Blood & Thunder (16 page)

Dex blinked at him. “You? Grumpy in the morning?” He jumped from his chair and held his hands out. “Stop. Everyone stop what you’re doing.” The people seated closest to them stopped to observe in amusement. “This is serious news. Ash Keeler, the warm, fuzzy bunny you see before you, is not a morning person. He is, in fact, grumpy. You might want to tweet that. The world shouldn’t be deprived of this shattering revelation. Thank you for your time.” He resumed his seat, a wave of fuzziness washing over him and making him all tingly. Yay, vodka. He grinned broadly at Ash, who ignored him to address Cael. Pfft. Rude.

“Ten squads, Cael. Your dad could have put him on any other squad, but no, he sticks Dudley Do-Right on ours. Be honest with me. Your dad hates me, doesn’t he?”

“Everyone hates you,” Dex muttered, looking down at his shirt. Was it inside out? Hey, sunglasses. He put on his aviators and smiled at Ash. “That’s why everyone wants to kill you, remember? Why’s it so dark in here?” He looked around with a frown. “Rosa? Something’s wrong with the lights. Is it closing time? No, wait, the lights would get brighter not darker.” Where the hell was Sloane? He looked up and gave a start. “Whoa! Hey, partner, I was wondering where you were.” Why was Sloane looking at him funny?

“Why are you wearing sunglasses?”

“What?” Dex touched his eyes. “Oh. I don’t know. Why not? Where’s Lou?” A thought struck him and he chortled. “Skip to my Lou.”

“Oh God. Yeah, it’s time to go,” Cael said, getting up, making Dex momentarily sad.

“Why?” He stood, the world spun, and he threw a hand out, hitting something hard that suddenly steadied him. Man, it was dark in here. “Come on, little bro. I’ll buy you a drink.”

“I don’t think so. You’ve had enough for the both of us and I’m tired. Sloane, can you take him home before he ends up drooling on the bar? Again.”

Sloane chuckled. “Sure.”

Mm, sexy rumbly chuckle. No, not sexy. Dex whispered to himself in his head,
the team is here. Play it cool.

“Hey,” Dex thrust a finger at Ash. No, wait, he meant to point at his brother. He moved his arm over. “There you are. I did not drool on the bar. I spilled my drink and then fell asleep on it. It was sticky. Get your facts straight.”

“Okay, then. Good night, everyone.” Cael waved and Dex waved after him, smiling broadly.

“Ash, take care of my precious baby brother, or I will drug you and shave off your mane. Have you ever seen a lion without his mane? Not so majestic. Either that or you’ll look like a lady lion.” He turned to Sloane. “Help me out here. Lady lion?”

“Lioness,” Sloane offered, a dimple forming on his cheek. Dex was tempted to put his finger to it, but controlled himself.

“Right. Lioness.” He turned back to find Ash and his brother gone. With a snort of disgust, he turned to Sloane. “That guy is sooo fucking rude. I’m hungry.”

“All right. Time to go.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Dex turned and blew a kiss at Rosa and then Letty. “
Hasta luego, mis ermanas, or is it companeras
?” Dex let out a gasp. “Oh my God, you guys! Why didn’t you tell me I sounded like such a douche speaking Spanish?”

“It’s
hermanas and compañeras
,” Rosa corrected, but kissed his cheek anyway.

“I love you, Rosa. You’re so good at kicking Ash’s ass.” He hugged her tight until Sloane started pulling him away. “Love you, Letty! Your gun skills make angels cry ’cause it’s so beautiful.”

“Okay. Let’s get you out of here before the public loses any more respect for our organization.”

Dex allowed Sloane to lead him outside into the cool night air. “I’m hungry. And why’s it so dark?” Something moved in front of his eyes and it got brighter. He looked up at a handsome smiling face. “You’re so hot. I’m hungry.” Sloane. Food. Sloane. Food. How was he supposed to decide? Unless… “Can I have both?”

“I think you left the other half of that question in your head,” Sloane said with a chuckle as he walked Dex down the street, his big, strong, beefy arm around Dex’s shoulders. He liked Sloane’s arms. And other things. “I’ll make you a sandwich soon as I get you home,” Sloane added.

Next thing Dex knew, he was sitting inside some car. “Whose car is this?”

“It’s a taxi,” Sloane said, handing him something cold and wet. “Here. Drink this.”

“I’m not thirsty.” He took a swig and scrunched his nose. “This doesn’t taste like anything.”

“Because it’s water. Just drink it.”

“All of it?” Dex’s eyes widened. “It’ll make me pee.”

“Then you pee.”

“You’re so smart.” Dex leaned into Sloane and inhaled deeply. “God, you smell good.” Dex opened his eyes and found he was standing on the sidewalk in front of his house. Damn. That taxi was astoundingly fast. Like… the Doc’s DeLorean. Now that was a cool car. He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. He was still hungry, but the water Sloane had given him had helped clear his head some. He heard Sloane talking and turned to find the taxi driving away. The fact it was driving away without Sloane left butterflies in his stomach. He should be feeling happy about it, knowing there was probably some sexy time in his near future, but he started thinking about other things that weren’t sexy. He’d tried to keep it to himself, but he couldn’t any longer. With a pathetic frown, he came out and said it.

“Am I a sucky partner?”

S
LOANE
CAME
to an abrupt halt at the murmured words. “What?”

This was usually the part where Sloane ended up at Dex’s for some hot, drunken sex, except tonight, something was off, namely Dex. Sloane wrapped his arm around his too quiet partner as he helped him up the front steps. Before getting in the cab, he’d managed to walk Dex around in an attempt to sober him up and made him drink a whole bottle of water. He’d expected some more of Dex’s drunken ramblings, but not the serious concern on the man’s face and certainly not the question he’d spouted.

“Am I a sucky partner?” Dex repeated. His voice was barely audible, and his words came out slurred.

“Okay, sit down with me. The night air will do you some good.” Sloane sat Dex down beside him on the top step, and he held Dex against him so he couldn’t fall forward. He smiled as Dex turned into him, nuzzling his neck, and snuggling close.

The street was quiet, lined with trees, and the lighting dim enough to conceal them from any curious passersby. He ran a hand over Dex’s head and through his hair, speaking softly. He reckoned the night hadn’t gone exactly as planned for Dex. He felt guilty now for leaving Dex to get information from Lou. Considering what he’d found out, maybe not so guilty. He’d make it up to Dex, but first things first. “Now what’s this whole sucky partner business?”

“What if I’m kidding myself? I’m a detective, not a soldier. You, Ash, Hobbs, you’re tough as bricks, Therians who bench press busses, or at the very least a Volkswagen Beetle. Letty was in the army. Rosa, I’m pretty sure, is the next evolution of Terminator. Calvin can shoot the wings off a fly with his eyes closed, and Cael can program algorithms in his sleep. What the hell do I do, besides sing karaoke and win at laser tag?”

Sloane turned to cup Dex’s cheek, wondering where this sudden bout of insecurity was coming from. Dex never showed the slightest hint of being anything other than confident in nearly everything he did. Maybe Sloane didn’t know as much about his partner as he thought he did. “Dex, just because you haven’t had the training we have, or the experience, doesn’t mean you’re not a good soldier. You never hesitate to go out there and do the best job you can. You’re smart, clever, enthusiastic, driven. You never give up, and you lift everyone’s spirits. If we didn’t have you to pick us up, to pick
me
up, I don’t know where we’d be.”

“Bored,” Dex muttered. “So I’m the comic relief?”

“No. You’re an important member of this team. They love you, Dex. You’re the perfect fit and exactly what we needed. After I lost Gabe… I was so sure I was going to lose them too. It was unbearable, watching them retreating into themselves, not being able to do anything about it. Rosa kept to herself. Letty spent more time around guns than she did people. Calvin was always moping around. Hobbs barely said a word.”

“If that’s a joke, it’s in poor taste. Hobbs is awesome.”

“No, I’m not kidding. I know it looks like he doesn’t talk, but he talks to Calvin all the time. I mean, you never hear him, but you can see him talking. After Gabe died, Hobbs didn’t even do that much. It really got to Calvin. Ash was even more unbearable, and your brother? He stopped smiling, stopped being playful, and holed himself up in his office, hiding behind his computers. At first, I thought they were grieving. I had no idea how bad it really was. Before you came, I was losing my team, Dex. You changed that. You, with your amazing smile. Even when I tried to push you out, you never stopped being you. You showed them it was okay to keep on living.”

“What about you?” Dex asked murmured.

“You showed me that too. I know it’s been… difficult with me in particular, but I promise you, I’m trying.” He ran his thumb over Dex’s bottom lip and leaned in for a kiss, tasting the alcohol on Dex’s tongue. Dex shivered beneath him and when Sloane pulled away, he received a warm smile.

“Thank you.”

“I’m the one who should be thanking you. And you’re a great agent, trust me.”

“You’re just saying that to be nice.”

“Think about that for a moment. When do I ever say anything to be nice?”

Dex chuckled. “True. Grumpy pants.”

Sloane let his head fall against Dex’s and sighed. “I didn’t know you were so worried about your position. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because you’re my Team Leader. You got real shit to deal with. I wasn’t going to bother you with my pathetic whining.”

“It’s not pathetic whining, and if you’re going through a rough patch, I want to know about it, as your Team Leader, your partner, and… more.”

Dex pulled back, his gaze searching Sloane’s. “Really?”

“Yes, really. And please don’t let Ash get to you.”

“That guy,” Dex let out a frustrated groan. “I really want to shoot him. Next time we’re at the firing range, if I promise you a blowjob, can I shoot him? Just a nick. He’ll barely feel it.”

With a laugh, Sloane helped Dex to his feet. “Come on, let’s get you inside.”

“We can pretend it was an accident. A ricochet.”

“I’ll think about it.” Sloane walked Dex to his door and waited until he had it open. He paused before going in, and Sloane held his breath. Despite how many nights he’d spent at Dex’s, he still got butterflies in his stomach when Dex said that one word.

“Stay?”

Sloane nodded and followed Dex inside. He couldn’t find it in him to say no to Dex, and what’s more, he didn’t want to.

Dex locked up, and they walked in companionable silence upstairs to get ready for bed. In no time at all, they were huddled close under the sheets. Sloane wrapped Dex in his arms, softly stroking his back as Dex’s warm breath hit Sloane’s shoulder. This night hadn’t turned out as disastrous as he thought. Dex was out within seconds, and Sloane shouldn’t have been far behind, but he couldn’t stop thinking about Dex.

Lou had confessed to Sloane his regrets on hurting Dex as he had and walking out on him. He’d been certain things wouldn’t have worked out, and Dex had agreed, but the longer he spent away from Dex, the more he realized the mistake he’d made. Lou admitted he had taken Dex for granted. He’d gotten scared and instead of turning to Dex, he bailed. He warned Sloane not to make the same mistake.

It was easy to get caught up in the job, in the past, in life, and without realizing it, end up putting everything before those you cared about, until one day you looked around to find yourself alone. Sloane had spent a good deal of his life alone, and he’d grown accustomed to it. He had been fine being alone. Then he’d met Gabe, and he’d stopped being alone. He’d taken Gabe for granted, believing he’d always be there, but then Gabe had done the same. How much had they missed out on? Sometimes they’d been so scared of being discovered, so scared to take the most minimal of risks, that at times, Sloane worried about their future. He’d convinced himself everything would turn out fine. They’d worry about it later. And then there was no later.

Dex let out a soft huff and mumbled something unintelligible in his sleep, his brow creasing with worry. It wasn’t like Dex to have unpleasant dreams, and Sloane was certain he was partially responsible. He ran his fingers through Dex’s hair and kissed his head, hushing him tenderly.

“It’s okay. Everything’s okay.”

Dex hummed and snuggled closer, his bare leg slipping between Sloane’s so he was all but wrapped around Sloane, pressed against him from head to toe. It made Sloane smile. He’d never been much of a snuggler, but Dex had a way of bringing it out in him, and he happily surrendered. Giving in to the feel of Dex in his arms, for the first time in a long time he drifted to a sleep devoid of nightmares.

That didn’t mean he wouldn’t be facing a different kind of nightmare in the morning.

“Oh shit!” Sloane bolted upright, cringing at the loud thud that followed, accompanied by a slew of sleepy groaning. He leaned over the side of the bed, wishing he had more time to soothe his groggy, dazed partner. “Sorry, but you need to get your ass up. We’re going to be late!” They’d both forgotten to set their alarms, and although Sloane was usually pretty good with waking up before it went off, today he hadn’t. Luckily, they weren’t already late, but they definitely had no time for their usual morning routine, and if he didn’t rush his partner out the door, they wouldn’t make it. “We’re going to have to shower at work. Brush your—Oh my God, are you sleeping?”

Scrambling out of bed and nearly tripping over himself when his leg got caught in the sheets, he stomped over to Dex and grabbed him by the waist to haul him to his feet. Dex was fast asleep. “Unbelievable.” He dragged Dex over to the bathroom, held him in front of the sink with one arm and with his free hand filled a cup with cold water, and splashed it in Dex’s face. His partner gasped and flailed, sputtering water.