Aiden’s hit first, making him clench his ass around Darren, which sent blinding pleasure up Darren’s spine. It traveled all the way up to his neck and then raced back down, causing his own orgasm to surge through him on a wave of explosive sparks across his skin.
Darren devoured Aiden’s mouth through the aftershocks of their releases, his taste even stronger now after sex. It tingled Darren’s taste buds, bringing with it a sense of even greater contentment that was the same and yet different from the one he felt now that his body’s need for Aiden had been satiated.
Once they were breathing somewhat normally, Darren slipped out of Aiden and wiped them both with the towel he’d snatched. He zipped his pants and helped Aiden put his on, then they kissed again. This time it was more thorough and less fueled by adrenaline, driven by the craving for that sunshine and rain that lived inside both of them.
“I didn’t take you for the type to have sex in public,” he teased when they came apart, taking in Aiden’s blissful expression.
Aiden did something between a snort and a scoff, his slender fingers grazing Darren’s jaw. He took a sip of water and licked the leftover drops from his lips, keeping his eyes on Darren. “I’m not. I just…”
Darren understood and left it at that. They were both stressed and they’d both needed to get off here and now. His heart felt full that Aiden had initiated it, despite the reasons behind it, that he felt safe and conformable when not that long ago he’d been flinching away.
With every day that passed, it truly felt that they grew closer, their souls tangling as much as their bodies. It filled Darren with hope and excitement, with things that were a little unknown but so very good at chasing away the anxiety and the fear.
Darren squeezed Aiden’s thigh with one hand, pulling up his phone to check the time. They still had a good ten minutes, but when a tall half-Asian man with graying hair and horn-rimmed glasses sat next to Aiden and slid two full glasses of whiskey their way, Darren knew he was looking at George.
“Ren Valrais,” the man quietly said in a smooth bass voice, tracing his finger along the rim of his own glass.
Turning so he was facing the bar, Darren planted his elbows on the counter and leaned forward, meeting the man’s dark brown gaze. “And you are?”
“George Matsumoto,” he replied, studying Darren’s face first and then Aiden’s. “And this must be Aiden Kesley.” At that, a few crinkles appeared around his eyes, softening his otherwise stern look.
Aiden flushed, though not fully, and Darren’s own neck felt a little warm. They’d tried to be as discreet as possible, but it was possible that George might have seen their little show if his entrance was so well-timed.
“George Matsumoto,” Darren echoed back, giving George a lift of his eyebrow. “That doesn’t tell me anything.”
“Then perhaps Aurelia Seven does?” George offered, the words spoken in Standard Chinese, a language Darren hadn’t heard since he’d last spoken to Liu.
“Aurelia Seven?” Darren repeated, sticking to Chinese. “If you know of it, then you really kne—”
“Yes. I knew and worked alongsidehim. And I’m not the only one willing to meet you.”
Darren’s pulse sped up. There were more people like George. If this man was really who he was saying he was—and he had to be if he knew about Aurelia Seven—then that meant there were more of Liu’s associates who werealiveand ready to fight back.
Darren squeezed the cold glass with his hand, the condensation soaking into his fingers. “How many?” he whispered, trying to keep his voice steady.
George smiled again, more wrinkles appearing around the corners of his lips. “Probably more than you’d think.”
Aiden clasped Darren’s forearm, shooting a questioning look his way.
“Why didn’t you reach out?” Darren asked, switching back to Universal English.
George hunched forward, moving the glass to his mouth, but not taking a sip. “Tell your friend outside… Kristen, was it? Tell him to meet us out back.”
Aiden looked as apprehensive as Darren felt, not least because George was aware of Kristen’s role in this. Aurelia Seven was one of Liu’s four secret estates that to this day still remained intact, serving as a community center last Darren had checked. Only he and Liu knew about it, that was how Liu had wanted things, so the fact that George also had that knowledge, on top of the cipher, was yet one more reason why the gamble of trusting him was worth taking.
Giving Aiden a nod and a reassuring smile, Darren enabled his earpiece and instructed Kristen to pick them up from the alleyway behind the venue. Two minutes later, they met up with him, climbing into the shuttle alongside George.
“Where to?” Kristen asked, lifting an eyebrow at Darren in a very obvious ‘what is going on’ question.
“Turn left and follow Sterlan Avenue,” George said from the passenger’s seat, causing Kristen’s attention to change its target. He looked about ready to argue, but he seemed to think better of it when Darren gave him a nod.
Without any further conversation, Kristen steered the shuttle onto Sterlan Avenue. They drove for a while until George instructed to turn left where one of Calisto’s industrial zones began. A few miles later, they took a right at a small intersection near an abandoned engine factory.
The next stretch of their journey led them to the agricultural zone of the Moon’s capital, where the majority of fresh produce for Mars and Europa came from. Greenhousesand farms of various sizes lined both sides of the dirt road they slipped onto, most of them owned by one of the big corporations which had a monopoly over anything that could be monetized. Occasionally, Darren could see the shabby outline of smaller glass enclosures he assumed were owned by struggling local businesses, though those were very few and often lost between the massive structures surrounding them.
After another couple of miles, the greenhouses gave way to orchards and, eventually, a high stone wall.
“Park over there,” George said, pointing at an empty parking lot near a wrought-iron gate.
