is a moment between a father and son, and I haven’t yet earned the right to participate in it. “It’s not about you. It’s about me and him.” He points at me but doesn’t look my way. “I wanted to know who my birth father was. I wanted to know why he was with Mom when it should have been you. Only you! You won’t tell me anything, so I hoped he might. God, why can’t you understand this is about me knowing how I came to be.”

  Landon’s whole posture deflates and he falls into the armchair on the other side of the sofa. “Let me see if there’s a room available in this hotel and then we can talk. I’ll answer any question you have. I promise.”

  “You don’t have to leave. You can stay here.” I motion toward my room. “You can have my bed, and I’ll take the couch.”

  “I’m not leaving with you, Dad.” Ian sits on the sofa, evenly spaced between me and Landon. “Not until you’re both honest with me.”

  Landon reluctantly looks at me and a hint of the young man I used to know finally peeks through his disdain. I hold his gaze, not wanting to ever look away. Even now, after all these years apart, he’s still the most handsome man I’ve ever seen. He seems to know he’s not going to win this battle, so he relaxes back against the chair and turns to Ian. “Fine, what do you want to know?”

  “Did you love my mom?” Ian turns his grey eyes toward me, daring me to lie to him. “Be honest.”

  I want to give him the answer he deserves to hear, the answer that should be true of his birth parents, but I won’t lie to him. “No.”

  Ian turns toward Landon. “Did you or was that a lie too?”

  Landon looks beaten down and terrified that he’s losing his son. “Of course I did, son. I always loved her…just not the way she deserved. We weren’t meant to be together for the long haul. But I did love her.”

  Ian wipes a tear from his eye then turns back to me. “So how did it happen? I’ve seen pictures of them together before I was conceived. How did you…impregnate her.”

  I don’t know what to say. I won’t lie, but I don’t know how much of this story Landon wants to share. I look at him, holding his gaze until he nods once, giving me permission to speak freely. “I didn’t love your mother, but she and I both loved your father.”

  “What?” Ian looks between us, obviously confused. “What are you saying?”

  Landon looks like he’s about to hyperventilate so I force the story out so he doesn’t have to. “Your mom loved Landon very much, but she knew he and I were…close. One night, she invited me to join them. We were young and stupid and…careless. That’s the one and only time I’ve ever been with a woman.”

  “It was?” Landon’s whispered question draws my attention back to him.

  I give him a sad smile, surprised he’d even ask a question like that. “I couldn’t have done it if you weren’t there, Lan. It was always you. You knew that.”

  “Then what happened?” Ian is sitting on the edge of the couch, leaning forward like he’s listening to a good mystery as the culprit is about to be revealed.

  “We got caught,” Landon says, pulling Ian’s attention toward him. “And Rod had to leave his home. He wanted me to go with him.” Landon’s eyes focus on mine, and I couldn’t look away if I wanted to. “But I was too scared to leave. So, he left me alone, and I thought I’d never see him again.”

  “You really didn’t know about me?” Ian asks me.

  I don’t want to end the connection I have with Landon, but this is Ian’s moment. He deserves to have all his questions answered…just as much as Landon and I do. “I swear I didn’t. I don’t know what I would have done back then, but I swear I would have been there sooner if I’d known about you.”

  “Okay.” Ian leans back in his seat, seemingly satisfied with what he’s learned.

  “That’s it?” Landon turns to his son. “That’s all you want to know?”

  “I guess…” Ian shrugs. “I mean, I wanted to know I was conceived out of love. Since you’ve never really been in love with Mom, I hoped Tanner was.” He looks back at me and smirks. “But since you two loved each other, I guess that’s good enough.”

  I smile and peek over at Landon.

  He’s got an i
ncredulous look on his face as he slowly shakes his head. “Okay, good to know.”

  I agree completely. With both of them.

  11

  Landon

  It was only ten when we finally hashed out everything, but having driven for almost thirteen hours, I felt like I’d been up for days. As promised, Rod set me up in his room after grabbing an extra comforter to sleep on the couch. He offered to change the sheets, but I told him not to worry about it. I pretended it was because I was too tired to wait, but just the idea of sleeping between his sheets with his smell still on them had me hard from the moment I walked into his room.

  It was a good call.

  Rod’s clean and spicy scent surrounds me from the pillows to the warmth coming from the blankets. I left my boxers on when I first got into bed, but now that I’m in it, my cock is so hard I can’t ignore it. As if there’s a camera watching me, I discreetly wiggle out of my boxers and kick them to the foot of the bed. Then I wrap my right hand around my throbbing length and begin to stroke.

  It’s been too long since I’ve come, so the friction feels amazing. Hooking the edge of my boxers around my toe, I pull them up until I can reach them with my left hand. I’ll need to use them to keep the sheets dry when I get there.

  And I’m almost there.

  Rod looks so good with his broad chest and those steely gray eyes that always made my breath hitch when he was looking at me in that special way he reserved for only me. I knew I loved him even before I knew I was gay. If I wasn’t gay, I think I would still have fallen in love with Rod because that’s just the kind of guy he was. Even now, despite the disgusting way he earns his money, I still see that sweet kid who used to help me with my homework and finish my chores for me so we could hang out together on the weekends.