Worth the Risk [Wildfire 1] (The Lynn Hagen ManLove Collection) Read online

  Wildfire 1

  Worth the Risk

  Isn’t the chase half the fun? That’s what Darien thinks when he sets his sights on one of Wildfire’s investors. Sex is the only thing Darien is interested in, until a scoundrel from Matthew’s past resurfaces. Now, it’s up to Darien to pull Matthew back from the brink of self-destruction, and he doesn’t understand why he’s going out on a limb for a guy he barely knows.

  When Matthew and his friends invest in a podunk town, he has no idea what he is in for. Darien makes it known that he wants Matthew, but after a bitter betrayal from a past lover, Matthew doesn’t trust anyone. He thinks Darien isn’t worth the risk. Or so he thinks. When his life begins to spiral out of control, Matthew is shocked that it’s Darien who comes to his rescue, refusing to allow Matthew to sink into the depths of despair.

  Genre: Alternative (M/M, Gay), Contemporary

  Length: 27,061 words

  WORTH THE RISK

  Wildfire 1

  Lynn Hagen

  

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK

  WORTH THE RISK

  Copyright © 2017 by Lynn Hagen

  ISBN: 978-1-64010-559-1

  First Publication: August 2017

  Cover design by Emma Nicole

  All art and logo copyright © 2017 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.

  All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

  WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

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  PUBLISHER

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Lynn Hagen loves writing about the somewhat flawed, but lovable. She also loves a hero who can see past all the rough edges to find the shining diamond of a beautiful heart.

  You can find her on any given day curled up with her laptop and a cup of hot java, letting the next set of characters tell their story.

  For all titles by Lynn Hagen, please visit

  www.bookstrand.com/lynn-hagen

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Epilogue

  Landmarks

  Cover

  WORTH THE RISK

  Wildfire 1

  LYNN HAGEN

  Copyright © 2017

  Chapter One

  “Will you stop looking like you’re about to pass out?”

  Matthew Honeywell glanced over the town—as much as he could see from the steps of city hall—and shook his head. “I’m still not sure this was a wise investment.”

  “Too late to back out. Construction has been going on for a few weeks now. You’re heavily invested in this, just like we are,” Seoul Gardener said.

  We. Matthew and his three friends had lost their minds when they’d bought a town. Seoul had come to him with the idea six months ago, and Matthew had dragged his feet about undertaking such an enormous project. The venture wasn’t something he took lightly, and he was still unsure if he’d made the right decision.

  Dagger Sloane and Glen Hunt stood next to them everyone soaking it all in. Matthew had met Dagger through a mutual friend. They’d tried dating, but found out early on that they made better friends than lovers. Dagger was a nice enough guy, but he had a troubled past he never talked about, and Matthew had too many issues of his own.

  Glen had been Dagger’s best friend since high school, so when Dagger befriended Matthew and Seoul, Glen was just included in their group. Matthew liked Glen’s sharp business mind, and Glen had gotten all the data together on the possibility of owning Wildfire.

  Wildfire was a Podunk town, and Matthew wasn’t sure how successful it would be. Aside from rehabbing a lot of the buildings, or simply building new ones, they needed revenue to keep the town from going bust.

  Which was the reason it had been sold to them in the first place.

  “Seoul and Glen already said they’d open up a division of their companies here,” Dagger said. His real name was Dagonwise, but Dagger hated that name. He’d gotten the nickname from his mercenary days, the dagger being his favorite weapon of choice. Or so Matthew had been told. He wasn’t too sure that story was real.

  “My cousin is moving here as soon as we have the restaurant up and running,” Glen said. “And who wouldn’t want to move to a gay-friendly town?”

  All four of them had caught hell sometime in their lives for being gay, and when Seoul had brought the idea to them, he’d been excited about making the town a safe haven for those who lived an alternative lifestyle.

  But Matthew couldn’t help but worry. He felt they were putting targets on their backs by forming an LGBTQ community.

  “You worry too damn much, Matthew,” Seoul said. “You have more money than you’ll ever be able to spend. Why not do something with it besides making more?”

  “I happen to like working.” Matthew had grown up dirt-poor and had busted his ass to get where he was. He was now the president of Honeywell Corporation, a company that specialized in cutting-edge military technology. He sold weapons. Plain and simple. But he did it the legal way. Even so, that knowledge had never really let him sleep at night. He made millions with his top of the line and advanced weaponry, but for years he’d long to do something worthy with his money.

  But a town?

  Matthew was an aggressive and savvy businessman. He normally didn’t second-guess his investments.

  But a town?

  Seoul chuckled as he patted Matthew on his shoulder. “Go see the sights. There are construction workers retrofitting a few of the houses. From what Dagger tells me, most of them are hot.”

  Matthew scowled. “I didn’t buy a town to get laid.”

  “Why not?” Seoul winked at him. “I did.”

  With a roll of his eyes, Matthew headed down the steps and started up the street. The town hadn’t been completely abandoned. A few stores were open, and a few residents had clung to the hope that Wildfire would one day return to its former glory.

  How they’d survived without a steady flow of residents or income was beyond him. Matthew had offered to buy them out, but they had refused to leave the town they’d grown up in.

  Matthew passed Keefer’s Bed-and-breakfast. Mariah Keefer ran the place, and he still recalled the first night he and his friends had stayed there after they purchased Wildfire. Matthew had never met a nicer woman. The plump, middle-aged lady didn’t give a hoot who resided in Wildfire just as long as the town thrived again.

  Her words, not his.

  As Matthew passed a white house with blue trim, he noticed a few of the workers outside. One in
particular caught his eye. He wore a dark blue T-shirt, his muscles flexing as he used his power tools.

  Matthew had always been a sucker for a hardworking man, especially a muscled one. Sweat coated the back of the man’s shirt, and his jeans encased his ass nicely. Matthew quickly turned away when the worker looked up and saw him staring.

  Regardless of what Seoul said, Matthew wasn’t there to scope out prospective bed partners. Since he’d made an investment in the town, he wanted to make sure the restoration of Wildfire ran smoothly.

  He stopped when the worker headed toward him. Hot and hunky didn’t even begin to describe him. “Hi, you must be one of the investors. I’m Darien Lockmere.”

  Darien stuck out his hand. Matthew shook it. “I’m Matthew Honeywell.”

  The calluses on Darien’s hands felt rough against Matthew’s smooth palm. He held on to Darien’s hand longer than etiquette required, but Darien didn’t seem to notice.

  Finally, Matthew pulled his hand away and tucked them both in the pockets of his slacks.

  “I just wanted to introduce myself,” Darien said with a smile that could make the sun rise.

  Matthew tried hard not to stare at Darien’s thick biceps or broad chest, but his gaze roamed over the worker anyway. Darien’s chest flexed, making Matthew’s gaze snap to his gorgeous blue eyes. “It was nice meeting you.”

  “Wait.” Darien pulled his wallet from the back pocket of his faded jeans and handed Matthew a business card. “Just in case you need anything. You can call me day or night.”

  Matthew refused to acknowledge the innuendo in Darien’s words or let the seed Seoul had planted take root. Many men had tried to bed Matthew because he was wealthy, and although Matthew wasn’t averse to sex, he was careful who he slept with.

  People were shady, and some went out of their way to try to make Matthew their sugar daddy. One had even falsely accused him of rape, and Matthew still hadn’t fully recovered from that. The claim had been bullshit, but Matthew’s lawyers had advised him to pay the bastard just so William Black would go away.

  Matthew had never forced anyone to have sex with him, and he never would. But the damage had been done, and Matthew swore he would never allow another man to put him in that kind of situation again.

  Soon after the scandal, Matthew had hired Drake Winslow as his bodyguard to keep men away, or to thoroughly vet them if Matthew was interested. But ever since William, Matthew hadn’t been interested in a damn thing but work.

  And now that they were in this small-ass town, he’d told Drake he didn’t want to be followed around. Drake was currently enjoying downtime at the bed-and-breakfast, and now Matthew wasn’t so sure he should’ve left Drake behind. Darien was definitely a temptation Matthew didn’t need.

  Matthew tucked the card into the pocket of his suit jacket without looking at it. “Thanks.”

  Darien nodded and Matthew’s attention was drawn to the tattoos on the guy’s neck and just under his collar. “I’ll see you around, Mr. Honeywell.”

  Matthew doubted it. He may be an investor, but he didn’t plan on making Wildfire his home.

  * * * *

  “Dude, did you just seriously flirt with that rich guy?” Cory teased when Darien returned to his table saw. “Talk about grasping for things out of your reach.”

  Darien watched Matthew until he was out of sight. “I was just being polite.”

  “Right.” Cory and a few of the other guys snickered. “Polite. Is that what you kids are calling it these days?”

  Darien threw his pencil at Cory. The laborer was sixteen years younger than Darien, and he looked at Cory as a son, but he wasn’t in the mood for any bullshit. “Get back to work. We have too much to do and a deadline that isn’t going to wait while you joke around.”

  In truth, Darien wasn’t just one of the guys. He owned Lockmere Construction, but he just liked to work with his crew. There was something about getting sweaty while working hard at a job, and there was nothing more satisfying than knowing he’d had a hand in building something when a project was done.

  “Couple of the guys are going over to Gallagher’s after work. You wanna join us?” Cory asked.

  Darien had yet to check out the local beer-and-burger joint. “Yeah, I’ll be there.”

  As he worked, Darien couldn’t get Matthew off his mind. Something about the investor attracted him. Suits usually didn’t appeal to him, but damn if Matthew didn’t look good in one.

  And those gray eyes. Darien was sure he could get lost in them for hours. He’d nearly gotten lost in them while talking to Matthew. He was dying to peel that suit off and see the treasure hidden underneath.

  He growled to himself as he adjusted his hard cock under the denim of his jeans. It had been too long since anyone had interested him the way Matthew did.

  Darien worked until the sun began to set, then helped his men lock the tools inside the house they’d been working on. He didn’t think anyone would steal them considering they were working in what amounted to a ghost town, but it was habit. Too many times Darien had had tools stolen off jobsites. He’d learned early on to lock them away or spend all his profits replacing them.

  “Ready?” Cory asked with a wide grin.

  “Yup.” Gallagher’s wasn’t that far, so Darien opted to leave his Harley in the driveway as the group walked, horsing around and laughing along the way. Darien laughed a few times at their antics as they reached the tavern.

  The place was empty when they strode in except for a man behind the bar, watching the news on the overhead television. His green eyes brightened when he saw them. “Hey, fellas.”

  Darien tipped his head. “A round of whatever you have on tap for my men and a Coke for Cory.”

  Darien and Cory grabbed the table in the middle of the room as the others wandered over to the pool tables.

  “So you really dug that rich guy?” Cory took a seat, all smiles.

  “Let it drop.” Darien was protective of his personal life, and although he didn’t mind the occasional teasing, Cory needed to stop chewing on that particular bone.

  Cory held up his hands. He always reminded Darien of a lost little puppy begging for approval. Everyone on their crew looked out for him, but trouble always seemed to follow Cory wherever the blond went.

  On more than one occasion, Darien had been called to Cory’s apartment back in Virginia because some guy wanted to smack Cory around. He had the worst taste in men, but that was nothing compared to what his home life had been like. Cory’s dad thought it was okay to molest his son because his son was gay. As soon as Cory turned eighteen, he’d stolen every last dime of his father’s and took off.

  Darien had found him sleeping near the chain-link fence that surrounded one of his jobsites and had offered Cory a job. They’d been friends ever since. Cory might be only twenty-one, but he’d proven to be a hard worker and reliable. Darien would do anything for him.

  But all the men on his crew had their issues to deal with. Jordan’s much-older brother had been diagnosed with a mental disorder. He’d put his family through hell on more than one occasion, but Jordan stuck by Michael and always ran off to save him whenever Michael got himself into trouble.

  Max had been raised by an asshole uncle who had the most jaded views on life. One of those views was that if a guy showed any soft emotions that was a surefire indicator he was gay. Max had hidden who he was from his uncle and now shoved down any feelings he had to the point he’d become an emotional mute.

  And Casey. He’d been ten when the cops found him in a hellhole while his mother sat in the next room shooting up drugs. He’d been bounced from one foster home to the next, getting lost in the system. That made it easy for him to walk away from any situation he couldn’t handle. More than once Casey had up and left the guy he’d been dating because he feared the guy would leave him first. The man had serious abandonment issues.

  Cory looked past Darien’s shoulder. “I was only asking because Mr. Suit just walked through
the door with his buddies.”

  Reflex made Darien turn his head. Sure enough, Matthew and the other investors had come into the tavern. Damn, Darien had only met Seoul Gardener that one time, but seeing him now reminded Darien how good-looking the guy was.

  And so were his friends. All four looked like powerful men as they chose a booth to sit in. Darien ran his gaze over Matthew, his mouth watering to make the man lose control. He bet the stiff suit would be a wildcat in bed.

  Cory bumped thighs with Darien. “You’re staring, and I think that’s drool on the side of your mouth.”

  The bartender brought a pitcher of beer and empty mugs to the table on a tray, along with a can of Coke. “Do you want me to leave all this here or take your friends their drinks?” He set the tray on the table and extended a hand. “I’m Halo.”

  Darien grinned as he stood up halfway out of his chair and shook the man’s hand. “Halo? I don’t see one over your head.”

  Halo chuckled. “Not the first time I’ve heard that.”

  “I’m Darien, and this is Cory.” He let Halo’s hand go and sat back down. “Nice to meet you.”

  “Same here.”

  “You can leave everything on the table,” Darien said.

  Halo nodded. “Let me know if you fellas need anything else.”

  “Will do,” Darien said before Halo made his way to Matthew’s table.

  “I have to admit, he’s cute.”

  “Who, the bartender?” Darien looked over his shoulder. Halo was solidly built, had a few tats, and looked as if he belonged in a biker gang. He definitely didn’t fit the small-town stereotype.

  Cory chuckled. “Him, too, but I was talking about your rich guy.”