Chapter 20 Darren
Darren
Darren filled two bottles with water and made his way to the mats.
He moved some of the training equipment around so that they had enough space in the middle to spar, then got two knives only to put them back where they were mounted on the wall.
Whether he and Aiden were going to disguise themselves or break in, it was best they left no bodies or visible injuries on any of the guards or personnel.
Darren had a stock of sedatives in the hideout, but he much preferred it if things didn’t come to that either.
Still, they had to be prepared to fight their way out of Marcus’ vault and for that he needed to teach Aiden how to knock someone out quickly and efficiently. They’d gotten lucky on Earth that the patrol hadn’t noticed them, but there were no guarantees their luck was going to hold.
Aiden showed up a short while after, wearing shorts and a baggy T-shirt. Darren started them off with a full-body warm-up before moving onto more targeted exercises. They kept at it until they were both covered in sweat, at which point Darren eased them into the set of moves he had in mind.
Using Aiden as a training dummy, he explained the most effective way to strangle someone, as well as which points on the head and neck to aim for if that failed.
“Elbow to the temple, or if you have an opportunity to go for the front of the neck, target the area just below the chin where the windpipe is,” he said, touching gently that part of Aiden’s neck.
The contact electrified him, and so did Aiden’s hard swallow, but now was not the time to get distracted.
“And if I don’t?” Aiden challenged back, his eyes locking with Darren’s. They were bright and excited, the gold in them gleaming under the recessed lights.
“The side works too.” Darren dragged his fingers down, pressing along where Aiden’s neck connected to the shoulder. He had to dip under the collar of Aiden’s T-shirt to locate the right spot. “This juncture in particular. If you hit here, you have a high chance of incapacitating your opponent.”
Darren demonstrated how to attack these areas as he spoke, then had Aiden perform the moves on him. Aiden was good at following directions and responding to feedback, so once Darren was satisfied with the execution, they moved onto sneak attacks and general subtlety.
“Is that the type of stuff you did during military service?” Aiden asked when they took a break.
“Yeah, but I was an exception. Most of the Intelligence guys had desk jobs. Analytics, strategy and the likes,” Darren explained, following Aiden’s gaze as Bea and Kristen returned from fitting the bracket.
They acknowledged the two of them with nods, then picked Nyle up from the war room and turned in for the night. Rick did the same, right after.
“Not you, evidently,” Aiden commented, a note of amusement in his voice.
Darren grabbed one of the water bottles and took a few big gulps. “No. I was suited better for tactical and infiltration.”
And he’d preferred it too. Being in the field beat sitting behind a screen, and besides, he’d been good at it, making it all the way to captain before his two years had ended. If he’d stayed, he’d have gone higher too, but climbing the ranks had never really been an option. It was too risky.
“Right. Let’s get back to it,” Darren said, helping Aiden up from the mats. “We’ll do another round of the moves I showed you, and then we’ll spar.”
Aiden nodded. They went over what Darren had demonstrated and transitioned into freestyle sparring.
While a bit stiff at the start, Aiden seemed to have an adequate grasp of form and offense for someone who’d not seen much combat, though his defense left space for improvement.
It wasn’t something Darren could fix in a day or two, nor was there a need to; the whole idea was for them to remain undetected and snatch the ring from under Marcus’ nose without him even realizing it.
Keeping aggression to a minimum was how Darren planned to execute the mission.
“Okay. This time, I want you to attack me. Remember everything I showed you. Evaluate your surroundings and opponent and adjust your approach accordingly,” Darren said and took on a defensive stance.
“Okay,” Aiden huffed, swiping sweat from his forehead, and charged at Darren head on.
Darren blocked the first jab, feeling the strength packed in it as the punch collided with his forearm, then swung immediately after and was dodged effectively, if a little ungracefully.
Aiden went for a low hit connecting to an uppercut, but he was ready for it too, twisting his body to the side so he could avoid it.
Shuffling back toward the edge of the mats, Aiden gritted his teeth and rolled his shoulders, stepping to the left as Darren did the same.
They circled around and watched each other like hawks waiting for the right moment to strike.
Their heavy breathing was the only interruption to the surrounding silence, but what distracted Darren was the smell of sweat.
It was a mix of him and Aiden, and the combination was intoxicating.
His damp skin tingled and his fingers and toes prickled as if punctured with thousands of tiny needles, his body reacting with a delay to the hours he’d spent in Aiden’s company.
Darren tugged on his lip piercing, trying to force down the arousal stirring within him.
He was having fun—it was too long since he’d last sparred with someone—and he was helping Aiden, so now wasn’t really the time to get horny.
On the other hand, he couldn’t really help it, not when he’d had his hands all over Aiden’s body during the past couple of hours.
And Aiden’s had been all over him, too. He was on fire and he probably needed to end the session so he could take care of things before they got out of control.
“C’mon, Aiden,” he taunted, swiping his tongue over his lips just so he could watch Aiden’s eyes follow its movement. “Last one. Come at me.”
Eyebrows drawn together, Aiden grabbed the hem of his T-shirt and wiped the sweat off his face with it.
The careless action just about undid Darren as an expanse of ivory skin and toned abdominals peeked out from beneath the fabric.
The memory of the night Aiden had fucked him came barreling into him like a tidal wave, and for a moment he forgot where he was and what he was doing as he stood there just gawking at what he craved to touch yet couldn’t.
In the next moment, there was a fist crashing into the side of his face, and he was bracing for the impact because he’d been too slow to react.
It didn’t connect. Aiden’s hand stopped at the first point of contact.
Confused and distracted, Darren’s mind barely registered Aiden’s other hand, balled into a fist and aiming for the side of his neck.
His heart tried to jump out of his chest, but he didn’t let it, just like he didn’t let the unexpectedness of the moment paralyze him a second time.
Aiden would’ve had him then, caught off-guard as Darren was, if not for experience enabling Darren’s body to react out of instinct and memory.
With a kick to the side, he tripped Aiden at the last second, causing him to lose his balance, and used that opportunity to push him down on the mat.
Aiden fell on his back, but whether out of pure luck or a heartbeat in which he’d seen an opening of his own, he grabbed Darren’s T-shirt and dragged him down as well.
Darren ended up on his fours with one leg between those of Aiden.
His arms caged Aiden’s head, bringing him so close to those lips he dreamed about so often.
Aiden still clenched the front of Darren’s shirt.
Disheveled and glistering with sweat from exertion, he was breathtaking, the gold-flecked hazel of his eyes dark and indistinguishable from his pupils.
He was panting and his whole body seemed to vibrate, radiating arousal which seeped into Darren where they touched, bare skin to bare skin.
Darren couldn’t think. He didn’t want to think.
He only wanted this man, right here and right now, as they stared at each other, both heaving and unable to look away.
He wanted Aiden and Aiden wanted him, just as viscerally.
Electric sparkles touched every nerve ending Darren possessed, stirring a whirlwind of desire within him as he became even more conscious of Aiden’s heat.
He saw the naked truth in Aiden’s soul-robbing eyes, the war within him, and his shallow breathing and frantic heart betrayed that desperate want he shared with Darren but tried so hard to hide.
Instinct took over, primal and unsurmountable.
The need within Darren manifested into something physical, overruling the sensible part of his brain.
Inhaling sharply, he broke eye contact and sank his teeth into the exposed part of Aiden’s shoulder where the oversized T-shirt had slid off.
The muscles there flexed in futile resistance and a shocked gasp died in Aiden’s throat, killed off before it had been voiced.
For minutes that felt too short and too long at the same time, they stayed like that, Darren’s teeth slowly marking the man he yearned so much to have.
Not too deep as to cause a wound, but also not too shallow so the marks wouldn’t last. When the strain of the position made his jaw hurt, he let go, slowly lifting his head and taking in the lust-laden expression on Aiden’s face.
Jaw clenched and eyes unfocused, Aiden frowned, anger chasing away some of that bliss Darren couldn’t get enough of, though it was hard to say which of the two emotions dominated. Still, the sight of those two sides of Aiden clashing left Darren breathless yet again.
He had to go. He had to leave now before he’d lost his mind completely and ruined what they’d overcome so far. He had to force the need down, to shut down the unstoppable compulsion, and let Aiden go, or he knew he would regret it.
Squeezing his eyes shut, Darren focused on his breathing, on counting the seconds between each inhale and exhale as his body protested what he was about to do.
But he had to and so he did, sitting up on his haunches so he could regain that fickle equilibrium within himself and walk away from Aiden tonight.
“Darren.” Aiden’s fingers grasped Darren’s T-shirt tighter, preventing his retreat. Darren’s eyes snapped open, zeroing in on Aiden’s face. Nostrils flaring, Aiden yanked Darren forward. “Do it again,” he said, his breathing hitching.
That command and the low, raspy quality of Aiden’s voice sent even more blood to Darren’s already straining cock.
He lowered himself, pressing his body into Aiden’s, and found the indentations his teeth had left.
He licked them first, brushing his lips across the tender flesh, and then bit Aiden again.
Aiden gasped and the sound reverberated through Darren’s entire body.
It wasn’t exactly a cry of pleasure, yet it was even more titillating as it betrayed that dark, bottomless need buried deep inside Aiden.
Darren had it, too. He knew how to live with it and how to ignore it.
He was its master. And yet, since Aiden had walked into his life, it had slowly started to consume him, to shift and change and grow until he could no longer control it.
Or stop it. Or resist the way it responded to the one hiding inside Aiden.
Darren should’ve never approached this man. Shouldn’t have had sex with him or invited him to Earth. He should’ve fought the attraction harder, shouldn’t have gotten to know all those things he now knew about Aiden Kesley. But his rules and his walls, they’d never stood a chance against Aiden.
Just like his heart.
Slowly, Darren let go of Aiden’s shoulder and sat up, his gaze drawn to what he’d done. He’d been careful again not to bite too deep, but Aiden’s flesh was sufficiently bruised. Marked by him because Aiden had allowed it.
Because Aiden was his, that was how his brain took it. Or why else would Aiden let him do this?
Possessiveness swelled inside Darren’s chest. It rode the wave of euphoric satisfaction and infiltrated his stomach, coiling around his insides and settling there. His still-hard dick twitched, but he ignored it and stood up, offering Aiden a hand.
Aiden took it and let Darren help him up, his eyes still dark and mesmerizing.
“It’s late,” Darren said, tilting his chin in the direction of the bedrooms. “You need rest.”
Aiden ran his fingers over Darren’s bite and met his gaze. Frowning, he licked his lips. “It seems like in the end, I didn’t manage to kick your ass as I promised I would, Darren. Congratulations.”
It took Darren more than a few tense heartbeats to realize that Aiden was referring to their not-quite-bet from the warden’s office at Horizons. It felt so long ago, like something which was part of another life.
“Try harder next time,” Darren rushed to say, needing the reassurance that tonight wouldn’t ruin everything. Tucking his hands in his pockets, he shrugged. “But if I win again, I want my reward.”
Aiden’s eyes sparkled with amusement, but it didn’t chase away the lingering arousal.
“I’m afraid it’s beyond me now to exempt you from an economics test you’ll never get to sit,” he said in the tone he would’ve used had they still been a warden and an inmate.
“But… perhaps you could come up with a reward my current situation allows for. In case you do manage to best me a second time.” He paused and let his eyes roam Darren from head to toe.
“Good night, Darren. You should get some rest, too. And… thank you for tonight.”
Aiden stood there staring at Darren as if rooted in place.
His jaw tensed and his lips pressed in a line as he thought hard about something.
Darren contemplated asking what it was, opened his mouth to do so, but ultimately didn’t say a word as that unstoppable beast encroached upon his sanity again, reminding him just how good it had felt to be pressed to Aiden and feel the heat of his body.
“Good night, Aiden,” he mumbled and headed for his room, leaving while he still could.