Xavier (Vigilance 4)

I listened to the birds chirping, the breeze filtering through the trees, and the pool water lapping against the filter.

I was sure X would be pissed off if he knew I was out there alone, but surely he had awesome security. Even drunk and freaked out, he wouldn’t have gone to sleep if he thought I was unprotected.

I scanned the area. Everything felt so peaceful. The island really did seem like paradise.

I closed my eyes again and slowly drifted off to sleep.

15

Xavier

I rubbed my temples. My damn head still hurt even though it was midafternoon. Was my hangover ever going to go away? Henrietta had even made me one of her special hangover tonics when I’d woken around eleven the night before and struggled to the kitchen in need of food.

She’d insisted on cooking dinner for me. I protested that she shouldn’t be working at that time of night, but she insisted she couldn’t sleep.

I was a little fuzzy on the full conversation, but I was pretty sure we talked extensively about Emilio. I hoped I hadn’t said anything I shouldn’t.

Emilio. I’d been avoiding him all day, but despite sitting at my desk for hours, I hadn’t gotten a damn thing done because I couldn’t stop thinking about him. I’d been checking in with security several times an hour to find out where he was and what he was doing, but I wanted to see him. Why was I being such a fucking coward?

I rose from my desk and headed to Emilio’s room where he’d been most of the day. When he didn’t answer, I went in, calling out to him, but the room was empty. Several articles of clothing lay on the sloppily made-up bed, letting me know Emilio had received the package Dalton had sent.

I called one of the security guards currently on duty. “Do you have eyes on Emilio?”

“Yes, sir. He’s at the pool.”

“Swimming?”

“He was, but he’s resting now.”

So he’d actually decided to get some fresh air without prompting. That was a good thing, but he should have found me first.

After the way you behaved yesterday?

I owed him an apology. The only people who’d seen me like that since I’d come home were my sister, Giorgio and Oran, a friend who’d also been through hell with us.

The others who had seen me in less serious distress never knew what to say or do, but Emilio had. He hadn’t pushed me to talk. He’d offered to help me reach out to someone who understood. He’d encouraged me to take care of myself.

And I’d been an ass to him. An arrogant asshole who gave him mixed signals. Most people would agree with that unflattering self-assessment, but I never led people on.

I returned to my room and quickly showered and dressed, then stepped out onto the balcony, which stretched along the back of the house and overlooked the pool deck.

I scanned the area and immediately found Emilio on a chair in partial sun. Before I even registered what I was doing, I’d made it partway down the stairs. I needed to be closer to him. He was stretched out on his back wearing nothing but a tiny black swimsuit. I was going to owe Dalton a huge thank you.

I imagined it was not the type of swimwear Emilio would have chosen, but he looked amazing in it. I hadn’t thought I’d get to see so much of him. He was damp, whether with pool water or sweat I wasn’t sure, but it didn’t matter. Either way, I wanted to lick him dry.

My eyes roamed up his long legs, which were lightly covered with dark hair. My gaze settled on the bulge in his swimsuit. I needed to be closer, to see all the definition the suit would reveal.

His belly was flat, and his skin looked soft. The dip of his navel drew my attention next, then his dusky pink nipples. How would he react if I sucked on them? Would he like it?

Since I’d discovered my intense attraction to Emilio the first time we’d met in person, I’d watched a lot of progressively filthy gay porn and gotten many ideas of things I wanted to do to him.

As I continued to study him, I saw that his shoulders looked pink. It was a good thing he wasn’t sitting in the sun. He’d need to reapply the sunscreen soon. Maybe I could help.

No. I’d gone out there to find him and reassert the professional boundaries between us.

You don’t really want to do that.

I don’t have a choice.

Emilio shifted position then, arching his back slightly and running a hand over his abdomen.

My breath caught and my cock demanded I go down there and—

Movement in the trees caught my eye, and the hair on the back of my neck stood up. I waited, scanning the trees, but my instincts told me it wasn’t another damn cat. Emilio was down there, vulnerable.