“I did my best to throw the bastard off the trail, but I don’t know if I made things worse by engaging.We have two different stories going on now—us being discharged for Jansen and deployed forThe New York Times.”
“Better we know what we’re going up against than have it drop on us out of the blue and be unprepared.The brass will have to figure out a way to reconcile the two.”Katie pointed at the ceiling.“You should head up.”
Kyle took her words as a gentle dismissal and closed the office door behind him.Heading upstairs, he found the door to the master bedroom shut.He knocked loudly.When he got no response, he tried again.Kyle couldn’t hear anything through the door, which meant Jamie probably had the privacy mode up and running so the soundproofing was engaged.He tried the door handle and found it unlocked, so he pushed it open.
The screen embedded in the wall was on but blank, the prompt to initiate another uplink displayed over the center.Jamie was sitting on the bed with his head in his hands, fingers gripping his hair tightly, the slump of his shoulders more tired than anything else.Kyle shut the door behind him and locked it before striding over to sink to his knees before Jamie.
“Hey,” Kyle said softly, resting his hands on Jamie’s knees.
Jamie heaved out a sigh and lifted his head, rubbing a hand over his face.“I called my father to update him on the reporter and that the man might have some trumped-up evidence to use in a story on him.He’s not happy about that.”
“He wasn’t happy about us doing this mission to begin with.I don’t see how things have changed.”
“You wouldn’t.”
The words stung.Kyle swallowed back the first and second retort that came to him.He knew Jamie didn’t mean anything by it, not really; the shadow of his father constantly followed Jamie around, which was something Kyle couldn’t help him with.He’d never even met the senator, nor his wife, nor Jamie’s little sister.Part of that was because Jamie’s relationship with his family had become even more strained over the past half year.The rest of it was because Kyle didn’t run in their circle.Nothing about Kyle screamed that he belonged in the world the Callahans lived in.
Except he belonged to Jamie, and in the long run, that might be the only ticket he needed.
Kyle pressed his fingers to Jamie’s jaw, tapping his index finger against the bone there until Jamie looked at him.“We got a warning.Your father can plan for it.That’s more than we sometimes get in this fight.”
Jamie smiled crookedly, reaching up to loosely wrap his hand around Kyle’s wrist, rubbing his thumb against the bones there.“I know.Still doesn’t make the mess any easier to deal with.”
“Offer still stands to shoot him,” Kyle said semi-jokingly.
“No shooting members of the free press.”
Jamie’s mouth twitched a little during his admonishment.Kyle stood up and framed Jamie’s face with cold hands, kissing the other man lightly.“C’mon.You’ll put yourself in a shitty mood if you stay up here.Annabelle’s making lasagna, I think, and Madison has taken control of the television.”
“Donovan was watching soccer before Katie called me into the office.”
“They call it football here, and Madison could coax rights to cable streams out of a debt collection agency.You really think Donovan stood a chance?”
“Well, when you put it like that, no.”
Kyle kissed him again because he could, because it was just them in this room, holding on.“Let’s go.”
Kyle pulled Jamie to his feet and headed for the door.Jamie kept hold of his hand for a few seconds more beyond the door before they separated.
“You realize we’re going to have to get you a tuxedo,” Jamie said as they headed down the hall.
“Why do I need a tuxedo?”
“You didn’t pack one for your cover, and a gala isn’t something you wear casual clothes to.”
Kyle made a face that Jamie couldn’t see.“We might not get an invite.”
“This is Katie we’re talking about.We’ll get the invite.”
Which meant Kyle was probably going to have to get a fucking suit and smile his way through what basically amounted to a dog and pony show of the civilian variety.
“Didyoupack a tux?”Kyle asked.
“I always plan for every eventuality.So, yes, I brought a tux with me.”
“Fine, but I’m not paying for it.You want me in a tux, you’re buying it.”
“I’m picking it out for you, so of course I’m buying it.”
