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transferred to Homicide. In one phone conversation, Simon made it crystal clear that he was a very different sort of man. Ben had always been very aloof. Good cop, but not at all social.
    In a way, Ivan hadn’t been surprised to learn Ben had a secret male lover. Before his death on the job just over a year ago, Ben had been a textbook case of a closeted gay man. He’d been far more surprised when he’d found out Kurt had fallen for Ben’s lover, Davy. He’d also been pleased when Kurt had reached out to him as a friend after things had gone wrong with his and Davy’s burgeoning relationship.
    “Me too. I’m glad he’s doing better. Look, I’m going to be out of touch for a bit, but let Kurt know I’ll stop by and visit when I can.”
    “No problem. I’m not sure when he’s going to be released, but he’ll be moving in with Davy when he is.”
    “Davy? Really?” Kurt had been pining for the man for months. Ivan didn’t know the specifics, but he did know that Kurt had fallen hard.
    “Yep. They patched things up.”
    “Good. I’m glad.” And he was. He was happy someone’s relationship had worked out. No one deserved it more than Kurt.
    “How are you doing, Ivan? A couple guys stopped by to visit, and they told us you were on leave.”
    “I’m doing okay. Or I will be.” As soon as he finished this investigation, he’d be fine.
    “Excellent. I know it was worrying Kurt.”
    “I gotta go, Simon. But I’ll talk to Kurt as soon as I can.”
    “Later, Ivan.”
    After clicking off, Ivan breathed a sigh of relief. Simon wouldn’t have sounded so relaxed if Kurt wasn’t on the mend. Ivan tossed his phone on the table and stood.
    What did he need to pack? Ivan wandered through his apartment, assessing his possessions. Had it really been eight months since Colin moved out? There were still empty spots where he’d taken his furniture and knickknacks. Hell, the bookshelf was half empty, and there was a clear demarcation in his closet where Colin’s clothes had once lived. Pathetic. It was like he was waiting for Colin to return and slide himself back into Ivan’s life like he’d never left. Not that he wanted the cheating bastard back, but the fact that he hadn’t filled up the spaces left by Colin’s stuff made the apartment seem less like a home. Had it been a home even when Colin was there? Ivan couldn’t quite remember. The months before their catastrophic break up had been… tense and uncomfortable, as they slowly realized that perhaps the relationship wasn’t developing into what either of them expected. Ivan would have had a lot more respect for Colin if he’d just ended it before sleeping around.
    He was strangely eager to return to Parker’s place, despite how tired he was of undercover work. The stress and strain of constantly watching words and actions, remembering what lies he’d told… well, it was a lot easier when the guy you were lying to didn’t seem so sweet and innocent.
    Ivan grabbed a few boxes and packed up some essentials. He hesitated at his bedside table. Lube. That was all he should bring, but he tossed a box of condoms in. Better safe than sorry, even if they tempted him to indulge where he shouldn’t. No toys, though. That was a given. They’d be a dead giveaway should Parker or his associates decide to snoop around the new guy. Straight men didn’t keep dildos or butt plugs in their bedside table, he was certain of that. Not unless they wanted someone to question their orientation, and Ivan wanted no questions to arise.
    With his packing done, he took a few minutes to call his mother, let her know he’d be unavailable for an indeterminate amount of time.
    “Yeah, Mom, I know. No, I haven’t met anyone new.”
    He sighed and pushed at one of the boxes with the toe of his shoe, listening only partly to his mother.
    “No, not lying. I promise, if I meet someone and it’s serious, I’ll bring him to dinner.” Parker didn’t count as meeting someone new,