Valor on the Move

“Watermelon and pistachio?”

“Yep.”

“Did he surf too?”

Shane laughed softly. “No. He was okay in pools, but wasn’t a fan of the ocean. Too many variables, he said. He was a math teacher, and he liked everything in order. Neat and binary.”

Rafa squeezed Shane’s thigh. “Sounds like they were really great.”

“Yeah.” His chest was too tight, but he managed to inhale.

“I’m so sorry you lost them.”

Eyes stinging, Shane cleared his throat. “Me too. I should have been there. I would have gotten them out. They were on the second floor sleeping. It spread through the walls. Faulty electrical. The smoke was too thick. They only made it to the top of the stairs.”

“It’s not your fault.”

The lead in his chest pressed on his sternum. “I was supposed to visit. Mom’s birthday.” He still held Rafa around the shoulders, and now Rafa snaked his arm around Shane’s waist, grounding him even more in the void of the cave. “But they wanted me to work a standing post in DC. Special assignment for one of your father’s state dinners. If I’d said no, I might not have had another chance. So I went. Mom was excited for me. Said we’d have another cake when I could make it out. That it was a good excuse for cake.” His eyes burned. “I don’t know why I’m telling you this. I never talk about them.”

“I’m glad you are.” Rafa nuzzled Shane’s cheek. “It wasn’t your fault.”

“If I’d been there…”

“You might be dead too. Shane, it wasn’t your fault.”

He’d heard it plenty of times before. Tried to believe it. Yet somehow when Rafa said it with such conviction, pressed against Shane’s side and kissing his cheek so sweetly, Shane felt the long-hollow places hidden inside fill. The warmth spreading through him loosened the weight in his chest, and his lungs expanded.

Fumbling for Rafa’s mouth, he kissed him again. He memorized the bow of his lips and the slide of his tongue—tentative and eager at the same time. He tried to burn the sound of Rafa’s little sighs and gasps into his memory, wishing he could see his face to kiss his freckles and the tiny dimple from his smile.

Rafa’s breath ghosted over Shane’s lips as they parted. “Do you really think they’re going to find us? Or did you just tell me that so I won’t spend our last hours freaking out?”

Shane chuckled, although low, constant worry still tugged at him, of course. “They’re going to find us. The president’s son missing? That’s a national emergency. Every boot will be on the ground. Trust me. And if they’re not here by morning, we’ll dig our way out. But the protocol is always to ensure safety. There are still unknown variables out there. In here, you’re safe for now. We wait for backup.”

“Out there’s the ocean, and in here’s the pool?”

Shane smiled. “That’s a good way to look at it.”

“I wish we had water. Cum makes me thirsty.”

Shane couldn’t hold in the burst of laughter. “Such a dirty boy.”

Rafa laughed too. “I can’t believe I said all that stuff out loud.”

“I like it.” Imagining Rafa’s blush, Shane ran his hand over Rafa’s thigh, stroking through his chinos.

“Yeah?” Rafa swallowed audibly, and his voice got low. “What else do you like?”

“Hmm. Let’s see. Pizza’s pretty great. Beer. Old episodes of The X-Files on Netflix.”

Laughing, Rafa smacked his chest. “Shut up.”

“Oh, you mean what do I like about you?” Shane skirted over Rafa’s leather belt with his fingers.

“Uh-huh. No, wait. Forget it. It’s stupid.”

“What’s stupid about it?” He dragged his hand against Rafa’s cock through the cotton, teasing before stroking over his thigh again. “You try to hide, but I see you.”

“But you’re so…and I’m…”

Shane frowned. “What?”

“I’m a skinny kid, and you’re what Hollywood thinks Secret Service agents look like.”

“You might have been a skinny kid once upon a time. Not now. You’re long and lean, and mmm, that ass. Wish I could see you so I could lick your freckles.”

Rafa sputtered out a laugh. “But—but my freckles are so ugly.”

“Not one thing about you is ugly.”

Kissing him messily in response, Rafa moaned into Shane’s mouth. “Shane, will you—”

He grasped Rafa’s cock through his pants. Rafa arched up, panting, and Shane broke their kiss to whisper hotly in his ear, “Do you want me to suck you?”

A sharp new noise split the darkness, and they froze. It came again—closer now—an angry blast. Shane forced in a breath. “Dogs.” He was still cupping Rafa’s cock, and he snatched his hand away and put some inches between them. “They’d give them your scent. Standard retrieval in a wooded area.” He could picture the Malinois sniffing their way down the hillside and into the gully.

“Are you sure it’s the good guys?” Rafa whispered.

“We’ll know in a minute.”

Sure enough, he heard the familiar sounds of tactical commands as the team reached the cave, the dogs barking with clipped determination. The point man shouted back that he’d found the bodies of more hostiles.