Their Obsession (Four Mercenaries 2)

Pyro handed him a beer. “I’m ready for mayhem, brother. It’s gonna be fine.”

Tank shook his head, because he knew he’d lost this round. “You can come,” he said to Clover. “But I don’t like it, and we will establish extra safety rules. Also, you will be punished for playing dirty.”

Clover bit his lip and hugged Boar tighter. “Sorry, Daddy.”

Brat wasn’t sorry at all. Well, he would be when he found out the punishment wouldn’t be bare-ass spanking but cleaning, washing up, laundry, and laps around the lake.

Chapter 3 – Clover

On the night of the secretive job, dusk was the color of raspberry juice, and while Pyro kept joking about Clover’s new role in their group, the overall mood had been somber all day. Even Drake, who agreed Clover needed to dip his toes into their line of business, seemed unusually tense, so Clover had taken it on himself to lighten the atmosphere

But now that he actually sat at Tank’s side at the front of their van, nerves were getting the best of him. He might have learned how to shoot a dummy but had never killed or injured anyone. Yet the gun at his hip announced that he could. He held that power, and it changed the way he looked at the world around him. With a ranged weapon, he could take down people much bigger than him as long as he was fast on his feet and ducked on time. It would be fine. It was his first job, so the guys would be his backup.

He kissed Tank on the cheek in an attempt to ease the tension that had hung between them since the wrestling match a few days ago. Tank’s attitude was an expression of how much he cared, but while Clover knew his man meant well, he also needed him to understand that Clover couldn’t be forever stuck in the limbo of being a kept boy-prize. As much as he loved the protection Tank offered him as his Daddy, Clover was developing into a man in his own right and couldn’t have all important decisions made for him. Couldn’t forever stay on the sidelines of their little family. The sooner Tank understood that the better for everyone involved.

In the back of the van, Pyro was telling Drake and Boar some crazy story from his past. Clover couldn’t hear it all from the front seat, but it involved getting high on shrooms and an epic battle against trolls, who later turned out to be mall police officers. In the front of the vehicle, silence was as uncomfortable as a tiny stone that had gotten stuck in his shoe and refused to fall out.

“You know I won’t go crazy, right? You don’t have to worry,” Clover said, focusing on Tank’s handsome profile rather than the voice at the back of his mind telling him that maybe Tank was right. That maybe Clover should have sat this job out. His ass still hurt after the punishment he’d gotten for cheating during their wrestling match.

Tank’s chest sagged, and his nostrils flared, as if he were a bull about to charge. “You don’t get to tell me when I should worry, boy.”

Clover hovered his fingers over Tank’s, unsure how to approach him when he was so tense. “May I hold your hand?” he tried.

Tank’s hesitation was like a stab, but Clover stayed silent, telling himself that this was an extremely difficult situation for his Daddy. Not only because he felt responsible for Clover’s safety, but also because they were life partners. Not to mention that Tank wasn’t used to having his orders dismissed.

Halfway down the well of dismay, Tank’s warm hand touched Clover’s. When their fingers entwined, Clover could breathe again. “I promise I will do as you tell me while we’re on the job. Even stay in the car when you tell me to,” he said, keeping his voice to a whisper, because he wanted that part to stay between them. “But I really wanted to make this first step.”

Tank’s fingers held his more tightly, but he wouldn’t look away from the road as they drove through a landscape of grassy hills toward the coordinates provided by their client. It was already dark, and Clover tried hard to ignore the spookiness of cattle eyes reflecting their headlights, because if Tank found out he was scared of cows, tonight’s work would be over for Clover before it even began.

“I’m trying to look at the bigger picture, Clover. You are only one side of that dice. In case of any danger you might be in, our performance will be affected too.”

Clover swallowed that harsh truth, because it was frighteningly accurate. “I won’t let you down.”

Tank glanced at him with a frown marring his forehead, but they could already see their destination ahead. The black truck parked on the side of the empty road blinked with its emergency lights, and when their contact confirmed his presence this way, reality hit Clover with ants crawling up his arms and legs, only to settle in his stomach and provoke cramps.