In the Blood (Metahuman Files Book 4)

by Hailey Turner

  To say nothing of Jamie’s own reputation currently being picked apart by the media. The exposé from back in January was getting a second life at the moment, driven by the scrutiny being applied to his family. The statement put out by the Marine Corps back then wasn’t enough of an excuse any longer. Jamie wondered what the MDF would come up with to help keep his classified identity safe.

  “What about when the Congressional investigation is formally opened up?” Jamie asked.

  That rumor had been on everyone’s lips in Congress since Boston. In Jamie’s opinion, escaping the situation without being dragged before a Senate and House inquiry panel was impossible. Between now and when the subpoenas would inevitably be issued and served, they needed to get their stories straight.

  “We’re aware of the rumors and are planning accordingly. We’ll reach out through backchannels if need be. You’ll be kept in the loop.”

  If he wasn’t, Jamie would raise hell, and then some.

  “I better be,” Jamie said as they reached the front entrance of the main building. Nazari raised an eyebrow at his tone, but Jamie wasn’t in the mood to apologize for his attitude. “You need us, sir. Remember that.”

  Not just him and his family, but his team, and every other metahuman that filled out the MDF’s ranks. Without them, the MDF wouldn’t exist. It never hurt to remind those in charge what they risked losing if shitty orders kept being handed down.

  “I can see why your father continues to believe you’re wasted within our ranks,” was Nazari’s mild reply.

  Jamie knew how a compliment could double as an insult, but he let it slide this time. “Are we finished, sir? I’m needed back at home.”

  “Thanksgiving with the family?”

  “Yes.”

  It wasn’t a lie, in the sense that the people waiting for him back at his condo were his family, to a certain extent. He’d rather be there than here.

  “Then I won’t keep you,” Nazari said as the doors slid open, a cold breeze blowing into the lobby. “Happy Thanksgiving, Callahan.”

  “Happy Thanksgiving, sir.”

  Jamie opened up his umbrella and walked away. Whatever came of the mess of the Pavluhkin mission, they would handle it.

  Jamie unlocked the Bugatti he’d opted to drive today with his code-keys, slipping behind the wheel and getting situated. He tossed the umbrella in the footwell of the front passenger seat and started the engine. As he buckled up, he called Kyle.

  “On my way back,” Jamie said.

  “Where’d you go for the centerpiece? Manhattan?” Kyle asked. “You know we’re not fancy like that. The table doesn’t need decorations when it has food.”

  Jamie looked over at the low crystal vase with its cascade of flowers spilling over the side, secure in its travel container in the passenger seat. He’d picked it up on the drive to the base, and it was as good a cover as any for the real errand. “I can bring your mother flowers if I want, Kyle.”

  “Sucking up? You know Lyosha already does that—ow! Lyosha!”

  Jamie laughed at the sound of the squabble on the other side of the line as he pulled out of the parking lot and headed for the perimeter. “I’ll be there soon. Don’t kill your brother before it’s time to carve the turkey.”

  “No promises,” Kyle growled before the line cut off.

  The rain didn’t let up on the drive back to the condo, the ring burning a hole in the pocket of his blazer. From time to time, Jamie would touch the shape of the box through the fabric, reminding himself that it was there, still unsure how to go about asking the most important question of his life.

  When he arrived at the condo, Jamie parked in his reserved spot in the subterranean garage and got out with flowers in hand. He code-locked the car and made his way to the private elevator, taking it up to the penthouse condo that was home. When he finally got inside, the sound of laughter washed over him, accompanied by the smell of delicious food being tended to in the kitchen by Kyle’s mother.

  Maria was showing Phaedra the ingredients for the potato salad the Dvorkins always had during the holidays. Jamie, Kyle, Alexei, and Sean had boiled and peeled what felt like enough potatoes to feed an army that morning in preparation for the meal ahead before he’d had to leave. Evgeni was in charge of the two turkeys, while Tatyana finished up the stuffed cabbage rolls. Valentina half helped and half made sure none of the boys laid a finger on the pumpkin pies cooling on the counter near the refrigerator.

  “Hey,” Kyle said with a smile on his face as he came over to give Jamie a welcome-back kiss. “You took forever. Flowers look great though.”

  “I promise I didn’t go to Manhattan for them,” Jamie said dryly.

  “These are beautiful, Jamie. Here, let me put them on the table,” Valentina said as she came over to take the vase from him. “Mama! Look what Jamie brought!”

  Valentina held up the vase to show her mother. Maria looked up from the food prep and smiled at Jamie with a fond look on her face. “Very pretty. Spasibo.”

  Kyle grabbed Jamie’s hand, leading him to the kitchen. “Come on, let’s get you a beer.”

  “You even think about sticking your finger in those pies, I will make you regret your choices in life, Kilyusha!” Valentina called out as she headed for the dining room table to set the flowers down.

  “I’ll make sure he keeps his hands out of it,” Jamie said.

  “You’re no help at all,” Kyle retorted.

  “Never claimed to be.”

  Kyle sighed dramatically, but didn’t protest when Jamie put himself between Kyle and the pies sitting on the kitchen counter. He got them both a beer, checked in with the cooks in the kitchen in case they needed a refill, topped up Phaedra’s glass of sparkling apple cider, before they claimed a spot on the couch not being monopolized by Alexei and Sean.

  “I missed the parade, didn’t I?” Jamie asked as he sat down.

  “You didn’t miss football,” Sean replied, eyes glued to the three-dimensional holographics being protected by the television into the living room.

  “Who’s playing?”

  “The only team that ever plays on Thanksgiving,” Kyle said. “The Cowboys.”

  “All show, no substance,” Alexei muttered before he shoved a deviled egg into his mouth. Judging by the half-empty platter on the coffee table, he’d been snacking on most of them.

  Jamie laughed and took a sip of his beer, putting his hand on Kyle’s knee because he could. “Did you guys pick out an apartment yet?”

  “You really don’t—” Sean began.

  “Still looking,” Alexei interrupted, covering Sean’s mouth with his hand. “Will tell you when find it. Let you buy.”

  Sean rolled his eyes, but when Alexei removed his hand, there was a fond smile on the agent’s face. They both looked a far cry better than when Jamie had last visited them in Medical. At least now Sean was talking, even if he still couldn’t quite look Alexei in the face for long, and both still had problems with people getting too close at the moment. In a family that liked to hug as much as the Dvorkins did, Jamie knew that was hard for everyone involved, but he had faith they’d get through this rough patch.

  Kyle leaned against him and Jamie took the opportunity to wrap an arm around his shoulders. Kyle started to talk up the Cowboys and trash talk the other team just to get Alexei riled up. So long as they didn’t resort to wrestling, Jamie didn’t mind. He wanted to enjoy his beer in peace.

  The Dvorkins were a friendly bunch, always in each other’s personal spaces, teasing in both Russian and English. Jamie enjoyed being around all of them, their warmth a far cry from the formal holiday dinners his parents always put on. That sense of family carried them through the afternoon to dinnertime.

  The dining room table could seat twelve, so everyone had plenty of elbow space, and nearly every platter of food made it onto the table itself. One of the turkeys had pride of place at Evgeni’s end, cooled enough to be carved. Tatyana poured everyone wine taken out of Jamie’s w
ine room for the occasion, while Maria ferried warm bread to the table. Phaedra had cut and drawn place cards for everyone, and they all took turns admiring her artwork and praising her skill with colored pencils.

  As the group gathered around the table and prepared to sit down, Jamie cleared his throat, catching everyone’s attention.

  “Before we dig in, I have something I want to say,” Jamie said, looking at everyone’s smiling faces. “Thank you all for being here today. I honestly wouldn’t want to be anywhere else right now, and a lot of that has to do with Kyle.”

  He turned to face Kyle, feeling his heart pounding in his chest, half-wondering if anyone else could hear it. “Sometimes I wonder what my life would be like if you hadn’t walked into that bar last year.”

  “Boring as fuck,” Kyle said with a teasing smile.

  Jamie’s laughter mixed in with everyone else’s as he reached for Kyle’s left hand. “It’d be something, that’s for sure, but not anything I would enjoy.”

  Jamie went to one knee and pulled out the ring box with his free hand, clutching it so hard the corners dented his skin. He looked up into Kyle’s shocked face and felt his heart skip a beat. It was like missing the last step, that moment of free fall and spike of adrenaline, unsure of the landing. But he knew Kyle would be there, always, to catch him every single time. To guard his six and keep him alive and wake up with him in dawn’s early light, there, forever, in battle-tested love.

  Kyle was the only person Jamie had ever loved like this—wholly, completely, with every fiber of his being. Jamie wanted him to know that in a way the rest of the world could one day see as well when they no longer had to hide their love for each other.

  Someday, even if not today.

  “I know it hasn’t been easy, and if this last week is anything to go by, it will only get harder,” Jamie said into the stunned quiet, never looking away from Kyle’s wide green eyes. “But I’m realizing more and more that I can’t live this life without you. What’s more, I don’t want to.”

  “Jamie…what are you….” Kyle said, voice trailing off as he stood frozen in shock while the rest of his—their—family watched from the sidelines with stunned expressions on their faces.

  “I was going to wait for the perfect moment, but I’ve come to realize that might not ever happen. I want you to know I’m a better man because you’re in my life, and I don’t ever want to let you go. Kyle Brannigan, will you marry me?”

  Kyle’s answer came swift and sure as a bullet, falling from his lips in a rush of air. “Yes.”

  Jamie took the ring out of the box and set the box aside. He slid it onto Kyle’s ring finger with the knowledge that Kyle would only be able to wear it inside these walls, in this small little world they’d built. But that world included each other, and they would always be enough.

  Jamie only got a couple of seconds to admire the ring on Kyle’s finger before Kyle leaned down and kissed him soundly on the mouth. Jamie opened up to the kiss, dimly aware of the cheering and demands for toasts happening around them. After a few seconds, he broke the kiss and got back to his feet, reaching for Kyle’s left hand as he did so.

  “I wanna see the ring!” Valentina demanded, making grabby hands from the other side of the table.

  Tatyana whacked at her sister’s arm, her personal tablet pointed unerringly at Jamie and Kyle. “Stop messing up my video!”

  “Can see ring later,” Alexei retorted. “Wait any longer, turkey get cold.”

  Jamie snorted out a laugh as he pulled out his chair. “Let’s eat before Alexei riots.”

  “Lyosha can starve for all I care,” Kyle said as he stared down in wonder at the engagement ring on his finger.

  Jamie couldn’t keep the smile off his face throughout dinner and well into dessert, never more than an arm’s length away from Kyle. The Dvorkin family was beyond ecstatic about their engagement, even if the happiness was somewhat muted by the cold hard facts of still needing to hide their relationship.

  “Is okay,” Evgeni said when he and Jamie were in the kitchen loading the dishwasher. “We understand. Will tell Phaedra not to say. Tell her to keep secret.”

  Jamie watched as Alexei grabbed the last piece of pumpkin pie and smothered it with homemade whipped cream before tossing the empty pie tin in the trash. “I wish things could be different.”

  “You make my son happy. Little secret worth it.”

  It wasn’t a little secret by any means, but it was theirs. Jamie trusted that the Dvorkins and Sean would never tell, the same way his team wouldn’t, and Phaedra could keep a secret better than most children her age.

  “He makes me happy,” Jamie confessed, glancing across the room at where Kyle was playing video games with Phaedra.

  Evgeni’s smile was wide and joyful, gray eyes crinkling at the corners. “Good. Is good you have each other.”

  Cleanup didn’t take very long, and all the food was packed away in the refrigerator for leftovers through the weekend. Kyle’s parents and sisters were staying at the St. Regis through the holiday weekend, their trip to D.C. paid for by Jamie. Sean was staying at Alexei’s apartment for the time being until they agreed on a new place to move in together. The family had plans to check out the holiday activities in the megacity tomorrow and do a bit of shopping before coming back to the condo to eat the leftovers.

  Goodbyes didn’t take very long. Jamie and Kyle saw everyone to the door around 2100, going through a gamut of hugging before the door slid shut behind them. Jamie set the security and turned around to find Kyle staring at him with a hungry look in his green eyes. An instant heat coursed through Jamie’s body, the desire he’d kept at bay to spare everyone’s sensibilities since getting down on one knee roaring back in full force.

  “Do you know how hard these last few hours have been for me?” Kyle asked as he wrapped a hand around Jamie’s shirt collar since he hadn’t worn a tie. “I’ve wanted to go to my knees for you since you put the ring on my finger.”

  Jamie caught Kyle’s left hand in his, raising it to his mouth. He pressed a kiss over it, the diamond cool against his lips, but the platinum having taken on a bit of warmth from being worn against skin. He liked the ring on Kyle’s finger, liked the sense of ownership it implied.

  “I do like you on your knees,” Jamie admitted.

  “So put me there, sir.”

  The open honesty and want in Kyle’s face, in his eyes and voice, went straight to Jamie’s cock. He was glad everyone had pitched in to tidy up the kitchen and put away the massive amount of leftovers before leaving. Jamie would never live it down if they had to throw out all the food because he and Kyle had forgot to put it away before spending hours fucking in celebration.

  He caught Kyle’s mouth in a fierce kiss that Kyle yielded to instantly. The way he arched against Jamie, letting Jamie take command of the situation, would never get old. Jamie broke the kiss and started to lead Kyle toward their bedroom, pleased with the way he never fought being manhandled. He always went willingly, and for that, Jamie would be forever honored at the implicit trust it showed.

  The attending computer turned on the lights to a dim setting at their arrival. Jamie had lost his blazer somewhere in the hallway and Kyle’s shirt was tossed near the guest bathroom. They’d find everything tomorrow. Right now, the only thing that mattered was each other.

  Kyle hooked his left hand behind Jamie’s neck, the press of the ring a new sensation Jamie couldn’t get enough of. “How do you want me, sir?”

  A simple question that offered up countless possibilities, because Kyle would never say no to anything Jamie wanted. The limits Jamie set for himself were as much for his own sanity as for Kyle’s safety. With that in mind, Jamie kept working on the buttons of his dress shirt as he tilted his head at the bed.

  “I want you naked, on your back, with your head hanging over the side,” Jamie said.

  Kyle licked his lips, already working on stripping out of his jeans and underwear. Jamie took his time getting u
ndressed before grabbing a bottle of lube from the nightstand drawer. It was mostly full, and he tossed it on the bed within easy reach. He reached in and picked out a dildo from the sterilizing case, setting it on the bed as well. It wasn’t the longest or thickest in their collection, but its vibrating option was enjoyable to play with. Turning his attention back to Kyle, Jamie was pleased with what he saw.

  Kyle lay on his back as ordered, head hanging over the side, arms stretched along the edge of the mattress. His legs were bent at the knee for leverage, toes curled against the duvet. Jamie walked towards him, tugging on his hardening cock, aware of just how loud the sound of Kyle swallowing was in the quiet. Jamie came to a stop in front of him, running a hand through Kyle’s messy hair before he used it to help support Kyle’s neck.

  From this angle, Kyle’s throat was stretched out, a taut line that Jamie ran his thumb over in a possessive manner. “The things I want to do to you.”

  “You think I would ever stop you?”

  “I know you won’t. That’s why I’m in charge.”

  “Then tell me what to do, sir,” Kyle said, his breath ghosting over Jamie’s cock. “I’ll do anything you want. You can do anything you want to me. Just touch me.”

  The desire in Kyle’s eyes never got old; neither did the aching need in his voice. His trust was a gift, one Jamie vowed to never abuse.

  Jamie reached for the lube and picked it up. “Give me your right hand.”

  Kyle obeyed instantly, letting Jamie coat his fingers with slickness. Jamie capped the bottle and dropped it on the bed before guiding Kyle’s hand between his bent legs. Jamie let out a grunt when he felt Kyle lick teasingly at his balls.

  “Impatient, are we?” Jamie asked as he straightened up.

  “It’s not my fault your cock was in reach of my mouth, sir,” Kyle said, trying for innocent and failing miserably.