I kept a couple of go bags in the closet, so I grabbed those and took them out to the truck. I pulled out several hard gun cases and loaded them up with a couple of Sigs, a couple of M-4s, and K-bars. Then I pulled out my sniper rifle. If I got the shot at the fuckers who’d taken Adam, I’d take it, but I hoped I got up close and personal with the motherfuckers.
I made sure I grabbed enough for Adam as well. Since he’d been held for so long, I knew the likelihood he’d be able to fight his way out would be low, but I wanted him to have what he needed if he could pitch in.
Looking at the gun cases, I chewed my lip. I’d never flown private, but I wasn’t sure what I would and wouldn’t be able to take with me. Hopefully, I didn’t have to stow this shit in my truck at an airfield for a month. I decided it didn’t matter if I could take it; I was going loaded for bear, just in case.
I stowed the guns in my truck and headed for the bedroom. I didn’t think I needed more than the two go bags, but I grabbed more clothing and my phone charger. I looked around and saw my Kindle and iPad; I grabbed them and was out the door.
Since the day when we called our relationship quits, there’d been so fucking many fights. Fights that had sometimes ended in the sheets, naked against the wall, or still half-dressed on the floor, rutting against each other like two animals in heat.
After the blowup Adam and I had a few months before we deployed, I’d gathered all his shit from my place and dumped it on his fucking doorstep in a fit of rage and despair. That fight had nearly ruined our friendship, and I’d thought it had destroyed me for a bit. It had been the worst fight we’d ever had. I’d called him an asshole and told him I was done.
As I backed out of my driveway, I gunned the engine, making the turn at the end of my street toward Adam’s. Before I got to the main road, a song came on that had me hitting the brakes hard, nearly locking the wheels up. I closed my eyes as my memories of happier times assaulted me.
FALL 2008
The plane touched down, and we all started gathering our gear. Another six-month deployment was in the books, and I was utterly exhausted. The whole team was granted thirty days of leave. With that stretched out in front of us, I just wanted to get away from war, the teams, training, and everything else.
I wanted to go somewhere no one knew Adam or me so we could lose ourselves in one another. I wanted to spend some time trying to piece together an actual relationship with the man I loved.
I knew it was probably useless. Our situation hadn’t changed. It wouldn’t change until we retired, but the likelihood of us both making it through this fucking war seemed to be on the losing side. We’d lost so many troops, so many of our brothers, over the years. Adam had even had a close call during one of our ops.
That had been some fucking scary-ass shit. He’d taken a round to the thigh, and we’d gotten lucky it hadn’t hit hisfemoral artery. We’d brought him back to base, and the docs had patched him up. After a few days of rest in sickbay, he was back to himself. Mostly.
Two days after Adam was released from sickbay, Moses and the rest of the team had taken off on a minor intel op. They left me at the base to make sure Adam didn’t overdo it too much because we all knew he’d fucking push his luck.
We were in the team’s common area, playing video games, when Adam said, “That scared me.”
I got up to get some water to hide my emotions. I’d been a wreck when I’d heard over comms that Adam had been hit.
“Yeah. It freaked me out, too.”
A few rounds of CoD later, Adam said, “I bought a boat.”
I laughed. He could be so fucking random. “Oh, yeah? When?”
“Right before we deployed. It’s in great shape, but could still use some work,” he said as we continued playing.
Things between us before deployment had been odd. Still were. We weren’t together, but we were fucking regularly. Not what I wanted for the two of us, but at this point, I was willing to take what I could get.
“So, what kinda boat did you buy?” I asked, looking over at him when the match ended.
Adam was rubbing his thigh and wincing. I got up, and grabbed him another drink and the pain meds the doctor had sent him back to the hooch with.
Adam looked up at me when I held out the water and meds. “Thanks. The boat’s built for deep sea fishing. I thought we could fly down together and bring it back to Vah Beach when we got home.”
I stared at him, trying to decide what he was getting at. Did he want help or something more? I sat down and grabbeda controller. I chewed my lip. My mind whirled. And then I sighed.
“Sure. Sounds like a good time. Can we make it back up the coast in enough time?”
Adam shifted on the ratty old couch so he was facing me. His gaze roamed over my face and upper body. His eyes flashed to the door behind me as he dragged his finger down my bicep and forearm until he snaked it around my pinky.
“We’ll have plenty of time to do what we need.”
My breath caught in my throat. He’d never touched me like this while deployed. That slight caress shattered my resolve on my wants and needs. I kept them locked up tight when we were working.
As I stared at him, shocked he’d touched me in that manner here, where we could never be anything more than teammates. Brothers. My heart rate spiked, and my breaths quickened. I swallowed. My cock swelled at the heat in Adam’s eyes.
Desire slammed into me. Adam licked his lips, staring at mine, and I leaned toward him.
