Chapter Six #3
“Well, that’s probably why then.”
“Why what?” Mars asked. The smile playing around his lips was super sexy.
I shrugged. “I don’t know…nuns are probably different than Jesuits.” For a couple of smart guys, they were being obtuse.
Mickey and Mars exchanged grins. “This is the weirdest conversation,” Mars said.
“Right?” Mickey said. He turned back to me. “What do Jesuit teachers have to do with figuring out you’re not really bi and instead gay when you’re twenty-six?”
I leaned across the table, lowering my voice. “You guys are really stuck on the whole Jesuits thing, aren’t you?”
Mars actually threw his head back and let out a belly laugh that made me grin like an idiot. He had a really nice laugh that sent ripples through me. “You’re the one who started it.”
I sat back and looked around for Amber, really wanting this strange conversation to be over. “You’re both weird,” I mumbled.
They were still laughing when she came over to take our orders.
After finishing a shrimp, chicken, and beef fajita which was the same thing Mars ordered, I made sure he and Mickey tried the flan.
This place made the absolute best flan in Vegas…
next to my mom’s, of course. After she’d gotten sick and had stopped cooking, I’d tried to find her recipe cards to recreate her recipes, thinking it would make her happy.
I’d practically torn apart the kitchen looking for them but hadn’t been successful. I had no idea where they’d gone.
She’d probably thrown them out. The worse her memory got, the more she did stuff that didn’t make sense.
I’d bought one of those label makers and started labeling everything in the house to make it easy for her, but even that, had eventually stopped working when she’d gotten really bad.
I’d started doing all the chores around the house that she could no longer do including giving her baths and eventually had to buy adult diapers.
That was about the time I realized she was too much for me to handle alone.
Every time I left the house, I’d been afraid she’d wander away or burn the place down if she tried cooking.
I really missed her cooking and her silly attempts at baking.
When we were kids, she’d used me and Jessie as guinea pigs, trying out new recipes and having us grade them.
“What’d you think of it?” I asked, dragging myself out of my melancholy when I felt my eyes getting hot. Crying in front of Mars and Mickey would have been super humiliating.
“What?” Mars asked.
I pointed to the flan with my fork. “The flan. It’s great, right?”
Mars sat back wearing a wide grin as he patted his belly. “All of it was really great, best Mexican food I’ve ‘ad since leaving Texas.”
“That’s where you lived before here?”
They nodded. “Our Tac Team moved out ‘ere about a year ago,” Mars said.
I frowned. “What’s a Tac Team?”
“It’s like a SWAT team but for the FBI,” Mickey replied.
I felt a shiver go through me as I pictured guys dropping from helicopters holding really big rifles.
“Wow, that’s so hot. So, you guys are like those cool action dudes?
” When they didn’t reply, I said, “You know…like those guys on the TV show? You jump out of planes and rappel off buildings and stuff?”
Mars smiled, looking almost shy. He struck me as being a really humble guy; it was super sweet. “Amongst other things,” he said casually.
“What do you do…specifically, I mean? I guess you have specialized roles on the team or something? Explosives and other shit?”
“Other shit?” Mickey asked.
They both laughed. “We’re trained in all aspects of SWAT tactics,” Mars said. “That’s what a Tac Team is…it stands for tactical team. We all know explosives, rappelling, and the like, but most of the time, my job is to drive our BearCat.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s our tactical vehicle, similar to an armored car. Our team rides in the back and I drive, usually to and from a scene with our boss riding shotgun up front.”
“Mars is also one of our team’s snipers.”
I felt my eyes widen. “Holy shit!” I glanced around, noticing I’d said that pretty loud.
I cleared my throat. “I mean that’s cool.
” I tried to sound nonchalant, but it was pretty hard to hide the awe in my voice.
It really was cool. These guys were not only FBI agents but like super cool, action hero types.
“So, I guess that means you all work out a lot, right?” I couldn’t help staring at their bulging biceps, and the way their pecs stood out under their muscle shirts was sooo hot.
They nodded in unison. “When we’re not on a case, we’re in training,” Mickey replied.
Mars’ phone suddenly vibrated, and he picked it up, glancing at Mickey. “It’s Candy. ‘E probably wants an update.” He scooted out of the booth as he swiped the phone, looking right at me. “Be right back.”
I nodded as his hand landed on my shoulder, squeezing right before he walked away. I swallowed hard, feeling the weight of that squeeze like he’d taken my balls in hand.
I was so screwed.