In the Grey by Claudia Hall Christian Read Free Book Online

kind and caring father. His eyes echoed
his love for Max. “He might not have a choice. You heard him. He
was manipulated into it.”
    “ Because he’s gay,” Max
said. “Don’t ask, don’t tell.”
    “ Precisely,” Ben
said.
    Alex hugged
Max.
    “ Do you want to do it?”
Ben pointed to Alex. “It’s either you or Patrick.”
    “ Why not you?” Alex
asked.
    “ Because I’m going to find
out why the hell Wyatt Klaussen, MD, PhD was programmed,” Ben
looked furious. “He’s family now, and God damn it if I’m going
to . . .”
    The toilet flushed inside
the bathroom. Wyatt opened the door.
    “ I’d prefer Alex, if
that’s all right,” Wyatt said. “I trust her completely, and I’d
rather not do it in front of my fathers-in-law.”
    “ You don’t have to do
this,” Max said.
    “ Did I split?” Wyatt asked
Ben.
    “ Yes, son,” Ben
said.
    “ You were disorganized at
first – some there, some here – and then you switched,” Alex
said.
    “ You brought me back?”
Wyatt asked Alex.
    “ I did,” Ben said. “It
looks like you have a complete separate identity. I’m
sorry.”
    “ Then I have to do this,”
Wyatt put his arms on Max’s shoulders. “I want to be able to trust
myself with you, with our children, with the family. I can’t do
that now.”
    “ We’ll leave you,” Ben
said. He looked at Max and added, “Ten minutes.”
    Max gave a sad nod. Alex
followed Ben out of the room.
    FFFFFF
    Saturday, early
morning
    November 6 – 3:21 a.m.
MDT
    Denver,
Colorado
     
    Raz leaned back against
the hot tub in a small window-lined room behind the kitchen of the
house next to the rooming house. He gazed up at the stars through
the line of windows in the ceiling and let the warm water work on
his tight sore body. He felt a nudge and looked up to see his
girlfriend, Samantha Hargreaves, holding out a full glass of red
wine to him. He smiled and took the glass. She slipped off her silk
robe and got in the tub with him.
    “ How was it?” she
asked.
    “ Awful,” he said. “One of
the most painful things I’ve ever been involved with.”
    “ Can you tell me why it
was so bad?” Samantha asked.
    “ I can always tell you
about me,” Raz smiled and put his hand on her thigh.
    “ Why was it bad for you?”
Samantha asked.
    “ Because I like Wyatt,”
Raz said. “And I know Alex likes Wyatt, but
she . . .”
    He shook his head and
emptied his glass. Samantha smiled. She reached over and refilled
his glass.
    “ I brought two bottles,”
Samantha said.
    He kissed her.
    “ Alex can be so fierce, so
tough,” Samantha said. “And all the while, she seems so incredibly
kind.”
    “ I could hear the
kindness, her caring for Wyatt, and she just kept pressing,” Raz
said. “I would have let up but . . . I would have
been wrong.”
    “ I watched while she
interrogated the senator, you know the
guy . . .”
    “ Last summer,” Raz
said.
    “ She was awesome,”
Samantha said.
    “ She wasn’t very nice to
the senator,” Raz said.
    “ No, she was not,”
Samantha said. “I just . . . I know what you
mean.”
    Raz put his arm around her
and closed his eyes.
    “ Whatcha thinking?”
Samantha asked.
    “ I’m thinking this hot tub
was a wonderful idea,” Raz said. “I’m thinking I’m glad you and
Colin removed the concrete behind your home. The trees are
gorgeous. With the fence down, you can see our little farm and your
peaceful forest. I love the privacy of being inside and still being
able to see the stars. Colin’s upstairs?
    “ I think so,” Samantha
shrugged. “His entrance is open now, so I don’t see him come and go
anymore.”
    She leaned her head
against his shoulder.
    “ It was really nice of you
to wait up for me,” Raz said.
    “ I knew it would be hard,”
Samantha said. “I wanted to help if I could.”
    “ Mmm,” he looked at her.
“I appreciate it. You put this hot tub in for us. You wait up for
me. You don’t feel threatened if I sleep at