by Darien Cox
“Oh, that continued once he moved to the village. Myles arrested him three times before they eventually got together.”
Tyler chuckled. “That I did not know. Figures.”
“You look good, by the way,” Tim said. Risky statement considering how unpredictable Tyler’s moods were, but he couldn’t help saying it. Tyler was so hot it was making his pulse race.
“Thanks,” Tyler said. “You look really good too.”
Tim was surprised by the verbal reciprocation, especially considering Tyler’s conflicted expression. Tyler had a way of looking at Tim like he was a highly desirable snack that might possibly contain a deadly poison. “You don’t have to say it just because I did.”
“No, I thought it as soon as you opened the door. I like you better out of uniform.”
Tim smirked. “You can see me out of uniform any time.”
“I meant in casual clothes.” Tyler chuckled, turning away. “Can we sit down over there? I want to talk about what’s going down today.”
“Yeah, sure. You want tea or coffee or something?”
“Nah, I’m good.”
Tyler took a seat on the sofa. He sat right in the center, so Tim assumed he wanted it all to himself. Tim took the chair on the other side of the coffee table. “So what’s happening? I got a million texts this morning. Elliot said Nolan might have found something on the footage?”
“He’s working on it. Managed to clean up the first half when I left the house. But he thinks he caught something moving out in the woods, just for a few seconds before it gets distorted again.”
“What kind of something?”
“A shadow in the trees. He’s been glued to that recording all morning, trying to make it clearer.”
Wincing, Tim wrung his hands. “A shadow, huh?”
“Maybe. It’s hard to tell. The footage is still glitchy but he’s determined. Hopefully by the time we get back he’ll have cleaned up enough to identify something. Or best-case scenario, someone. I think we’ll all be relieved if it’s just a human person, like you said.”
“Yeah.” Tim laughed nervously. “I’d love to be able to just look at the screen and go ‘Hey, that’s Vinny from the village! What an asshole!’ so I can stop worrying.”
Tyler grinned. “Is there a Vinny from the village?”
“Probably. Fuck that guy. Fucking jacket-stealing Vinny.”
“Yeah, Vinny sucks. But I wanted to talk about Baz. He’s coming by Nolan’s this afternoon. You ready for that?”
Tim took a deep breath. “I’ll do my best.”
“Having anxiety?” Tyler’s eyes were wide and sincere. “Nerves jittery?”
Nodding, Tim sighed. “Yeah. All of that.”
Tyler removed his jacket, leaving him in jeans and a long-sleeved red tee shirt that hugged his lean, muscular frame. He pulled something out of his jeans pocket.
Tim’s eyes widened as Tyler set down a packet of rolling papers, then unfurled a hefty baggy of what looked like cannabis. The skunky scent immediately wafted through the air as he opened it up. “Um...Tyler? Is that what I think it is?”
“It’ll calm your nerves,” Tyler said as he commenced rolling a joint.
“I haven’t smoked since I was a lot younger. Not sure it’s a good idea. And it’s a fire hazard.”
Tyler laughed. “Don’t worry, Ranger Tim, I won’t smoke it in the forest. Trust me. It’s the best shit you’ll ever have. No mind-confusion or paranoia. It’s just pure body-weed.”
“Body-weed?”
“It means it won’t screw with your thoughts or anything. You’ll just feel relaxed, euphoric, and numb enough not to care if a pasty-white alien-hybrid sits down across from you. He won’t freak you out.”
“How can you be sure?”
“Because.” Tyler finished rolling the joint and licked the seam. “This is my own supply. I use it to help me sleep.”
“Ogden doesn’t care if you smoke it?”
“Where the hell do you think I got it from?”
“You’re kidding. Ogden gives you weed?”
“Oh yeah, for years now. PTSD is a bitch, and Ogden ain’t got no time for that.” Tyler lit the joint, took a couple puffs, then leaned over the coffee table, offering it to Tim.
Silenced by the PTSD comment, Tim accepted the joint. He took the smallest puff he could manage without looking like a scaredy-cat, then handed it back. “So...we’re actually smoking government-issue weed right now.”
“Not exactly.” Tyler took another hit, and Tim was mesmerized that anyone could look so sexy blowing a funnel of smoke from his lips. “Ogden is not a government employee. He’s above the government. Or at least outside of it.” He handed the joint back to Tim.
Tim brought it to his lips. Since he hadn’t immediately felt anything uncomfortable after the first hit, he inhaled a bit more smoke this time, holding it in for a few seconds before exhaling. “So it’s more like...shadow-government weed.”
Tyler grinned. “Okay. Sure.”
“I think that’s enough for me.” Tim handed the joint back. “Like I said, it’s been a while, don’t want to get too fried.”
“Oh, what you had is plenty. This shit’s mellow, but it’s strong.”
Soon as the words left Tyler’s mouth, Tim began to feel incredibly good. He leaned back in the chair, his entire body relaxing. “Oh, wow. Yeah. I see what you mean about the body-buzz.”
“Right? It’ll just take the edge off of things for you today.”
“Yeah.” Tim nodded, smiling. “I like this shadow-government weed. SGW is the way to travel.”
Tyler smirked. “You’re assigning acronyms to things, I think your brain’s still functioning just fine. Okay, let me give you some prep for today.”
“What kind of prep?”
“Baz prep.” Tyler stubbed the joint out on the lighter, then slipped it into the baggy, rolling it closed. “I don’t know if you heard Baz speak the night of the wedding party, but he has an unusual, raspy voice. Uses a unique kind of broken English. You get used to it. He chooses his words carefully though, and Nolan says his English has gotten a lot better lately since he’s been spending time with them socially. But if you have any trouble following along with what he says, just nudge me and I’ll translate. I’ll make sure I’m right next to you the whole time.”
“You’re being really thoughtful. Thank you.”
Tyler shrugged. “JT and those guys will probably hammer Baz with questions a million miles an hour. They’ll want to make sure the Whites have nothing to do with whatever’s screwing with you up at the station. They have no patience, and sometimes Baz can get flustered. When he does, he rocks back and forth or bobs his head in a weird way. Don’t let it freak you out. It’s just how he expresses agitation.”
“Okay. Got it.”
“You’ve seen his height of course. He’s only about seven feet, but he’s skinny so it makes him look taller.”
“The height doesn’t bother me. I got a good look at that already.”
“Great. He has a lot of human-like features. But then there are the eyes. They’re bigger than human eyes. Not as big as the full Whites’, but noticeably larger. Double-iris, ring of blue and green. Slightly oval pupil. Lashes are pure white and super-long.”
“I saw Baz’s eyes the night of the wedding. And Joff’s.”
“But only for a second before you bolted,” Tyler said. “I was watching you.”
“Yeah. And?”
“And it’s different sitting there having an actual conversation with him if you’re not used to his eyes. He wears dark sunglasses to hide them a lot, but the guys like him to take them off because they can read his expressions better. But if you don’t think you can handle it, I can ask that Baz keep the sunglasses on.”
Still feeling pleasantly relaxed, Tim shook his head. “No, I don’t want to draw attention to myself. I don’t want everyone to know I’m a chicken shit. I’ll deal with the eyes.”
“Oka
y. But if at any point you start to get freaked out, just look away from him. And squeeze my hand if you need me to make an excuse to get you out of there.”
Tim knew he was buzzed, but he felt so much affection for Tyler right then that he didn’t know what to say. It bloomed in his chest, making him want to dive over and hug him. This guy cares about me. That was his gut feeling. Was he fooling himself? Possibly, but he let the feeling linger a bit longer, enjoying it.
Tyler smiled, then frowned. “Still with me? You got quiet. Questions?”
“I just want you to know I really appreciate you doing this for me. It’s really cool of you, Tyler.”
“It’s no problem. Just precautionary. I’m sure you’ll be fine.”
“I’m sure I will.” Tim smiled. “But regardless, you’re the first one to give a shit how I’m handling things. You took care of me that night I broke down. And you’re still taking care of me. I hate to say it makes me feel weak. But it kind of does. Elliot and those guys seem to take it all in stride, but here I need a coach and a babysitter.”
Tyler shook his head. “Every single person on that team, in one way or another, was eased slowly into this life. Recruited. Trained over a period of years. You had it sprung on you unexpectedly. You can’t compare yourself to them, it’s not the same.”
“And what about you?” Tim asked. “Were you recruited?”
He nodded. “When I was sixteen.”
“Why were you recruited?”
Tyler stared at him, silent.
“Does your black ops stare translate to ‘Shut up now, Tim’ or something like that?”
“Yeah. Something like that.”
“I see. Hey, I should be fine with Baz if I’m starting to understand your weird unspoken language. Just give me a hint. Myles said Christian got recruited after he broke into the Pentagon. You do something like that?”
“No.” Tyler smiled. “I wasn’t recruited because I had a crazy-smart brain like JT or because I was a talented child-thief like Christian or anything like that. I’m here because I survived something when all odds were against me surviving. Ogden decided I was brave and that he could use me. And that really is the last I’m going to say about it.”
“Okay, got it.” Tim moved to the sofa, sitting down beside Tyler. “But again, thank you for prepping me today. You didn’t have to.”
Tyler eyed Tim shyly, clearly not expecting him to suddenly be there, sidled up right next to him. He didn’t look disappointed, but perhaps a bit flustered, which pleased Tim. It wasn’t easy to catch Tyler in a moment of discomposure. “I just want this all to go smoothly,” Tyler said. His lashes dipped as he cast his gaze to the floor. “Brett wants you over there today. If you’re in a good state of mind, helps everyone.”
“I see. So it’s all just work-related.”
“What else would it be?”
Tim laughed. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe you actually care for me?”
“Nonsense,” Tyler said, but his cheeks dimpled with a tight smile.
“Ah, okay, you don’t care. My mistake.” Resting a hand on Tyler’s thigh, he said, “Then maybe you just want to make sure I survive it all so we can have that casual sex you were talking about last night.”
“Hmm.” Tyler glanced at the clock on the wall. “Brett’s gonna want us over there soon. But we can probably spare a minute if you want to fuck now.”
“A whole minute, huh? Sounds romantic.”
“Who said anything about romantic?”
“I see. Then what, you want me to just bend you over and jackhammer you?”
“I told you last night. I’ll let you do whatever you want. So sure. Jackhammer works for me.”
“What if it doesn’t work for me? What if I want something else?”
Tyler looked wary. “Like what?”
“Ah, something with a bit more feeling, maybe?”
“Feeling?” Tyler huffed, but a pink flush climbed his neck. “You’ll get off. That’s a feeling.”
“Not just that kind of feeling.” Tim placed his hand flat on Tyler’s chest.
Tyler glanced down, then eyed Tim with amusement. “You want to touch my chest?”
“Uh huh.”
“Doesn’t sound nearly as fun as fucking, but okay. Whatever works for you.”
“Shh, be quiet. I’m checking for a heartbeat.”
“Oh you’re hilarious, Patterson.”
“No, it’s good news. I found one! You’re not a robot after all.”
Tyler grabbed Tim’s hand, but didn’t push it away, holding it to his chest. “Quit screwing around. What do you mean you want something else? We can do whatever you want. Long as it’s...different from last time.”
“Well I hope it’ll be fucking different from last time! I’m not having a mental breakdown for starters.”
“You know what I mean. We’re making a new memory here, doing a manual override. So tell me what you want.”
Tim wished he could say Tyler’s clinical attitude was a deterrence, but that would be a lie. Even the words ‘manual override’ sounded hot when Tyler said them. There wasn’t anything that could possibly stop Tim from wanting him.
Hesitating, he wondered if he could be honest about how he wanted him. Elliot got in his head last night with all that talk about how odd and unfeeling Tyler was. But fuck that. Tim wouldn’t walk on eggshells around Tyler. Maybe that was part of the problem. People thought Tyler was different, so they treated him as such. Everyone tip-toeing around him like he was some precious, breakable anomaly. Tim decided then and there he wouldn’t comply with those prejudices. For him, Tyler was just a man. A man he wanted in a certain way. And he’d tell him straight.
“Okay, Tyler. What if I want to spend time looking in your eyes. Touching you. Tasting you. Worshipping that amazing body of yours. And it is amazing. I remember that clearly, nervous breakdown or not. What if I want to do all that before I fuck you? And then what if I want to have sex hard and slow, making it last a good long time. Over and over until the bed breaks and the room gets hot and sweaty and the windows fog up and we’re both so dehydrated from fucking and coming that we’re drained of bodily fluids and need to order an entire keg of Gatorade to recover. What if I want that?”
Tyler’s eyes widened before he shook his head. “No. No way.” His hands slid to his groin, clearly covering something there. “That won’t work.”
“Why won’t it work? Just hearing me say it gave you a boner, I can see it.”
“Because that’s not gonna fix anything. That’s too much like last time.”
“Like last time? You’re joking.”
“No.”
“Tyler, last time, I pounced on you like a horny gorilla, had just recovered from a hyperventilating anxiety attack, and I cried like a drunken prom-queen after. How is the scenario I just presented in any way like last time?”
Tyler shrugged. “It’s intimate.”
“Oh, wow.” Tim stood and stepped away from the sofa. Chuckling, he rubbed his forehead, then pointed at Tyler. “I take back what I said. You actually are a robot.”
“I’m not a damn robot, Tim. What’s wrong with casual fucking?”
“No, you’re right. Nothing wrong with it.” Tim yanked his sweatshirt off over his head, swung it around like a lasso, then tossed it to the floor. “Yee haw! Casual fucking!”
Coughing, Tyler’s brows rose. “What are you doing?”
“What do you think I’m doing? I’m getting ready.” Unlacing his boots, Tim kicked them off somewhat dramatically, making Tyler jump when one hit the wall. “We’re gonna do it your way, tough-guy.”
“My way.”
“Yep.” Peeling his tee shirt off, he tossed it at Tyler. It landed on his head, covering his face.
Pulling the tee shirt free, Tyler blinked up at him. “I appreciate the striptease, but is something wrong? You’re acting weird.”
“Ha! Tyler says I’m acting weird. That’s rich.”
“Tim, seriou
sly. You mad now?”
“Not at all.” He unfastened his belt. “Let’s get crazy!” The belt made a cracking sound as he whipped it loose in one pull, then flung it roughly to the floor. “We’ll just get right down to it. Come on then. Take your pants off and bend over. I’m gonna destroy that shadow-government ass.”
Tyler’s lip quirked at the corner.
“What? Why are you smirking? That’s not a sex face.”
“I said I wanted casual, not...whatever this is.”
Tim threw his arms up. “I just got halfway to naked in fifteen seconds! Is that not quick enough for you? What the hell am I doing wrong now?” He unzipped his jeans and shoved them down, stepping out of them and leaving him in his briefs. Hands on his hips, he asked, “Am I not fit enough? Is that it?” He grabbed his crotch then did a twirl, Michael Jackson style. “Does my body not meet your elite standards, Tyler?”
Tyler brought Tim’s tee shirt to his nose, inhaling. “You’re being ridiculous right now, but your body is actually making me drool a little in my mouth.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“Problem is your stance says you want to fight me, not fuck me.”
“Nonsense, I’m gonna strap you and ride you like a wild pony. Saddle-up, baby!”
Tyler’s back jerked, and for a moment Tim worried he was about to vomit. But when he doubled over, it became obvious he’d been holding in his laughter. Face in his hands, Tyler let out a series of high-pitched cackles, shoulders shaking.
“Are you laughing?” Tim stepped closer to the couch. “Wow, you sure know how to hurt a guy.”
“I’m sorry.” Tyler glanced up, his face red and splotchy. “I’m...” More laughter shook him and he wiped his eyes, tears streaming down his cheeks. “I’m sorry, you just...” That high-pitched cackle came again, Tyler gasping as he tried to talk through it. “The thing with the...” He made a tugging motion with his hand over his waist. “The belt. Oh God.”
Tim knelt on the floor, resting his palms on Tyler’s knees. “Glad I could amuse you.” He stroked Tyler’s thighs over the denim. “Did you know I was lamenting just this morning that I couldn’t get a real laugh out of you?”