Fish & Chips (Cut & Run 3)

He set it on the ground at his feet. Then he looked up at Zane. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Porter,” he said suddenly, half standing and sticking his arm out as if he was about to shake Zane"s hand. He knocked the water glass over with his hand, sending it skidding off the table into Zane"s lap.

Zane could only flinch as the water splashed over his pants and the glass thumped to the floor. “And hope the guy doesn"t want you to pay for his dry cleaning,” he said wryly as he brushed at his thighs.

“Effective, though.”

“Sorry about that!” Ty exclaimed, moving closer and grabbing for the nearest napkin and helping Zane dry his lap. Zane noticed he"d even added a slur to his words as he mumbled apologies.

“You can help me like that as long as you want,” Zane drawled as Ty dragged the napkin across the front of his pants. “And I"ll order you another drink,” he pointed out.

“Clumsy, clumsy,” Ty muttered with a sad shake of his head.

“I"ve probably had enough,” he claimed as he sat back in his seat. He smiled slowly and held up Zane"s key card. “It"s useful for other ventures as well.”

Zane hadn"t even noticed. “Well, that"s embarrassing,” he muttered as he shook his head. But he still smiled.

Ty handed it back to him. “That"s a different lesson.” He took another sip from his glass of Scotch and then picked up the glass he"d dropped and set it on the table again. He dropped a few ice cubes into it, then poured out some of his Scotch into it. Then he added more ice.

He gestured to the glass. “One drink is two.”

“If I let that much ice melt into it, there"s no way I"d get even a remote buzz,” Zane observed.

“And that"s the point,” Ty murmured. He gulped down what he"d just poured into the water glass. “Now I"ve ordered and, in theory, consumed three drinks. Still only half a glass of Scotch is gone. You get the drift?”

Zane nodded. “Yeah, no problem,” he said quietly as he studied Ty"s face. He still looked worried. It was a simple set of ideas, but Zane figured he could put them into use without much trouble. The poker room was busy enough for him to move drinks around undetected.

“Sometimes, if you get there first, you can get an empty glass.

Switch them out somehow, like I just did, or dump drinks under tables or in plants or decorations. A lot of it"s situational. Your best friends are extra ice and clumsiness.” Ty shot back what remained of the Scotch he had ordered. “Okay, let"s go find you some dry pants,” he said in a hoarse voice as he set the glass down on the table with a clank.

“I"m thinking you"ll feel better behind a locked door,” Zane agreed as he stood up. “And then tonight I get to practice my lessons.”

Ty stood and stepped over to Zane. He slid his hand around Zane"s waist and pulled him closer. “I know it"s hard,” he whispered.

“But next time you think you might need a second glass, just remember that I will kick your ass when you get home.” He punctuated the threat with a forceful kiss.

The words flowed over and into Zane and sank in deep as he gave in under Ty"s lips. He"d already known he"d answer to Ty, anytime, anywhere. But now Zane believed, for the first time in so long, that he had someone who truly cared about him.

AFTER the climbing wall scare and the Del Porter nonemergency, Zane had been sure they would be plagued by other accidents and loudly insisted they should avoid excursions that involved gravity. But the past three days had been oddly threat-free, enough so that Ty had started wondering if the rope at the rock wall had really been an accident after all. If it hadn"t been for that visit from Armen, Ty might have been able to convince himself.

After Armen"s little “discussion,” though, neither Ty nor Zane could relax. It made what might have been an enjoyable few days tense and frustrating.

Among other activities on their itinerary, they went waterskiing and kayaking off a private island near Haiti, one owned by the cruise line. The first was not to Ty"s tastes, but Zane had called it exhilarating and said he wouldn"t mind trying it again. The kayaking was enjoyable for no other reason than Ty could begin humming “Dueling Banjos” at Zane whenever he wanted, and Zane couldn"t manage to smack him with his paddle without tipping the kayak over.

Zane played poker with Armen, Bianchi, and some other high rollers every evening for an hour or two. He was able to pry a few vague details out of Bianchi about his part of the business, but Armen remained close-lipped. So Zane contented himself with winning modestly, and Ty had been honestly surprised when Zane had handed him a $10,000 poker chip one night. Apparently 10K was modest for the Porters. It wasn"t likely they"d get to keep it—the FBI had a way of collecting everything it could get after an assignment—but the money wasn"t the point. Ty knew that Zane just liked the rare moments when he succeeded in surprising him. And he had.

On yesterday"s excursion, they had hiked for five hours through a rainforest in Puerto Rico to the “Exciting Jungle and Zip-line Adventure,” which really wasn"t all that exciting or adventurous, since it turned out to be a thirty-minute harness ride through the treetops. The hike itself had been more fun. Ty would have preferred to have kept on into the dense tropical forest, but he"d been assured the jungles weren"t safe for going out on his own. Ty had barely restrained a snort when the serious young guide had said those words. Ty was pretty sure he could have shown the kid what an unsafe jungle really looked like.

On today"s agenda was the “thrilling cliff diving experience for swimmers young and old,” a chance to plunge fifty-five feet from a natural rocky cliff into the protected cove below. Now this Ty could get behind. He seemed to be among the few, though, because there were a lot of people going to the top of the cliff and almost as many walking back down.

Looking up at the height from which the few brave souls were leaping, Ty had doubts that Zane would be able to handle it.

“It"s a long hike up there,” Ty tried casually, glancing sidelong at his partner. “Been a long day too. We can skip it and head back to the ship if you want.”

“I don"t mind hiking up there,” Zane answered with a shrug. “I know you"ve been looking forward to this all week.”

Ty snorted. He"d known Zane would pass on the easy out if he offered it. “It"s a long climb, darling,” he said in a low voice, still mindful of those around them who could overhear. “No need for you to make it if you just plan to walk back down.”