Chapter 10
Carson had barely set his things down at his desk before the guys surrounded him.
His office space suddenly felt very small and cramped.
“Hi,” he said as he sat down and started logging onto his computer.
He looked around him. No one had moved. They just stood there like statues encircling him. “What?”
“So how was it?”
“Were you nicer this time?”
“Can I get her number?”
Jack’s question gave him pause. “Fine. Yes. Hell no.”
Jack made a face. “Why does no one want to give me her number? Not Sandy or you. You didn’t even like her. Why let a beautiful woman like that go to waste?”
Carson was used to Jack’s ribbing about women, but hearing him talk about Allie like that had him seeing red. “Back off, Jack.”
“Ooh, touchy,” Jack said nonplused. Nothing ever rattled him. Even his scars. He showed them off to every woman who wanted to see them like they were badges of honor and not reminders of all they’d lost.
“So how did the date go?”
Since when did they care about his dating life? He never should have told them he’d run into Allie at the store and asked her out, but they had become curious since he’d been spending such a large amount of time on his phone over the past week with a smile on his face.
His cheeks had hurt that first day. Did he smile so infrequently that his muscles weren’t used to it?
Must be. It wasn’t like he had much to smile about.
He had never been a smiler. Now that he thought about it, he hadn’t smiled much when he was with Jenny.
They were no more than strangers; he had been gone all the time.
They had been more like roommates than fiancés.
“Fine.”
The guys took a collective step closer. They weren’t willing to drop this anytime soon.
“We have better things to do than talk about my dating life. Yurgio, remember him? He’s more important.”
“His status isn’t going to change in a matter of minutes. Why are you avoiding the question?” Carson was shocked that Luke was in on this. As the team lead, Carson expected him to keep order, not get the others involved.
“I’m not, there just isn’t anything to say.” At least nothing he was willing to share with the group. His private life was just that, private. Not fodder to gossip over by his friends.
“So, it was a bad date?” Barry asked.
“No.” It was a lot of fun actually. Even after getting hit by paintballs from teenagers. Not that he would tell the guys about that. He’d never live it down.
“So it was good?” Greg asked, looking hopeful. As the only other guy in the group to have a girlfriend, Greg was eager for more women to join in their group for companionship for Shay and Zoe.
“Yes.”
“Are you seeing her again?” Rob asked.
“Yes.”
“When?”
“What is this, an interrogation?” The questions just kept coming at him at rapid-fire speed.
“Why are you getting so defensive?” Barry asked, crossing his arms over his chest and scowling at him, reminding Carson of his CO from training when he’d been cross with him.
“Why are you so inquisitive?” he fired back. “I don’t seem to recall anyone caring about Luke dating Shay or Greg and Zoe. So why me?”
“We did care. We protect each other’s backs, but given what happened on your last date, we have concerns.”
“Well, everything was fine and is fine with us. We are already planning another outing.” Now that he’d told them, they could drop the issue.
“Couldn’t have been that bad then,” Rob mused, looking around at the other guys.
“She does want to see him again,” Jack commented, almost in shock as if the thought were foreign.
“Or he could be lying about things going well.” Barry and Greg were mumbling between the two of them.
“Hey!” Carson took offense to that. Really to all of them talking around him like he wasn’t there.
“Oh, you know what we should do?” Jack snapped his fingers, looking like an idea had come to him.
When Jack suggested something, you never knew what he was going to say. Something ingenious or something really bad. “Drop the issue and move on to more important matters?” Carson suggested.
“We should stage a stakeout.”
“Yes,” Rob agreed. “We’ll have cameras and a microphone on you at all times.”
“We can get you an earpiece, and I can tell you what to say,” Jack added helpfully.
“Why would I want that?” It was one thing having an earpiece while on an op. A date was not the setting.
“Because you’ll mess this up, no doubt. Women like to be wooed. I’ll have eyes and ears on you the whole time. We’ll get you into score town, buddy.” Jack held his hand up for Carson to high-five. Carson ignored the hand.
“I don’t need help in that department.” Not that it was something on his radar at the moment.
“When was the last time you went heels to Jesus?”
“What?”
“Wallpapered the closet.”
“Are you speaking English?” Nothing he was saying made any sense.
“Sex,” Drew supplied. “He’s asking when was the last time you got laid.” How he knew that, Carson didn’t know or want to know.
“That is none of your business,” he growled, ready to be done with this conversation and get to work.
“So it’s been a while,” Jack responded, taking his lack of answer as an answer.
He was not going to dignify that with a response even if that statement was accurate. He had been busy and was sensitive about people seeing his scars. Allie was the first woman he’d allowed to see them, and it had been an unconscious action of him to do it.
“We are done talking about this. No cameras. No earpiece. End of discussion.”
“Please?” Jack stuck out his bottom lip, looking completely pathetic, but Carson wasn’t going to budge.
“No,” he snapped, finally at the end of his rope.
“Alright, that’s enough.” Luke stepped in as if sensing the tension now growing. “Leave him be. Let’s meet at the war table in five.” The guys dispersed, finally leaving Carson alone in peace.
He glanced at his phone, and a small indiscreet smile came over his face. He had a text from Allie. He didn’t know why it excited him so. They talked every day. She was becoming a good friend.
Did your coworkers attack you like you thought?
Like vultures around a carcass.
Thank you for that image.
Carson could see Allie making a face at her screen. Sorry. They all surrounded my desk before I even sat down.
Sandy has been hounding me all morning for more details about our adventure.
He liked calling it an adventure. It was better than a mundane word like date. She is pretty relentless. What did you tell her?
Fishing for compliments?
Hardly. I just want to prep myself if she’s coming to attack me at work again.
I’m sorry she did that. I didn’t know until after our lunch.
Don’t sweat it. Sandy is a hurricane no one can stop and get the hell out of her way when she’s on a war path.
Well, you don’t have to worry about her showing up. Not that I know of at least. All I told her was that we had fun paintballing. She said she’s upset she didn’t see you get trounced.
By kids, not you. You should see the welts I have today.
Hey, I said I was sorry. Now you’re making me feel bad. She sent him a sad emoji with a tear coming out of its eye. It made him smirk.
I’m just teasing you. There are a few bruises, but they aren’t that bad. They weren’t pretty, but most of the tenderness was easing.
Next time it will be fair.
I’ll believe it when I see it.
I know we have plans this weekend, but do you want to have lunch during the week? I don’t know where your office is, but I’m on the southside. Duh, of course you know where I work. If you’re near there, we can meet up.
Carson had to bite his lip so he didn’t laugh and draw the attention of others. Allie’s blabbering when she thought she was in the wrong and backpedaling was comical. I work on the other side of town.
Oh, okay.
He could hear the disappointment even through text.
And I hate to do it, but I’m going out of town tomorrow.
I’ll be gone most of this week. Business trip so I won’t be able to text much.
I’m really sorry. Carson would love nothing more than to go out with Allie some more, but they finally got a break on Yurgio.
This was his chance to finally nail the bastard.
Business trip?
He knew it probably sounded like a lame excuse, but it was as close to the truth as he could tell her. I promise I’ll make it up when I get back. I have to go. I have a meeting. I’ll call you tonight and explain more, but I can’t right now.
I have one too. You better. Talk soon.
Bye, Allie.
Bye, Carson.
“Bye, Carson, aw how sweet.” Carson turned to see Barry hovering over his shoulder staring at his phone screen.
Carson struck as quick as a rattlesnake. He was up out of his chair with Barry in a headlock. Barry squirmed, but Carson had a firm grip on him. Barry wasn’t going anywhere without losing his head.
“Privacy, Barry. Remember it,” Carson said in a deadly whisper. He loved this man like a brother, but he would knock him on his ass without blinking.
“Barry, Carson,” Luke called out to them from the kitchen area which was also where the war table was. “Quit playing around.”
Carson tightened his hold for a second before releasing him. Barry stumbled back, his hand massaging his throat as he hunched over taking slow shallow breaths. Barry’s face was beet red. Carson had held on a little tighter than he thought he had.
“We good?” Carson asked him, watching Barry’s color return back to normal.
“We’re good.” Barry stood to his full height, a grin falling across his face. “That was my bad. I crossed a line I shouldn’t have. Hell of a hold, man. You’re going to have to teach me that.”