The desolation in his voice tore at her insides.
“His girlfriend says they’re taking him into surgery tomorrow for a triple bypass, to apparently ‘alleviate the obstruction’, whatever that means.” He continued to dress in a hurry, his panic thickening the air. “He had a heart attack a few years back, but he told me he was doing fine. He never said a goddamn word about…” Aidan swore softly. “I have to check the flights…and call a cab…and I have to…”
He trailed off, his eyes so wild Claire snapped into action.
She marched up to him and grasped his chin this time. “Aidan. Hey. It’s going to be fine.”
His blank expression was a tad worrying. “What?”
“I’ll handle the flight, okay?” She was already grabbing her laptop from the end table. “I’ll take care of everything you need, baby.”
The endearment slipped out without warning. It was the first time she’d called him that, and it seemed to shake him out of the numb trance he’d fallen into.
“Go make yourself a cup of coffee,” she ordered. “You need the caffeine.”
Twenty minutes later, Claire found him pacing the kitchen with a mug in his hand.
“All right, your flight leaves in two hours. We have just enough time to get you to the airport before the check-in counter closes.” She held up the sheet of paper she’d printed in his office. “This is your confirmation. Come on, let’s go.”
Aidan blinked, startled. “You’re coming with me?”
“Just to the airport.” Her lips tightened in displeasure. “There was only one seat left on the plane. I could have booked us on the next flight, but it leaves five hours from now and I know you want to get there as soon as possible.”
His gorgeous eyes flickered with an emotion she couldn’t make out. “You would have gone all the way to Chicago with me?”
“Of course.”
He placed his mug on the counter, and she noticed his hand was shaking. “Why? Why would you do that?”
With purposeful steps, she crossed the kitchen and stroked his stubble-covered jaw. “Haven’t you figured it out by now? I’d do anything for you.” She smiled. “I love you, silly.”
Surprise, pleasure and awe flooded his face, along with a flash of uncertainty that had Claire immediately regretting saying those words. Not because she didn’t mean them, but because now wasn’t the time. In fact, it was the worst time to drop an L-bomb, when his mind was on his father, when his shoulders were rigid with fear.
Not only that, but she didn’t want to put him in a position where he was forced to say it back before he was ready.
Which was why she quickly gave him a kiss on the cheek and took a step back. “Come on, time to go, baby. I didn’t break nearly enough speeding laws on my first trip to the airport tonight. But the second time’s the charm, right?”
* * *
It was eleven o’clock the next morning when Aidan finally walked into the hospital. He’d come straight from the airport and wasted no time in stalking up to the nurses’ station and demanding to know which room his father was in.
After he got the information he wanted, he took off like a light toward the elevator bank. The nurse had told him his father was in the ICU, and as he rode the elevator, his heart was pounding so fast he feared it might actually stop. Wouldn’t that be just fucking ironic. Father and son bonding over heart attacks.
He felt like a total slob in sweatpants, a ratty black hoodie and cross-trainers, but had to chide himself for giving a shit about his appearance when his father was about to go in for triple bypass surgery.
When the elevator dinged open, he hurried down the fluorescent-lit corridor toward yet another nurses’ station, where he had to show his ID in order to be taken to his father’s room. He hadn’t thought the intensive-care unit enforced its “family only” policy so strictly, but apparently it did, and as he and the nurse passed by the waiting area, Aidan was startled to see a familiar face.
“Wait,” he said abruptly. “That’s my father’s wife waiting in there. You have to let her in to see him.”
The nurse frowned. “She said she was his girlfriend.”
“Yeah, well, she’s his wife,” Aidan lied. He signaled to Veronica Hanson, who jumped up when she spotted him.
Veronica was a pretty woman in her fifties, with blonde hair streaked with gray and kind blue eyes that were brimming with tears. “Aidan!” she burst out.
The next thing he knew, he was enveloped in a breath-stealing embrace by a woman he’d only met once. Bringing his lips close to her ear, he murmured, “Play along” then pulled back and glanced at the nurse. “Veronica and my dad got married a few months ago. She just hasn’t had the chance to go through the whole name-change process yet.”
“So much paperwork,” Veronica murmured.
The nurse eyed them suspiciously before shrugging in resignation. “Follow me.”
She led them through a pair of restricted doors, then down another long hallway until finally coming to a stop in front of his father’s room.
“He can only have one visitor at a time,” she said briskly. “His cardiologist should be here shortly to discuss the surgery.”
After the nurse left, Aidan turned to Veronica. “How is he? Did the doctors at least tell you anything?”
She nodded miserably. “They said he went into cardiac arrest twice in the last four hours. They’re worried he might not be stable enough to undergo the surgery.”
“What happens if he doesn’t have the surgery?” Aidan asked grimly.
Her anguished expression said it all.
Choking on the lump in his throat, he turned to the window of his dad’s room, but the blinds were drawn so he couldn’t see inside.
“Go,” Veronica urged. “You’re his son. You should see him first.”
He hesitated. Christ, he didn’t want to walk into that room. Didn’t want to see his father lying there, hooked up to machines. Their encounters were sad enough as it was.
But he had no choice. This was his father, for chrissake.
Taking a breath, Aidan opened the door and walked inside.
Tim Rhodes was lying on a hospital bed in the middle of the private room. His dark hair, still full and free of gray, looked greasy and unkempt. His dark eyes were closed but snapped open at Aidan’s entrance.
“Aidan,” his dad said gruffly.
As he approached the bed, he grabbed the nearby metal chair and dragged it closer to his dad. Sitting was a damn good idea—his legs were close to buckling from seeing his father so pale and beaten.
“Hey, Dad.” He swallowed. “How’re you doing?”
“Still alive, so that’s something.” The attempt at humor fell flat, and neither man smiled at the joke.
“They said you need surgery.”
“If my heart is strong enough to allow it.”
Aidan’s throat was so tight he could barely force out any words, but he managed one wobbly question. “Were you having heart problems again?”
“None that I knew of. I’ve been taking care of myself ever since the last one five years ago. Eating right, exercising, I even quit smoking last year.”
It spoke volumes that Aidan hadn’t known that. Conversations in which they shared any part of their lives were few and far between, and his heart constricted painfully as he realized he hardly knew the man lying on the bed. This was his father, damn it, and he knew nothing about him.
“I’m glad you came.”
The emotion lining Tim’s voice came out of left field, startling Aidan into saying, “You are?”
“Of course I am. You’re my son. Is it so shocking that I’d want to see my son before I died?”
Panic erupted in his chest. “Don’t fucking say that. You’re not going to die, Dad.”
“There’s a chance my heart will stop on the table. Doctors said so.”
“There’s also a chance it won’t.” Aidan battled a spark of resentment. “For once in your life, can�
�t you be positive about something? You’re always so damn pessimistic, so wrapped up in the bad things instead of focusing on the good ones.”
Rather than look upset by the accusation, Tim’s eyes took on a somber light. “You’re right. And that’s why I’m glad you came, Aidan.”
“I don’t follow.”
“Ever since you were born, I tried so hard to shield you from those bad things you just mentioned. I carried the burden alone, and I know sometimes the frustration and heartache and sadness bled through that strong front I was putting up.”
Aidan had no idea where his father was going with this, and a part of him wasn’t sure he wanted to know.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t always there to talk to you, and I’m sorry I never truly let you in and showed you how I was feeling, but it was too damn hard, and I knew that doing it would lead to a conversation I never wanted to have with you.” Tim went quiet for a moment, the steady beeping of his heart monitor the only sound in the room. Then he cleared his throat. “But we need to have that conversation now.”
“What are you talking about?”
“In the event that I don’t make it through surgery, there are some things you need to know, Aidan.”
* * *
Claire was climbing the walls. She hadn’t heard from Aidan or Dylan in two days, and if one of them didn’t walk through that door soon, she was going to freak the fuck out.
“Honey, I’m hoooooome.”
From her perch on the couch, Claire froze, wondering if she’d imagined that familiar singsong voice. Dylan?
No, her mind had conjured it up, cruelly making her believe her prayer had been answered and Dylan had just walked in the door.
“Claire? Aid?”
Her heart nearly jumped right out of her chest when Dylan strode into the living room.
God, she wasn’t imagining him. He was here.
“Oh, thank God!” She lunged off the couch and hurried toward him, throwing herself into his strong arms so hard their chests collided with a violent thump.
“Hey, now,” he said with a laugh, his arms coming around her waist. “What’s with the dramatic hello?”
Claire hugged him even tighter, breathing in his woodsy scent and sinking into the familiar hardness of his body. She pulled back to run her fingers over his week’s worth of beard growth, and searched his playful green eyes for any sign that he’d gotten injured during his mission.
He looked completely fine, an observation that brought a rush of relief. Still, she couldn’t help but demand, “Are you okay? Did you get hurt?”
Dylan grinned. “Not a scratch on me.”
“Promise?”
“I promise.” He glanced around. “Where’s Aidan?”
The question sent Claire’s spirits plummeting back to freak-out mode. “Chicago,” she said bleakly. “His dad had a heart attack.”
“Holy shit.” A furrow of concern dug into Dylan’s forehead. “Is Tim okay? Is Aidan okay?”
She bit her lower lip. Hard. “I have no idea. I drove him to the airport two days ago, he called when he landed in Chicago, and that was the last I heard from him. He’s not picking up his phone, he’s not answering my texts or my emails…” She sucked in a breath. “I’m so worried. I called the hospital to get an update on Aidan’s dad but all they would tell me is he made it out of surgery and is still in the ICU.”
Dylan looked upset. “Let me try him.” He fished his phone out of the pocket of his dusty fatigues. A minute later, he lowered the phone and cursed. “Voicemail. I’ll shoot him a text.”
That yielded no results either.
“Fuck,” Dylan muttered. “It isn’t like him to stay out of touch, especially if you’ve left him messages.”
Claire shook her head in aggravation. “So what do we do now? Just sit and hope that he’s not lying in a ditch somewhere in Chicago?”
“I’m sure he’s not lying in a ditch. If anything, he’s sitting at his father’s bedside, and too stressed to call back. Or maybe he doesn’t even realize how much time has passed—hospitals tend to do that, one hour just morphs into the next hour, and the next thing you know, it’s been two days.”
His reassurance did the trick, easing some of the pressure weighing on Claire’s chest. “You really think he’s okay?”
“I really do.” He tipped her head up and swept his thumb over her bottom lip. “And I’m sure you and I can come up with a lot of fun ways to distract ourselves while we wait for our radio-silent lover to make contact.”
Her lips twitched, then parted to let out a laugh. “How do you always manage to make me laugh even when I’m at my most upset?”
“It’s a gift.” With a wicked grin, he stepped forward and scooped her up into his arms before she could blink. “Wanna experience some of my other gifts?”
It was just the distraction she’d needed, and she was shrieking with laughter when Dylan started tickling her side as he carried her all the way to the master bedroom. He deposited her on the bed, then began to strip out of his dirty camo gear until he was standing there naked and erect.
“Here’s what’s gonna happen, honey,” he said with an arch of his brow. “I’m gonna hop in the shower quick fast and wash all this grime and dirt off me. You, in the meantime, will remove every stitch of clothing from that scrumptious body of yours and get yourself nice and wet. I want your pussy drenched when I come out.”
A thrill shot through her. “I’m not sure you’re allowed to be bossy after being gone for an entire week without even a phone call.”
“I always get to be bossy. And I’m giving you advance warning—there ain’t gonna be any foreplay. I’ve been thinking about your tight cunt all week and I’m gonna shove my dick inside it the second I walk out of that bathroom.”
He flashed her a cheerful smile and disappeared.
Although she was still worried about the lack of contact from Aidan, Claire forced herself to put it out of her mind, at least for a little while. Without hesitation, she took off her shirt and bra, peeled off her leggings and panties, and got comfortable on the bed. Truth was, she loved Dylan’s bossiness. Aidan’s too.
Seven months ago, she’d wanted to feel the same passion and intensity she’d witnessed between the two men.
Well, now she had it. In spades.
When Dylan rejoined her five minutes later, she’d done precisely what he’d demanded—gotten herself so hot and so wet she was squirming on the bed like a dog in heat.
“Honey, you’re so good at following orders you should be in the military,” Dylan drawled.
He brought his hand to his erection and gave it a firm stroke, his green eyes glued to her fingers, which were idly stroking her clit and coated with her juices.
He watched her for several more seconds, then grabbed a condom from the bedside table and rolled it onto his stiff shaft. A moment later, his big glorious body covered hers, his chest colliding with her breasts.
Her nipples hardened and poked against his pecs, and she rubbed them wantonly against his hot male flesh, loving the incredible friction. His chest was completely hairless, all sleek muscle and smooth golden skin. It felt different compared to the feel of Aidan’s chest pressed against her, the scrape of Aidan’s wiry chest hairs on her nipples. She loved both sensations equally, though.
Same way she loved both men equally.
“I have been dying to be inside you since the moment I left.” He entered her in one fluid motion, filling her to the hilt.
Claire moaned and lifted her hips to trap him there.
He chuckled. “Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere. Wrap your legs around my waist.”
She did as he asked, digging her heels into his tight buttocks as he started to move inside her. She expected him to fuck her hard and fast, but he did the opposite, rocking into her gently, slowly. Long, deep strokes that made shivers dance along her flesh. It felt so good she thought she might pass out.
Her eyes fluttered closed as she lost hersel
f in sweet sensation, then flew open when Dylan released a tortured groan and said, “I love you.”
Her breath jammed in her lungs. “What?”
He didn’t deny it, didn’t backpedal, just looked deep into her eyes and repeated himself in a husky voice. “I love you, Claire.”
Claire’s heart promptly soared to another dimension, a world where nothing existed but pleasure and Dylan and Aidan and love. God, she was such a mushy sap. But she couldn’t help it—those three words were the most wonderful thing she’d ever heard. Only three other words could rival it, the same three words actually, uttered by Aidan.
And just as easily as she’d expressed her feelings to Aidan, she didn’t hesitate telling Dylan what he meant to her. “I love you too,” she whispered.
The joy that lit his eyes made her smile. He was so quick to show his emotions, so ready to let the people he cared about into his heart.
No more words were spoken as Dylan dipped his head and kissed her. And then his hips were moving again, and Claire was swept away by a wave of pleasure that warmed every square inch of her body and rippled between her legs.
Dylan quickened the pace, his muscular ass flexing as he thrust into her, his chest slick with sweat and his green eyes awash with desire. He found release first, groaning, latching his mouth to hers in a blistering kiss as he came, and it was the feel of his cock pulsing inside her and the hoarse sounds of his pleasure that triggered her orgasm.
Afterwards, they lay there with their legs tangled together and foreheads resting against each other.
“So you love me, huh?” he said, sounding as sated and contented as she felt.
“Mmm-hmmm. And you love me?”
“Damn right.”
Claire’s lips curved, but the smile faltered after a second. “I told Aidan I loved him too the other day.”
Dylan’s happy expression didn’t change. “I’m glad.”
“He didn’t say it back.”
“That doesn’t mean he doesn’t feel the same way. Because he does.”
“You sound so certain of that.”
“I am certain. He loves you, same way I love you. He just needs a little time before he mans up and tells you.”
Out of Uniform Box Set: Books 4-6 plus 2 Bonus Novellas Page 53