SWAT Ed: Fox & Bull (Nothing Special 8)

“I didn’t mean to scare you.” Fox’s silken voice had Bull taking his own steps forward.

“I didn’t say you scared me.”

“But I did,” Fox whispered. “I apologize. I was looking out the window, so I left the light off. Besides, I see better in the dark.”

Bull gulped, and it was too loud in the quiet room.

“C’mere,” Fox told him.

He was standing in front of the desk holding the four security monitors that Free had set up in the fall. It was supposed to be an easy system for Bull to maintain—and he’d tried—but technology wasn’t his pal.

“I want to show you something.”

Bull went and stood next to Fox, staring at the dark screens and trying to will his dick not to overreact to Fox’s scent. He smelled freshly showered, his hair still damp, making the gray appear darker than it was. Bull stood almost a head over Fox and at the perfect height to place a sweet kiss against his temple. Fox pulled one of his sleeves up and tapped a couple of times on that complicated watch on his arm. The thing seemed to do everything but tell time. After a few seconds, Fox began talking.

“Free, are you still in your lab? Good… yep… I’m in front of the monitors now. Can you load ’em up with the last recorded footage… yes, whatever you can scrap.”

The monitors all came on without Fox touching anything, and Bull finally knew who he was talking to through whatever means that was. If it was a communication device made by Hart’s boyfriend, the computer genius, then it wasn’t for Bull to understand.

Fox pointed to the dates on the monitors. “Bull, this is from seven weeks ago. You didn’t notice your security feed had stopped all that time?”

Bull shook his head. “I don’t know how to work that system, and Freeman is too busy of a man for me to call with tech problems. I tried to mess with it a few times but…”

“I need your permission to replace the cameras that are out, and I want to move a couple to different places,” Fox said confidently, his sharp eyes assessing each of the images on the screens. He didn’t know what it was Fox saw, but he was already feeling relief that his family was going to be safe tonight. Fox made him feel safe too.

“Whatever you need to do, do it,” Bull muttered. “You hungry?”

Fox grinned. “I can eat.”

Fox sat to Bull’s left at the dining table the same as he had this morning. The downstairs smelled like a five-star restaurant, and the juicy rib roast in the center of the table looked as if it had been prepared in one. “This smells amazing, Amelia. I don’t think I’ve had a square meal like this in years.”

Walker got up and helped Amelia into her seat before he sat back down. Fox wondered if there was something more to their sweet friendship, but he wouldn’t dare ask. He was sure he’d figure it out after a while. If I’m still here. Fox ignored the heavy feeling on his neck when he thought of going back to work. He knew he had to eventually, but until Fox had gotten away, he hadn’t realized just how much he’d needed to.

Bull asked them all to bow their heads and proceeded to say grace. Fox was so stunned that he was still sitting there staring at Bull when he lifted his head and said, “Amen.” Fox accepted the bowl of sauteed green beans and was about to add a thick slice of medium-rare beef to his plate when the back door creaked open. He noticed the perplexed expressions on all of their faces, as if they weren’t expecting company, and Fox reached towards his waistband.

Amelia beamed when their visitor rounded the corner. “Dale. Hey, honey?”

“Dale.” Bull set his fork and knife down on his plate. “Everything all right?”

“Yeah, sure.” Dale waved off the look of concern.

Bull cocked his head as if he were confused. “What brings you up here this time of evening?”

Dale removed his big hat and pointed to an empty chair beside Fox. “Amelia invites me to dinner all the time… I thought I’d finally accept.”

The three of them blinked but quickly changed their expressions to welcoming ones. Amelia hurried and got up to get Dale a plate. Fox went back to eating, humor filling him as Bull continued to cut his eyes at his foreman while he made himself a heaping plate at his table. Fox didn’t even live there and he wasn’t surprised by Dale’s pop-up visit.

Dinner was quiet for several minutes as they ate, and Fox had been enjoying his homecooked meal until Dale started in on him like he knew he would.

“So, Fox. When Bull said you were gonna be staying on the property, it was kind of a shock.”