Chapter 8
DANIEL
My ass hit my chair with enough force that the hydraulics lost pressure, and the seat dropped a few inches. Cursing, I gripped the lever, adjusting the chair several times until finally settling on a spot I could live with.
The report I tossed on the desk before leaving to get coffee beckoned, glowing almost as if it were some supernatural being calling to me.
I needed to read it, but I did not have my head screwed on right.
Not even close. Even if I picked up the report and read it from front-to-back right now, I know without a doubt I wouldn’t be able to tell you what it said.
I grabbed my duffel bag before heading out the door again.
The only thing I could do that might resemble productivity was work out.
Making my way through the hallways, I heard a squad moving.
Only the normally unison sound of the squads that moved around the building together sounded off.
There was an echo to their feet hitting the floor. Subtle but there.
Xander couldn’t be the only new SEAL assigned to the teams in San Diego.
I didn’t know how many graduated in this class.
There’s no way all of them, except for one, went to Virginia.
Blowing out a breath I’d been holding, I waited, hoping they were walking away from me, but the sounds of their feet hitting the tile floor told me I had no such luck.
And I had nowhere to go.
There was no escape route. There was no secret route I could take to avoid them. So after a small pep talk where I told myself to suck it the fuck up, I lifted my chin, put one foot in front of the other, and headed to the gym.
Not more than a few steps later, they turned the corner, and I came face-to-face with a band of warriors all decked out and looking scary as fuck. Among them stood Xander. His eyes met mine.
Parker cleared his throat, drawing my attention. That fucking shit-eating grin he always wore whenever he knew something or had figured something out danced across his lips.
“We’re headed to the house for some CQB. Get your shit, come with us.”
“Yeah, no thanks. I’ll get my workout in the gym.”
“Chicken.”
A chorus of low chicken noises filled the air. “Baaawk, bawk, bawk, bawk, baaawk, bawk, bawk, bawk, bawk, bawk.”
My head shook from side to side, and I bit my cheek to keep from laughing at them.
“I’m not chicken. I’m smart. Y’all are nuts on any given day, but when you get in warrior mode, it’s like all common sense ceases to exist. So, no thank you, I’ll stick with the gym.”
“BUH-GAHK!”
Squeezing through the crowd, I laughed, joining them in their own hilarity.
They didn’t save the hazing and pranks just for the new guy.
The team showed no mercy to anyone other than the brass.
And those guys only got mercy to their faces.
They joked about and ridiculed them daily behind their backs.
Less so if they came out of the teams, but only marginally.
My shoulder brushed against Xander’s. My breath caught. Yet his body stiffened. I hated that his reaction bothered me, and it did. It broke my heart.
I wasn’t in love with him, of course. That would be ridiculous, beyond fucking ridiculous. There’s no way I could be in love with him. We met once. We fucked half a dozen times. My brain fixated on him because it felt unfinished. But it wasn’t. It was over. It had to be.
Now to convince my stupid head, and not necessarily the one on my shoulders, of that.
He and the guys moved on as if nothing had taken place. My gaze followed them, hoping Xander would turn around, but he didn’t. He kept moving with the team. I needed to do the same. Because…this was…
Finished. Never to be pursued or remembered.
Not fucking likely. Not if the last few weeks were anything to go by.
Shaking my head at the stupidity of my thoughts, I continued toward the gym, while continuing to hope that one day I could convince my fucking brain to get on board.
Eyes closed, body leaning against the wall of the elevator, I struggled to stay awake as the elevator rose to my floor. Exhaustion invaded every cell of my being. I wanted food, a stiff drink, and an early night with my pillow.
The doors opened. Pressing my palms against the wall, I pushed myself to standing and shuffled out of the car, my head down, my chin to my chest.
I slid my hand into my pocket, pulling out my keys. Something, though what I couldn’t say, caught my attention, stopped me in my tracks.
“Where’ve you been?”
“What are you doing here?”
Our words blended, as did our sighs. Shaking my head, I moved forward to unlock the door. Once inside, I turned to him.
“Well, are you coming in or not, because I really don’t think this is a conversation we should have in the hallway?”
He glanced left and right while chewing the corner of his mouth.
“Jesus Christ, you sat outside my apartment waiting for me, and now you’re too afraid to fucking come in the door. Do whatever you want. The door will be open if you decide to come in.”
I walked into the living room, waiting for the heavy metal door to slam shut. A soft click followed by a snick sounded instead of the loud echo I expected. Sighing, I headed for the bar cart and poured myself a drink.
“Help yourself.”
“No. I don’t drink.”
“Ever?” I ask incredulously.
“I have in the past, but only socially. Never in private at home.”
“But you’re not in private. You’re also not at your home. “
“I meant I drink when out socially.”
Interesting. Especially for someone so young. Instead of speaking the words aloud, I pulled the takeout menus from the junk drawer in the kitchen.
“You hungry?”
“I could eat.”
Of course, he could. He’d trained all afternoon. An array of colors skidded across the dining table after I tossed the menus on the smooth surface. “Pick a place.”
“I’m not picky.”
“Good. Me neither. Just tell me where and what, and I’ll order it.”
“I can pay for my own food.”
“I’m sure you can. However, since we’re both in the closet, don’t you think it’ll be easier and safer if I do the ordering?”
His hands fisted at his sides, then raised to his temples. “Fuck!” he cursed.
I walked toward him, approaching him like an injured animal. Afraid he’d lash out at me if I startled him. He was so young. Too young to even buy the rounds of drinks he earned while being hazed. Definitely too young for me.
“Xander? Are you okay?”
He spun, paced away from me. “I’m fine.”
He was anything but fucking fine, but I couldn’t make the man talk to me. Picking up the cordless phone, I dialed my favorite takeout place.
“Hello, Mr. Lennox.”
“Hello, Mei Ling. How are you?”
“Do you want the usual?”
“Yeah. The fried rice, black pepper chicken, but throw in…” I raised my brow in Xander’s direction.
He sighed, shaking his head.
“Mr. Lennox?”
“Sorry, Mei Ling. Add in an order of beef with broccoli and enough egg rolls, pot stickers, and wontons for two,” I said.
My dick jerked, plumping when he leveled a glare my way. Not that it hadn’t gone half hard when I noticed him outside my door.
“I told you I could feed myself.”
“Well, then next time this happens, you can pony up the cash.”
“There won’t be a next time.”
“Then consider it my treat. Or if you’re dead set on evening things up, you can buy me a drink the next time we’re at the bar with the team.”
Pink colored his face as he mumbled under his breath.
“I didn’t catch that.”
“You weren’t supposed to.”
“Alright. I’m going to shower and change. Money for the food is on the island. Feel free to turn on the TV.”
Leaving him standing in my living room, I made my way to the bedroom, pulling off clothes as I went. At the door, I glanced over my shoulder, smirking when I caught him staring at my naked back.
His face colored further, reminding me what it looked like when we fucked. How his body flushed, the more turned on he became. I wanted to experience that again, but he seemed locked in the closet today.
Unbuttoning my pants, I pushed them and my briefs over my ass and down my legs, bending slightly. His eyes light up like fireworks in a starless sky. Smirking, I bent in half, gifting him a view of my ass.
With his eyes glued to my ass, he licked his lips. I reached back and spread my cheeks, showing him my hole.
“See something you like?” I asked.
Thankfully, I was bendy and could still see him from the awkward position.
No response other than the bobbing of his Adam’s apple that I could see from half a room away. I stood and turned around, my dick bobbing in the air. I raised my arms out to my sides to display myself fully.
“How about now?”