Fish & Chips (Cut & Run 3)

Zane"s emotions were as well, and he was having a difficult time keeping in mind that the constant proximity and living the lie of being Corbin and Del Porter skewed those emotions. It didn"t mean the close, passionate connection between him and Ty was as real as it felt.

Everything would change when they went home. Ty would change.

Zane sighed and resolved not to think about it as he pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it toward the sofa. It was exhausting, having a good time. They"d been here seven extra-long, activity-filled, frightfully boring days, and he was thinking spending most of one in bed sounded like a great idea, especially after Ty and his daredevil diving had strained Zane"s nerves yesterday.

Zane"s reticence hadn"t prevented Ty from running at full speed toward the edge of the cliff and throwing himself off it with the kind of cavalier pleasure only the insane could maintain and live through. Zane hadn"t told Ty, but he"d stopped at the railing around the mountainside and watched his lover jump over the edge. Zane"s heart had plummeted as if it had been him taking the leap. He had to say one thing: Ty"s form was beautiful as he dove toward the placid pool below. He wondered if it was something that came naturally or if it was all Ty"s training.

One thing he did know: Ty was fearless.

He laughed slightly, shaking his head and turning around to look through the cabin. He wondered where Ty had gotten to. His partner had mentioned something about needing to run an errand as they left the restaurant after lunch. Zane had already decided to be lazy for a while, so he"d come back to their cabin, kicked off his shoes, and padded across the room to the chaise, where he sat and stretched out with a sigh.

It was only a few minutes later when he heard the door to the stateroom open and close, and then the rustle of a plastic bag as Ty came in and set down whatever he"d bought.

“I"m pretty sure I just got groped while buying toothpaste,” Ty told him with a frown as he struggled with the tiny buttons of his shirt.

“By a tiny little old lady with dead butterflies on her hat.”

Zane had to fight hard not to laugh. He had noticed the past few days that whenever Ty got frustrated, he began pulling off pieces of clothing left and right. It wasn"t like Zane didn"t mind looking, but the fact that he was doing so now probably meant he didn"t think being groped was funny.

“I"m surprised it wasn"t more than that, you wearing those pants,”

Zane murmured, eyeing Ty"s ass.

Ty rolled his eyes. Zane wondered how much longer Ty would go before he put a stop to the lecherous comments Zane intended to keep making. He watched his partner, appreciating the view as Ty went to sit on the sofa, propping his feet up on the table in front of him. “I"m bored,” he told Zane grumpily. “How do people live like this?”

“I have no idea,” Zane murmured sleepily. He was bored too. But at least he could go to the casino and feel like he was doing something worthwhile, even if he hadn"t discovered anything useful so far. He"d seen Vartan Armen twice outside of their poker games, but only for the seconds it took for Armen to nod and move on. It obviously wasn"t

“time” yet.

They"d been dancing, shopping, touring, swimming, and neither really had any interest in shuffleboard. Zane had been only half joking when he suggested the country-Western line dancing lessons, which had set Ty to cackling. Aside from those options, Ty was stuck…

sunning himself and making nice with Signora Bianchi, whom he desperately avoided every chance he got. It had moved past funny into ridiculous a day ago.

Ty dug the heels of his hands into his eyes and groaned miserably as he rubbed at them. Zane opened one eye to peer at him. “What"s wrong?” he asked. The rubbing looked like more than simple tiredness.

“Are you that restless?”

“Yes,” Ty answered in frustration. “I haven"t gone for a run in a week,” he grumbled as he sat up, and his knee began to bounce rapidly.

“The only thing I"ve managed to do is climb half a rock wall and then nearly fall off. And paddle lazily around some private island.”

“So go for a run,” Zane said easily, ignoring the sarcasm.

“There"s a really nice running track around the upper outside deck.

You"ve got the body of a runner. No one would think anything about it.”

“Oh, I have the body of a runner, huh? Zane,” Ty said slowly, closing his eyes as he leaned forward, as if he were about to broach a complicated subject with a small child, “I have never been leered at so much in my life,” he said with emphasis. “By men or women. There is no way in hell I"m going to any of the gyms or running anywhere unless it"s nighttime and everyone"s at the clubs trying to get laid.”

Zane couldn"t hold in the quiet laugh. “Poor baby. You cannot tell me you haven"t been ogled a lot in your life.”

Ty looked at him with wide eyes, his frustrated expression one of complete sincerity. “No,” he insisted. “At least if I was, I never f**king noticed it!”

Zane frowned. “You"re serious?” He looked Ty up and down significantly.

“Yes,” Ty said in an affronted voice. He shifted uncomfortably under the sudden scrutiny and stood. “Why?” he asked defensively as he began moving toward the balcony.

“Because….” Zane had seen Ty use his good looks to his advantage. He knew that Ty was aware of how he appeared to others.

He could turn on the charm and all but the coldest of hearts would melt for him, and half of that battle was physical. But Zane suspected what Ty was talking about now was a different type of ogling, and he thought better of a flippant answer. He studied Ty for a long moment, realizing that blowing off the question wouldn"t make his partner feel better. “You"re a very handsome man,” he settled on, keeping his voice low and serious.

Ty turned and looked at Zane over his shoulder, one eyebrow raised as if he expected there to be a joke following the statement.

When he saw that Zane was serious, he gave him a slight jerk of his chin and snorted at him before turning to look out at the ocean that rolled past the ship.

Zane rose to his feet and walked over to stand behind him, curling his arms around his waist. He was getting used to this being-able-to-touch thing. “What"s the matter?” he teased gently. “It"s all fun and games "til somebody pays you a compliment?”

Ty was silent, his head bowing as he looked out the balcony doors diligently. “I guess you catch me off guard when you"re being honest,”