Rack & Ruin (THIRDS 3)

There was a short pause before Levi answered with a solemn, “No,” causing Lou to burst into laughter.

What the…? Sloane and Dex exchanged puzzled glances. They watched Levi hold his hand out to Lou.

“Agent Levi Stone. It’s a pleasure.”

Lou smiled widely and took Levi’s hand. Sloane might not have known Lou for long, but he could tell the younger Human was interested.

“Louis Huerta. You can call me Lou.”

“Would you like to dance, Lou?”

“I’d love to.”

Levi led Lou away, and Sloane noticed Dex was frozen to the spot. Sloane stepped behind him to look at the pair over Dex’s shoulder. “You okay? Do you mind him dancing with Lou?”

Dex seemed to snap out of it. “No, it’s not that. Levi’s a Therian. Not just a Therian, a white tiger Therian. Huge. I really thought Lou was going to bolt. Instead, he went all swoony.” Something seemed to strike him, and he gasped. “Dude, the guy smiled!”

“Who? Lou? He’s always smiling.”

“No, Levi. Did you know his name was Levi?”

“Of course I did. I’ve been working with the guy for the last ten years. You’ve probably noticed that his team and Taylor’s are usually the ones sent in to back us up. Beta Pride and Beta Ambush have been around almost as long as Destructive Delta. They haven’t changed Team Leaders since.”

Dex went thoughtful. “Considering how long you’ve known him, how come you don’t call Taylor by his first name?”

“Because unlike Levi who’s a nice guy, Taylor is a certified jackass. Always has been.”

“No arguments there,” Dex muttered. “This is the first time I’ve seen Levi smile.”

Sloane shrugged. “It’s been known to happen. Or so I’ve heard. Now I know the rumors are true.” Stranger things had happened. Like Sloane going all these years without kicking Taylor’s ass.

“He made a joke, and Lou laughed.”

“I was there,” Sloane replied with a chuckle.

“And he dances too.” They both watched Lou chatting and dancing with Levi, doing his flirty, playful smack-on-the arm thing. “Look at him. A few months ago he was ranting about Therians, and now he’s flirting with one.”

Sloane wrapped his arms around Dex’s neck from behind and leaned on his shoulders, his head coming to rest against Dex’s. “Well, he’s been hanging around us a lot. Maybe he’s coming around to the fact Therians aren’t as bad as he thought. Has he talked to you about why he feels that way about Therians?”

“No.” Dex sounded troubled by the thought. “I brought it up once, and he got really pissed about it. Said he wasn’t going to get into it.”

“Well, I hope whatever it is, he’s leaving it behind. He seems happy now.” Sloane hadn’t given his affectionate gesture any thought until he heard Ash’s growl behind them.

“What the fuck are you two—”

Dex cut Ash off, pointing to the opposite end of the room.

“Don’t look now, Ash, but Herrera’s about to take a piss on your fern.”

“What?” Ash looked over his shoulder. “Motherfuck. Herrera!” Ash darted off, and Sloane pulled away from Dex. He shoved his hands in his pockets.

“Shit.” What the hell was wrong with him? They were in a room filled with coworkers, and he was hanging off Dex. He hadn’t even realized what he’d been doing. Dex gave him a wink and playful nudge.

“Take it easy, big guy. Crisis averted.”

“I’m sorry. We need to be more careful. I should be more careful.” No one would suspect anything if it was Dex hanging off him since his partner did the same with everyone else on the team—with the exception of Ash. Other than the occasional reassuring hug or companionable arm around the shoulder, Sloane had never behaved that way toward any teammate. Not even Gabe.

“You two look hot together. Ever think of having a little Fancy Feast, Daley?”