“Okay.” Alex looked to Aaron, back to Andy, the latter’s manner of speech further establishing the cool surfer impression for her. “I’m… excited to find out what you come up with.”
Andy nodded at her, turned his attention to Les, more serious. “You need to see the new shit.” He winced a glance at Alex in apology for his language, and she waved him off.
Les moved toward Mikey, motioning for Aaron to come with him. “What you got, Brain?” They stood behind Mikey at the console. “Hey, Gamer, go show her the toy box, mate.”
Alex crossed her arms. The feeling that she was being put off on some distraction must have registered on her face.
“I’ll fill you in,” Aaron called over to her, adding in his reassuring wink. Satisfied that she wouldn’t be kept in the dark, she turned her attention to Andy.
A wide grin spread across Andy’s face. “C’mon. Don’t know if you’ll really appreciate this much, but it’s pretty wicked.”
Alex followed Andy to a door just past the kitchen area. Nimble fingers punched numbers into a keypad, and the door popped. He pushed it wide and led her past cleaning supplies and storage to another door, keyed a second pad. That door clicked, and he shouldered it open. He motioned Alex in as the lights snapped on.
“Oh… Oh wow.” She surveyed the space around her and raised both hands to cover her gaping mouth.
Walls, shelves, and a wood-slab table in the middle displayed almost every weapon she could think of. Others she had no idea about. A large glass-doored cabinet stocked plenty of ammunition to match. She gawked at the immense assortment before her. Talk about a candy store! She turned to face Andy, wide-eyed and silent.
“Yeah, I know. Not really a girl thing, but it’s pretty impressive.” He gave her a hesitant look. “You… wanna go back out?”
Alex blinked at him. “Are you kidding me? Holy cow, this is awesome!”
She moved over to a shelf and picked up a pistol. This collection would provide the perfect distraction to keep her mind occupied and off what was being discussed in the other room. Momentarily anyway.
Pulling her gaze from the weapon in her hand, she looked back over to Andy. Oops—she had just grabbed without asking. “May I?”
“Uh, yeah, have at it.” Andy exhaled and cocked his head as she picked up and examined several weapons, visibly relieved at her honest excitement. “Okay, dude, this is so much cooler than I expected. Nice! No awkward babysitting.” He winced. “Uh, I mean yeah, you really know your stuff.”
He shrugged at her laugh and went to join her. They spent the next half hour talking and checking things out, Alex picking out her favorites and Andy explaining some of the ones she wasn’t familiar with.
After Andy and Alex disappeared into the weapons hold, Les and Aaron went over the most recent discoveries from Mikey’s and Andy’s investigations.
“There’s no connection to anything else,” Mikey informed them. “That old unit and anything even remotely attached to it has been scrubbed. We back-traced every possible lead, back channel, question mark, and then some. This guy uses a different identity in outside circles as a more public face. But it’s him. One hundred twenty percent.”
“Hmm. Less complicated but maybe more dangerous with no one to keep him in check,” Les commented.
Wondering aloud, Mikey nodded over to Aaron. “Man, after all these years? What would’ve given this guy any idea where you even were?”
“Shane. He would’ve reported back all the info he could to his crew so the rest would know what to expect when boarding the ship.” Aaron shrugged. “That’s why they knew everything about us. And Essex would’ve been in constant contact with them to make sure he stayed on top of things. Would’ve figured it out from what he was told by them. With a good enough description of us? Yeah. Man’s nothing if not meticulous. And obsessive. It was likely just dumb luck. Just happened to be the job we were on.”
“For as meticulous as he seems, his group sure is lacking on the tech side. Surprises me. Anyone with even a halfway decent set of skills should’ve picked up on that bug we sent in. Either they’re just that negligent, or”—Mikey looked up at Les and Aaron—“they want us to think they’re that sad.”
“I, uh, we didn’t know what you liked. It’s just us guys up here most of the time. Here,” Mikey stammered and handed Alex a box containing several brands of shampoos, conditioners, body washes, and lotions.
She peered in and back at Mikey. He scuffed his feet in an awkward little shuffle and only met her gaze on occasion.
“Thank you. Really,” she told him. “But you didn’t have to get all this. I’m really not that high maintenance.” She giggled. “I could’ve just used whatever you guys keep on hand.”
Mikey gave her a shy smile. “Okay.”
“I do appreciate it though,” she said, reassuring him. “And you’ll be plenty stocked up for the future too.”
He nodded. “Well, depending how long you guys stay.” He turned to go. “Good night.”
“Good night,” she called after him.
She inspected the box again. What a thoughtful and sweet thing to do. But good grief, there’s enough in here to last me for two years! More voices made her look up as Les, Aaron, and Andy entered the hallway and headed toward her. Aaron and Les carried their bags.
“…and cameras and sensors are everywhere!” Andy continued explaining to Aaron as they got close enough that she could hear. “Anything gets within a couple of miles, we know it.”
They stopped to stand with Alex, and Andy inclined his head toward the door behind her. “Room okay?”
“Mikey just brought me here. I haven’t been inside yet. But I’m sure it’s fine.” She held up her box of supplies. “Did you guys leave anything at the store?”
“We always get stuff at like five or six different places anyway when we stock up, so it’s spread out. Makes it less noticeable. It’s all good.” Andy smiled and turned to leave. “See ya in the a.m.!”
“Yeah, see ya.” Alex shook her head, smiling as he walked away.
“Well, guys, I’m down at the end if you need anything.” Les handed Aaron the bags he carried. “They’ll be up for a while. Mikey’s next to me; Andy’s across from us on your side. But he’s rarely in there. Likes to game late and normally just hits the couch. We go through a lot of coffee up here.” Les glanced from one to the other. “I guess I just assumed, maybe I should’ve asked? This good?”
Alex looked over to Aaron as he replied. “Yeah, man, we’re good. And thanks.”
“Don’t mention it. See you kids in the morning.” Les turned and strolled back up the corridor. “Ton of stuff to go over tomorrow. Go easy on him tonight. He’ll need to sleep at least some of the time.”
“Les!” she exclaimed after him as she felt bright pink color her cheeks.
He just waved back at her.
Aaron chuckled. “That’ll teach me to nap on the road. What did you guys talk about on the way up here?”
Alex side-eyed a demure look at him, biting her lip. “Well, not exactly that.” She recovered into a naughty smirk and called after Les. “He did sleep most of the way here, you know!”
Les just chuckled at her from the end of the hallway and waved again as he entered his room.
“Oh man, I did not just do that.” Alex covered her eyes with a hand. She peeked out through her fingers at Aaron.
He just stood there grinning at her. A step closer, and his eyes flicked to her lips once. A brief mmm and shake of his head. He reached past her, turned the knob, and pushed the door open for her. “C’mon you. In.”
Alex hugged her box of supplies, turned and went into the room as Aaron flipped on a light and closed the door behind them. She set down the box and looked around. “Hey… this is nice! I guess maybe I was expecting something really simple.”
“Yeah, not bad.” Aaron’s quick visual inspection of the room brought a low whistle. “Damn, Les, you sure spared no expense here. This is gr
eat!”
Designed with rustic luxury, the room’s only rival would be a higher-end lodge hotel suite. A walk-in closet and spacious private bath enhanced posh accommodations. Comfy stuffed chairs and sofa, LED flat-panel TV, and a solid walnut desk with a laptop occupied the living area. Natural twig-and-fabric paneled partitions provided privacy for the plush queen bed beyond, its four-poster canopy draped in linens that would form a cozy cocoon when released from rope ties. A compact yet fully equipped kitchenette completed the space. Located near the center of the building, however, the room was missing windows.
“Wow, you could totally live in here long term.” Alex looked over at Aaron. “Wonder who they’ve had stay before?”
He deposited their bags beside one of the chairs and checked around, familiarizing himself with the layout, satisfying his curious and cautious nature.
“Don’t know.” He shook his head. “But yeah, thought it would be a bit more basic than this.” He walked back over to stand in front of her. “Home, sweet home. At least for a while.” Resting his hands on her shoulders, he offered her a comforting gaze. “How you doing with all this? Okay?”
Alex sent him a small smile. “Yeah. I’m good. Still just taking it all in, I guess. This is definitely nothing I would’ve expected a week ago.” She took a step forward and hooked each index finger through his front belt loops. “Of course, just over a week ago, I didn’t expect you to show up either.”
Aaron chuckled. “Guess you just never can tell what kind of strange things are gonna pop up in your life.”
She giggled. “No, guess not.”
He gave her a more serious and engaging look. “Gonna say you’re still good with that too?”
She cocked her head at him and raised an eyebrow. “Seriously?”
He laughed, pulled her close, and kissed her.
Bathed now and in pajamas, Alex sat cross-legged on the bed, brushing out almost-dry hair. Water pattered in the next room; Aaron taking his shower. After several days of experiencing enough strangeness to fill a lot of people’s lifetimes, she now found her nervous excitement returning. They were protected here. Some time to relax at last and just be them. The first time since their motorcycle ride that it had truly been just them. Alone, with no immediate threat, no readying for an escape or needing to be on constant vigilance for some attacker. The two days at her apartment were filled with so much prep and organizing to leave, that true emotions had taken a back seat to those more pressing matters. Well, at least since the night of her meltdown per Les. She smiled. Yeah, that had brought some stuff out. At least it had turned out beneficial. But aside from their obvious affections, she felt safe with Aaron. He wanted her there with him. A decision she knew gave him trepidation due to current circumstances, but a resolution he had come to, nonetheless. Given his choices to run or leave her behind and work out his predicament on his own with Les’s offer of help, he had chosen her. Her stomach flip-flopped again, but this time from huge giddy butterflies and not extreme knots due to danger.
Now. Was she ready for this? What would he expect? He was not the type to push anything if she wasn’t. But if she was, would he think less of her? Oh, this is stupid! Don’t overthink it. Just by the fact that he seemed familiar in a way that still boggled her mind was enough to put her at ease. Mostly. She plucked her bottle of water from the bed stand and took in a large mouthful.
The bathroom door opened revealing Aaron in a pair of black sweatpants. He finished rubbing his hair with a towel and tossed it back inside to land on the rack. He looked at her and gave a quick eyebrow raise. “Hey.”
Alex had seen him once on the ship without a shirt. This was, well… different. And better. Standing there, damp hair sticking out in multiple places, pants riding low on trim hips, he relaxed to one leg and leaned against the doorjamb.
Alex swallowed and choked on her water.
“You okay?”
Aaron dropped to her side and patted her back as she recovered from her brief coughing spell. She quieted and risked a sideways glance at him. Lower lip in his teeth, one upturned corner of the mouth, mirthful eyes squinted. Yep, she’d made a great impression.
They both disintegrated into giggles.
“Oh man… that’s… embarrassing…,” Alex got out between bouts of laughter. She hid her face in her hands.
Aaron quieted and pulled her against him. He kissed the top of her head. “Well, for what it’s worth… thanks.”
She hugged his arm and kissed his shoulder, tucked her head under his chin. After a time, she spoke. “I don’t know why I’m so nervous. This is silly.”
He released his hold and cupped her jaw in his palm, turning her head to face him. “No need to be. It’s been a crazy few days. You need some time to decompress.”
“I don’t know that it’s really just that,” she replied.
“What then?”
He retained his mischievous expression. Speechless for the moment, she offered a resigned sigh. Those eyes… A thought flashed in her mind. That thing she had gotten used to but remained a constant question. “Can I ask you something? It might sound weird, but I just need to ask.”
“Sure,” he replied. The look on her face spoke to the unusual and brought a wondering look to his too. “What is it?”
Where to start or how to even formulate the question? It’s gonna sound weird no matter how you say it, so just say it. “Okay. I… when we… whenever we touch, my skin tingles.” She squirmed at how odd that sounded and started to ramble. “I don’t know what it is, and I know that’s really weird and I thought… I thought maybe it was a static charge on the ship, but it’s never happened with anyone else and it keeps happening and I don’t know what it is, but—”
He stopped her by putting a finger to her lips. Hell, I thought that was just me. Those thrilling charges, way more than normal exhilaration rushes of aroused feelings. Something else truly physical, yet… beyond words? Sensations he’d never experienced before either. Well, I’m officially not… crazy. He stifled a laugh at that one. He smiled as he closed his eyes a moment, opened them to meet her gaze. “Glad I’m not the only one.”
“Really? Yes! So, I didn’t just weird you out?”
He shook his head, all at once comforted and trying to hold in another laugh. “No. Not weirded out. Not unless it counts for me too.”
Alex, nearly breathless, pushed out a question. “What do you think… that is?”
“Hell if I know. Here.” He held up his hand, beckoning hers to join it.
She held her palm up to his, not quite touching. There was a warmth that grew between and expanded along his forearm.
He grabbed her hand and interlaced his fingers with hers. Focused on it now without all the prior external incidents to distract him, he was able to experience just how strange and wonderful this oddity felt. Warm and scintillating, it coursed through his hand and wrist, up his forearm. He studied his limb, half expecting it to glow. He looked back at Alex and offered a shrug. It was definite both were affected the same. Exactly what that was? Unexplainable. But it felt good. And… bonding.
“That’s amazing,” Alex whispered.
Aaron put up his other hand, and she slipped complementary fingers through his. Same response. He stretched out his arms in slow motion to pull her closer. Heat of her body radiated against his chest. Concentrating on that sent a rousing thrill through him. He leaned forward and kissed her. Warmth. Light. Comfort. And more. Tongues caressed each other, enveloped in a lightning of bliss. Like their first kiss at the pier. Also, the few since. But not quite at this magnitude. Maybe because they were alone now? No stress of defense or planning, no others around, or additional outward interference? Mind in a whirl, he pulled back from her and stared into her eyes. Spellbound.
Dizziness swept Alex, the sheer euphoria of the experience showing beyond compare in her entranced expression. So far… “Aaron?” His name in wonderment came with breathless question.
Aaron squeezed her ha
nds in his. “Yeah. That’s…” His mind worked over the possibilities. If just touching would produce feelings like this, and that kiss…
“What do you think about…?” Alex whispered, her implication matching his own current trend of speculation.
“You… want to find out?”
Alex nodded but lowered her gaze. Her insides writhed. Desire for him more than she could ever put into words, her soul and body ached to be as close to him as humanly possible. At odds with her heart however, her overthinking mind. Would he think her too easy and thus question her loyalty and trustworthiness? She bristled at her own inhibitions. That’s just maddening! She knew him better than that. Though she’d never been one to jump into things fast, maybe it was just the illusion of fast because of the missed time after the ship and the whirlwind of a long weekend they had just come through. They were far from strangers. Doubtless they were together. To give herself, body and soul to him, embodied her highest commitment. Was it their lack of discussion of such feelings and future? Whether spoken out loud or not, his actions held the confirmation. He had gone out of his way to keep her with him and make sure she was cared for. He’d brought her here with him knowing full well this would be a long-term operation. No man would do that based on something superficial. And the emotion in his eyes as he’d voiced his decision to Les. Seeming too soon shouldn’t even be a concern with him at this point. So why was it poking at her brain?
Aaron pressed his lips to her forehead. He dipped his head to find her eyes. “Hey. I won’t rush you. You know that, right?”
She opened her mouth to reply and stopped. Why did she always have to be the good girl? But jumping in fast had never been her forte. And this one held a specialness to her she couldn’t fathom. She didn’t want to mess it up. And why in the world would that mess things up? Where had that ideal even come from? Social judgments? Because he’d been a perfect gentleman over the days at her apartment? Dammit! It shouldn’t be this hard! Mental face-palm. Maybe she’d just built it all up too much in her mind. Everything about their relationship so far, even with all its unexpected and extraordinary circumstances, fit her… fairy tale. The truth of that now raced through her heart. “I do. I… dammit, why do I feel this way?”
Off the Deep End Page 18