Sam stared unblinkingly at the green t-shirt in his hands. It was one of the few shirts of his own that he hadn’t thrown out after becoming an MI6 trainee. It was threadbare and faded from too many washings, but it didn’t have any holes, which was good enough in his book.

He wondered if Luke Whitford ever wore something like that.

Sam nearly laughed at that thought.

“You’re still angry,” Dominic stated.

“No,” Sam said honestly. He wasn’t angry anymore. He did believe now that Dominic gave a shit about him—he wouldn’t have told Sam about himself and his mission if he didn’t care at least a little.

It just didn’t change anything.

“So if you can’t come to headquarters, that means I’m not going to see you for a long time, right?” Sam said, staring at his suitcase unseeingly. “Months, yeah?”

He had heard that missions like that could take a long time.

Sometimes years.

His throat constricted, and Sam found himself balling the t-shirt in his hand. It was just a crush. Just a little crush. There was no reason for his chest to ache like this.

“Probably,” Dominic said after a moment.

Sam gave a clipped nod.

Why wasn’t Dominic leaving?

He felt more than heard Dominic walk over.

Sam stiffened, his fingers trembling.

He could feel Dominic close, right behind him.

“Sammy,” he said quietly, laying his hand on Sam’s nape.

Sam shuddered. It took all his willpower not to lean back into the touch.

“Starting tomorrow, I can’t be here much,” Dominic said. “I’ll give you my number, the one that MI6 doesn’t know about. If something happens—if Amanda tries something again or assigns you to another mission or someone gives you trouble—you will call me. Understood?”

Sam bit his bottom lip so hard he tasted blood. A part of him hated Dominic for this, for caring for him and giving him stupid hope.

Sam nodded, pulling out his MI6 issued phone.

“No, your phone is tracked and every conversation is recorded. Here.” Dominic pulled out a mobile phone, seemingly identical to Sam’s, and gave it to him. “A burner phone. I already put my number in there. Don’t let anyone know you have it.”

Sam slowly stood, took the phone, and looked at the other man.

Dominic had a very strange expression on his face. It was intense but hard to read. He eyed Sam for a long moment before taking a step closer.

Sam stared back, breathless, his heart beating like crazy, and he thought maybe—

“Be safe, Bambi.” Dominic clapped him on the shoulder and strode out of the room.

Sam moved toward his bed, sat down, and dropped his face into his hands.

“Idiot,” he whispered.

Sometimes he wondered what his mother would think of him if she were still alive.

She would probably be ashamed of giving birth to such a stupid, pathetic thing like him.

Chapter 16

Goddammit.

Dominic’s hands tightened on the steering wheel. He didn’t look at the rear-view mirror as headquarters disappeared out of sight. He had more self-control than that. Barely.

“Bloody ridiculous,” he muttered under his breath. Not only was he completely powerless to resist Sammy when he asked something, but he also had to suppress the completely insane, paranoid ideas that something would happen to Sammy when he wasn’t around to protect him.

Sammy didn’t need protecting. He was neither helpless nor naive. He’d survived more than a decade on the streets. He didn’t fucking need Dominic to hold his hand. He would be fine while Dominic concentrated on the Whitford mission—even if the mission lasted months.

His lips thinned at the thought.

Dominic had to remind himself that he’d known the boy for a month. It wasn’t enough time to get so… attached.

Besides, some time apart would do them good. Sammy would get over his crush and find another object for his affections. When Dominic saw him next, Sammy would likely gush to him about some boy his age that he was crushing on and would no longer look dazed and high whenever Dominic touched him.

The thought was… strange.

The fact that it was strange proved that he definitely needed some healthy distance from the kid.

* * *

He lasted three hours.

In Dominic’s defense, he had a good reason to call Sammy. Or so he told himself.

Sammy answered on the fourth ring. “Nick?”

Dominic straightened up from his slouch on the couch. The boy sounded as though he’d been crying. “Are you okay?”

He could hear Sam take a deep breath before he said, “Yeah, I’m fine. I was just napping. Something wrong?”

Dominic frowned, unsure he believed him. “No. I just wanted to know what exactly Amanda said.”

“Oh. I already told you.”

Dominic winced. “I know, but I need details.”

“She wanted to get you in trouble,” Sammy said. “She tried to make me say that you coerced me into sex.” He scoffed. “She actually had the nerve to pretend to be all sympathetic and understanding, as if I had no clue that she was the one who ordered you to recruit me for that mission, perfectly aware that some kind of sex would likely be involved. She pretended that it was your idea, that your actions were unsanctioned.”

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