Chapter 55
Royce sat next to Hazard’s bed in the base hospital. It was late at night, far past visiting hours. He should be gone. And he would be if the nurses had their way. But when a nurse had come in to tell him visiting hours were over he’d hit her with a stone cold, silent glare. She’d huffed an affronted breath, but backed off and left him alone.
Now, he sat there watching Hazard sleep. His face was peaceful, the blanket over his chest rising and falling with his quiet, steady breaths. Ice didn’t know what he would have done if he’d found Hazard’s lifeless body in the rubble of that hotel. Thankfully, he’d made it out of the implosion relatively unscathed. Bruises, cuts, a sprained wrist. They’d treated him for dust inhalation. But nothing broken. No spinal injuries. And he was alive.
He wasn’t one for prayer. Didn’t even truly know how to pray. But he sent up a silent, heartfelt word of thanks that Hazard had survived the implosion.
Thank you, Mother Wolf.
A few minutes later, a quiet groan came from the bed. Ice sat up straight, instantly alert. Hazard’s eyelids fluttered before he opened his eyes. Ice leaned in close so he wouldn’t have to move to see him.
“Ice,” Hazard said when he turned his head and saw him sitting there.
“I’m here. Are you okay? Do you need anything?”
“No. I’m fine.”
Noting that Hazard’s voice was dry and scratchy he poured him a cup of water from the plastic water pitcher on the bedside table. “Here, drink this.” He helped Hazard to sit up, then passed him the cup of water.
Hazar took it, sipping slowly. “What time is it?” he asked when he finished the water and passed the cup back.
“Three a.m.”
“You should be back in the barracks getting some sleep.”
“Negative. I’m not leaving your side.”
Hazard lay back against the pillows. He rolled his head to the side to look at Ice, a small smile on his tired face. “You sound like a man in love.”
Ice huffed a soft laugh. He hadn’t even thought the words but of course Hazard knew. “Because I am,” he said hoarsely.
Hazard didn’t say anything to that. He lay still on his thin hospital pillow, emotions and questions shimmering in his eyes.
Ice realized that even though they’d kissed out in the field, it was going to take a lot more than that and a half-assed love confession to make things right with Hazard.
“Dylan, when I thought I lost you, that you were gone, I realized I’d made the wrong decision. I want to be with you. We can talk about long distance and figure out how that will work if I accept the transfer to Florida. But honestly, I’d rather stay on the 448 with you.” The second he said he’d rather stay, a wave of relief and clarity swept over him. He did want to stay with the 448. He wasn’t going to leave them to go to Florida as a solo operator.
“What about your promotion?”
“I admit that I want that rank. But I don’t have to be in a whipped-up hurry to get it. If the promotion only comes with the transfer to Florida, then I’ll pass. There’ll be other chances for advancement.”
Hazard narrowed his eyes. “Who said I wanted you to stay on the 448 after you dumped me?”
“Oh, fuck. I’m sorry, Dylan. I know I hurt you. But I want you to know it had nothing to do with you or your body. I love the way you look. Every muscle. Every scar. I love all of you.”
“Even my five o’clock shadow?”
Ice felt the tiniest amount of hope. If Hazard was teasing him, he must be close to forgiving him. He brushed his fingers over the dark stubble on Hazard’s cheek. “Yep. Even this.”
“And I should take you back?”
Ice swallowed past the lump of emotion in his throat. “Please. I’ll do whatever you want me to do to prove how much I love you. I’ll do all your gun and gear maintenance. I’ll make you beef Wellington once a week. I’ll bribe Ortiz into letting you skip the morning run whenever you want.”
Hazard laughed. “Stop. I just want you to do one thing.”
“Name it.”
“Kiss me.”
“Gladly,” Ice said before he leaned over to kiss his beloved omega. Mindful of his injuries, he kept each press of their lips tender and gentle. “I love you,” he whispered as he brushed their noses together.
Hazard smiled up at him. “I love you too, Captain Royce Ice Anderson.”
Ice put a gentle hand on Hazard’s buzzed head and rubbed the soft hair. “Are you sure you’re not saying that because the pain meds are making you feel good?” he teased.
“Hell no. I mean the drugs definitely have me nice and relaxed. But I know I love you. I just wish it didn’t take a building getting dropped on my head for us to finally come out and admit how we feel.”
“Well, you are hard-headed,” Ice teased.
Hazard arched an eyebrow. “What does that make you?”
Ice laced their fingers together. “Lucky. Dense but lucky.”
“That sounds about right,” Hazard said as his eyelids started to droop.
Ice leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on Hazard’s forehead. “Get some sleep. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Yes, sir.”
Hazard’s eyes slid shut. Within seconds, he was asleep.
Ice left their hands entwined, needing the warm skin to skin contact with his lover to reassure himself that he was okay. After a while, his own eyelids started to feel heavy. He leaned back in his chair. It wasn’t the most comfortable position, but like he’d said, he wasn’t going anywhere. The threat of a stiff back after a night sleeping in a chair wasn’t going to pull him away from Hazard. Ice relaxed and let himself slide in to sleep, there at his lover’s side.
* * *
After a night in the hospital, Hazard was ready to be discharged. He’d been banged up and bruised, but thanks to his helmet protecting his skull and his swift shifter healing, he was medically cleared to leave the hospital and return to work. Once the nurse gave him the go ahead, he got up and dressed. Now he was sitting on the bed, impatiently waiting for Ice to come and get him.
A few minutes past eight in the morning, he heard boots in the hallway approaching his room. The door opened and Ice came in, Jax and the major with him.
“Ready to go?” Ice asked.
Hazard nodded. “Yep. Let’s get out of here.”
Ice had already taken his uniform and gear back to their barracks, so there was no reason to linger.
“We’ve got a solid lead on Cortez’s location,” Ortiz said as they left the room. “Remember Emma Larson?”
“The high and mighty drug lord from Minnesota?”
“That’s the one.”
“Turns out she didn’t have connections high enough to get her out of trouble with the federal government,” Ice said.
Ortiz nodded. “But she did have information that she was willing to share for a lighter sentence for her, her sister, and her right-hand man. She was able to give us the location of Cortez’s Minnesota encampment. Recon is verifying it now. If the intel is true, we go after him.”
“I’m going with you,” Hazard fiercely declared. Bruised or not, he wasn’t going to miss bringing Cortez down.
“I figured you’d say that. You’re sure you’re up to it?”
“Absolutely. I’ll steal a helo and fly myself to the target if you try to leave me behind on this op.”
Ortiz gave him an approving nod. “Then you’re in.”
On their way to the main entrance, they moved aside for a medical team rushing someone in on a stretcher. One of the nurses running at the side of the stretcher called out information.
“Captain Julian Hayes, designation alpha. Blood type A Pos. Set up OR three for multiple gunshot wound surgery.”
“Are they bringing in the rest of his squad?” another nurse asked.
“No. They didn’t make it.”
Hazard, Ice, Jax, and Ortiz all froze. Stunned, they turned to look after the stretcher that had just disappeared behind a set of swinging doors to the operating area.
“Did they say Captain Hayes’s squad didn’t make it?” Ortiz asked in disbelief.
“Yeah, they did,” Ice answered.
“Damn. That’s fucking awful,” Jax said with a grave shake of his head.
In the blink of an eye, Chin, Baker and all the others on Sierra Six, soldiers that Hazard had trained with, shared meals and joked with, were gone.
“I hope Hayes survives,” Hazard sincerely said.
There was nothing they could do for Hayes and they had a mission of their own waiting so they proceeded through the exit.
Seeing another soldier grievously injured and hearing of the loss of lives made it hit home for Hazard how lucky he’d been in the implosion. But that was the nature of their jobs. They never knew what day could be their last.
Ice must have been thinking the same thing because he brought a hand up to the nape of Hazard’s neck and gently squeezed. He left his hand there in a reassuring hold as they walked out. The warm strength of his touch reminded Hazard that today he was alive and he was together with the one that he loved.