Desire Me If You Can [Novel] - Chapter 50

Dane returned home and began his usual routine. After changing the cat’s litter and water, he gave it a treat. Darling, as usual, clumsily groomed itself while Dane made his way to the bathroom.
After taking a shower and spending some leisurely time with the cat, Dane finished a can of beer and stood up to grab another one from the fridge. As he reached for a new can, the sudden ringing of his phone startled him. He hesitated for a moment before considering whether to answer it or not. Checking the time, it was nearly midnight. A call at this hour wasn’t exactly a good omen.
The ringtone continued to sound as he made his way toward it. He picked up the phone from the table and furrowed his brow when he saw the caller’s number. What the hell was this guy calling about?
“What’s up? At this hour?”
As he answered the phone and naturally set the cat down, an all-too-familiar voice came from the other side. “Hey, Dane. How’s it going? Are you working?”
The bright voice belonged to Joshua Bailey. He had once served in the same unit as Dane, and by chance, had saved his life. There were other times when they had hung out together, but their relationship was never one that allowed for full trust. Joshua was married with three kids, something Dane could never even imagine for himself. When Joshua had his first child, he suddenly became responsible and stopped going out at night, but for someone like Dane, who had always seen Joshua as a fellow carefree soul, it was hard to believe. That same Joshua Bailey now had three kids.
And, astonishingly, he had never once looked elsewhere.
“I got off work. What’s going on?”
As always, Dane asked immediately, and Joshua responded with a smile in his voice.
“Are you busy these days? You sound a bit tired.”
Well, of course. The annoying bastard was right in front of me.
Suddenly, the image of Grayson popped into Dane’s mind, and he felt a pain in his neck from the stress. He answered.
“It’s about the same. What’s going on?”
Rubbing his neck, he asked again, and Joshua paused for a moment.
“Are you alone?”
“I’m by myself. Spit it out.”
Dane’s voice was becoming more irritated. His mind was already chaotic, and he had no patience for this roundabout way of talking. After confirming that Dane was alone, Joshua finally got to the point.
“How about doing some part-time work? The pay will be generous.”
“No thanks.”
Dane responded dismissively, but before he could hang up, Joshua quickly added.
“I can offer whatever you want. How about… Darling’s health check-up? You said his kidney function wasn’t good last time, right?”
When the name of his cat came up, Dane stopped abruptly. Noticing the reaction, Joshua continued with a bit of a pause.
“At a top-tier animal hospital, a full check-up. Oh, and if anything else needs treatment, I’ll cover all that too. Including giving him nutrient injections.”
Darling, who had issues with his eyes and ears, required quite a bit of attention. Now, with age, he often needed visits to the vet. Being a firefighter with a decent salary, money wasn’t really a concern for Dane. That was one of the reasons he had chosen this job-money and insurance.
The costs for Darling’s care added up, but it wasn’t anything Dane couldn’t handle. However, what caught his attention was the mention of a full check-up at that animal hospital. The hospital was expensive, with appointments usually booked up for over a year in advance. But if you were a celebrity, it was a different story. Joshua was confident in his offer because he had connections.
The partner he referred to was Chase Miller.
Despite the tempting offer, Dane hesitated. He knew that everything had a price, and the better the offer, the more it would cost.
However, the temptation of the animal hospital was strong enough to make him question his usual rule of never getting involved in others’ business.
Joshua waited in silence while Dane thought, knowing he would get an answer eventually. After a while, Dane finally spoke with a defeated tone.
“So, what’s the deal?”
Joshua smiled slyly as he responded.
“It’s nothing big. There’s someone I want to teach a lesson to.”
“How?”
As expected, Dane didn’t ask why. The only thing he truly cared about was his cat, so he didn’t need to know the reasons. If Joshua hadn’t offered something involving Darling’s welfare, Dane would have rejected it outright without a second thought. Joshua spoke as if he was thinking.
“I’ll handle the details. You just need to help me kidnap him.”
“Kidnap.”
Dane repeated the word slowly, and Joshua confirmed.
“He’s not an ordinary guy, so I don’t think I can do it alone. But for you, it should be easy, right? You don’t have to talk to anyone.”
Joshua spoke in such a calm tone, as if suggesting, “Let’s go fishing today.” If anyone else had heard it, they would have been horrified. But Dane’s response was only a strange sound, “Hmm.” Joshua, knowing Dane’s nature, had planned to pull him into this.
“I’ll make sure it doesn’t affect you. Don’t worry about your cat either. I’ll get a good lawyer to make sure you’re out in less than a day without any charges.”
If someone else had said this, Dane would have cursed them out. But Joshua wasn’t the type to say nonsense, and he had a partner who could make it happen. A top actor with piles of money and three kids.
“So, who is it?”
Dane asked, sounding uninterested. In a country where money can bring the dead back to life, a little kidnapping wouldn’t even be considered a crime. Joshua, with a faint smile, answered.
“Chase’s brother.”
Who?
Chase was Joshua’s partner, a famous actor. If it was his brother… Dane tried to recall how many siblings Chase Miller had, and Joshua added.
“Grayson Miller.”
For a moment, Dane froze. He suddenly realized that both Chase and Grayson shared the same last name-Miller. “… Grayson Miller?”
“Yes.”
He confirmed again, and the same name came back. Wait a minute, the last name Miller was common. There was no way Grayson Miller was definitely Chase Miller’s brother, right?
But if it was Grayson Miller, the extreme alpha, then there was only one in the world.
Unable to escape the inevitable conclusion, Dane groaned inwardly. He didn’t realize Joshua was still speaking, as he had missed hearing the rest of it.
“I’ll make sure nothing happens to you. It won’t take long. I’ll handle sending him back, so don’t worry…”
Joshua’s voice kept going, but Dane didn’t hear half of it. After a long silence, Joshua finally asked, confused.
“Dane? Are you listening?”
“… Yeah, no.”
Dane gave a vague response before furrowing his brow.
“Are you serious?”