“Damn fucking right.”
Darius smiled quickly but got back to business. “Family first, baby. I’m a better risk assessor than the Tenley brothers too, so I’m not sure I could even agree to a recovery job like they did.” River and Reese had definitely gotten more heat than they’d bargained for. “I’m thinking more like…Ramirez. When he picked us up on the island. Minor risks only.”
Minor risks only. Gray nodded. And a part of him yelled at the rest of him, called him an idiot, but he couldn’t help it. Something about that kind of job, that kind of lifestyle, drew him in.
“Minor risks,” Gray echoed.
“And preferably several years apart,” Darius added.
Gray grinned. “I’m fine with that. I don’t need that window to be fully open.”
Darius cocked his head, his gaze softening with understanding. “I get it. You just want the possibility to be there.”
That was exactly it.
“Yeah. I think it’ll make it easier to sink into a more normal everyday life.” Gray chewed on his lip and reveled in how much freer he already felt. “It’ll keep me motivated and give me something to train for. Something to stay sharp for.”
Darius winced and chuckled. “You’re on dangerously relatable ground here, Gray. I get what you mean, just—be careful. You’ve seen my world now, and you feel like everything else is a suffocating kid’s game.”
Yikes. Well, sort of. He wasn’t entirely wrong.
“I don’t wanna become you, Darius, and I mean that in the nicest way possible.” Gray lifted their hands and kissed Darius’s knuckles. “I’m not PMC material—I don’t even have the curiosity or desire for anything like that. But you’re right. After seeing your world, there’s no way I can pull off a suit-and-tie career. I can’t imagine being stuck in traffic every day or getting drunk at sleazy office parties. I don’t wanna go back to school or gossip by a water cooler. I need something else.”
Darius understood him. If there was one person in the world who understood him, it was Darius. Gray was sure of it. And when Darius grew thoughtful again, it looked like that conversation wasn’t gonna wait very long. It was so typical of Darius; he had to get to work right away.
“I didn’t mean right now.” Gray smiled.
“No, I know. It’s just…” Darius shrugged and grinned a little to himself, and he finished his coffee. “I can see you acing countless careers, but obviously, education is a step on the way. From counselor and—”
“You hate what you call head doctors.”
“But I love you,” Darius was quick to retort. “And you were born to help others—plus, you’ve already studied psychology. But fine, let’s get you out of an office. What about an EMT or a paramedic? Work in search and rescue?”
Holy shit. Gray pinched his lips together to hide a shit-eating grin. He liked those options. He’d never even considered a career in the emergency service, and perhaps he should have.
“I would look hella good in an EMT uniform,” he stated.
Darius let out a laugh. “You definitely would, knucklehead. You already have the confidence and the bedside manner.”
Maybe it’d been intended as a joke, but it was true, nevertheless. Gray had regained his confidence.
“I do, don’t I? I’m more assertive now.”
Darius smiled and reached out and touched Gray’s cheek. “Hard work does it. It’s a good look on you.”
Gray turned toward the touch and pressed a kiss to Darius’s palm. “How much work will it take to lure you into bed with me?”
Judging by the heat that simmered in Darius’s eyes, no work at all.
“Hey…not nice,” Gray whispered. He pressed a kiss to the dip between Darius’s shoulder blades. “You don’t like it when I tease you.”
Darius hummed, sounding about as far away into the land of dreams as Gray felt. It was the perfect state to be in when you shared a bed with the love of your life. Half reality, half dream. Their bodies perfectly aligned, nothing between them, all while fantasies pulled the strings. It was like being in control of what you dreamed. In that short period of time when you were both awake and asleep, anything could be real.
“I’m not teasing…” Darius’s morning voice never failed to get Gray going. Or his in-the-middle-of-the-night voice. He had no idea what time it was. It was dark outside the window. “I want it, knucklehead. All of you.”
That couldn’t be real. Could it?
Or maybe it could… Maybe Gray was dreaming. God. Darius was too irresistible. Gray dropped another kiss between Darius’s shoulder blades and pressed his cock where he wanted it to be right now. It didn’t happen often, but when it did—Christ, the need struck hard.
Darius rolled his hips a little again, his sexy ass pushing against Gray’s cock, and it was enough to elicit quiet groans from both of them.
“I mean it.” Darius turned around and kissed the corner of Gray’s mouth.